Sean Bridgers
| Sean Bridgers | |
|---|---|
 Sean Bridgers | |
| Born |
Sean MacKenzie Bridgers March 15, 1968 Chapel Hill, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor, screenwriter, producer |
| Years active | 1991–present |
Sean MacKenzie Bridgers (born March 15, 1968) is an American actor, screenwriter, and producer, known for his role as Johnny Burns on the HBO series Deadwood and on the SundanceTV original series Rectify as Trey Willis. Additional to many roles in television and film since 1991, Bridgers received acclaim and awards for the independent film Paradise Falls, which he wrote and produced.
He received praise for his lead role in Lucky McKee's horror film The Woman and another Moderncine film, Jug Face, as well as notable roles in Sweet Home Alabama and Nell. He played "Old Nick" in Room in 2015.[1]
Personal life
Bridgers was born in 1968 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to Ben and Sue Ellen Bridgers. Ben was the tribal attorney for the Cherokee Indian tribe and published a memoir and books of poetry. Sue Ellen Bridgers is a novelist with seven published novels.[2]
He graduated from St. Andrew's-Sewanee School and Western Carolina University.[3] In interviews, Bridgers has mentioned that as a screenwriter he is influenced by his favorite author Mark Twain and developed an interest in acting after seeing Robert Duvall in Tender Mercies when he was 14 years old. Bridgers started watching everything by Tender Mercies screenwriter Horton Foote, and Duvall and Foote became his biggest creative influences.[4]
Sean Bridger's children are also actors. His son, Jackson, has acted in roles on Justified and Deadwood, as well as his daughter, Kate, who starred in Bridgers' 2012 short, The Birthday Present.[5]
Recent productions
Acting
Bridgers has received praise for a diversity of roles in both film and television, including his role as Johnny Burns on HBO's Deadwood, and his role as the father in Lucky McKee's feature film, The Woman. His co-starring role in the southern-horror film, from writer/director Chad Crawford Kinkle's Slamdance award-winning screenplay, Jug Face, released by the studio Moderncine, again proved Bridgers as a prolific performer in the horror genre.[6]
Bridgers received praise for his performance from FEARnet, Dread Central, Birth.Movies.Death, and Starburst Magazine critics, among others.[7][8][9][10]
Bridgers has also received acclaim for his role as Trey Willis on Rectify, notably in one of the series most talked about episodes in Season 3. Reviewer Nick Hogan, on tvovermind.com wrote, "this was one of the most gut-wrenching episodes of Rectify in some time. Mostly because Sean Bridgers does a masterful job portraying Trey..."[11] Mark Walker wrote in The Copenhagen Post that Bridgers' performance as Old Nick in Room was "brilliantly restrained".[12]
Writing/directing
Bridgers, along with his producing and directing partner, Michael "Ffish" Hemschoot have been developing a dark western, noted as a "Faustian western" that takes place in the South during the Civil War titled Arkansas Traveler. Bridgers wrote the original screenplay and the production company he is partner in with Hemschoot, Travelin' Productions, produced and shot a trailer of the film featuring a cast including Garret Dillahunt and Angela Bettis.[13]
Actor and filmmaker Ray McKinnon commented on Bridgers' screenplay:
Arkansas Traveler is one of the best un-produced scripts I have read in the last decade, it's not just the complex, larger narrative of the end of the Civil War and the amazing backdrop of the protagonist's travels, but Arkansas Traveler offers the continual smaller surprises of behavior and plot – of man's inhumanity to man [and woman and child and beast] and his infinite humanity. It's universal and timeless and must get made.[14]
Bridgers and Hemschoot, under their production companies Travelin' Productions and Colorado animation studio Worker Studio are also developing an animated documentary about decorated World War II pilot John H. Ross.[15]
Filmography
Film
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1992 | Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice | Jedediah | |
| 1993 | Road-Kill U.S.A. | Josh | |
| 1994 | Getting In | Dumpster Hunter | Credited as Sean Bridges |
| 1994 | Nell | Mike Ibarra | |
| 1995 | Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored | Mr. Bob | |
| 1997 | Paradise Falls | Henry Bancroft | Producer and Co-wrote with mother Sue Ellen Bridgers, Dir. Nick Searcy. Won Best Feature at Hollywood Film Festival |
| 2002 | Clover Bend | Tyler | With David Keith, Robert Urich, Barry Corbin |
| 2002 | Lullaby | Diesel | Lead role |
| 2002 | Sweet Home Alabama | Eldon | |
| 2003 | Apple Jack | Les Danyou | Short film; The short won awards at L.A. Shorts Fest and Deep Ellum Film Festival |
| 2007 | Jake's Closet | Peter | Lead role |
| 2008 | A Night at the Zoo[16] | Donny | Short film; Producer, writer and co-director with Michael "Ffish" Hemschoot |
| 2008 | Witless Protection | Norm | |
| 2009 | Cold Storage | Unnamed | Starred Nick Searcy |
| 2011 | The Woman | Chris Cleek | Lead role |
| 2011 | Blood on My Name | Thomas | Short film; Lead role |
| 2012 | The Birthday Present | Dad | Short film; Co-director with Michael Hemschoot. Bridgers' daughter Kate starred as Joey |
