# Dermot Mulroney

Dermot Patrick Mulroney (born October 31, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is known for his roles in romantic comedy, western, and drama films.
Mulroney is known for his work in various films such as Long Gone (1987), Young Guns (1988), Staying Together (1989), Where the Day Takes You (1992), Point of No Return (1993), The Last Outlaw (1993), Angels in the Outfield (1994), My Best Friend's Wedding (1997), About Schmidt (2002), The Wedding Date (2005), Zodiac (2007), August: Osage County (2013), Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015), Scream VI, and Anyone but You (2023).
Mulroney played the main antagonist Francis Gibson in NBC's Crisis (2014), Dr. Walter Wallace in Pure Genius (2016–2017), Sean Pierce in Showtime's Shameless (2015–2017), and Bobby Sheridan in USA's The Purge (2018–2019).

## Early life

Mulroney was born in Alexandria, Virginia, on Halloween Day in 1963. His father, Michael Mulroney, from Elkader, Iowa, was a law professor at Villanova University School of Law beginning in the 1990s, prior to which he had a private practice in tax law for thirty years in Washington, D.C. His mother, Ellen, originally from Manchester, Iowa, was a regional theater actress. Mulroney is of Irish and German descent, and is the middle child among five siblings. He has two older brothers, Conor and Sean; a younger brother, Kieran Mulroney, who is an actor and screenwriter; and a younger sister, Moira.
Mulroney attended Matthew Maury Elementary School and played cello in school and city youth orchestras, as well as acted in children's community theater. He finished 9th and 10th grades at George Washington High School, before attending T. C. Williams High School (class of 1981) in Alexandria, Virginia. During his sophomore year in high school, he attended the Interlochen Arts Camp as a cellist. Beginning at age 18, Mulroney studied communications at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where he was a member of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, and graduated in 1985.
Mulroney has a scar on his upper lip from a childhood accident, about which he explained, "I was 3½ and I was carrying a dish for our pet rabbits. And I tripped and it broke, and I fell on it."

## Career
### 1986–1996

In his senior year in college, Mulroney responded to a sign-up sheet and auditioned in front of WMA agent Barbara Gale, who offered him a contract and asked him to relocate to Hollywood. There, Mulroney auditioned for three months before landing the role of the male lead in his debut in Sin of Innocence. In his first decade acting, Mulroney appeared in a slew of drama films often dealing with heavy subject matter: Sin of Innocence (1986), in which he played a stepbrother romantically involved with his stepsister after their parents marry; Daddy (1987), in which he played the boyfriend in a couple struggling with teenage parenthood; the Lee Grant sibling family drama Staying Together (1989); Unconquered (1989), in which he portrayed the son of Richmond Flowers Sr., an opponent of Alabama Governor George Wallace's segregationist policies; Longtime Companion (1989), in which he portrayed the first HIV/AIDS patient to die of the disease in a widely released film; Where the Day Takes You (1992), in which he plays the leader of a group of teenage runaways trying to survive in the streets of Los Angeles; and supporting roles in the Emmy Award-nominated Family Pictures (1993), which dealt with the struggles of raising a child with autism, and Bastard out of Carolina (1996), which dealt with abuse and molestation.
In 1988, Mulroney appeared in the baseball flick Long Gone, for which he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie at the CableACE Awards. In 1989, he appeared in Survival Quest, during which he met Catherine Keener. While filming, in 1986, Keener was caught in a river current and floated precariously close to whitewater rapids when Mulroney jumped in and the pair were picked up half a mile downstream. The two eventually married in 1990. The couple would go on to appear together in four other films: Living in Oblivion (1995), Heroine of Hell (1996), Box of Moonlight (1996) and Lovely & Amazing (2001). Mulroney's roles in Samantha (1991) and Where the Day Takes You (1992) awarded him Best Actor at the Seattle International Film Festival. In 1993, he wrote the song "Someone Else's Used Guitar" for Peter Bogdanovich's The Thing Called Love, in which he also starred. Mulroney also had a cameo in the Joaquin Phoenix–directed video "Tired of Being Sorry" for Balthazar Getty's band Ringside.
Mulroney appeared in a number of western films throughout this period, namely Young Guns in 1988, Silent Tongue and The Last Outlaw in 1993, and Bad Girls in 1994. The Sam Shepard-directed Silent Tongue would mark the second in a series of four collaborations, with the two previously appearing together on screen in Bright Angel (1990), for which Mulroney won the Jury Special Prize at the Torino International Festival of Young Cinema. Mulroney co-starred in the comedy-drama films: Staying Together (1989); The Thing Called Love (1993), the second of two collaborations with River Phoenix before his death; and There Goes My Baby (1994), originally filmed in 1990. Mulroney appeared in the thriller films Point of No Return in 1993; Copycat in 1995; the Palme d'Or-nominated Kansas City, and The Trigger Effect in 1996. He was nominated for Best Kiss, with Winona Ryder, for How to Make an American Quilt (1996) at the MTV Movie Awards.

