You know him. You do! Mike Starr! No, not the bassist for Alice In Chains. The New York guy! Born to play men from the darker side of life. Frenchie, the midnight to 8 man. Joe, the hitman foiled by Lloyd and Harry and a couple of spicy peppers. Big Mike, the bloke Seagal humiliates in a packed bar for his bigotry. He's a face you'll recognise straight away. You'll laugh when you see him. A huge presence onscreen but always fun one even when the films he's in are far from it.
Spike Lee gave him a case of blue balls and Kimmy Schmidt laughed in his face. William Friedkin gave him an early role in one of the most controversial films of the 80's. He stressed Tom Hanks out in one of the funniest films of the 80's and ended the 80's in arguably the most depressing film ever made. He then started the 90's with two of the best gangster films ever made. He's been booked by Dano, equalized by Robert McCall, analyzed by Frasier Crane and answered to Jed Bartlett. He's been directed by Bob Rafelson, Brian De Palma, Martin Scorsese, the Coen Brothers, John Hughes, Tim Burton Oliver Stone and....Steven Seagal. Been in brilliant cult classics and diabolical adaptions of James Ellroy books. All that and he's had his arse handed to him by both JC's, John Candy and Jackie Chan. It's a rare career that can boast that and Mike's had a rare career. 235 credits over 42 years. He's busy as hell and he isn't slowing down anytime soon. Check out his filmography here.
Greatest hits
Goodfellas. Frenchie. The man who made Henry Hill's first heist possible. Ends up in a garbage truck with a face full of bullets.
The Bodyguard. Tony. The other bodyguard. Gets absolutely schooled by Kevin Costner in a brilliant kitchen scrap.
Dumb and Dumber. Eddie Mentalino. A subtle name. Bit of a bastard. Rips a budgie's head off. Hates loud noises.
The Office. Grotti. In an episode where *GASP* everyone thinks he's in the Mafia. A fun guest role just before the show went crashing downhill.
Previous heroes
M.C. Gainey
Mare Winningham
Dale Dickey
Vondie Curtis-Hall
Harris Yulin
Pepe Serna
Udo Kier
Fairuza Balk
Ernie Hudson
Lin Shaye
James Remar
Cloris Leachman
James Hong
David Strathairn
Frankie Faison
Conchata Ferrell
Dick Miller
Veronica Cartwright
Edie McClurg
Barry Shabaka Henley
Raymond Cruz
Reg E.Cathey
Elizabeth McGovern
John Amos
Bruce Greenwood
Mary McDonnell
Gerald McSorley
John Rothman
Margo Martindale
Kurtwood Smith
Paula Malcolmson
Luis Guzman
David Morse
Linda Hunt
Keith David
Zeljko Ivanek
Fiona Shaw
Xander Berkeley
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
C.C.H Pounder
William Forsythe
Beth Grant
Sven-Ole Thorsen
Regina King
Ric Young
Mark Rolston
Illeana Douglas
Jeanette Goldstein
Al Leong
Allan Graf
Bill Nunn
Thomas Rosales Jr
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