| 2012 | The Graveyard Feeder | Burke Sawyer | Short film |
| 2013 | Jug Face | Dawai | |
| 2014 | The Best of Me | Tommy Cole | |
| 2015 | Legs | Ford | |
| 2015 | Trumbo | Jeff Krandall | |
| 2015 | Dark Places | Runner Day | |
| 2015 | Room | Old Nick | |
| 2015 | Blue | Sheriff Hawkes | |
| 2016 | Midnight Special | Fredrick | |
| 2016 | Free State of Jones | Will Sumrall | |
| 2016 | The Magnificent Seven | Fanning | |
| 2016 | The Whole Truth | Arthur Westin | |
Television
| Television | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1991 | Murder in New Hampshire: The Pamela Wojas Smart Story | Ralph Welch | TV movie; Credited as Sean Bridges |
| 1995 | Death in Small Doses | Mr. Carter | TV movie |
| 1995 | American Gothic | Policeman | Season 1: Episode #2, Episode #20 |
| 1995 | Murderous Intent | Dennis | TV movie |
| 1996 | Stolen Memories: Secrets from the Rose Garden | Jeff (Teen #1) | TV movie |
| 1997 | The Secret | Aaron Clemens | TV movie |
| 1997 | Close to Danger | Donna's Date | TV movie |
| 1998 | Legacy | William Winters | 2 episodes |
| 1999 | A.T.F. | Smitty | TV movie; Written by Patricia Cornwell |
| 2000 | After Diff'rent Strokes: When the Laughter Stopped | Robert | TV movie |
| 2000 | Cover Me: Based on the True Life of an FBI Family | Brian | Credited as Sean Bridges in Episode #9 "Turtle Soup" |
| 2004 | 3: The Dale Earnhardt Story | Neil Bonnett | TV movie |
| 2004–2006 | Deadwood | Johnny Burns | 36 episodes, shared nomination for SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama |
| 2006 | Criminal Minds | James Charles | Season 2, Episode #28 "The Boogeyman" |
| 2006 | Cold Case | Ty Sugar | Season 4, Episode #11 "The Red and the Blue" |
| 2007 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Art Schuster | Season 7, Episode #24 "Living Doll" |
| 2008 | 12 Miles of Bad Road | Lyle Hartsong | Season 1, 6 episodes |
| 2008–2009 | Private Practice | Frank | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | House Rules | Cameron Drummer | TV movie; Directed by Daniel Minahan |
| 2009 | Saving Grace | Carl Lafong | Season 2, Episode #9 "Do You Believe in Second Chances?" |
| 2009 | Bones | John Collins | Season 5, Episode #6 "The Tough Man in the Tender Chicken" |
| 2009 | Lie to Me | Harold Clark | Season 2, Episode #10 "Tractor Man" |
| 2010 | The Mentalist | Ranger Tisdale | Season 2, Episode #18 "Aingavite Baa" |
| 2010 | Justified | Virgil Corum | Season 1, Episode #10 "The Hammer" |
| 2010 | True Blood | Big Bobby | Season 3, Episode 7 "Hitting the Ground" |
| 2011 | Hart of Dixie | Leon Mercy | Season 1, Episode #6 "The Undead & The Unsaid" |
| 2011–2012 | Raising Hope | Jack | 2 episodes |
| 2012–2015 | Rectify | Trey Willis | Season 1, Season 2, Season 3. From creator Ray McKinnon |
| Video Games | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2011 | L.A. Noire | Voice | Rockstar Games |
References
- ↑ Martin, Philip (December 18, 2015). "Review: Room". Arkansas Online. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
- ↑ "Sue Ellen Bridgers profile". Western Carolina University. January 15, 2013. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
- ↑ TV.com. "Sean Bridgers: Biography". CBS Entertainment. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
- ↑ McEntire, John. "Interview with: Arkansas Traveler Filmmakers". Featured Filmmakers of the Month. The Oxford American. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
- ↑ "Jackson Bridgers". IMDb.com, Inc. Retrieved January 18, 2013.
- ↑ Dickson, Evan. "Sean Bridgers, Lauren Ashley Carter And Sean Young To Star In Moderncine's 'Jug Face'!". BLOODY DISGUSTING LLC. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
- ↑ McHargue, Brad. "Jug Face (2013)". Dread Central Media, LLC. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
- ↑ Weinberg, Scott. "FEARnet Movie Review: 'Jug Face'". Horror Entertainment, LLC. Retrieved January 26, 2013.
- ↑ Saathoff, Evan. "Evan's Alternative BEST OF 2013". Birth.Movies.Death. Alamo Drafthouse Cinema. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
- ↑ Unsworth, Martin. "Movie Review: JUG FACE". STARBURST MAGAZINE LTD. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
- ↑ Hogan, Nick. "Rectify Season 3 Episode 3 Review: "Sown With Salt"". TVOvermind. TVOvermind. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
- ↑ Walker, Mark. "Film review of 'Room'". The Copenhagen Post. The Copenhagen Post. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
- ↑ "New film in development: Arkansas Traveler". garret-dillahunt.net. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
- ↑ Martin, Philip. "ON FILM: Civil War film has potential for greatness if it gets made". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
- ↑ Reeves, Mary. "Old tales for new times: WW2 pilot's story to be filmed". Shelbyville Times-Gazette. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
- ↑ Travelin' Productions. "A Night at the Zoo - Short Film". Vimeo, LLC. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
External links
- Sean Bridgers at the Internet Movie Database
- Travelin' Productions Official Website, travelinproductions.com
- Interview with Sean Bridgers, bloody-disgusting.com