John Lithgow
John Arthur Lithgow is an American actor. He studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his diverse work on stage and screen. He has received numerous accolades, including six Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and two Tony Awards, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, four Grammy Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Laurence Olivier Award. Lithgow won two Tony Awards, his first for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his Broadway debut in The Changing Room (1972) and his second for Best Actor in a Musical for the musical Sweet Smell of Success (2002). He was Tony-nominated for Requiem for a Heavyweight (1985), M. Butterfly (1988), and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (2005). He has acted in the plays The Columnist (2012), A Delicate Balance (2014), and Hillary and Clinton (2019). He portrayed Roald Dahl in the play Giant on the West End, for which he was nominated for the Olivier Award for Best Actor. He starred as Dick Solomon in the television sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996–2001), winning three Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Actor in a Comedy Series. He received further Primetime Emmy Awards for his performances as Arthur Mitchell in the drama Dexter (2009) and as Winston Churchill in the Netflix drama The Crown (2016–2019). He also starred in HBO's Perry Mason (2020) and FX's The Old Man (2022). On film, he has received two Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor nominations for his roles as a transsexual ex-football player in The World According to Garp (1982) and a lonely banker in Terms of Endearment (1983). He also acted in All That Jazz (1979), Blow Out (1981), Footloose (1984), Harry and the Hendersons (1987), A Civil Action (1998), Shrek (2001), Kinsey (2004), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Love Is Strange (2014), Interstellar (2014), Late Night (2019), Bombshell (2019), Killers of the Flower Moon (2023), and Conclave (2024).
Known For
Credits
- 2025 · Jimpa as Jimpa
- 2025 · Dexter: Resurrection as Arthur Mitchell
- 2025 · The Rule of Jenny Pen as Dave Crealy
- 2025 · SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night as Self
- 2024 · Spellbound as Bolinar (voice)
- 2024 · Conclave as Tremblay
- 2020 · Give My Regards to Broadway as Self
- 2019 · Late Night as Walter Lovell
- 2018 · The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer as Self - Guest
- 2017 · Broadway: The Next Generation as Self
- 2017 · Beatriz at Dinner as Doug Strutt
- 2016 · Shakespeare Live! From the RSC as Self - Performer
- 2015 · Best of Enemies as Voice of Gore Vidal
- 2015 · Inside 'Interstellar' as Self
- 2014 · The Roosevelts: An Intimate History as James Roosevelt (voice)
- 2013 · Timms Valley as Ol' Gregory Timms
- 2013 · Shrek Stories as Lord Farquaad (voice)
- 2013 · National Theatre Live: The Magistrate as Posket
- 2012 · Casting By as Self
- 2011 · Prohibition as Reader / H.L. Mencken (voice)
- 2009 · The Macabre World of Lavender Williams as God
- 2007 · ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway as Self
- 2006 · Twenty Good Years as
- 2005 · Einstein's Big Idea as Narrator (voice) U.S. edition
- 2005 · The Apprentice: Martha Stewart as
- 2004 · The Life and Death of Peter Sellers as Blake Edwards
- 2003 · VH1 Goes Inside as
- 2003 · The Ghost of Lord Farquaad as Ghost of Farquaad (voice)
- 2003 · DreamWorks 6 Spooky Stories Collection as Ghost of Farquaad (voice)
- 2002 · E! Live from the Red Carpet as Self
- 2002 · Orange County as Bud Brumder
- 2001 · Shrek in the Swamp Karaoke Dance Party as Lord Farquaad (singing voice)
- 2000 · Don Quixote as Don Quixote de La Mancha / Alonso Quixano
- 1999 · The Early Show as Self
- 1998 · A Civil Action as Judge Walter J. Skinner
- 1998 · Homegrown as Malcolm / Robert Stockman
- 1996 · Hollow Point as Thomas Livingston
- 1996 · The West as Self
- 1996 · The West as Self / Uriah Oblinger (voice)
- 1995 · My Brother's Keeper as Tom Bradley / Bob Bradley
- 1994 · Princess Caraboo as Professor Wilkinson
- 1994 · A Good Man in Africa as Arthur Fanshawe, British High Commissioner
- 1994 · World War II: When Lions Roared as Franklin Delano Roosevelt
- 1993 · The Wrong Man as Phillip Mills
- 1991 · At Play in the Fields of the Lord as Leslie Huben
- 1991 · Ricochet as Earl Talbott Blake
- 1991 · The Boys as Artie Margulies
- 1989 · Out Cold as Dave
- 1986 · The Manhattan Project as John Mathewson
- 1985 · Mesmerized as Oliver Thompson
- 1985 · Santa Claus: The Movie as B.Z.
