Kevin James O'Connor (born November 15, 1963) is an American actor, known for portraying character roles in major studio films such as ''

F/X2 ''F/X2'' (also known as ''F/X2: The Deadly Art of Illusion'') is a 1991 American action thriller film directed by Richard Franklin and starring Bryan Brown and Brian Dennehy. It is a sequel to the 1986 film '' F/X''. This was Franklin's final A ...

'', ''

Lord of Illusions ''Lord of Illusions'' is a 1995 American neo-noir supernatural horror film written and directed by Clive Barker, based on his own short story "The Last Illusion" published in 1985 in the anthology '' Books of Blood'' Volume 6. The same story introd ...

'', ''

The Mummy A mummy is an unusually well preserved corpse. Mummy or The Mummy may also refer to: Places *Mummy Range, a mountain range in the Rocky Mountains of northern Colorado in the United States *Mummy Cave, a rock shelter and archeological site in Par ...

'', ''

Van Helsing A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and bigger than a common car. There is some varying in the scope of the word across th ...

'', ''

There Will Be Blood ''There Will Be Blood'' is a 2007 American historical drama, period drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, loosely based on the 1927 novel ''Oil!'' by Upton Sinclair. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview, a Silver mini ...

'' and '' G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra''. He is a favorite of writer/directors

Stephen Sommers Stephen Sommers (born March 20, 1962) is an American filmmaker, best known for big-budget action movies, such as ''The Mummy'' (1999), its sequel, ''The Mummy Returns'' (2001), ''Van Helsing'' (2004), and '' G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra'' (2009). ...

and

Paul Thomas Anderson Paul Thomas Anderson (born June 26, 1970), also known by his initials PTA, is an American filmmaker. He made his feature-film debut with ''Hard Eight (film), Hard Eight'' (1996). He found critical and commercial success with ''Boogie Nights'' ( ...

, who often cast him in their films.

Life and career

Kevin J. O'Connor was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, the son of James O'Connor, a retired Chicago police officer, and Patricia Connelly, a teacher. He has a brother, Christopher O'Connor (a Southside school teacher). In 1988, he was married to Jane Elizabeth Unrue. O'Connor trained for the stage at

The Theatre School at DePaul University The Theatre School at DePaul University, previously the Goodman School of Drama (also known as TTS and GSD, respectively) is the drama school of DePaul University. Founded with its first class conducted at the Art Institute of Chicago on January 5 ...

in Chicago, before making his big-screen debut as high school rebel and

beatnik Beatniks were members of a social movement in the 1950s that subscribed to an anti-materialistic lifestyle. History In 1948, Jack Kerouac introduced the phrase "Beat Generation", generalizing from his social circle to characterize the undergr ...

poet Michael Fitzsimmons in

Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola (; ; born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the major figures of the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Coppola is the recipient of five A ...

's ''

Peggy Sue Got Married ''Peggy Sue Got Married'' is a 1986 American fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola starring Kathleen Turner as a woman on the verge of a divorce, who finds herself transported back to the days of her senior year in high sch ...

'' (1986). His next major part was quizzical newspaper reporter Taggerty Hayes in the HBO miniseries ''

Tanner '88 ''Tanner '88'' is a political mockumentary miniseries written by Garry Trudeau and directed by Robert Altman. First broadcast by HBO during the months leading up to the 1988 U.S. presidential election, it purports to tell the behind-the-scenes s ...

''. He portrayed a young

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fic ...

in the 1988 film ''

The Moderns ''The Moderns'' is a 1988 film by Alan Rudolph, which takes place in 1926 Paris during the period of the Lost Generation and at the height of modernist literature. The film stars Keith Carradine, Linda Fiorentino, John Lone, and Geneviève Bujol ...

'', had a small role in 1989's ''

Steel Magnolias ''Steel Magnolias'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama film directed by Herbert Ross and starring Academy Award winner Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis and Julia Roberts. The picture is a film adaptation ...

'', and a featured role in 1994's erotic thriller ''

Color of Night ''Color of Night'' is a 1994 American erotic mystery thriller film produced by Cinergi Pictures and released in the United States by Buena Vista Pictures (through its Hollywood Pictures label). Directed by Richard Rush, the film stars Bruce Wi ...

'', which starred

Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is a retired American actor. He achieved fame with a leading role on the comedy-drama series ''Moonlighting'' (1985–1989) and appeared in over a hundred films, gaining recognition as an action hero a ...

and

Jane March Jane March Horwood (born 20 March 1973) is an English film actress and former model. Early life and education March was born Jane March Horwood in Edgware, London. Her father, Bernard Horwood, was a design and technology secondary school teac ...

. O'Connor worked with writer/director

on the 1998 science-fiction adventure ''

Deep Rising ''Deep Rising'' is a 1998 American action horror film written and directed by Stephen Sommers and starring Treat Williams, Famke Janssen and Anthony Heald. It was distributed by Hollywood Pictures and Cinergi Pictures and released on February 2, ...

''. He subsequently appeared in Sommers' projects ''

'', in which he played the not-to-be-trusted and materialistic Beni; ''

'', in which he played Count Dracula's devious servant (and Dr. Frankenstein's former assistant) Igor; and '' G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra'', in which he portrayed

Doctor Mindbender Dr. Mindbender is a fictional character from the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero toyline, comic books and animated series. He is a scientist who works for the terrorist organization Cobra; like other characters in the fictional universe, his cha ...

. O'Connor had a key supporting role in ''

'' as Henry, the "brother" of

Daniel Day-Lewis Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis (born 29 April 1957) is an English retired actor. Often described as one of the preeminent actors of his generation, he received numerous accolades throughout his career which spanned over four decades, incl ...

's oil man, Daniel Plainview. O'Connor also starred in John Candy's last film, ''

Canadian Bacon ''Canadian Bacon'' is a 1995 comedy film written, produced, and directed by Michael Moore which satirizes Canada–United States relations along the Canada–United States border. The film stars an ensemble cast featuring Alan Alda, John Candy ...

''; he portrayed Roy Boy, a suicidal, eccentric American intent on sabotaging Canada. He reunited with ''There Will Be Blood'' director

for a small role in '' The Master''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnor, Kevin J. 1963 births Living people Male actors from Chicago American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors