# Tom Sizemore

Thomas Edward Sizemore Jr. (/ˈsaɪzmɔːr/; November 29, 1961 – March 3, 2023) was an American actor. Born in Detroit, he started his career with supporting appearances in Born on the Fourth of July (1989), Lock Up (1989), and Blue Steel (1990). The appearances led to more prominent roles in films like Passenger 57 (1992), True Romance (1993), Striking Distance (1993), Natural Born Killers (1994), Strange Days (1995), Heat (1995), and The Relic (1997).
In 1998, Sizemore starred in Saving Private Ryan, his most commercially successful film. He later appeared in Bringing Out the Dead (1999), Black Hawk Down (2001), and Pearl Harbor (2001). He received a Golden Globe nomination for his lead role in the television film Witness Protection (1999). He also provided the voice of mobster Sonny Forelli in the acclaimed 2002 video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.
In 2007, VH1 aired the reality series Shooting Sizemore (2007), which depicted Sizemore's struggle to regain his career amid addictions to methamphetamine and heroin. He also participated in other reality series related to his addiction, including Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew (2010) and Celebrity Rehab Presents Sober House (2010). He appeared in the revival series of Twin Peaks (2017).

## Early life and education

Thomas Edward Sizemore Jr. was born on November 29, 1961 in Detroit. His mother, Judith (née Schannault), was a member of the city of Detroit ombudsman staff and his father, Thomas Edward Sizemore Sr., was a lawyer and philosophy professor. Thomas Jr. grew up as a Catholic and his parents divorced when he was a teenager. Thomas Sizemore Jr. said that his maternal grandfather was of French and Native American ancestry and also that his grandfather was African-American. He graduated from Wayne State University near downtown Detroit in 1983; he earned a bachelor's degree in theater there. He received a master's degree from Temple University in Philadelphia in 1986.