- 1984 · 2010 : The Odyssey Continues as Himself
- 1980 · Mom, the Wolfman and Me as Wally
- 1978 · The Big Fix as Sam Sebastian
- 1977 · Secret Service as Capt. Thorne
- 1976 · Obsession as Robert Lasalle
- 1952 · Today as Self
- Future · Harry Potter as Albus Dumbledore
- 2024 · Art Happens Here with John Lithgow as Self
- 2024 · Cabrini as Mayor Gould
- 2023 · Dick Van Dyke: 98 Years of Magic as Self
- 2023 · Killers of the Flower Moon as Prosecutor Peter Leaward
- 2023 · Liv Ullmann: A Road Less Travelled as Self
- 2023 · Sharper as Richard Hobbes
- 2022 · Chez Bob as
- 2022 · Sherri as Self - Guest
- 2022 · The Old Man as Harold Harper
- 2022 · The Bubble as Tom the Studio Chairman
- 2021 · Live in Front of a Studio Audience: The Facts of Life and Diff'rent Strokes as Philip Drummond
- 2021 · Dexter: New Blood as Arthur Mitchell
- 2021 · Show of Titles as "There's No Business Like Show Business" Performer
- 2021 · Emily @ the Edge of Chaos as Sir Isaac Newton (voice)
- 2021 · Myths and Hymns as
- 2020 · Perry Mason as Elias Birchard 'E.B.' Jonathan
- 2020 · Stars in the House as Self - Special Guest
- 2019 · Bombshell as Roger Ailes
- 2019 · On Broadway as Self
- 2019 · The Kelly Clarkson Show as Self
- 2019 · The Investigation: A Search for the Truth in Ten Acts as President Donald J. Trump
- 2019 · The Tomorrow Man as Ed Hemsler
- 2019 · Pet Sematary as Jud Crandall
- 2018 · Pet Sematary: The Tale of Timmy Baterman as Jud Crandall
- 2018 · Firing Line with Margaret Hoover as
- 2018 · James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction as Self
- 2018 · Mister Rogers: It's You I Like as Self
- 2017 · Pitch Perfect 3 as Fergus
- 2017 · Daddy's Home 2 as Don
- 2017 · The Pulitzer At 100 as Self
- 2017 · Trial & Error as Larry Henderson
- 2017 · Hickory Dickory Doc as Himself
- 2017 · They All Saw a Cat as
- 2016 · Miss Sloane as Senator Ronald Sperling
- 2016 · The Crown as Winston Churchill
- 2016 · The Accountant as Lamar Blackburn
- 2016 · Ode to Joy: Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 as Narrator
- 2015 · The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as Self - Guest
- 2015 · The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as
- 2015 · The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as Self
- 2015 · Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter as Self
- 2015 · Lord John as
- 2015 · Projections of America as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2014 · Variety Studio: Actors on Actors as Self
- 2014 · Interstellar as Donald
- 2014 · The Jungle Bunch 2: The Great Treasure Quest as Maurice (voice)
- 2014 · Love Is Strange as Ben
- 2014 · The Homesman as Reverend Alfred Dowd
- 2014 · Late Night with Seth Meyers as Self
- 2014 · The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon as Self
- 2013 · Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love as Self
- 2013 · Once Upon a Time in Wonderland as The White Rabbit (voice)
- 2012 · This Is 40 as Oliver
- 2012 · The Campaign as Glen Motch
- 2012 · Finding Your Roots as Self
- 2011 · Shrek: Once Upon a Time as Self
- 2011 · New Year's Eve as Jonathan Cox (uncredited)
- 2011 · Rise of the Planet of the Apes as Charles Rodman
- 2010 · Conan as Self
- 2010 · Leap Year as Jack Brady
- 2009 · Miracle in a Box: A Piano Reborn as Narrator
- 2009 · Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen as Self - Guest
- 2009 · Confessions of a Shopaholic as Edgar West
- 2008 · Car of the Future as Narrator
- 2007 · The Graham Norton Show as Self
- 2006 · Dreamgirls as Jerry Harris
- 2006 · 30 Rock as John Lithgow
- 2006 · Dexter as Arthur Mitchell
- 2006 · The One Show as Self
- 2006 · The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays as René Gallimard (segment "M. Butterfly")
- 2006 · The Great Robot Race: The DARPA Grand Challenge as Narrator
- 2006 · Sangre as Cafe chef and owner
- 2005 · The Colbert Report as
- 2005 · How I Met Your Mother as Jerry Whittaker
- 2004 · The Tony Danza Show as Self
