Biography

A fellow actor once told James that he would "be the last man standing." Prophetically, that has come to pass...

As an actor working in film, TV, and theatre (on and off-Broadway), James Macdonald's distinguished career has spanned over thirty-five years. Starting with his debut performance as a young actor appearing with Jennifer Jason Leigh in Uli Edel's "Last Exit to Brooklyn," he has shared the big screen with some of Hollywood's heaviest hitters, including Harrison Ford, Denzel Washington, Colin Farrell, Jessica Biel, Tommy Lee Jones, Niecy Nash, Dennis Quaid, Josh Hutcherson, Josh Harnett, Rosario Dawson, and John Travolta, Mahershala Ali, Stephen Dorf, to name just a few.

He has worked with legendary directors such as John Woo, Clint Eastwood, Spike Lee, Joel Schumacher, Lisa Cholodenko, Irwin Winkler and Nic Pizzolatto in varying and diverse types of roles across the genres of comedy, drama, thriller, horror, and science fiction. From his portrayal as the iconic character of porn star/poet Garth in "Sex and the City" to Dwight Yoakum's bumbling sidekick in "Hollywood Homicide" to the sadistic drill sergeant in "Tigerland" and the cocky small-town cop in "Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D" (who has his face torn off), James has utilized his chameleon-like acting skills to convince audiences of those characters' pathos, authenticity, and humor. (He still receives fan mail for his portrayal of naive, young Captain Wainwright in "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine")

James also writes and directs. Among his many accolades is Best Director, Screenplay, and Short Film awards for his film "Heavy Lifting," a Garland Award for creating the lead role of F.W. Murnau in the groundbreaking L.A. theatre company Zoo District's production of Nosferatu, and Best Lead Actor award at Hollywood's FirstGlance Film Festival for the indie film "Fissure."

In his free time, James works with the incarcerated and formerly incarcerated teaching writing and acting workshops. You can also find him roaming the varied and colorful neighborhoods of Los Angeles with his vintage Pentax K1000 film camera.

For more information about James, visit his website at JamesMacdonald.biz.
- IMDb mini biography by: Tony Rizzo