## Career

One of Sizemore's earliest film roles was in Oliver Stone's Born on the Fourth of July (1989). His other early appearances included Lock Up (1989), Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991), Point Break (1991), Passenger 57 (1992), True Romance (1993), Striking Distance (1993), Natural Born Killers (1994), and Strange Days (1995). He had a recurring role on the television series China Beach (1988–1991) as an enlisted man named Vinnie who was in love with Dana Delany's character. For his performance in Heart and Souls (1993), he was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor. He starred in the independent drama film Love Is Like That (1993) with actress and model Pamela Gidley and had a supporting role in Kevin Costner's Wyatt Earp (1994) as Bat Masterson.
A succession of well-received supporting parts followed, beginning with his portrayal of Michael Cheritto in the heist film Heat (1995). Sizemore's first major leading role was as Vincent D'Agosta in The Relic (1997). Sizemore continued to play leading and character parts in Devil in a Blue Dress (1995), Bringing Out the Dead (1999), and Witness Protection (1999). Saving Private Ryan (1998) proved to be his most commercially successful project, bringing in $217,000,000 at the box office. In the early 2000s, he appeared in the action films Pearl Harbor (2001), which also starred Ben Affleck and Ridley Scott's Black Hawk Down (2001). Sizemore had a voice role as Sonny Forelli in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. He starred in Ticker (2001), an action film directed by Albert Pyun, with Steven Seagal and Dennis Hopper. Sizemore also starred in the well-reviewed but short-lived television drama series Robbery Homicide Division (2002-2003). He appeared in the Mel Gibson-produced Paparazzi (2004), played Pete Rose in Hustle (2004) depicting his illegal gambling while managing the Cincinnati Reds, and played an undercover cop in Swindle (2006), opposite Sherilyn Fenn.
In the same year, Sizemore starred in The Genius Club (2006), playing a terrorist who taunts seven geniuses into solving the world's problems in one night. He had a leading role in the action/thriller film Splinter (2006) with Edward James Olmos. The next year, television network VH1 aired a six-episode reality TV series called Shooting Sizemore (2007), depicting the actor's life as he struggled to regain his career in the midst of battling long-standing addictions to methamphetamine and heroin. The series also covered an ongoing legal appeal of his conviction for an assault of former Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss. In the same year, the actor starred in the indie drama film Oranges (2007) with Tom Arnold and Jill Hennessy, which was directed by Syrian director and producer Joseph Merhi. Sizemore performed in two films that screened at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, Red (2008) and American Son (2008). He was highly prolific that year starring in The Last Lullaby (2008), The Flyboys (2008) with Stephen Baldwin, action film Stiletto (2008) with Tom Berenger and Michael Biehn, drama film Toxic (2008) with Costas Mandylor, and the Canadian drama A Broken Life (2008) with Ving Rhames.
Sizemore appeared in five episodes of the television series Crash (2008–2009) with Dennis Hopper and the comedy film Super Capers (2009). Sizemore starred in the indie horror film Murder 101 (2014) and co-starred with Kyra Sedgwick and Vincent D'Onofrio in the comedy-drama film Chlorine (2013). Sizemore starred alongside martial arts actor Mark Dacascos in the action film Shadows in Paradise (2010), followed by an appearance as a trucker in an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Sizemore appeared alongside the Insane Clown Posse in the comedy film Big Money Rustlas (2010) and the thriller heist Five Thirteen with Taryn Manning. He had roles in the films Suing the Devil (2011) and White Knight (2011), as well as the adventure film The Age of Reason (2014). He had a career resurgence when he was cast as a series regular in the USA Network action program Shooter (2016), starring Ryan Phillippe. Sizemore received positive notices for the drama thriller Calico Skies (2016). In 2017, he appeared as insurance agent Anthony Sinclair in David Lynch's revival miniseries Twin Peaks, and portrayed FBI Agent Bill Sullivan in the drama film Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House. Sizemore acted in an indie action film entitled The Assault (2017) with Jordan Ladd.
In 2020, Sizemore appeared in C.L.E.A.N., a thriller/horror indie film and won a Vegas Movie Award; in 2021 he won another Vegas Movie Award for his supporting role in indie film The Electric Man with Vernon Wells and Eric Roberts. In 2022, Sizemore won also an IndieFEST Film Award and Accolade Competition Award for his supporting role in The Electric Man. In January 2022, he joined the cast of The Legend of Jack and Diane, a feature film described as a female-fronted revenge thriller, directed and written by Bruce Bellocchi. Also in 2022, Sizemore starred in the comedy series Barbee Rehab, alongside Bai Ling and Janice Dickinson.

### Music

Sizemore fronted the Hollywood rock band Day 8. Formed in 2002, the band recorded a four-song EP produced and recorded by Bradley Dujmovic and former Snot/Soulfly guitarist Mike Doling. Originally called "The Bystanders", the group included guitarist and co-writer Rod Castro, Alan Muffterson, Tyrone Tomke, and Michael Taylor.

## Personal life

Sizemore married actress Maeve Quinlan in 1996. They divorced in 1999 because of Sizemore's drug problems. He dated Heidi Fleiss, known as the onetime "Hollywood Madam". He was for a time in a relationship with Janelle McIntire, who gave birth in July 2005 to his twin sons, Jagger and Jayden.
On October 19, 2005, Vivid Entertainment released The Tom Sizemore Sex Scandal, a pornographic video featuring Sizemore and three women. In the video, he said that he had sex with Paris Hilton. Hilton denied his claim and said it was a ploy by Sizemore to increase sales of the video.

