# Kevin Dunn

Kevin Dunn (born August 24, 1955) is an American character actor who has appeared in supporting roles in numerous films and television series since the 1980s.
Dunn's roles include White House Communications Director Alan Reed in the political comedy Dave, U.S. Army Colonel Hicks in the 1998 version of Godzilla, a role he reprised for the animated adaptation of Godzilla, Alan Abernathy's father Stuart in Small Soldiers, Sam Witwicky's father Ron in the Transformers film series, Oscar Galvin in the 2010 action thriller Unstoppable and misanthropic White House Chief of Staff Ben Cafferty in Veep. He has also had recurring roles on True Detective in 2014 and on the TV series adaptation of The Mosquito Coast in 2021.

## Early life and education

Dunn was born in Chicago, the son of John Dunn, a musician and poet, and his wife Margaret (née East), a nurse. His sister is actress/comedian Nora Dunn. He also has a brother, Michael Dunn, a high school history teacher and football coach. He was raised in a Catholic family, and has Irish, English, Scottish, and German ancestry. Dunn graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University in 1977, and received an honorary doctorate in 2008 from the same school.

## Career

Dunn appeared in many live performances in Chicago and its suburbs, including the theater companies Northlight, Remains, Wisdom Bridge and Goodman before his TV and motion picture career. Dunn's work includes Samantha Who?, a series appearing on ABC from 2007 to 2009, as well as playing Ron Witwicky in Michael Bay's Transformers film series. His film appearances include Small Soldiers, Stir of Echoes, Godzilla, Snake Eyes, Nixon, Mad Love, Ghostbusters II, Dave, Beethoven's 2nd, Hot Shots!, and 1492: Conquest of Paradise. Dunn also played Murry Wilson in a 2000 miniseries, The Beach Boys: An American Family. He played President Richard Nixon's White House Counsel, Charles Colson, in Nixon and played President Bill Clinton's National Security Advisor, Sandy Berger, in the ABC miniseries The Path to 9/11. In 2000, he co-starred in Bette, a sitcom starring Bette Midler, in which he played her husband in the show's first 11 episodes. From 2004 to 2006 Dunn had a small recurring role as Terry Hardwick, a baseball coach and mentor to Tyler Hoechlin character Martin Brewer, on the long-running family drama 7th Heaven.
Dunn played Joel Horneck, Jerry's overzealous childhood friend, in the Seinfeld episode "Male Unbonding". He has also featured in Live Free or Die as well as the 2006 film Gridiron Gang.
Dunn is an executive producer of the award-winning documentary film Kumpanía: Flamenco Los Angeles (2011).
Dunn played the role of White House Chief of Staff Ben Cafferty in HBO's late 2010s political comedy Veep.