### 1997–present

Several of his lead performances have been in romantic comedy films. Mulroney has appeared in many films, including as the male lead in My Best Friend's Wedding alongside Julia Roberts and Cameron Diaz. In 1993 Mulroney played "J.P", the boyfriend of star "Maggie" (played by Bridget Fonda) in Point of No Return. Mulroney also played the love interest of Madeleine Stowe in the western Bad Girls. In 2005, he played a male escort alongside Debra Messing in The Wedding Date, and co-starred in the ensemble film The Family Stone, with Sarah Jessica Parker. He was also in the film Abduction (2011) as Martin Price.
In 2003, Mulroney played Gavin Mitchell on the TV series Friends. He appeared in three episodes of the ninth season, his character briefly dating Rachel. This would mark Mulroney's last on-screen appearance on television for a number of years, later revealing in a May 2007 interview that he had turned down TV series roles in favor of film. In 2007, Mulroney appeared in the fifth season of The Batman as Green Lantern / Hal Jordan. In 2011, he directed the feature film Love, Wedding, Marriage.
In 2012, Mulroney played the love interest of Zooey Deschanel, Russell, in the Fox series New Girl. In 2013, he played the title starring role in the psychotronic horror film The Rambler, which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. He also starred alongside Lin Shaye, Angus Sampson, and Stefanie Scott in the 2015 horror sequel Insidious: Chapter 3. He is the narrator of Legends & Lies (2015-2016) executive produced by Bill O'Reilly for Fox News Channel. He also appeared in the hit Showtime series Shameless as Sean, a recovering drug addict who runs a restaurant. In 2023, Mulroney starred in the sixth installment of the Scream franchise and starred in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television series Secret Invasion.

## Personal life

Mulroney married actress Catherine Keener in 1990 after they met in 1986 when filming Survival Quest. They have a son named Clyde Keener Mulroney (born June 21, 1999) who is a singer. The couple separated in May 2005 and Mulroney filed for divorce on June 11, 2007, citing irreconcilable differences. Their divorce became final on December 19, 2007. In 2008, he married Italian Tharita Cesaroni, who changed her name to Prima Apollinaare in 2015. They have two daughters, and the family lives in Los Angeles.
Mulroney is an accomplished cellist. In 1996, he was part of a band called the Low and Sweet Orchestra that released an album in 1996, "Goodbye to All That". In 2005 he appeared alongside Boyd Tinsley for Alanis Morissette's show at the House of Blues in Hollywood. He played the cello in the films The Thing Called Love, where he portrayed an aspiring country singer, the 1987 made-for-TV movie Daddy, and Samantha, where he portrayed a college student studying music. He played cello in the song "Place Your Hand" from Melissa Etheridge's 1992 album Never Enough, on the EP for Rain Phoenix's band Papercranes, and on the scores for Mission: Impossible III (2006), Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011), and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). In 2016, his band, Cranky George, released its debut album Fat Lot of Good. Most recently, he portrayed a cello soloist in the second and third seasons of Mozart in the Jungle.
Mulroney was included in People's Sexiest Men of the Year issue in 2005 as its "Sexiest Jack of Arts".

