Will Patton

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox person William Rankin Patton (born June 14, 1954) is an American actor. He starred as Colonel Dan Weaver in the TNT science fiction series Falling Skies.<Ref>"Kindly Keep Your Mitts Off My Planet" by Katrina Onstad at nytimes.com</Ref> He also appeared in the films The Client (1994), Armageddon (1998), Gone in 60 Seconds (2000), Remember the Titans (2000), The Punisher (2004), American Honey (2016), Halloween (2018), and Minari (2020).<Ref>"‘Minari’ Wins Big With North Carolina Film Critics Association, Chloé Zhao’s Directing Winning Streak Continues" by Clayton Davis at variety.com</Ref> He appeared opposite Kevin Costner in four films: No Way Out (1987), The Postman (1997), and Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 (both 2024), as well as having a guest role in seasons 3 and 4 of Costner's Paramount Network series Yellowstone (2020–2022). Patton played Deputy Marnes in season one of the 2023 TV series Silo.

Patton was nominated alongside castmates for his ensemble work in Minari and Yellowstone at the Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2020 and 2021,<ref name = MinariSAG27th/><ref name = YellowstoneSAG28th/> and won two Obie Awards for Best Actor in Sam Shepard's play Fool for Love and the Public Theater production of What Did He See?.<Ref name=CourierSeasonedRef>"Seasoned actor takes on diversity of roles" by Bill Thompson, The Post and Courier (21 Dec, 1997) Retrieved from Template:ProQuest</Ref>

Early life

William Rankin Patton was born on June 14, 1954 in Charleston, South Carolina,<Ref>"Revisionist with a cause" by Jim Schembri, The Age (2 Feb, 2001) [Late Edition] Retrieved from Template:ProQuest</Ref> the eldest of three children. His father, Bill Patton, was a playwright and acting/directing instructor who was a Lutheran minister and served as a chaplain at Duke University.<ref name=semi>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news The original posting of the date of this article was May 7, 2010, which cannot be substantiated from the archived article.</ref> Patton was raised on a farm, where his parents ran a foster home for wayward teenagers.<ref name=semi/>

Career

Theater

Patton had lead roles in Sam Shepard's play Fool for Love and in the Public Theater production of What Did He See?<Ref name=CourierSeasonedRef/>

Film and television

Will portrayed character Ox Knowles on "Ryan's Hope" 1982-83. Patton portrayed the evil antagonist in Desperately Seeking Susan (1985) and had a significant role in No Way Out (1987) opposite Kevin Costner,<ref name=semi/> his first major film. He went on to play the role of General Bethlehem, again opposite Kevin Costner, in the 1997 The Postman.<ref>The Postman review by Todd McCarthy at variety.com</ref> He portrayed coach Bill Yoast in Remember the Titans (2000),<ref>Remember the Titans review by Todd McCarthy at variety.com</ref> and FBI agent Melvin Purvis in the 1991 made-for-television film Dillinger,<Ref>"Dillinger shot in Milwaukee! TV moviemakers give Wisconsin the rights to a Chicago legend" by Charles Leroux, Chicago Tribune (18 July, 1990) Retrieved from Template:ProQuest</Ref> before a supporting actor performance in Armageddon (1998). Patton performed the role of Alan Wilson for five episodes on the TV show 24 (2009).

Patton also appeared in Silkwood (1983), The Client (1994), Copycat (1995), The Spitfire Grill (1996), Entrapment (1999), Gone in 60 Seconds (2000),<ref>Gone In 60 Seconds review by Roger Ebert at www.rogerebert.com</ref> The Mothman Prophecies (2002), The Punisher (2004),<ref>The Punisher review by Roger Ebert at www.rogerebert.com</ref> The Fourth Kind (2009), Brooklyn's Finest (2010), Minari (2020) and The Forever Purge (2021). Patton had a guest role in seasons 3 and 4 of Costner's Paramount Network series Yellowstone (2020-2022).<ref>"Yellowstone season 4 reveals new cast members and teaser ahead of fall premiere" by Nick Romano at ew.com</ref>

