Xander Berkeley


Alexander Harper Berkeley is an American actor. He is known for his television roles as Sheriff Thomas McAllister on the crime drama The Mentalist, George Mason on the political thriller series 24, Percy Rose on the action thriller series Nikita, the Man on The Booth At The End and Gregory in AMC's The Walking Dead. His notable film roles include Todd Voight in , Agent Gibbs in Air Force One, Bowery Snax in Sid and Nancy, Dr. Lamar in Gattaca, Trevor Lyle in Candyman and Ralph in Heat.

Early life and education

Berkeley was born on December 16, 1955, in Brooklyn, New York, but has lived most of his life in New Jersey. He is of Scottish and English descent. He attended Hampshire College and worked in the theaters at the five-college system of which Hampshire was a part, including Smith, Mount Holyoke, Amherst, and the University of Massachusetts. Berkeley worked in the regional and repertory theaters in addition to off Broadway while living in New York. A casting agent saw Berkeley in a play written by Reynolds Price called Early Dark, and encouraged him to move to Hollywood.

Career

Berkeley began playing roles in 1981, with early appearances in M*A*S*H, Cagney & Lacey, Remington Steele, Miami Vice, Moonlighting, and The A-Team. Although not becoming a household name, Berkeley's face was increasingly recognizable into the 1990s. His later television guest roles included The X-Files, ', ER, and Law & Order.
On the big screen, Berkeley has appeared in North Country, ', Mommie Dearest, Phoenix, Kick-Ass, A Few Good Men, The Rookie, Candyman, Apollo 13, Leaving Las Vegas, Gattaca, The Rock, Air Force One, Sid and Nancy, Spawn, Amistad, Shanghai Noon, Barb Wire, and Timecode. Berkeley has the distinction of appearing in both the made-for-television film L.A. Takedown in 1989 and its 1995 critically acclaimed theatrical remake Heat, both directed by Michael Mann. Several of his earlier roles were in films by director Alex Cox.
In 2001, Berkeley became a recurring guest star and later on a series regular on 24 in the role of George Mason, the head of the counter-terrorist unit. He portrayed the mysterious John Smith on the CBS drama Jericho.
In 2010, he received one of his best-known roles, that of Percy Rose in the CW action-thriller series Nikita. He portrayed the character as a series regular in the show's first two seasons, as well as being the series' de facto main antagonist of its first two seasons. Berkeley was Sheriff Thomas McAllister on The Mentalist.
Berkeley portrayed Gregory on AMC's The Walking Dead, originally in a guest role in season six, but was promoted as a series regular for season seven.
In 2018, he portrayed Peter Lockwood, father of Agent Liberty, on season 4 of CW's Supergirl.

Voice work

Berkeley has provided voices for animated series such as Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, Teen Titans, and Gargoyles. He voiced Quentin Beck/Mysterio in The Spectacular Spider-Man, Captain Atom in the animated movie , and Dr. Kirk Langstrom in Son of Batman.

Awards

In 2013, Berkeley won the Streamy Award "Best Male Performance, Drama" for his starring role in the acclaimed webseries, The Booth at the End.

Personal life

Berkeley is a painter and a sculptor, as well as a make-up artist. Berkeley met Sarah Clarke on the set of 24 in 2001, and married her the following year. Berkeley and Clarke live with their daughters, Olwyn Harper and Rowan Amara, in Maine and in Los Angeles, California.

Filmography

Film

Television

Voice acting

TV movies