## Filmography

Key :
| † | Denotes works that have not yet been released |

### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1988 | Sunset | Michael Alperin | |
| 1988 | Young Guns | Dirty Steve Stephens | |
| 1989 | Staying Together | Kit McDermott | |
| 1989 | Survival Quest | Gray Atkinson | |
| 1989 | Longtime Companion | John | |
| 1990 | Bright Angel | George Russell | |
| 1991 | Career Opportunities | Nestor Pyle | |
| 1991 | Samantha | Henry | |
| 1992 | Where the Day Takes You | King | |
| 1993 | Silent Tongue | Reeves McCree | |
| 1993 | Point of No Return | J. P. | |
| 1993 | The Last Outlaw | Eustis | |
| 1993 | The Thing Called Love | Kyle Davidson | |
| 1994 | Bad Girls | Josh McCoy | |
| 1994 | There Goes My Baby | Pirate | |
| 1994 | Angels in the Outfield | Mr. Bomman | |
| 1994 | Scene Six, Take One | Wolf | Short film |
| 1995 | Copycat | Reuben Goetz | |
| 1995 | How to Make an American Quilt | Sam | |
| 1995 | Living in Oblivion | Wolf Überman | Also associate producer |
| 1996 | God's Lonely Man | — | Cellist |
| 1996 | Kansas City | Johnny O'Hara | |
| 1996 | The Trigger Effect | Joe | |
| 1996 | Box of Moonlight | Wick | |
| 1996 | Bastard Out of Carolina | Lyle Parsons | |
| 1997 | My Best Friend's Wedding | Michael O'Neal | |
| 1999 | Goodbye Lover | Jake Dunmore | |
| 2000 | Trixie | Dexter "Dex" Lang | |
| 2000 | Where the Money Is | Wayne MacKay | |
| 2001 | The Safety of Objects | Jim Train | |
| 2001 | Investigating Sex | Edgar Faldo | |
| 2001 | Lovely & Amazing | Kevin McCabe | |
| 2002 | About Schmidt | Randall Hertzel | |
| 2004 | Undertow | John Munn | |
| 2004 | Hair High | Rod | Voice |
| 2005 | The Wedding Date | Nick Mercer | |
| 2005 | Must Love Dogs | Bob Connor | |
| 2005 | The Family Stone | Everett Stone | |
| 2006 | Mission: Impossible III | — | Cellist |
| 2006 | Griffin & Phoenix | Henry Griffin | |
| 2007 | Dante's Inferno | Dante Alighieri | Also cellist Voice |
| 2007 | Zodiac | Captain Marty Lee | |
| 2007 | Georgia Rule | Dr. Simon Ward | |
| 2007 | Gracie | Bryan Bowen | |
| 2008 | Jolene | Uncle Phil | |
| 2008 | Burn After Reading | Star of "Coming Up Daisy" | |
| 2008 | Flash of Genius | Gil Previck | |
| 2009 | Kisses Over Babylon | Warden | Short film |
| 2009 | Star Trek | — | Cellist |
| 2010 | Inhale | Paul Stanton | |
| 2011 | Abduction | Martin Price | |
| 2011 | J. Edgar | Colonel Norman Schwarzkopf Sr. | |
| 2011 | The Family Tree | Jack Burnett | |
| 2011 | Love, Wedding, Marriage | — | Director |
| 2011 | Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol | — | Cellist |
| 2012 | Struck by Lightning | Neal Phillips | |
| 2012 | The Grey | Jerome Talget | |
| 2012 | Big Miracle | Colonel Scott Boyer | |
| 2012 | John Carter | — | Cellist |
| 2012 | Trade of Innocents | Alex Becker | |
| 2012 | Beyond | Officer Jack Musker | |
| 2013 | Space Warriors | Andy Hawkins | |
| 2013 | Stoker | Richard Stoker | |
| 2013 | The Rambler | The Rambler | |
| 2013 | Jobs | Mike Markkula | |
| 2013 | A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III | Doctor | |
| 2013 | August: Osage County | Steve Heidebrecht | |
| 2013 | Star Trek Into Darkness | — | Cellist |
| 2014 | Dawn of the Planet of the Apes | — | Cellist |
| 2015 | Careful What You Wish For | Elliott Harper | |
| 2015 | Tomorrowland | — | Cellist |