Patton portrayed the character of Sam Conroy in the film American Violet (2008).<ref>American Violet review by Todd McCarthy at variety.com</ref> From 2011 to 2015, he starred as Colonel Weaver in the TNT sci-fi television series Falling Skies, executive-produced by Steven Spielberg. In 2018, Patton portrayed Officer Frank Hawkins in the horror reboot of Halloween,<ref>"Film Review: ‘Halloween’" by Peter Debruge at variety.com</ref> and reprised his role in its two Halloween sequels, Halloween Kills (2021)<ref>"‘Halloween Kills’ Review: It Will Feed Your Nostalgia…for Mediocre Slasher Sequels" by Owen Gleiberman at variety.com</ref> and Halloween Ends (2022).<ref>"‘Halloween Ends’ Review: Michael Myers Gets a Disciple, and Jamie Lee Curtis Mopes, as the Series Ends…But Not Really (Rinse, Slash, Repeat)" by Owen Gleiberman at variety.com</ref> He also portrayed Avery Sunderland in the DC Universe TV series Swamp Thing in 2019.<ref>"‘Swamp Thing’ Casts Andy Bean, Derek Mears in Lead Roles" by Margeaux Sippell at variety.com</ref>

Patton's Yellowstone lead, Kevin Costner, identified Patton in May 2023 as an actor that will join him again, this time in Horizon, a "Civil War saga" based on four scripts which Costner intends to write, direct, and act in, covering a 15-year period of "pre- and post-Civil War... settlement of the American west".<ref name = TnC_Horizon>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Audiobooks

Patton provided the voice for the audio version of Al Gore's 2007 The Assault on Reason.Template:WhenTemplate:Fact He recorded the audio version for 22 booksTemplate:What written by best-selling mystery writer James Lee Burke.Template:WhenTemplate:Fact He has recorded more than 45 audiobooks.

Critical reception

Template:Expand section Patton's acting work has been noted, critically and by colleagues. Speaking with regard to Patton's presence in the Yellowstone cast, executive producer and fellow cast member Kevin Costner "praise[d]" Patton as "very dynamic in his own way, formidable and detailed", adding that he was "a fantastic actor" and that "[i]t was good to see Will on the set."<ref name = StahulakOutsider211228>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Awards and recognition

Patton won two Obie Awards for best actor for his theatrical performances in Fool for Love<ref>Winners 1984 at www.obieawards.com</ref> and What Did He See?.<ref>Winners 1989 at www.obieawards.com</ref> He was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in The Postman (1997).Template:Fact

