William McChord Hurt (born March 20, 1950) is an American stage and film actor. He received his acting training at the Juilliard School, and began acting on stage in the 1970s. Hurt made his film debut as a troubled scientist in the science-fiction feature Altered States (1980), for which he received a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year. He subsequently played a leading role, as a lawyer who succumbs to the temptations of Kathleen Turner, in the well-received neo noir Body Heat (1981).

 

In 1985, Hurt garnered substantial critical acclaim and multiple acting awards, including an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award for Best Actor, for portraying an effeminate gay man in Kiss of the Spider Woman. He received another two Academy Award nominations for his lead performances in Children of a Lesser God (1986) and Broadcast News (1987). Hurt remained an active stage actor throughout the 1980s, appearing in Off-Broadway productions, including Henry V, Fifth of July, Richard II, and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Hurt received his first Tony Award nomination in 1985 for the Broadway production of Hurlyburly.

 

After playing a diversity of character roles in the following decade, Hurt earned his fourth Academy Award nomination for his supporting performance in David Cronenberg's crime thriller A History of Violence (2005). Other notable films in recent years have included A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), The Village (2004), Syriana (2005), The Good Shepherd (2006), Mr. Brooks (2007), Into the Wild (2007), The Incredible Hulk (2008), and Robin Hood (2010).

 

Early life

Hurt was born in Washington, D.C., the son of Claire Isabel (née McGill), who worked at Time, Inc., and Alfred McChord Hurt, who worked for the State Department.With his father, he lived in Lahore, Mogadishu, and Khartoum.After his parents divorced, his mother married Henry Luce III (a son of publisher Henry Luce) during Hurt's childhood. Hurt graduated from Middlesex School in 1968 where he was vice president of the Dramatics Club and had the lead role in several school plays. His high school yearbook predicted "With characteristics such as these, you might even see him on Broadway." Hurt attended Tufts University and studied theology, but turned instead to acting and joined the Juilliard Drama School. One of his classmates was actor Christopher Reeve.

 

Career

Hurt appeared first on stage, only later turning to film. His first major film role was in the science fiction hit Altered States which gave him wide recognition for playing an obsessed scientist. His performance with Richard Crenna, Ted Danson, and newcomer Kathleen Turner in Lawrence Kasdan's neo-noir classic Body Heat elevated Hurt to stardom. He received the Best Male Performance Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and the Academy Award for Best Actor for Kiss of the Spider Woman for 1985. He has received three additional Oscar nominations; one for Children of a Lesser God, one for Broadcast News and one (for Best Supporting Actor) in A History Of Violence. Hurt also starred in Tuck Everlasting as Angus Tuck.

 

Often cast as an intellectual, Hurt has put this to good use in films such as Lost in Space and The Big Chill, but he is also effective in other kinds of roles, such as those in I Love You to Death, and David Cronenberg's psychological drama A History of Violence (2005), wherein, with less than 10 minutes of screen time, he plays the creepy mob boss Richie Cusack. In 2005 Hurt was also seen as a mysterious government operative in Stephen Gaghan's ensemble drama about the politics of big oil, Syriana.

 

Hurt was in the mini-series adaptation of Stephen King's Nightmares and Dreamscapes, in a piece entitled Battleground (also notable for its complete lack of dialogue). He plays "Renshaw", a hitman who receives a package from the widow of a toymaker he killed, unaware of what is waiting inside for him. He appeared in the cast of Vanya, an adaptation of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya, at the Artists Repertory Theatre in Portland, Oregon.

 

He appeared in Sean Penn's film Into the Wild, the true story of Christopher McCandless. Hurt next starred as General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross in The Incredible Hulk alongside Edward Norton, Liv Tyler and Tim Roth. He appeared as President Henry Ashton in the 2008 action-thriller Vantage Point. Hurt also played Mr. Brooks' alter-ego in Mr. Brooks starring Kevin Costner.

 

In 2009, Hurt became a series regular on the FX series Damages playing a corporate whistleblower opposite Glenn Close and Marcia Gay Harden. For his role in the series, Hurt earned a 2009 Primetime Emmy Award nomination in the "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series" category. Hurt's 2009 Sundance film The Yellow Handkerchief was released in theaters on February 26, 2010 by Samuel Goldwyn Films. He was in the Thailand-based 2010 thriller Shadows alongside Cary Elwes and Paula Taylor, directed by John Penney.

 

In September 2010 Hurt played United States Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson in the HBO film Too Big to Fail, an adaptation of Andrew Ross Sorkin's book. He also starred as Captain Ahab in the 2011 television adaptation of Herman Melville's novel Moby-Dick; or, The Whale.

 

Personal life

Hurt is fluent in French and maintains a home outside Paris. He is the step-grandson of Henry Luce, founder of Time magazine and actress-writer Claire Booth Luce through his mother's marriage to Henry Luce's son from his first marriage, Henry Luce III.Hurt was married to Mary Beth Hurt from 1971 to 1982.

 

Hurt was involved in a 1980s lawsuit with Sandra Jennings, who alleged that the two shared a common-law marriage. While he was still married, Hurt and Jennings began a relationship in Saratoga Springs, New York, in 1981.Jennings became pregnant in the spring of 1982 which precipitated Hurt's divorce from Mary Beth Hurt, after which Hurt and Jennings relocated to South Carolina, a state that recognized common-law marriages. Hurt and Jennings, never officially married, later separated, and Jennings sued him in New York, seeking recognition of the "marriage" under South Carolina law.The New York court, which did not recognize common-law marriage and was reluctant to recognize a common-law marriage originating in South Carolina, found in Hurt's favor that no common-law marriage existed.