### Substance abuse and legal issues

Sizemore said that he battled drug addiction from age 15.
In 2003, Sizemore was convicted of domestic violence against ex-girlfriend Heidi Fleiss. On March 25, 2005, he was sentenced to seven months in jail and four months of drug treatment for repeatedly failing drug tests while on probation. He was caught attempting to fake a urine test using a Whizzinator. Fleiss' restraining order against him lapsed by 2010.
On May 8, 2007, while still on probation for a previous drug conviction, he was arrested outside the Four Points Sheraton hotel in Bakersfield, California, for possession of methamphetamine.
In 2010, Sizemore appeared as a patient/castmember on VH1's third season of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew. Because Fleiss was also in treatment on the show that season, both she and Sizemore had to consent to appear together. His reunion with Fleiss was amicable.
In 2013, he appeared on the episode "Explosive Relationships" of the talk show Dr. Phil in which he discussed his rise to stardom and the subsequent fallout after his years of struggling with substance abuse. Also in 2013, Sizemore claimed in an interview that he had begun to achieve sobriety after a stern interrogation from fellow actor Robert De Niro. De Niro personally checked Sizemore into rehabilitation.
In early 2014, a recording emerged of Sizemore alleging that former girlfriend Elizabeth Hurley had an affair with Bill Clinton in 1998. Under threat of legal action, Sizemore admitted that the allegation was false. He elaborated that the recording was made without his knowledge during a time when he was battling substance abuse.
In February 2017, he pleaded no contest to two charges of domestic abuse for assaulting his girlfriend. He was sentenced to 36 months of summary probation, 30 days of community service and a year-long domestic violence program. He was subject to two protective orders associated with the charges and ordered to pay various fees. The deal was made by Sizemore to avoid spending 210 days in jail.
In November 2017, it was revealed by The Hollywood Reporter that Sizemore had been kicked off the set of the film Born Killers (then known as Piggy Banks) in 2003 for allegedly sexually molesting an 11-year-old actress when the film was in production near Salt Lake City, Utah. He denied any wrongdoing and was allowed back on the film set after the Salt Lake County prosecutor's office decided against going forward with the case "due to witness and evidence problems."
In May 2018, actress Kiersten Pyke, by then 26 years old, filed a lawsuit against Sizemore, claiming that his alleged abuse caused longstanding emotional problems and seeking at least $3 million. A statement from Sizemore's publicist again denied the abuse, noting that nothing amiss was reported by a Born Killers staff member whose duty was supervising the child actors who were on the set.
On August 27, 2020, USA Today reported that a Utah judge had dismissed the lawsuit. Sizemore again denied her claims saying: "Beyond the loss of work and the pain and humiliation this has caused me and my family, the thought that an 11-year old girl would think I violated her, whether it be because she misconstrued some inadvertent touching when the director placed her upon my lap for the photo shoot or someone else instilled this idea in her head for whatever malicious, self-serving reasons, is what devastates me most."
On January 5, 2019, Sizemore was arrested for misdemeanor drug possession of "various illegal narcotics" in Burbank, California.

