Michael Emerson

Biography

Michael Emerson is an American actor whose career spans theater and television. Born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and raised in Toledo, Iowa, he studied theater at Drake University and earned a Master of Fine Arts at the University of Alabama. He played Oscar Wilde in the off-Broadway production Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde and appeared in the Broadway revival of The Iceman Cometh in 1999. His television breakthrough came as serial killer William Hinks on The Practice, winning him a Primetime Emmy for guest actor in 2001. He became widely known as Benjamin Linus on Lost from 2006 to 2010, earning an Emmy win and three other nominations for that role. He later played Harold Finch on Person of Interest from 2011 to 2016 and Dr. Leland Townsend on Evil from 2019 to 2024. His film work includes Zep Hindle in Saw (2004).

72years old

Turns 73 on September 7in 329 days

Born September 7, 1954Cedar Rapids
Star sign: VirgoThe sign runs August 23 to September 22

Movie Career

Films: 9
Career span: 15 years1998 to 2013

Genres

Action33%, 3 films
Comedy33%, 3 films
Drama33%, 3 films
Romance33%, 3 films
Animation22%, 2 films

First and latest

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Early training
Emerson worked for several years in illustration and teaching before he earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in the Alabama Shakespeare Festival acting program at the University of Alabama.
Behind the camera
Emerson once directed a music video for the group Soul Guardians, and the year he did this work was 1989.

Michael Emerson movies on Netflix

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013IMDb rating 8.3as Joker (voice)
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012IMDb rating 7.9as Joker (voice)
The Legend of Zorro2005IMDb rating 6.0as Harrigan
Saw2004IMDb rating 7.6as Zep Hindle
Straight-Jacket2004IMDb rating 6.6as Victor
The Laramie Project2002IMDb rating 7.1as Reverend
Unfaithful2002IMDb rating 6.7as Josh
Playing by Heart1998IMDb rating 6.9as Bosco
The Impostors1998IMDb rating 6.5as Burtom's Assistant

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

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Saw2004 Horror, Mysteryas Zep Hindle
IMDb rating 7.6517K votes
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013 Action, Animation, Mystery, Sci-Fias Jokervoice
IMDb rating 8.362K votes
The Legend of Zorro2005as Harrigan
IMDb rating 6.0116K votes
Unfaithful2002as Josh
IMDb rating 6.7109K votes
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012as Jokervoice
IMDb rating 7.969K votes
The Impostors1998as Burtom's Assistant
IMDb rating 6.55.6K votes
Straight-Jacket2004as Victor
IMDb rating 6.61.1K votes
Playing by Heart1998as Bosco
IMDb rating 6.921K votes

Most often with

Jay Oliva directed two of these films. Ten actors appear in two of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

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Grey Griffin

Steve Buscemi

Dee Bradley Baker

Michael McKean

Peter Weller

Ariel Winter

Jay OlivaDirector, 2 films

Films together

Grey Griffin2 films together, 2012 to 2013
Grey Griffin's page
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013IMDb rating 8.3Emerson as JokervoiceGriffin as Anchor Carlavoice
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012IMDb rating 7.9Emerson as JokervoiceGriffin as Anchor Carlavoice
Steve Buscemi2 films together, 1998 to 2002
Steve Buscemi's page
- The Laramie Project2002IMDb rating 7.1Emerson as ReverendBuscemi as Doc O'Connor
- The Impostors1998IMDb rating 6.5Emerson as Burtom's AssistantBuscemi as Happy Franks
Dee Bradley Baker2 films together, 2012 to 2013
Dee Bradley Baker's page
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013IMDb rating 8.3Emerson as JokervoiceBaker as Donvoice
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012IMDb rating 7.9Emerson as JokervoiceBaker as Donvoice
Michael McKean2 films together, 2012 to 2013
Michael McKean's page
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013IMDb rating 8.3Emerson as JokervoiceMcKean as Bartholomew Wolpervoice
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012IMDb rating 7.9Emerson as JokervoiceMcKean as Dr. Bartholomew Wolpervoice
Peter Weller2 films together, 2012 to 2013
Peter Weller's page
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013IMDb rating 8.3Emerson as JokervoiceWeller as Batman / Bruce Waynevoice
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012IMDb rating 7.9Emerson as JokervoiceWeller as Batman / Bruce Waynevoice
Ariel Winter2 films together, 2012 to 2013
Ariel Winter's page
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013IMDb rating 8.3Emerson as JokervoiceWinter as Robin / Carrie Kelleyvoice
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012IMDb rating 7.9Emerson as JokervoiceWinter as Robin / Carrie Kelleyvoice
Jay OlivaDirector, 2 films, 2012 to 2013
All films by Jay Oliva
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 22013IMDb rating 8.3Emerson as Jokervoice
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 12012IMDb rating 7.9Emerson as Jokervoice
Also two films together4 more actors
- Maria Canals-BarreraBatman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2 (2013) and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 (2012)
- David SelbyBatman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2 (2013) and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 (2012)
- Townsend ColemanBatman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2 (2013) and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 (2012)
- Michael JacksonBatman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2 (2013) and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 (2012)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.

Awards

Two awards and honors from 2001 to 2009, two of them major.

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Michael Emerson's awards and nominations, grouped by award
Year	Award	Film	Result
Emmy Awards
2009	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series	Lost	Won
2001	Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series	The Practice	Won

Online

Official profiles and reference pages.

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