 

Hurt dated Marlee Matlin for one year, and they lived together for two years.In her 2009 autobiography, I'll Scream Later, Matlin claimed their relationship involved considerable drug abuse and physical abuse by Hurt.In response to the accusations aired on CNN on April 13, 2009, Hurt's agent declined to respond, but Hurt issued a statement the following day: "My own recollection is that we both apologized and both did a great deal to heal our lives. Of course, I did and do apologize for any pain I caused. And I know we have both grown. I wish Marlee and her family nothing but good."

 

Hurt has four children: Jeanne with actress Sandrine Bonnaire, Alex with Sandra Jennings, and two sons, Sam Hurt and William Hurt, from his 1989–92 marriage to Heidi Henderson.

 

During the filming of Kiss of the Spider Woman, Hurt and a friend were threatened at gunpoint but were let go several hours later.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1978	Verna: U.S.O. Girl	Walter	TV film
1980	Altered States	Edward Jessup, ProfessorProfessor Edward Jessup	Nominated – Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actor
1981	Eyewitness	Daryll Deever
1981	Body Heat	Ned Racine
1983	Big Chill, TheThe Big Chill	Nick
1983	Gorky Park	Arkady Renko
1985	Kiss of the Spider Woman	Luis Alberto Molina	Academy Award for Best Actor BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Best Actor Award (Cannes Film Festival) Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor National Board of Review Award for Best Actor (tied with Raul Julia for the same film) Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama
1986	Children of a Lesser God	James Leeds	Joseph Plateau Award for Best Actor Nominated – Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama
1987	Broadcast News	Tom Grunick	Nominated – Academy Award for Best Actor Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
1988	Time of Destiny, AA Time of Destiny	Martin Larraneta
1988	Accidental Tourist, TheThe Accidental Tourist	Macon Leary	Golden Horse Award for Best Foreign Actor
1990	I Love You to Death	Harlan James
1990	Alice	Doug Tate
1991	Until the End of the World	Sam Farber, alias Trevor McPhee
1991	Doctor, TheThe Doctor	Jack MacKee, Dr.Dr. Jack MacKee
1993	Plague, TheThe Plague	Bernard Rieux, DoctorDoctor Bernard Rieux
1993	Mr. Wonderful	Tom
1994	Second Best	Graham Holt
1995	Smoke	Paul Benjamin
1996	Couch in New York, AA Couch in New York	Henry Harriston
1996	Michael	Frank Quinlan
1996	Jane Eyre	Edward Fairfax Rochester
1997	Loved	K.D. Dietrickson
1998	Lost in Space	John Robinson, ProfessorProfessor John Robinson
1998	Dark City	Frank Bumstead, InspectorInspector Frank Bumstead
1998	One True Thing	George Gulden
1999	4th Floor, TheThe 4th Floor	Greg Harrison
1999	Sunshine	Andor Knorr	Nominated – Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
1999	Big Brass Ring, TheThe Big Brass Ring	William Blake Pellarin
1999	Do Not Disturb	Walter Richmond	a.k.a. Silent Witness
2000	Contaminated Man	David R. Whitman
2000	Frank Herbert's Dune	Leto Atreides, DukeDuke Leto Atreides	TV
2000	Miracle Maker, TheThe Miracle Maker	Jairus	Voice only
2001	Rare Birds	Restaurateur
2001	A.I. Artificial Intelligence	Allen Hobby, ProfessorProfessor Allen Hobby
2001	Simian Line, TheThe Simian Line	Edward
2001	Varian's War	Varian Fry
2002	King of Queens	Taber, Dr.Dr. Taber	TV Episode 120: Shrink Wrap
2002	Tuck Everlasting	Angus Tuck
2002	Changing Lanes	Doyle Gipson's AA Sponsor
2002	Master Spy: The Robert Hanssen Story	Robert Hanssen	TV
2002	Nearest to Heaven (Au Plus Près du Paradis)	Matt
2004	Blue Butterfly, TheThe Blue Butterfly	Alan Osborne
2004	Village, TheThe Village	Edward Walker
2004	Frankenstein	Waldman, ProfessorProfessor Waldman	TV
2005	King, The The King	David
2005	History of Violence, A A History of Violence	Richie Cusack	Austin Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated – Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated – Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor
2005	Neverwas	Peter Reed, Dr.Dr. Peter Reed
2005	Syriana	Stan Goff
2006	Good Shepherd, TheThe Good Shepherd	Philip Allen, CIA DirectorCIA Director Philip Allen
2006	Legend of Sasquatch, TheThe Legend of Sasquatch	John Davis	Voice only Co-Producer
2006	Nightmares and Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King	Jason Renshaw	TV miniseries (segment "Battleground")
2007	Mr. Brooks	Marshall
2007	Beautiful Ohio	Simon Messerman
2007	Noise	Schneer, MayorMayor Schneer
2007	Into the Wild	Walt McCandless	Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
2008	Vantage Point	Ashton, PresidentPresident Ashton
2008	Incredible Hulk, TheThe Incredible Hulk	General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross
2009	Damages	Daniel Purcell	TV Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Nominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor – Drama Series
2009	Endgame	Willie Esterhuyse
2009	Countess, TheThe Countess	Gyorgy Thurzo
2010	Yellow Handkerchief, TheThe Yellow Handkerchief	Brett Hanson
2010	Robin Hood	William Marshal
2010	Shadows	Warren Mills
2011	Too Big to Fail	Henry Paulson	Nominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
2011	River Why, TheThe River Why	Gus's Father
2011	Moby Dick	Captain Ahab
2013	The Host	Jeb Stryder