## Personal life

Dunn married Katina Alexander in 1986. They have a son, Jack.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1988 | Mississippi Burning | FBI Agent Bird | |
| 1989 | Ghostbusters II | Milton Angland | Uncredited |
| 1990 | Blue Steel | Assistant Chief Stanley Hoyt | |
| 1990 | Marked for Death | FBI Agent Sal Roselli | |
| 1990 | The Bonfire of the Vanities | Tom Killian | |
| 1991 | Only the Lonely | Patrick Muldoon | |
| 1991 | Hot Shots! | Lieutenant Commander Block | |
| 1992 | 1492: Conquest of Paradise | Captain Mendez | |
| 1992 | Chaplin | FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover | |
| 1993 | Dave | Alan Reed | |
| 1993 | Beethoven's 2nd | Brillo, Missy's Owner | Uncredited |
| 1994 | Little Big League | Arthur Goslin | |
| 1995 | Mad Love | Clifford Leland | |
| 1995 | Nixon | Charles Colson | |
| 1996 | Chain Reaction | FBI Agent Doyle | |
| 1997 | The Sixth Man | Mikulski | |
| 1997 | Picture Perfect | Mr. Mercer | |
| 1998 | Godzilla | Colonel Tony Hicks | |
| 1998 | Almost Heroes | Hidalgo | |
| 1998 | Small Soldiers | Stuart Abernathy | |
| 1998 | Snake Eyes | Lou Logan, Reporter | |
| 1999 | Stir of Echoes | Frank McCarthy | |
| 2002 | Confessions | Unknown | Short film |
| 2004 | I Heart Huckabees | Marty | |
| 2006 | The Darwin Awards | Insurance Executive | |
| 2006 | Live Free or Die | Chief Monson | |
| 2006 | The Black Dahlia | Cleo A. Short, Elizabeth Short's Father | Uncredited |
| 2006 | Gridiron Gang | Ted Dexter | |
| 2006 | All the King's Men | Alex | |
| 2007 | Transformers | Ron Witwicky | |
| 2007 | Lions for Lambs | Howard, ANX Editor | |
| 2008 | Vicky Cristina Barcelona | Mark | |
| 2009 | Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen | Ron Witwicky | |
| 2010 | Unstoppable | Oscar Galvin | |
| 2011 | You May Not Kiss the Bride | Agent Ross | |
| 2011 | Transformers: Dark of the Moon | Ron Witwicky | |
| 2011 | Warrior | Principal Joe Zito | |
| 2011 | Kumpania: Flamenco Los Angeles | — | Documentary Executive producer |
| 2012 | Fire with Fire | Agent Calvin Mullens | |
| 2013 | Jobs | Dr. Gil Amelio | |
| 2013 | The Frozen Ground | Lieutenant Bob Jent | |
| 2014 | Cesar Chavez | Dr. Arlo | Uncredited |
| 2014 | Draft Day | Marvin | |
| 2015 | Ashby | Coach Bruton | |
| 2015 | Slow Learners | Darren Lowry | |
| 2016 | Keeping Up with the Joneses | Carl Pronger | |
| 2017 | The Bachelors | Paul Abernac | |
| 2018 | Trading Paint | "Stumpy" | |
| 2019 | Captive State | Police Chief Igoe | |
| 2019 | Standing Up, Falling Down | Gary Rollins | |
| 2019 | Above Suspicion | Bob Singer | |
| 2021 | Thunder Force | Frank | |
| 2021 | Catch the Fair One | Willie | |
| 2021 | King Richard | Vic Braden | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1986 | Jack and Mike | Anthony Kubecek | 2 episodes |
| 1987 | Night of Courage | Policeman | Television movie |
| 1987 | Cheers | Jim McNulty | Episode: "The Last Angry Mailman" |
| 1988 | Beverly Hills Buntz | Rinaldo de Martino | Episode: "Brief Encounter" |
| 1988 | Day by Day | Mel Schrom | Recurring role (5 episodes) |
| 1988 | Sunny Spoon | Unknown | Episode: "Papa Rozzi" |
| 1988 | Family Ties | Bob | Episode: "The Boys Next Door" |
| 1989 | 21 Jump Street | Reed Bowman | Episode: "The Blu Flu" |
| 1988–1989 | L.A. Law | Barry Braunstein | 2 episodes |
| 1989 | Family Ties | Glen | Episode: "All in the Neighborhood (Part 1)" |
| 1989 | Gideon Oliver | Jacob Waldner | Episode: "Kennonite" |
| 1989 | Roseanne | Burt Drucker | Episode: "Somebody Stole My Gal" |
| 1989 | Taken Away | Lombardi | Television movie |
| 1990 | Seinfeld | Joel | Episode: "Male Unbonding" |
| 1990 | Sydney | Jake | Episode: "Jake" |
| 1990 | Dear John | Bob Morris | Episode: "A Priest's Story" |
| 1990 | Blind Faith | Lieutenant Gladston | Miniseries; 2 episodes |
| 1992 | Double Edge | Webber | Television movie |
| 1995 | The Four Diamonds | Charles Millard / Charles The Mysterious | Television movie |
| 1995 | JAG | Rear Admiral Al Brovo | 2 episodes |
