Zach Grenier is an American character actor of film, television and stage. He is best known for his roles in films such as Tommy Boy (1995), Twister (1996), and Fight Club (1999), and for his roles in television such as Andy Cramed in Deadwood (2004–2006) and David Lee in The Good Wife (2010–2016).
Zach Grenier | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Grenier in 2018 | |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Website | zachgrenier |
Life and career
editGrenier's mother, who was an announcer on a Polish radio program, met his father when he was working as a sound engineer at WBNX in the Bronx in the late 1930s.[1] He is a graduate of Ann Arbor Pioneer High School.[2]
He was a regular cast member on C-16 from 1997 to 1998.[3] He appeared in the first season of the television show 24 as Carl Webb; played Andy Cramed, the gambler who brought the plague to town, on Deadwood; and appeared in several episodes of Law & Order.
In 2010, he was cast on the television series The Good Wife as David Lee, a senior attorney, a role that soon became part of the recurring ensemble. He was promoted to series regular at the start of the fifth season in September 2013.[4]
Grenier has also had a prolific career in film. Notably, he played Edward Norton's boss in Fight Club and Mel Nicolai in Zodiac, both David Fincher films. He appeared in the 1988 film Talk Radio as finance guru Sid Greenberg, a role that he played in the original stage version of the script. In the film Twister, he played Eddie, Dr. Jonas Miller's assistant. He played Mr. Reilly, one of the Callahan Auto Parts associates, in Tommy Boy. He appeared in Donnie Brasco as a marriage therapist. He played a role of Professor Cardiff in the 2006 horror film Pulse.
In 2009, he appeared on Broadway opposite Jane Fonda in 33 Variations,[5] earning him a Tony Award nomination.
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Kenny | Jesse | |
| Working Girl | Jim | ||
| 1989 | See No Evil, Hear No Evil | Jerk | |
| 1990 | A Shock to the System | Executive #2 | |
| 1991 | Problem Child 2 | Voytek | |
| Delirious | Mickey | ||
| Liebestraum | Barnard Ralston IV | ||
| 1993 | The Contenders | Transgender | |
| Cliffhanger | Davis | ||
| The Man Without a Face | Dr. Lionel Talbot, Psychiatrist | ||
| 1995 | Tommy Boy | Ted Reilly | |
| Cafe Society | Milton Macka | ||
| Drunks | Al | ||
| Reckless | Anchor Person Trish | ||
| The Stars Fell on Henrietta | Larry Ligstow | ||
| 1996 | Twister | Eddie | |
| Mother Night | Joseph Goebbels | ||
| Maximum Risk | Ivan Dzasokhov | ||
| 1997 | Donnie Brasco | Dr. Berger | |
| White Lies | Terry Seabrooks | ||
| Under The Bridge | John | ||
| 1999 | Ride With the Devil | Mr. Evans | |
| Fight Club | Richard Chesler | ||
| 2000 | Shaft | Harrison Loeb | |
| Chasing Sleep | Geoffrey | ||
| 2001 | Swordfish | Assistant Director Bill Joy | |
| 2006 | Pulse | Professor Cardiff | American remake of the 2001 film with same name |
| Rescue Dawn | Squad Leader | ||
| 2007 | Zodiac | Mel Nicolai | |
| Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer | Mr. Sherman/Rafke | ||
| 2008 | The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond | Mr. Fenstermaker | |
| 2009 | Earthwork | Mayor | |
| 2011 | J. Edgar | John Condon | |
| 2014 | RoboCop | Senator Hubert Dreyfus | |
| Free the Nipple | Jim Black | ||
| 2015 | Manhattan Romance | Trevor | |
| 2017 | Crown Heights | Detective Cassel | |
| 2022 | She Said | Irwin Reiter |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986, 1989 | The Equalizer | Wirth | Episode: "A Community of Civilized Men" |
| Pack | Episode: "The Caper" | ||
| 1987, 1988 | Kate & Allie | Engineer | 2 episodes, credited as Zachary Grenier |
| 1987, 1989 | Miami Vice | Internal Affairs Officer | Episode: "Theresa" |
| Eric Terry | Episode: "Miracle Man" | ||
| 1988–1989 | Tattingers | Sonny Franks | 11 episodes |
| 1989 | A Man Called Hawk | Ken Whitewood | Episode: "Choice of Chance" |
| 1991 | The Golden Girls | Vaczy | Episode: "The Case of the Libertine Belle" |
