Michael Harney(I)
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Michael J. Harney, an actor on stage, film, and television since the early 1980s, was born in the Bronx, New York and went on to intensive study with legendary acting teachers William Esper and Phil Gushee, both of whom studied and taught with Sanford Meisner for many years at The Neighborhood Playhouse School Of The Theater. After studying acting for 7 years he went on to run The Michael Harney Acting Studio in New York City for 8 years. During his time in NYC Michael acted in and/or directed over 100 plays and one acts and starred in On The Waterfront on Broadway playing the role of Charlie Malloy in 1995.
Michael frequently essays tough men with deeply complicated interior lives. His ability to tap into the emotional and psychological elements of his characters was the result of his substantial training and work in the New York theater scene, as well as his early volunteer work in civil rights and prison reform.
In film, Michael has most recently had supporting leads in RZA’s "One Spoon of Chocolate," produced by Quentin Tarantino, and Dustin Brown’s "Solidarity," produced by Darren Aronofsky. He played the sportscaster Bill Mercer in Sean Durkin’s "The Iron Claw" produced by A24, and Wolfie in Bradley Cooper’s "A Star is Born," produced by Warner Bros. His other film credits include "Erin Brockovich" (2000), and "Ocean’s 13" (2007), both directed by Steven Soderbergh, "Bad Hurt" (2015), directed by Mark Kemble, Turbulence (1997), directed by Robert Butler, Warden of Red Rock (2001), directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal, and Captivity (2007) directed by Roland Joffé.
After years of anonymity on the Off-Broadway circuit, Michael earned his big break as morally compromised police detective Mike Roberts on "NYPD Blue," which led to steady work on countless series afterward. He was a series regular on "Orange is the New Black" for Netflix as Corrections Counselor Sam Healy and "Project Blue Book" as General Hugh Valentine for The History Channel. He has recurred in such acclaimed series as Deadwood (2004), Weeds (2005), True Detective (2014), and currently on NCIS: Origins as Dick Kowalski.
Other recent recurring roles include Doorman Artie in "The Better Sister", Chief Walden in "Interior Chinatown", Sal in "Hello Tomorrow", Patrick Mitchell in "Invasion," William Hollister Sr. in "Deputy", Mr. Russell in "Interrogation," Jack Broadstreet in "For All Mankind," and Lt. Paul Larson in "Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G."
Of note is Michael’s longstanding collaboration with David Milch. In television Michael appeared for two seasons on "Deadwood", playing Steve Fields for HBO. "Deadwood" marked his third association with David, the second being "Total Security," where he played Charlie Kiplinger, and the first being "NYPD Blue" where he recurred for six seasons as Detective Mike Roberts. Michael also worked for David’s daughter, Olivia, on "The Better Sister," for which she was the showrunner.
Michael frequently essays tough men with deeply complicated interior lives. His ability to tap into the emotional and psychological elements of his characters was the result of his substantial training and work in the New York theater scene, as well as his early volunteer work in civil rights and prison reform.
In film, Michael has most recently had supporting leads in RZA’s "One Spoon of Chocolate," produced by Quentin Tarantino, and Dustin Brown’s "Solidarity," produced by Darren Aronofsky. He played the sportscaster Bill Mercer in Sean Durkin’s "The Iron Claw" produced by A24, and Wolfie in Bradley Cooper’s "A Star is Born," produced by Warner Bros. His other film credits include "Erin Brockovich" (2000), and "Ocean’s 13" (2007), both directed by Steven Soderbergh, "Bad Hurt" (2015), directed by Mark Kemble, Turbulence (1997), directed by Robert Butler, Warden of Red Rock (2001), directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal, and Captivity (2007) directed by Roland Joffé.
After years of anonymity on the Off-Broadway circuit, Michael earned his big break as morally compromised police detective Mike Roberts on "NYPD Blue," which led to steady work on countless series afterward. He was a series regular on "Orange is the New Black" for Netflix as Corrections Counselor Sam Healy and "Project Blue Book" as General Hugh Valentine for The History Channel. He has recurred in such acclaimed series as Deadwood (2004), Weeds (2005), True Detective (2014), and currently on NCIS: Origins as Dick Kowalski.
Other recent recurring roles include Doorman Artie in "The Better Sister", Chief Walden in "Interior Chinatown", Sal in "Hello Tomorrow", Patrick Mitchell in "Invasion," William Hollister Sr. in "Deputy", Mr. Russell in "Interrogation," Jack Broadstreet in "For All Mankind," and Lt. Paul Larson in "Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G."
Of note is Michael’s longstanding collaboration with David Milch. In television Michael appeared for two seasons on "Deadwood", playing Steve Fields for HBO. "Deadwood" marked his third association with David, the second being "Total Security," where he played Charlie Kiplinger, and the first being "NYPD Blue" where he recurred for six seasons as Detective Mike Roberts. Michael also worked for David’s daughter, Olivia, on "The Better Sister," for which she was the showrunner.