| 1995 | Jack Reed: One of Our Own | Phil Brenner | Television movie |
| 1995 | Shadow of a Doubt | Mark Evola | Television movie |
| 1996 | Jack Reed: A Killer Among Us | Phil Brenner | Television movie |
| 1996 | Unforgivable | Milton "Milt" Stella | Television movie |
| 1996 | Shattered Mind | Eric | Television movie |
| 1997 | The Second Civil War | Jimmy Cannon | Television movie |
| 1997 | Arsenio | Al | Recurring role (6 episodes) |
| 1997 | On the Edge of Innocence | Dr. Barbico | Television movie |
| 1998–2000 | Godzilla | Major Tony Hicks (voice) | Series regular (20 episodes) |
| 1999 | The First Gentleman | The First Gentleman | Television movie |
| 1999 | Batman Beyond | Dr. Howard Hodges (voice) | Episode: "Heroes" |
| 2000 | The Beach Boys: An American Family | Murry Wilson | Miniseries; 2 episodes |
| 2000 | God, the Devil and Bob | (voice) | Recurring role (3 episodes) |
| 2000–2001 | Bette | Roy | Recurring role (12 episodes) |
| 2002 | The Practice | Bill Munce | Episode: "Man and Superman" |
| 2002 | Gleason | Jack Philbin | Television movie |
| 2002 | Push, Nevada | Mitch Mann | 2 episodes |
| 2002 | Boomtown | Ron Berman | Episode: "The David McNorris Show" |
| 2003 | Ann Rule Presents: The Stranger Beside Me | Dick Reed | Television movie |
| 2003 | Dragnet | J.J. Halsted | Episode: "Let's Make a Deal" |
| 2003 | L.A. County 187 | Lieutenant Bob Coughlan | Television movie |
| 2003 | Boston Public | Ed "Big Ed" | Episode: "Chapter Seventy-Five" |
| 2004 | NTSB: The Crash of Flight 323 | Cyrus | Television movie |
| 2004 | LAX | Vic Tilden | Episode: "Out of Control" |
| 2004 | Huff | Berkowitz | Episode: "Control" |
| 2004 | NYPD 2069 | Joe Banning | Television movie |
| 2005 | Law & Order | Arnie MacLaren | Episode: "Publish and Perish" |
| 2005 | Marsha Potter Gets a Life | Unknown | Television movie |
| 2004–2006 | 7th Heaven | Coach Terry Hardwick | Recurring role (4 episodes) |
| 2006 | Lost | Gordy | Episode: "The Long Con" |
| 2006 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Detective Carson Laird | Episode: "The Good" |
| 2006 | The Closer | Mar. Catalina | Episode: "Head Over Heels" |
| 2006 | The Path to 9/11 | Samuel "Sandy" Berger | Miniseries; 2 episodes |
| 2006 | A Perfect Day | Darren | Television movie |
| 2006 | The Mikes | Unknown | Television movie |
| 2006–2007 | Boston Legal | Attorney Jonathan Weiner | 2 episodes |
| 2007 | Prison Break | Cooper Green | 2 episodes |
| 2007–2009 | Samantha Who? | Howard | Series regular (35 episodes) |
| 2010–2011 | Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated | Various Characters (voice) | Recurring role (3 episodes) |
| 2011 | Harry's Law | District Attorney George Kupcheck | Episode: "Send in the Clowns" |
| 2011–2012 | Luck | Marcus Becker | Series regular (9 episodes) |
| 2013 | Prosecuting Casey Anthony | George Anthony | Television movie |
| 2013–2019 | Veep | Ben Cafferty | Main role (54 episodes) |
| 2014 | True Detective | Major Ken Quesada | Recurring role (5 episodes) |
| 2015–2016 | Code Black | Dr. Taylor | Recurring role (9 episodes) |
| 2016 | American Dad! | Councilman (voice) | Episode: "Roots" |
| 2016 | The Night Of | Daniel Lang | Television miniseries Episode: "The Beach" |
| 2018 | Ghosted | Mervyn "Merv" Minette | Recurring role (5 episodes) |
| 2019 | Documentary Now! | Rob Seger | Episode: "Any Given Saturday Afternoon" |
| 2019 | City on a Hill | District Attorney Nathan Rey | 6 episodes |
| 2019 | Suits | George Richardson | Episode: "Whatever It Takes" |
| 2019 | Constance | Unknown | Television movie |
| 2020 | Miracle Workers | Uncle Bert | Episode: "Dark Ages: Holiday" |
| 2020 | Mom | Gary | Episode: "Smitten Kitten and a Tiny Boo-Boo Error" |
| 2021 | The Mosquito Coast | Margot's Dad | Episode: "Light Out" |
| 2022 | God's Favorite Idiot | Gene | Main role |
| 2022 | A League of Their Own | Morris Baker | 2 episodes |
| 2023 | Law & Order | Defense Attorney Keith Hollins | Episodes: "Battle Lines" & "Deadline" |