## Death

On February 18, 2023, Sizemore suffered a brain aneurysm at his Los Angeles home and was hospitalized at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in critical condition. On February 27, his representative issued a statement indicating that doctors had determined there was "no further hope" for Sizemore to recover and had "recommended end-of-life decisions" to his family. Sizemore died on March 3, 2023, at the age of 61.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Lock Up | Dallas | |
| 1989 | Rude Awakening | Ian | |
| 1989 | Penn & Teller Get Killed | 2nd Mugger | |
| 1989 | Born on the Fourth of July | Vet No. 1 | |
| 1990 | A Matter of Degrees | Zeno Stefanos | |
| 1990 | Blue Steel | Wool Cap | |
| 1991 | Flight of the Intruder | "Boxman" | |
| 1991 | Guilty by Suspicion | Ray Karlin | |
| 1991 | Point Break | DEA Agent Deets | |
| 1991 | Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man | Chance Wilder | |
| 1991 | Where Sleeping Dogs Lie | Eddie Hale | |
| 1992 | Love Is Like That | Lenny | |
| 1992 | Passenger 57 | Sly Delvecchio | |
| 1993 | Watch It | Danny | |
| 1993 | Heart and Souls | Milo Peck | |
| 1993 | True Romance | Detective Cody Nicholson | |
| 1993 | Striking Distance | Danny Detillo | |
| 1994 | Wyatt Earp | Bat Masterson | |
| 1994 | Natural Born Killers | Detective Jack Scagnetti | |
| 1995 | Strange Days | Max Peltier | |
| 1995 | Devil in a Blue Dress | DeWitt Albright | |
| 1995 | Heat | Michael Cheritto | |
| 1997 | The Relic | Lieutenant Vincent D'Agosta | |
| 1998 | Saving Private Ryan | Sergeant First Class Mike Horvath | |
| 1998 | Enemy of the State | Paulie Pintero, Mob Kingpin | |
| 1999 | The Florentine | Teddy | |
| 1999 | The Match | "Buffalo" | |
| 1999 | Bringing Out the Dead | Tom Wolls | |
| 1999 | Play It to the Bone | Joe Domino | |
| 2000 | Get Carter | Les Fletcher | Voice |
| 2000 | Red Planet | Dr. Quinn Burchenal | |
| 2001 | Pearl Harbor | Sergeant Earl Sistern | |
| 2001 | Ticker | Detective Ray Nettles | |
| 2001 | Black Hawk Down | Colonel Danny McKnight | |
| 2002 | Big Trouble | "Snake" Dupree | |
| 2002 | Swindle | Seth George | |
| 2002 | Welcome to America | Zach | |
| 2003 | Pauly Shore Is Dead | Himself | |
| 2003 | Dreamcatcher | Lieutenant Owen Underhill | |
| 2004 | Paparazzi | Rex Harper | |
| 2005 | The Nickel Children | Freedo | |
| 2005 | Born Killers | Dad | |
| 2005 | No Rules | Kain Diamond | |
| 2006 | Zyzzyx Road | Joey | |
| 2006 | Ring Around the Rosie | Pierce | Video |
| 2006 | Shut Up and Shoot! | Himself | |
| 2006 | Splinter | Detective Cunningham | |
| 2006 | The Genius Club | Armand | |
| 2007 | White Air | Steve | |
| 2007 | Bottom Feeder | Vince Stoker | |
| 2007 | Oranges | Burt | |
| 2007 | Furnace | Frank Miller | |
| 2007 | A Broken Life | Max | |
| 2008 | American Son | Dale | |
| 2008 | The Flyboys | Angelo Esposito | |
| 2008 | Red | Michael McCormack | |
| 2008 | The Last Lullaby | Price | |
| 2008 | Stiletto | "Large" Bills | |
| 2008 | Toxic | Van Sant | |
| 2009 | Commute | God | |
| 2009 | Super Capers | Roger Cheatem | |
| 2009 | The Grind | Chuck | |
| 2009 | 21 and a Wake-Up | Jack Breedlau | |
| 2009 | Double Duty | Craig | |
| 2010 | Big Money Rustlas | Himself | |
| 2010 | Shadows in Paradise | Colonel Bunker | |
| 2010 | Corrado | Paolo Spinello | |
| 2011 | Good God Bad Dog | Ezra Mann | Short |
| 2011 | Black Gold | Detective Brandano | |
| 2011 | Cellmates | Leroy Lowe | |
| 2011 | Contractor's Routine | Art Professor | |
| 2011 | Suing the Devil | Tony "The Hip" Anzaldo | |