More recently, Patton was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the 27th SAG Awards alongside his fellow cast members, for their work in Minari (2020),<ref name = MinariSAG27th>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series at the 28th SAG Awards alongside his fellow cast members, for their work in Yellowstone (2021).<ref name = YellowstoneSAG28th>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1983	Variety	Mark
	King Blank	Bar Customer
	Silkwood	Joe
1985	The Beniker Gang	Forest Ranger
	Desperately Seeking Susan	Wayne Nolan
	After Hours	Horst
1986	Chinese Boxes	Lang Marsh
	Belizaire the Cajun	Matthew Perry
1987	No Way Out	Scott Pritchard
1988	Wildfire	Mike
	Stars and Bars	Duane Gage
1989	Signs of Life	Mr. Coughlin
1990	Everybody Wins	Jerry
	A Shock to the System	Lieutenant Laker
	Bright Angel	Woody	Uncredited<ref>"Bright Angel - Full Cast & Crew" at www.tvguide.com</ref>
1991	The Rapture	Deputy Foster
	Cold Heaven	Father Niles
1992	In the Soup	'Skippy'
1993	The Paint Job	Wesley
	Midnight Edition	Jack Travers
	Romeo Is Bleeding	Martie
1994	Tollbooth	Dash Pepper
	Natural Causes	Michael Murphy
	Judicial Consent	Alan Warwick	<ref>Judicial Consent review by Caren Weiner Campbell at ew.com</ref>
	The Client	Sergeant Hardy
	The Puppet Masters	Dr. Graves
1995	Copycat	Inspector Nicoletti
1996	Plain Pleasures
	The Spitfire Grill	Nahum Goddard	<ref>"Care of the Spitfire Grill" by Leonard Klady at variety.com</ref>
	Fled	Detective Matthew 'Gib' Gibson	<ref>Fled review by Ty Burr at ew.com</ref>
1997	Inventing the Abbotts	Lloyd Abbott
	Hounddogg
	This World, Then the Fireworks	Lieutenant Morgan
	The Postman	General Bethlehem	Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Supporting ActorTemplate:Fact
1998	OK Garage	Sean
	Armageddon	Charles 'Chick' Chapple
	I Woke Up Early the Day I Died	Preacher
1999	Breakfast of Champions	'Moe' The Truck Driver
	Entrapment	Hector Cruz
	Jesus' Son	John Smith
2000	Gone in 60 Seconds	Atley Jackson
	Trixie	W. 'Red' Rafferty
	Remember the Titans	Coach Bill Yoast
2002	The Mothman Prophecies	Gordon Smallwood
2004	The Punisher	Quentin Glass
2006	Road House 2	Nate Tanner
2007	Code Name: The Cleaner	Riley
	A Mighty Heart	DSS Special Agent Randall Bennett
	The List	Michael Harriston
	Dog Days of Summer	Eli Cottonmouth
2008	Wendy and Lucy	The Mechanic
	American Violet	Sam Conroy
	Lucky Days	J.C.
2009	Barbarian Princess	Sanford B. Dole
	Looking at Animals	Raymond
	The Canyon	Henry	<ref>The Canyon review by Rob Nelson at variety.com</ref>
	The Fourth Kind	Sheriff August
	Waking Madison	Madison's Father
	The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond	Old Man Dobyne
2010	Brooklyn's Finest	Lieutenant Bill Hobarts
	Meek's Cutoff	Solomon Tetherow
	Knucklehead	Vic Sullivan	<ref>Knucklehead review by John Anderson at variety.com</ref>
2012	The Girl	Tommy
	Abigail Harm	The Visitor / Narrator
2014	The November Man	Perry Weinstein
2016	American Honey	Backseat Cowboy
2017	The Scent of Rain and Lightning	Senior
	Megan Leavey	Jim
2018	Boarding School	Dr. Sherman
	An Actor Prepares	Wisdom
	Halloween	Deputy Frank Hawkins
2019	Blood on Her Name	Richard Tiller
	Hammer	Stephen Davis
	Radioflash	Frank
2020	Minari	Paul	Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture<ref name = MinariSAG27th/>
2021	The Devil Below	Schuttmann
	The Forever Purge	Caleb Tucker
	Halloween Kills	Deputy Frank Hawkins
2022	Halloween Ends
2023	Janet Planet	Wayne
2024	Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1	Owen Kittredge
	Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2
TBA	Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 3		Filming
	You Can't Win	Foot and A Half George	Post-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1981	Kent State	Peter	Television film
1982	CBS Library	Ben Moody	Episode: "Robbers, Rooftops and Witches"
1982–1983	Ryan's Hope	'Ox' Knowles	Contract role
1984–1985	Search for Tomorrow	Kentucky Bluebird	26 episodes
1985	The Equalizer	Officer Nick Braxton	Episode: "Lady Cop"
1987	A Gathering of Old Men	Lou Dimes	Television film
1990	Nasty Boys	Raymond Batiste	Episode: "Flesh and Blood"
1991	Dillinger	FBI Agent Melvin Purvis	Television film
	Deadly Desire	Giles Menteer	Television film
1992	Lincoln and the War Within	Ward Lamon	Television film
	In the Deep Woods	Eric Gaines	Television film
	A Child Lost Forever: The Jerry Sherwood Story	Frank Maxwell	Television film
1993	Taking the Heat	Hadley	Television film
1995–1997	VR.5	Dr. Frank Morgan	5 episodes
1997	The Protector	Jeff	Unknown episodes
2001–2003	The Agency	Jackson Haisley	Main role
2004	Family Sins	Philip Rothman	Television film
	The Last Ride	Aaron Purnell	Television film
2005	Into the West	James Fletcher	Episode: "Wheel to the Stars"
2006–2007	Numbers	Lieutenant Gary Walker	4 episodes
2009	24	Alan Wilson	5 episodes
	American Experience	John Wilkes Booth (voice)	Episodes: "The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln"
2010	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Craig Haliday	Episode: "Unshockable"
2011–2015	Falling Skies	Captain Dan Weaver	Main role
2016	The Good Wife	Mike Tascioni	4 episodes
2017	Shots Fired	Sheriff Daniel Platt	Main role
2019	Swamp Thing	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Main role
2020–2022	Yellowstone	Garrett Randall	Recurring role; nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series<ref name = YellowstoneSAG28th/>
2022–2024	Outer Range	Wayne Tillerson	Main role
2023	Silo	Deputy Marnes	4 episodes
TBA	Unspeakable: The Murder of JonBenét Ramsey	Lou Smith	Upcoming series