- 2004 · Kinsey as Alfred Seguine Kinsey
- 2004 · Dogs and More Dogs as Narrator
- 2003 · Bark, George as
- 2002 · Buckaroo Banzai Declassified as Self
- 2001 · Shrek as Lord Farquaad (voice)
- 2000 · Rugrats in Paris: The Movie as Jean-Claude (voice)
- 2000 · 95 Worlds and Counting as Narrator
- 1999 · Tales from the Crypt: The Robert Zemeckis Collection as Dr. Oscar Charles
- 1998 · Johnny Skidmarks as Sergeant Larry Skovik
- 1997 · The View as Self
- 1997 · The View as Self - Guest
- 1997 · Officer Buckle and Gloria as Narrator (voice)
- 1996 · Cosby as John Lithgow
- 1996 · The Daily Show as Self
- 1996 · Special Effects: Anything Can Happen as Narrator
- 1996 · The Rosie O'Donnell Show as Self - Guest
- 1996 · 3rd Rock from the Sun as Dick Solomon
- 1995 · The Tuskegee Airmen as Senator Conyers
- 1995 · Tales from the Crypt: You, Murderer as Dr. Oscar Charles
- 1995 · American Cinema as Narrator
- 1995 · Redwood Curtain as Laird Riordan
- 1994 · Silent Fall as Dr. Rene Harlinger
- 1994 · Masters of Illusion: The Wizards of Special Effects as Self
- 1994 · American Cinema as
- 1993 · The Country Mouse & the City Mouse: A Christmas Tale as Alexander (voice)
- 1993 · Love, Cheat & Steal as Paul Harrington
- 1993 · The Pelican Brief as Smith Keen
- 1993 · Frasier as Madman Martinez (voice)
- 1993 · Late Night with Conan O'Brien as Self - Guest
- 1993 · Cliffhanger as Eric Qualen
- 1993 · Sylvester and the Magic Pebble as Narrator
- 1992 · Raising Cain as Carter Nix / Cain / Dr. Nix / Josh / Margo
- 1990 · Amazing Stories: The Movie II as John Walters (archive footage)
- 1990 · Memphis Belle as Bruce Derringer
- 1990 · Ivory Hunters as Robert Carter
- 1990 · John Lithgow's Kid-Sized Concert as
- 1990 · Night of 100 Stars III as Self
- 1989 · The Simpsons as Gus (voice)
- 1989 · The Simpsons as John Lithgow (voice)
- 1989 · Traveling Man as Ben Cluett
- 1989 · Tales from the Crypt as Dr. Oscar Charles
- 1988 · Distant Thunder as Mark Lambert
- 1987 · Harry and the Hendersons as George Henderson
- 1987 · The Amazing Bone as Narrator
- 1987 · Baby Girl Scott as Neil Scott
- 1986 · Resting Place as Maj. Kendall Laird
- 1985 · Santa Claus: The Making of the Movie as Self
- 1985 · Amazing Stories as John Walters
- 1984 · 2010 as Dr. Walter Curnow
- 1984 · The Glitter Dome as Sgt. Marty Wellborn
- 1984 · The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension as Lord John Whorfin
- 1984 · Footloose as Rev. Shaw Moore
- 1984 · Goldilocks and the Three Bears as Goldilocks' Father
- 1983 · Terms of Endearment as Sam Burns
- 1983 · The Day After as Joe Huxley
- 1983 · Twilight Zone: The Movie as Valentine
- 1982 · Not in Front of the Children as Richard Carruthers
- 1982 · Faerie Tale Theatre as Goldilocks' Father
- 1982 · The World According to Garp as Roberta Muldoon
- 1982 · I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can as Mr. Brunner
- 1981 · Blow Out as Burke
- 1980 · Big Blonde as Herbie Morse
- 1980 · The Oldest Living Graduate as Clarence
- 1979 · All That Jazz as Lucas Sergeant
- 1979 · Rich Kids as Paul Philips
- 1975 · Saturday Night Live as Self - Host
- 1974 · NOVA as Narrator
- 1974 · The Country Girl as Paul Unger
- 1972 · Dealing: Or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues as John
- 1971 · Great Performances as Capt. Thorne
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Presenter
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Nominee & Performer
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Winner
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Nominee
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Nominee/Performer
- 1953 · The Oscars as Self - Presenter
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Paul Unger
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Major Kendall Laird
- 1951 · Hallmark Hall of Fame as Laird Riordan
- 1944 · Golden Globe Awards as Self - Nominee
- 1944 · Golden Globe Awards as Self - Presenter
- Future · Sequestered - Inside Conclave as Self