| 2011 | El Cartel de los Sapos | DEA Agent Sam Mathews | |
| 2012 | Slumber Party Slaughter | Tom Kingsford | |
| 2012 | El bosc | Pickett | |
| 2013 | Madoff: Made Off with America | Vito | |
| 2013 | Company of Heroes | Lieutenant Dean Ransom | Video |
| 2013 | Five Hour Friends | Timothy Bonner | |
| 2013 | Meth Head | Sonny | |
| 2013 | Chlorine | Ernie | |
| 2013 | Paranormal Movie | Himself | |
| 2013 | Before I Sleep | Randy | |
| 2013 | Five Thirteen | Glen | |
| 2013 | Fake Dog Shit | The Bum | Short |
| 2014 | SEAL Team 8: Behind Enemy Lines | Ricks | Video |
| 2014 | Through the Eye | Frank Rossi | |
| 2014 | Murder 101 | FBI Agent Ridley | |
| 2014 | Bordering on Bad Behavior | Bob | |
| 2014 | Reach Me | Frank | |
| 2014 | The Age of Reason | Robert | |
| 2015 |
| 2015 | The Intruders | Howard Markby | |
| 2015 | Laugh Killer Laugh | Orphanage Headmaster | |
| 2015 | 6 Ways to Die | Mike Jones | |
| 2015 | Night of the Living Dead: Darkest Dawn | Chief McClelland | Voice |
| 2015 | If I Tell You I Have to Kill You | Dr. Richard Baum | |
| 2016 |
| 2016 | Durant's Never Closes | Jack Durant | |
| 2016 | Swap | Kyle Norris | |
| 2016 | Halloweed | Vincent Modine | |
| 2016 | Crossing Point | Pedro | |
| 2016 | Wolf Mother | Jon | |
| 2016 | Traded | Lew Crawford / Lavoie | |
| 2016 | The Bronx Bull | Tony | |
| 2016 | Beyond Valkyrie: Dawn of the 4th Reich | Master Sergeant O'Malley | |
| 2016 | USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage | Chief Petty Officer McWhorter | |
| 2016 | Better Criminal | Sergeant Mike Martin | |
| 2016 | Calico Skies | Phoenix | |
| 2017 | Secrets of Deception | Eddie Green | |
| 2017 | Cross Wars | Detective Frank Nitti | |
| 2017 | Joe's War | Captain Vickers | |
| 2017 | Atomica | Darius Zek | |
| 2017 | The Immortal Wars | "Bloodshed" | |
| 2017 | Bad Frank | Mickey Duro | |
| 2017 | College Ball | - | |
| 2017 | Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House | FBI Agent Bill Sullivan | |
| 2017 | A Chance in the World | John Sykes | |
| 2017 | Blood Circus | Detective Jake Dawson | |
| 2017 | Radical | CIA Agent McKitrick | |
| 2018 | The Second Coming of Christ | Larry | |
| 2018 | The Martyr Maker | CIA Agent Terry Davis | |
| 2018 | Black Wake | Detective Michaels | |
| 2018 | Speed Kills | Dwayne Franklin | |
| 2018 | Nazi Overlord | Colonel Forrester | |
| 2019 | Wish Man | Sergeant Mason | |
| 2019 | Hell Girl | Jebidiha | |
| 2019 | The Pining | Father William | |
| 2019 | Abstruse | Max London | |
| 2019 | I Believe | Don Carlo | |
| 2019 | Cross 3 | Detective Frank Nitti | |
| 2020 |
| 2020 | C.L.E.A.N. | Mr. Wilkens, The Manager | |
| 2021 |
| 2021 | Narco Sub | DEA Agent-In-Charge Craig Ford | |
| 2021 | Central Park Dark | Thomas Winters | |
| 2021 | Monstrous: Interview with a Killer | Gabriel Light | |
| 2021 | The Trouble | Bob Carter | |
| 2021 | Megalodon Rising | Commander Moore | |
| 2021 | Hustle Down | Cully | |
| 2022 | Vampfather | Dr. Oomious | |
| 2022 | Damon's Revenge | Sheriff Walsh | |
| 2022 | The Electric Man | Jace | |
| 2022 | Impuratus | Detective Clayton Douglas | |
| 2022 | Project Skyquake | Hank | |
| 2022 | Bullet Train Down | Scott Madison | |
| 2022 | Night of the Tommyknockers | Marshal Steed | |
| 2022 | Battle for Pandora | Commander Hank Lewis | |
| 2022 | Amber Road | Pluto | |
| 2022 | An Hedonia, The Fallen | Bossman Roy | Short |
| 2022 | The Legend of Jack and Diane | Detective Parker | |
| 2023 | The Getter | Moe "Cadillac" | Posthumous release |
| 2023 | Breakout | Chaz Coleman | Posthumous release |
| 2023 | Made Vicious | Victor | Posthumous release |
