Michael Wincott Biography
Born: January 21, 1958
Date of Birth: January 21, 1958
Born in Toronto, Michael Wincott and his younger brother Jeff (now a martial arts actor) were raised in London, Ontario. He attended the prestigious Juilliard School of Drama, graduating in 1986. Following school, Michael went on to do stage work in New York, appearing in productions such as Talk Radio, The Plough and the Stars, and Tis a Pity She's a Whore. He also appeared in a few Broadway dramas including the production States of Shock.
Michael returned to his native soil to work in his first feature film, Wild Horse Hank (1979). Playing the role of Charlie Connors, Michael went through extensive training to ride horses for the film.
That same year he began working on telefilms such as The Family Man. For the next 10 years he landed various roles in small and big budget films including Born on the Fourth of July and Talk Radio, but remained for the most part in obscurity.
He first garnered major recognition in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, playing the Sheriff of Nottingham's cousin, Guy of Gisborne. The memorable role led to other villainous roles in films like 1942: Conquest of Paradise, The Three Musketeers, The Crow, Metro, Alien Resurrection, and Strange Days. The villainous characters made Michael famous for his deep, raspy voice and his attitude somewhere between bad-boy sensuous and psychopath.
Although he spends most of his working hours on movie sets, he has also made guest appearances on such series as The Littlest Hobo, Miami Vice, The Equalizer, Crime Story and Strangers.
Besides acting, Michael is also an accomplished musician, playing guitar and the drums. "I played drums in jazz bands as a kid. I was much too much of an elitist to play Rock & Roll." Although he wouldn't play it, he has been spotted at rock concerts including The Rolling Stones and the Black Crowes. He has done some professional guitar work for the film Strange Days and can be heard on Julian Schnabel's CD "Every Silver Lining has a Gray Cloud."
He currently makes his home in Los Angeles, California.