.
Biography
Michael Wincott
Michael Anthony Claudio Wincott was born in Scarborough, Ontario in Canada on 21st January 1958 to an English father and Italian mother. He was raised in London, Ontario. After school, he attended the Victoria College in Toronto. Following this, he was accepted to the renowned Julliard College of Drama in New York. By the time he had graduated from Julliard in 1986, he had already completed several movie roles.
He has also worked widely in theatre productions as well as making appearances in several television series and many movies (see my Movies page for a listing of these). He has worked with notable directors such as Oliver Stone, Jim Jarmusch and Ridley Scott, and completed a number of roles in one guise or another for Disney. The latest version of The Count of Monte Cristo is now out and "Along Came a Spider", which reunited him with Morgan Freeman, has been a great success in the cinemas and is now available to buy on DVD and Video. Many more of his movies are now available on DVD, and there are some extra scenes, or deleted scenes, as a bonus with a some of these, e.g. Dead Man.
This website is meant as an introduction to the talent of Michael Wincott, and his skill and ability to play such a variety of characters, and the apparent ease with which he brings these characters to life and makes you believe in them, be they good, evil or whatever. I have not set up this site as a gossip column or as a let us worship this evil man type of thing - I never saw him in that way at all, there is much more to Michael Wincott than an actor who can play the baddie convincingly.
Yes, I admit he is particularly impressive as the baddie, we only need to look at characters like Korda in Metro, Top Dollar in The Crow, Rochefort in The Three Musketeers and Gary Soneji in Along Came a Spider, and many others to see that. However the humour that comes through in his role as Conway Twill in Dead Man is wonderful to see - one of my favourites of all his characters. In Gunshy his portrayal of Frankie McGregor was a bit of a change; this character was indeed multi-facetted, a tough guy, but sensitive, and eager to improve himself and his life. It was one of Michael's biggest starring roles, and one of the few parts where he was not killed off!
The portrayal of Rene Ricard by Michael in Basquiat was superb, a very different role to his others, a mix of flamboyance, sensitivity and humour, Rene was a character the viewer could care about.
Though my favourite character is Top Dollar, The Crow is not necessarily my favourite Michael Wincott film. Not that I could ever take to the behaviour of a guy like Top Dollar in real life (I would have run a mile!), but in that very sinister character I see something more than an evil crime boss, I see an underlying sadness, a yearning for something more, whatever it may be. Possibly it is just because I have always been a pushover for a man with long dark hair and an attractive face!
Then there is Kent in Talk Radio, well you have to see Kent to get the full impact of this character who shifts from being excruciatingly annoying and crass to being sexy and naïve. Michael also does the voice-overs for several other characters in this movie. This was a role that Michael also played in the theatre.
Now in his mid 40s Michael Wincott continues to take on a variety of roles, such as warden Dorleac in The Count of Monte Cristo, the voice of Scroop in Disney's Treasure Planet, small parts in Remembering Charlie and The Assassination of Nixon and recently in the superb western Seraphim Falls with Liam Neeson and Pierce Brosnan.
The 'powers that be' still seem to overlook this great actor's talents, and have yet to award him with the recognition and tribute that he truly deserves. However, this reflects on their short-sightedness, rather than on any failing in Michael Wincott's skills and abilities as an actor. Perhaps it is time they sit up and take notice, and open their eyes to see what they are missing out on!
* * * * * * *
Please note that this site is not an 'official' site, and therefore I unfortunately have no contact with Michael Wincott or his representatives, so it is pointless anyone sending me mail to forward to him. Thank you for your interest.
Background courtesy of
http://crowdesigns.apachego.com
Michael Wincott
Filmography Picture Gallery Links
* * * * * * * * * * *
Other Favourites
Best of the Rest - The Actors Best of the Rest - The Musicians
The Donkey Sanctuary Adoption Donkeys & EST Centres
Artwork by Ebe Kastein Artwork by Kate, Lady G.
* * * * * * * * * * *