| 2023 | Mega Ape | Tom Goodwin | Posthumous release |
| 2023 | Buckle Up | Lucas Bergman | Unreleased |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Gideon Oliver | Paul Slocum | Episode: "Sleep Well, Professor Oliver" |
| 1989–90 | China Beach | Sergeant Vinnie Ventresca | Recurring cast: Season 3 |
| 1998 | Witness to the Mob | John Gotti | Television film |
| 1999 | Witness Protection | Bobby "Bats" Batton | Television film |
| 2002 |
| 2002 | Justice League | Metamorpho | Voice, episode: "Metamorphosis" |
| 2002–03 | Robbery Homicide Division | Lieutenant Sam Cole | Main cast |
| 2004 | Hustle | Pete Rose | Television film |
| 2004 | Dr. Vegas | Vic Moore | Main cast |
| 2007 | Shooting Sizemore | Himself | Main cast |
| 2007 | Head Case | Himself | 2 episodes |
| 2008 | CSI: Miami | Kurt Rossi | Episode: "Down to the Wire" |
| 2009 | Southland | Timmy Davis | Episode: "See the Woman" |
| 2010 | Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew | Himself | Main cast: Season 3 |
| 2010 | Celebrity Rehab Presents Sober House | Himself | Main cast: Season 2 |
| 2010 | Entourage | Himself | Episode: "Tequila Sunrise" |
| 2010 | It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia | Byron the Trucker | Episode: "The Gang Gets Stranded in the Woods" |
| 2011–12 | Hawaii Five-0 | Captain Vince Fryer | Recurring cast: Season 2 |
| 2012 |
| 2012 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Lewis Hoda | Episode: "Manhattan Vigil" |
| 2013 | Dr. Phil | Himself | Episode: "Explosive Relationships" |
| 2014 | Dark Haul | Knicks | Television film |
| 2014–15 | The Red Road | Jack Kopus | Recurring cast |
| 2015 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Lewis Hoda | Episode: "Depravity Standard" |
| 2015 | Exit Strategy | Jonathan Marks | Unaired pilot |
| 2016 | Lucifer | Hank Cutter | Episode: "Favorite Son" |
| 2016 | Undercover | Captain Rogers | Episode: "Is It Really What It Appears to Be?" |
| 2016–2017 | Shooter | Hugh Meachum | Recurring cast: "Season 1" |
| 2017 | Twin Peaks | Anthony Sinclair | Recurring cast |
| 2021 | Scarlett | Joe Salvatore | Television film |
| 2023 | Barbee Rehab | Dr. Tom | Main cast |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2002 | Grand Theft Auto: Vice City | Sonny Forelli | |
| 2006 | 24: The Game | Sid Wilson | |
| 2021 | Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition | Sonny Forelli | Archival recordings Remaster of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City only. |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 1994 | Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films | Best Supporting Actor | Heart and Souls | Nominated |
| 1998 | Golden Satellite Award | Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture | Saving Private Ryan | Nominated |
| 1999 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Cast | Saving Private Ryan | Nominated |
| 2000 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television | Witness Protection | Nominated |
| 2006 | XRCO Award | Best New Stud | Triple-X Tom | Nominated |
| 2021 | IndieFEST Film Awards | Best Supporting Actor | The Electric Man | Won |
| 2022 | Accolade Competition | Best Supporting Actor | The Electric Man | Won |
| 2022 | Vegas Movie Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Project Skyquake | Won |
| 2022 | Hollywood Blood Horror Festival | Best Supporting Actor | Amber Road | Won |

## Book

* Sizemore, Tom (with Anna David) (April 9, 2013). By Some Miracle I Made It Out of There: A Memoir. Atria Books. ISBN 978-1-451-68167-3.