Eric Cameron Stoltz (born September 30, 1961) is an American actor, director and producer. He played the role of

Rocky Dennis Roy Lee "Rocky" Dennis (December 4, 1961 – October 4, 1978) was an American teenager who had craniodiaphyseal dysplasia, an extremely rare sclerotic bone disorder. The condition usually results in neurological disorders and death during ...

in the biographical drama film ''

Mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practic ...

'', which earned him the nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture, and has appeared in a wide variety of films from mainstream ones including '' Some Kind of Wonderful'' to independent films such as ''

Pulp Fiction ''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, who conceived it with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; Starring John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Ving Rhame ...

'', ''

Killing Zoe ''Killing Zoe'' is a 1993 crime film written and directed by Roger Avary and starring Eric Stoltz, Jean-Hugues Anglade and Julie Delpy. The story details a safe cracker named Zed who returns to France to aid an old friend in performing a doomed ...

'' and '' Kicking and Screaming''. He was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for his performance in ''Pulp Fiction''. In 2010, he portrayed Daniel Graystone in the science fiction television series '' Caprica'' and became a regular director on the television series ''

Glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

''.

Early life

Stoltz was born in

Whittier, California Whittier () is a city in Southern California in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, part of the Gateway Cities. The city had 87,306 residents as of the 2020 United States census, an increase of 1,975 from the 2010 United States ...

, the son of Evelyn (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Vawter), a violinist and schoolteacher and Jack Stoltz, an elementary school teacher. He has two sisters, Catherine, an opera singer, and Susan, a writer. Stoltz was raised in both

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...

and

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

. He attended the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

, but dropped out after his junior year. He moved to New York in 1981 and studied acting with

Stella Adler Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher.
''

Peggy Feury Peggy Feury (born Margaret Feury; June 30, 1924 – November 20, 1985) was an American actress on Broadway, in films, and on television. She became a highly regarded acting teacher in New York and then in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, she t ...

Career

1978–1999

In the 1970s, Stoltz joined a repertory company that performed ten plays at the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

. He returned to the United States in 1979, when he entered USC as a drama student, but subsequently dropped out to pursue film and television roles. In 1978, he was cast as Steve Benson in the television adaptation of

Erma Bombeck Erma Louise Bombeck (''née'' Fiste; February 21, 1927 – April 22, 1996) was an American humorist who achieved great popularity for her newspaper humor column describing suburban home life, syndicated from 1965 to 1996. She also published 15 b ...

's ''The Grass Is Always Greener over the Septic Tank''. Director

Cameron Crowe Cameron Bruce Crowe (born July 13, 1957) is an American journalist, author, writer, producer, director, actor, lyricist, and playwright. Before moving into the film industry, Crowe was a contributing editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, for wh ...

and Stoltz became friends while making Stoltz's first feature film, ''

Fast Times at Ridgemont High ''Fast Times at Ridgemont High'' is a 1982 American coming-of-age comedy film directed by Amy Heckerling (in her feature directorial debut), from a screenplay by Cameron Crowe, based on his 1981 book ''Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A True Story' ...

'' (1982), which Crowe wrote and in which Stoltz had a minor role. According to Stoltz, Crowe promised Stoltz a role in all of his future films. He appeared in each of Crowe's next four films, '' The Wild Life'' (1984), '' Say Anything...'' (1989), ''

Singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

'' (1992) and ''

Jerry Maguire ''Jerry Maguire'' is a 1996 American romantic comedy-drama sports film written, produced, and directed by Cameron Crowe; it stars Tom Cruise, Cuba Gooding Jr., Renée Zellweger, and Regina King. Produced in part by James L. Brooks, it was inspi ...

'' (1996). In 1985, Stoltz garnered attention with a

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

nomination starring as

in ''

''. Among other roles in the 1980s, he appeared in the 1987 film '' Some Kind of Wonderful'', written and produced by John Hughes. Stoltz was originally cast as

Marty McFly Martin Seamus "Marty" McFly is a fictional character and the protagonist of the ''Back to the Future'' franchise. He is portrayed by Canadian actor Michael J. Fox in all three films. McFly also appears in the animated series, where he was voice ...

in ''

Back to the Future ''Back to the Future'' is a 1985 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis, and written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale. It stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, and Thomas F. Wilson. Set in 1985, ...