| 2015 | Truth | Lawrence Lanpher | |
| 2015 | Insidious: Chapter 3 | Sean Brenner | |
| 2015 | Jurassic World | — | Cellist |
| 2015 | Inside Out | — | Cellist |
| 2015 | The D Train | Himself | |
| 2016 | Dirty Grandpa | David Kelly | |
| 2016 | Lavender | Patrick | |
| 2016 | Zootopia | — | Cellist |
| 2016 | Star Trek Beyond | — | Cellist |
| 2016 | Rogue One: A Star Wars Story | — | Cellist |
| 2017 | Sleepless | Stanley Rubino | |
| 2017 | Spider-Man: Homecoming | — | Cellist |
| 2017 | War for the Planet of the Apes | — | Cellist |
| 2017 | The Mountain Between Us | Mark Robertson | |
| 2018 | I Still See You | August Bittner | |
| 2018 | Incredibles 2 | — | Cellist |
| 2018 | Cats and Peachtopia | Blanket | Voice |
| 2019 | Sgt. Will Gardner | Buddy | |
| 2019 | Spider-Man: Far From Home | — | Cellist |
| 2019 | The Courier | Special Agent Roberts | |
| 2020 | Hard Luck Love Song | Rollo | |
| 2021 | The Blazing World | Tom Winter | |
| 2021 | Deadly Illusions | Tom Morrison | |
| 2021 | Christmas Is Cancelled | Jack Lockhart | |
| 2022 | Along for the Ride | Robert West | |
| 2022 | Gone in the Night | Nicholas Barlow | |
| 2022 | Umma | Danny | |
| 2022 | The Inhabitant | Ben Haldon | |
| 2022 | Agent Game | Harris | |
| 2022 | Section Eight | Sam Ramsey | |
| 2023 | Scream VI | Detective Wayne Bailey | |
| 2023 | You're Killing Me | Congressman Schroder | |
| 2023 | Shooting Stars | Keith Dambrot | |
| 2023 | Breakwater | Ray Childress | |
| 2023 | The Dirty South | Jeb Roy | |
| 2023 | The Warrant: Breaker's Law | Yule Bronson | |
| 2023 | Ruthless | Harry | |
| 2023 | Anyone but You | Leo | |
| 2024 | Lights Out | Sage Parker | |
| 2024 | Guns & Moses | Alan Rosner | |
| 2024 | Blackwater Lane | Matthew Anderson | |
| 2024 | Depravity | Mr. Evers | |
| 2025 | Laws of Man | Benjamin Bonney | |
| 2025 | Like Father Like Son | Gabe McKennan | |
| 2025 | When I'm Ready | Keith | |
| 2025 | Killing Mary Sue † | Bradley Weiner | Post-production |
| 2025 | Long Shadows † | Dallas Garrett | |
| TBA | The Gettysburg Address † | Andrew Gregg Curtin | Voice; post-production |
| TBA | Play Dirty † | TBA | Post-production |
| TBA | Dead and Breakfast † | TBA | Post-production |
| TBA | Perfectly Imperfect † | Jake | |
| TBA | Dead of Night † | Sheriff Weaver | |
| TBA | November 1963 † | Charles Nicoletti | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1986 | Sin of Innocence | Tim McGary | Television film (CBS) |
| 1986 | Fame | Max | Episode: "Losin' It" |
| 1986 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Doug Dawson | Episode: "The Drug Knot" |
| 1987 | Daddy | Bobby | Television film (ABC) |
| 1987 | Long Gone | Jamie Weeks | Television film (HBO) |
| 1989 | Unconquered | Richmond Flowers Jr. | Television film (CBS) |
| 1992 | The Heart of Justice | Elliot Burgess | Television film (TNT) |
| 1993 | Family Pictures | Mack Eberlin | Television film (ABC) |
| 1993 | The Last Outlaw | Eustis | Television film (HBO) |
| 1996 | Heroine of Hell | Callum | Television film (PBS) |
| 2003 | Friends | Gavin Mitchell | 3 episodes; Season 9 |
| 2007–08 | The Batman | Green Lantern / Hal Jordan | 3 episodes; Voice |
| 2008 | The Memory Keeper's Daughter | Dr. David Henry | Television film (Lifetime) |
| 2011 | Silent Witness | Tony Lord | Television film (TNT) |
| 2012–18 | New Girl | Russell Schiller | 8 episodes; Seasons 1, 2 and 7 |