Voice work

Audio books

Title	Author	Year	Notes
You Like It Darker	Stephen King	2024	<ref>[https://stephenking.com/news/you-like-it-darker-readers-announced-750.html[</ref>
The Demon of Unrest	Erik Larson	2024
Flags on the Bayou	James Lee Burke	2023
Every Cloak Rolled in Blood	James Lee Burke	2022
Greywaren	Maggie Stiefvater	2022
Another Kind of Eden	James Lee Burke	2021
Mister Impossible	Maggie Stiefvater	2021
If It Bleeds	Stephen King	2020	<ref>"Read an exclusive excerpt from Stephen King's newest book If It Bleeds" by Seija Rankin at ew.com</ref>
Tales of Ordinary Madness	Charles Bukowski	2017
Call Down The Hawk	Maggie Stiefvater	2019
The Outsider	Stephen King	2018
Robicheaux	James Lee Burke	2018
The Mist	Stephen King	2017
Killers of the Flower Moon	David Grann	2017
The Jealous Kind	James Lee Burke	2017
End of Watch	Stephen King	2016	<ref>"Will Patton reads Stephen King's 'End of Watch' -- exclusive" by Isabella Biedenharn at ew.com</ref>
The Raven King	Maggie Stiefvater	2016
House of the Rising Sun	James Lee Burke	2015
Finders Keepers	Stephen King	2015	<ref>"Hear Will Patton read Stephen King's 'Finders Keepers' -- exclusive" by Isabella Biedenharn at ew.com</ref>
Blue Lily, Lily Blue	Maggie Stiefvater	2014
Mr. Mercedes	Stephen King	2014
Doctor Sleep	Stephen King	2013	<ref>"On The Books: Murakami novel; audiobooks with Neil Gaiman, Roald Dahl" by JoJo Marshall at ew.com</ref>
The Dream Thieves	Maggie Stiefvater	2013
The Son	Philipp Meyer	2013
My Cross to Bear	Gregg Allman	2012
The Raven Boys	Maggie Stiefvater	2012
Creole Belle	James Lee Burke	2012
Deliverance	James Dickey	2011
Feast Day of Fools	James Lee Burke	2011
The Glass Rainbow	James Lee Burke	2010
Alas, Babylon	Pat Frank	2010
Light in August	William Faulkner	2010
Chasing Lincoln's Killer	James L. Swanson	2009
Jesus' Son	Denis Johnson	2009
Swan Peak	James Lee Burke	2008
On the Road	Jack Kerouac	2007
The Tin Roof Blowdown	James Lee Burke	2007
The Assault on Reason	Al Gore	2007
Fine Just the Way It Is: Wyoming Stories 3	Annie Proulx	2008
Tree of Smoke	Denis Johnson	2007
Last Car to Elysian Fields	James Lee Burke	2007
Thirteen Moons	Charles Frazier	2006
Pegasus Descending	James Lee Burke	2006
Crusader's Cross	James Lee Burke	2006
Jolie Blon's Bounce	James Lee Burke	2006
The President Has Been Shot!	James L. Swanson	2006
The Thomas Berryman Number	James Patterson	2006
To Have and Have Not	Ernest Hemingway	2006
A Dave Robicheaux Audio Collection	James Lee Burke	2006
A Stained White Radiance (#5)
In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead (#6)
Dixie City Jam (#7)
Burning Angel (#8)
Cadillac Jukebox (#9)
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town	Kimberly Willis Holt	2006
Cosmopolis	Don DeLillo	2005
In the Moon of Red Ponies	James Lee Burke	2004
Cimarron Rose	James Lee Burke	2004
White Doves at Morning	James Lee Burke	2003
Bitterroot	James Lee Burke	2001
Cadillac Jukebox	James Lee Burke	2001
Purple Cane Road	James Lee Burke	2000
Boone's Lick	Larry McMurtry	2000
Burning Angel	James Lee Burke	1999
Heaven's Prisoners	James Lee Burke	1999
Heartwood	James Lee Burke	1999
Primal Fear	William Diehl	1999
Dixie City Jam	James Lee Burke	1999
A Stained White Radiance	James Lee Burke	1998
Sunset Limited	James Lee Burke	1998
The Sea-Wolf	Jack London	1997
Dead Man's Walk	Larry McMurtry	1996
Dirty White Boys	Stephen Hunter	1995
The Water Is Wide	Pat Conroy	1995
The Fermata	Nicholson Baker	1995
Gump and Co.	Winston Groom	1995
Gone South	Robert R. McCammon	1994
Lila – An Inquiry into Morals	Robert M. Pirsig	1991
The Neon Rain	James Lee Burke	1987
The Lost Get-Back Boogie	James Lee Burke	1986

External links

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