| 1991–2022 | Law & Order | Various characters | 7 episodes |
| 1993, 2000 | NYPD Blue | Rudolf Wentz | Episode: "NYPD Lou" |
| Det. Lou Simpkins | Episode: "Tea and Sympathy" | ||
| 1994 | Normandy: The Great Crusade | Robert Slaughter | Voice only; TV movie |
| The Cosby Mysteries | Episode: "Our Lady of Cement" | ||
| 1995 | New York News | Mike Paretti | Episode: "Forgotten" |
| 1996 | Gang in Blue | Joe Beckstrem | TV movie |
| 1997–1998 | C-16: FBI | Jack DiRado | Main cast |
| 1999 | Ally McBeal | Attorney Benson | Episode: "Sex, Lies and Politics" |
| 2000 | Judging Amy | Dr. Norman Golden | Episode: "The Out-of-Towners" |
| The Practice | Detective R. Larson | Episodes: "Summary Judgements" and "Show and Tell" | |
| 2001 | Laughter on the 23rd Floor | Brian Doyle | TV movie |
| The Whistle-Blower | Louis T. Weitzman | TV movie | |
| The X-Files | Dr. Herman Stites | Episode: "Alone" | |
| Curb Your Enthusiasm | Lane Michaelson | Episodes: "The Doll" and "The Massage" | |
| 2001–2002 | 24 | Carl Webb | 9 episodes |
| 2002 | JAG | Colonel Boyett | Episode: "Code of Conduct" |
| Without a Trace | Ricardo | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| Robbery Homicide Division | Skip Dayton | Episode: "2028" | |
| The Guardian | Henry Thomas | Episode: "The Living" | |
| Star Trek: Enterprise | Renth | Episode: "The Catwalk" | |
| 2003 | Veritas: The Quest | Hossik | Episode: "Reunion" |
| 2004 | Touching Evil | Special Agent Hank Enright | Main cast |
| Dr. Vegas | Det. Rosen | Episode: "Limits" | |
| Crossing Jordan | Norman Farrell | Episode: "Fire in the Sky" | |
| 2004–2006 | Deadwood | Andy Cramed | 9 episodes |
| 2005 | CSI: NY | Ross Howell | Episode: "Recycling" |
| Medium | Professor Leonard Cardwell | Episode: "The Other Side of the Tracks" | |
| 2005, 2007 | Boston Legal | U.S. Attorney Chris Randolph | 2 episodes |
| 2006 | CSI: Miami | Professor Meyer | Episode: "Fade Out" |
| Numb3rs | Peyton Shoemaker | Episode: "Provenance" | |
| The Nine | Sean McDermott | 3 episodes | |
| 2007 | Cold Case | Ambrose Stone in 1919 | Episode: "Torn" |
| CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Dr. Kachler | Episode: "Dead Doll" | |
| 2009 | The Philanthropist | Tyler Timson | Episode: "Kashmir" |
| 2010–2011 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Judge Miranski | 2 episodes |
| 2010–2016 | The Good Wife | David Lee | Recurring (seasons 1–4), regular (seasons 5–7); 62 episodes |
| 2013 | Zero Hour | Wayne Blanks | 3 episodes |
| 2014 | The Blacklist | Novak | Episode: "Madeline Pratt (No. 73)" |
| Turks & Caicos | Dido Parsons | TV movie | |
| 2016 | BrainDead | Dean Healy | 8 episodes |
| 2017 | Chicago P.D. | Father Bill McSorley | Episode: "Sanctuary" |
| Blindspot | Herman | Episode: "Solos" | |
| 2017, 2020–2022 | The Good Fight | David Lee | Guest (seasons 1, 6); main role (seasons 4–5)[6] |
| 2018–2019 | Ray Donovan | Ed Feratti | 6 episodes |
| 2019 | God Friended Me | James Abbott | Episode: "The Lady" |
| 2020 | Devs | Kenton | 7 episodes |
| 2022 | FBI: Most Wanted | Vasily Matrushok | Episode: "Decriminalised" |
| Killing It | Jim Gallant | Episode: "The Hard Place" |
References
edit- ^ "What's Up, Zach Grenier? The Man and Boy Star on TV-Land, Jane Fonda Fandom and 'Farming' with Frank Langella". Broadway.com. October 7, 2011. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ Jenn McKee (March 21, 2012). "Ann Arbor's 'The Good Wife' star Zach Grenier leads all-star cast in local 'Ajax' and 'Philoctetes' reading". The Ann Arbor News.
- ^ Terrace, Vincent. Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2007 (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 2008), p.331.
- ^ Stanhope, Kate (June 20, 2013). "The Good Wife Promotes Zach Grenier to Series Regular". TV Guide. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
- ^ "Zach Grenier – Broadway Cast & Staff". IBDB.com. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
- ^ Ausiello, Michael (December 21, 2019). "The Good Fight: [Spoiler] Returning as a Series Regular — 2020 First Look". TVLine. Retrieved December 21, 2019.