''. His view of the movie clashed, however, with that of the director,

Robert Zemeckis Robert Lee Zemeckis (born May 14, 1952) is an American filmmaker. He first came to public attention as the director of the action-adventure romantic comedy ''Romancing the Stone'' (1984), the science-fiction comedy ''Back to the Future'' film tr ...

. While the film was to become an action-comedy (and box office smash hit), Stoltz had read the script from a more serious angle, apparently focusing on the tragic consequences of going back to live a life that was not one's own. Five weeks into shooting the film, Zemeckis replaced Stoltz with

Michael J. Fox Michael Andrew Fox (born June 9, 1961), known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian-American retired actor. Beginning his career in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom ''Family Ties'' (1 ...

. This highly unusual move required buy-in from his own studio, reshooting much of the film, as well as an agreement from the producers of television's ''

Family Ties ''Family Ties'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC for seven seasons, premiering on September 22, 1982, and concluding on May 14, 1989. The series, created by Gary David Goldberg, reflected the move in the United States f ...

'', which had earlier refused to allow Fox to play the role because it would interfere with shooting the TV show; the deal allowed Fox to shoot the movie around his television schedule. During the 1990s, Stoltz went back and forth between stage, film and television, appearing in studio and independent films such as ''

The Waterdance ''The Waterdance'' is a 1992 American Drama (film and television), drama film directed by Neal Jimenez and Michael Steinberg (filmmaker), Michael Steinberg and starring Eric Stoltz, Wesley Snipes, William Forsythe (actor), William Forsythe, and He ...

'' (1992), ''

'' (1994), ''

Grace Of My Heart ''Grace of My Heart'' is a 1996 American musical comedy-drama film written and directed by Allison Anders and starring Illeana Douglas, Matt Dillon, Eric Stoltz, Patsy Kensit, and John Turturro. The film charts the music career of Denise Waverly ...

'' (1996) and ''

Anaconda Anacondas or water boas are a group of large snakes of the genus '' Eunectes''. They are found in tropical South America. Four species are currently recognized. Description Although the name applies to a group of snakes, it is often used ...

'' (1997). During the 1990s, Stoltz produced the films ''

Bodies, Rest & Motion ''Bodies, Rest & Motion'' is a 1993 American drama film written by Roger Hedden based on his 1986 play, and directed by Michael Steinberg. The film stars Phoebe Cates, Bridget Fonda, Tim Roth, and Eric Stoltz: they play four friends who are ...

'' (1993), ''

Sleep with Me ''Sleep with Me'' is a 1994 American comedy-drama film directed by Rory Kelly and starring Meg Tilly, Eric Stoltz and Craig Sheffer, who play good friends that become involved in a love triangle, a relationship complicated by the marriage of Til ...

'' (1994) and '' Mr. Jealousy'' (1997). He continued to appear on the New York stage, both on Broadway ('' Three Sisters'', ''Two Shakespearean Actors'', ''

Arms and the Man ''Arms and the Man'' is a comedy by George Bernard Shaw, whose title comes from the opening words of Virgil's ''Aeneid'', in Latin: ''Arma virumque cano'' ("Of arms and the man I sing"). The play was first produced on 21 April 1894 at the Aven ...

'', ''

Our Town ''Our Town'' is a 1938 metatheatrical three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play tells the story of the fictional American small town of Grover's Corners between 1901 and 1913 thro ...

'') and off-Broadway (''

The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...

'', ''

The Glass Menagerie ''The Glass Menagerie'' is a memory play by Tennessee Williams that premiered in 1944 and catapulted Williams from obscurity to fame. The play has strong autobiographical elements, featuring characters based on its author, his Histrionic persona ...

'', ''

Sly Fox ''Sly Fox'' is a comedic play by Larry Gelbart, based on Ben Jonson's ''Volpone'' (''The Fox''), updating the setting from Renaissance Venice to 19th century San Francisco, and changing the tone from satire to farce. The play revolves around the ...

''). He was nominated for a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

as Featured Actor for his performance as George Gibbs in the 1989 Broadway revival of

Thornton Wilder Thornton Niven Wilder (April 17, 1897 – December 7, 1975) was an American playwright and novelist. He won three Pulitzer Prizes — for the novel ''The Bridge of San Luis Rey'' and for the plays ''Our Town'' and ''The Skin of Our Teeth'' — a ...

's ''

''. A performance of this production was featured on ''

Great Performances ''Great Performances'' is a television anthology series dedicated to the performing arts; the banner has been used to televise theatrical performances such as plays, musicals, opera, ballet, concerts, as well as occasional documentaries. It is pr ...