| 2012 | Saturday Night Live | Himself | Episode: "Jamie Foxx / Ne-Yo" |
| 2013 | Enlightened | Jeff Flender | 6 episodes; Season 2 |
| 2014 | Crisis | Francis Gibson | 13 episodes; Main cast |
| 2015 | Extant | Taalr | Episode: "Change Scenario"; uncredited; Voice |
| 2015 | Northpole: Open for Christmas | Ian Hanover | Television film (Hallmark) |
| 2015–17 | Shameless | Sean Pierce | 23 episodes; Seasons 5, 6 and 8 |
| 2015–16 | Mozart in the Jungle | Andrew Walsh | 3 episodes; Seasons 2 and 3; Also contributed to soundtrack |
| 2016–17 | Pure Genius | Dr. Walter Wallace | Main cast, 13 episodes |
| 2016 | Soundbreaking | Narrator | 8 episodes |
| 2017 | American Dad! | Jesse | Episode: "Julia Rogerts"; Voice |
| 2017 | American Horror Story: Cult | Bob Thompson | 3 episodes |
| 2017 | The Christmas Train | Tom Langdon | Television film (Hallmark Hall of Fame); Also contributed to soundtrack |
| 2018 | LA to Vegas | Captain Steve Jasser | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Kingpin | Narrator | 4 episodes |
| 2018 | Rob Riggle's Ski Master Academy | Himself | 3 episodes |
| 2018 | Homecoming | Anthony | Main cast, 3 episodes |
| 2018 | Into the Dark | Henry Tooms | Episode: "Flesh & Blood" |
| 2018 | Drunk History | Georges Ladoux | Episode: "Femme Fatales" |
| 2018–19 | The Purge | Bobby Sheridan | Recurring cast (Season 2) |
| 2018–19 | Arrested Development | Dusty Radler | 7 episodes |
| 2018–19 | Station 19 | Greg Tanner | Recurring cast, 5 episodes |
| 2019 | Four Weddings and a Funeral | Bryce Dylan | Recurring cast, 6 episodes |
| 2019 | The Righteous Gemstones | Johnny Seasons | Recurring cast, 4 episodes |
| 2020 | Messiah | President John Young | 2 episodes |
| 2020 | Prodigal Son | Nicholas Endicott | 3 episodes; Season 1 |
| 2020 | The Eric Andre Show | Himself | Episode: "Lizzo Up" |
| 2020–21 | Hanna | John Carmichael | 16 episodes |
| 2023 | Ghosts of Beirut | Robert Ames | Episode: "Emergence" |
| 2023 | Secret Invasion | President James Ritson | Main cast, 4 episodes |
| 2024–present | Chicago Fire | Battalion Chief Dominick "Dom" Pascal | Main cast, 14 episodes |
| 2025 | Chicago Med | Battalion Chief Dominick "Dom" Pascal | Episode: "In the Trenches: Part II" |
| 2025 | Chicago P.D. | Battalion Chief Dominick "Dom" Pascal | Episode: "In the Trenches: Part III" |
| TBA | The Hunting Wives | Jed Banks | Upcoming series |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Event | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 1988 | CableACE Awards | Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie | Long Gone | Nominated |
| 1990 | Torino International Festival of Young Cinema | Jury Special Prize | Bright Angel | Won |
| 1992 | Seattle International Film Festival | Best Actor | Samantha Where The Day Takes You | Won |
| 1996 | MTV Movie Awards | Best Kiss (shared with Winona Ryder) | How to Make an American Quilt | Nominated |
| 2007 | Philadelphia Film Festival | Artistic Achievement Award | Himself | Won |
| 2013 | Seattle Film Critics Society | Award for Best Ensemble | August: Osage County | Nominated |
| 2013 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | August: Osage County | Nominated |
| 2013 | Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards | Best Ensemble | August: Osage County | Nominated |