Live from Lincoln Center ''Live from Lincoln Center'' is a seventeen-time Emmy Award-winning series that has broadcast notable performances from the Lincoln Center in New York City on PBS since 1976. The program airs between six and nine times per season. Episodes of ''L ...

'', which received a 1989 Emmy nomination. On television, he had a recurring role as

Helen Hunt Helen Elizabeth Hunt (born June 15, 1963) is an American actress and director. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. Hunt rose to fame portraying Jam ...

's character's ex-boyfriend on ''

Mad About You ''Mad About You'' is an American television sitcom starring Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt as a married couple in New York City. It initially aired on NBC from September 23, 1992, to May 24, 1999, winning numerous awards including four Golden Glob ...

'' (five episodes, 1994–1998), spent a year on ''

Chicago Hope ''Chicago Hope'' is an American medical drama television series, created by David E. Kelley. It originally aired on CBS from September 18, 1994, to May 4, 2000. The series is set in a fictional private charitable hospital in Chicago, Illinois. ...

'' (1994) and did some television and cable films such as ''

Inside Inside may refer to: * Insider, a member of any group of people of limited number and generally restricted access Film * ''Inside'' (1996 film), an American television film directed by Arthur Penn and starring Eric Stoltz * ''Inside'' (2002 f ...

'' (1996) (directed by

Arthur Penn Arthur Hiller Penn (September 27, 1922 – September 28, 2010) was an American director and producer of film, television and theater. Closely associated with the American New Wave, Penn directed critically acclaimed films throughout the 19 ...

) and ''

The Passion of Ayn Rand ''The Passion of Ayn Rand'' is a biography of Ayn Rand by writer and lecturer Barbara Branden, a former friend and business associate. Published by Doubleday in 1986, it was the first full-length biography of Rand and the basis for the 1999 f ...

'' (1999), with

Helen Mirren Dame Helen Mirren (born Helen Lydia Mironoff; born 26 July 1945) is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, she is the only performer to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting in both the United States and the United Kingdom. ...

. Stoltz received the Indie Sup(Y)port Award at the 1998

Los Angeles Film Festival The LA Film Festival was an annual film festival that was held in Los Angeles, California, and usually took place in June. It showcased independent, international, feature, documentary and short films, as well as web series, music videos, episod ...

2000–present

During the first part of the 2000s, he starred with

Gillian Anderson Gillian Leigh Anderson ( ; born August 9, 1968) is an American actress. Her credits include the roles of FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the series ''The X-Files'', ill-fated socialite Lily Bart in Terence Davies's film ''The House of Mirth'' ...

in ''

The House of Mirth ''The House of Mirth'' is a 1905 novel by American author Edith Wharton. It tells the story of Lily Bart, a well-born but impoverished woman belonging to New York City's high society around the end of the 19th century. Wharton creates a portrait ...

'' (2000), based on the novel by

Edith Wharton Edith Wharton (; born Edith Newbold Jones; January 24, 1862 – August 11, 1937) was an American novelist, short story writer, and interior designer. Wharton drew upon her insider's knowledge of the upper-class New York "aristocracy" to portray ...

. From 2001 to 2002, he had a recurring role as the English teacher-poet August Dimitri in

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

's '' Once and Again'', wherein

Julia Whelan Julia May Whelan (born May 8, 1984) is an American actress and author. She is best known for her role as Grace Manning on the television family drama series '' Once and Again'' (1999–2002), and her co-starring role in the 2002 Lifetime movie ' ...

's character, a teenager, fell in love with his character. He directed an episode of the show in 2002. In 2003, he played his first leading TV role in '' Out of Order'', which was canceled after five episodes. In 2004, he appeared in ''

The Butterfly Effect ''The Butterfly Effect'' is a 2004 American science fiction thriller film written and directed by Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber. It stars Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart, Eric Stoltz, William Lee Scott, Elden Henson, Logan Lerman, Ethan Suplee, and ...

'' as a

child molester Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whethe ...

; the following year, he guest-starred in the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

Will & Grace ''Will & Grace'' is an American television sitcom created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Set in New York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friends Will Truman (Eric McCormack), a gay lawyer, and Grace Adler (Debra Messing), ...

'' as

Debra Messing Debra Lynn Messing (born August 15, 1968) is an American actress. After graduating from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, Messing received short-lived roles on television series such as '' Ned and Stacey'' on Fox (1995–1997) and ...

's love interest. He was nominated for a

Daytime Emmy The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (N ...

for his direction of the cable movie ''

My Horrible Year! ''My Horrible Year!'' is a 2001 television movie produced for Showtime, starring Allison Mack, Caterina Scorsone, and Dan Petronijevic. The film was directed by Eric Stoltz, and includes a cameo by Bret Hart, the professional wrestler. This produ ...

'' (2001). He also directed a short film entitled ''The Bulls'' as well as the highest rated episode of ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...

'' in 2005, entitled "Tombstone". He appeared in the music video of

The Residents The Residents are an American art collective and art rock band best known for their avant-garde music and multimedia works. Since their first official release, ''Meet the Residents'' (1974), they have released over 60 albums, numerous music vi ...

' "Give It to Someone Else", featured on ''The Commercial DVD''. He has contributed essays to the books ''City Secrets--New York'' as well as ''Life Interrupted'' by

Spalding Gray Spalding Gray (June 5, 1941 – January 11, 2004) was an American actor, novelist, playwright, screenwriter and performance artist. He is best known for the autobiographical monologues that he wrote and performed for the theater in the 1980s and ...

and appears on the children's CD ''Philadelphia Chickens''. Beginning in 2007, Stoltz directed episodes of the drama series ''

Quarterlife ''Quarterlife'' (stylized as ''quarterlife'') is an American web series, also briefly an NBC television series in 2008, created by Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick, the creators of '' Thirtysomething'' and ''Once and Again'', and producers of ...

'', which began airing as

webisodes A webisode (portmanteau of "web" and "episode") is an episode of a series that is distributed as part of a web series or on streaming television. It is available as either for download or in streaming, as opposed to first airing on broadcast or c ...

and were then picked up to air on the

NBC network The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are ...

in 2008. Stoltz played a

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

in need of medical attention in three episodes of the fifth season of ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into se ...

''. He has also directed two episodes of ''Grey's Anatomy''. Stoltz starred as Daniel Graystone, inventor of the

Cylons The Cylons are the main antagonists of the human race in the '' Battlestar Galactica'' science fiction franchise, making appearances in the original 1978 series, the 1980 series, the 2004 re-imagining, and the spin-off prequel series '' C ...

, in the science fiction television series '' Caprica'', a prequel set 58 years before the ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel se ...

'' series. He became a regular director of ''

'', directing a total of 12 episodes, including "Nationals", in which the Glee club finally wins the championship. In 2011 Stoltz was seen back on the silver screen with the film '' Fort McCoy''; he earned accolades for his leading role as a conflicted barber of German heritage forced to suppress his American patriotism after moving his family to a post–World War II military base housing a German POW camp. Starting in 2014, Stoltz became the producing director of the CBS political drama series '' Madam Secretary''. The following year he became one of its four executive producers, alongside

Morgan Freeman Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, director, and narrator. He is known for his distinctive deep voice and various roles in a wide variety of film genres. Throughout his career spanning over five decades, he has received ...

and Barbara Hall and has directed more than 10 episodes, as well as starring alongside

Téa Leoni Téa Leoni (; born Elizabeth Téa Pantaleoni; February 25, 1966) is an American actress. In her early career, she starred in the television sitcoms '' Flying Blind'' (1992–93) and '' The Naked Truth'' (1995–98). Her breakthrough role was in ...

in several episodes as her brother, Will Adams.

Personal life

Stoltz met

Bridget Fonda Bridget Jane Fonda (born January 27, 1964) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in ''The Godfather Part III'' (1990), ''Single White Female'' (1992), ''Singles'' (1992), ''Point of No Return'' (1993), '' It Could Happen to You'' ( ...

in 1986 and they began dating in 1990. The relationship ended after eight years. In 2005 Stoltz married Bernadette Moley, a singer and former animator for

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

who migrated to the United States from Ireland. Stoltz is a

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetarianism m ...

."20 Things You Didn’t Know About Eric Stoltz"
Retrieved 16 September 2020.

Filmography

Actor

Film

Television

Director

Film

Television

He has directed many shows on The Learning Channel, TLC Network.

Producer

Films

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stoltz, Eric 1961 births 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors American television directors Living people Male actors from Santa Barbara, California USC School of Dramatic Arts alumni Film directors from California People from Whittier, California