Don McKellar (born August 17, 1963) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

actor, writer, playwright, and filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge from

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

known as the

Toronto New Wave The Toronto New Wave refers to a loose-knit group of filmmakers from Toronto who came of age during the 1980s and early 1990s. History Atom Egoyan, John Greyson, Ron Mann, Bruce McDonald, Don McKellar, Peter Mettler, Jeremy Podeswa and Patricia ...

. He is known for directing and writing the film '' Last Night'', which won the Prix de la Jeunesse at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival, as well as his screenplays for films like ''

Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould ''Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould'' is a 1993 Canadian biographical anthology film about the pianist Glenn Gould, played by Colm Feore. It was directed by François Girard, with a screenplay by Girard and Don McKellar. The film is present ...

'', ''

The Red Violin ''The Red Violin'' (french: Le Violon Rouge) is a 1998 drama film directed by François Girard and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Carlo Cecchi and Sylvia Chang. It spans four centuries and five countries as it tells the story of a mysterious red-co ...

'', and ''

Blindness Visual impairment, also known as vision impairment, is a medical definition primarily measured based on an individual's better eye visual acuity; in the absence of treatment such as correctable eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment� ...

''. McKellar frequently acts in his own projects, and has also appeared in

Atom Egoyan Atom Egoyan (; hy, Աթոմ Եղոյեան, translit=Atom Yeghoyan; born July 19, 1960) is a Canadian filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge in the 1980s from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave. Egoyan ...

’s ''

Exotica Exotica is a musical genre, named after the 1957 Martin Denny Exotica (Martin Denny album), album of the same name that was popular during the 1950s to mid-1960s with Americans who came of age during World War II. The term was coined by Simon Wa ...

'' and

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...

’s '' eXistenZ''. He is also known for being a fixture on Canadian television, with series including ''

Twitch City ''Twitch City'' is a Canadian sitcom produced by CBC Television,"Twitch City a weird look at television addiction; Former King of Kensington gets whacked tonight". '' Edmonton Journal'', January 19, 1988. which aired as two short runs in 1998 an ...

'', ''

Odd Job Jack ''Odd Job Jack'' is a Canadian adult animated sitcom starring Don McKellar, about one man's misadventures in temporary employment. Seen on and produced for The Comedy Network, a cable specialty channel, Adult Swim and MuchMusic in Latin America, ...

'', and ''

Slings and Arrows ''Slings & Arrows'' is a Canadian television series set at the fictional New Burbage Festival, a Shakespearean festival similar to the real-world Stratford Festival. It stars Paul Gross, Stephen Ouimette and Martha Burns. Rachel McAdams appeared ...

'', as well as writing the book for the popular

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 ...

winning musical ''

The Drowsy Chaperone ''The Drowsy Chaperone'' is a Canadian musical with music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison, and a book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar. The story concerns a middle-aged, asocial musical theater fan who, feeling "blue", decides to p ...

''. He is an eight-time nominee and two-time

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for scu ...

winner.

Personal life

McKellar was born in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, the son of Marjorie Kay (Stirrett), a teacher, and John Duncan McKellar, a corporate lawyer. He attended Glenview Senior Public School,

Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute (''Lawrence Park CI'', ''LPCI'', "LP", or ''Lawrence Park'') is a semestered, public high school institution with over 1,267 students enrolled. The school is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It teaches grade ...

and later studied English at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

's Victoria College. McKellar married his longtime partner, Canadian actress

Tracy Wright Tracy Wright (December 7, 1959 – June 22, 2010) was a Canadian actress who was known for her stage and film performances, as well as her presence in Canada's avant-garde for over 20 years. Career In 1989, she was a founding member of the Toron ...

, on January 3, 2010. Wright died from cancer on June 22, 2010.

Career

McKellar was a founding member of Toronto's Augusta Company,"True To Her Craft Until The End"

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

, June 23, 2010 along with his future wife

and

Daniel Brooks Daniel Brooks (born 23 June 1958) is a Canadian theatre director, actor and playwright. He is well known in the Toronto theatre scene for his innovative productions and script-writing collaborations. Early life Brooks was born in Toronto, Ontari ...

. McKellar made his first screen appearance in 1989 in Bruce McDonald's film '' Roadkill'', for which he also wrote the screenplay. McKellar's work on ''Roadkill'' earned him

nominations for best supporting actor and best screenwriter, attracting the attention of many in Canada. ''Roadkill'' also won the Toronto- Citytv Award for best Canadian feature. McKellar collaborated again with McDonald for his 1991 film '' Highway 61'', writing the screenplay and playing the starring role as the barber Pokey Jones. Again McKellar's work solicited wide praise, earning him a second Genie nomination for best screenwriter and a nomination for best actor. McKellar's most recent collaboration with McDonald spawned the cult classic television series ''

'', in which McKellar played the starring role of Curtis, a television addict and shut-in. Since his entry into Canadian cinema, McKellar has also been involved in numerous projects. He appeared in

's films ''

The Adjuster ''The Adjuster'' is a 1991 Canadian drama film directed by Atom Egoyan. It premiered at the New York Film Festival, and was invited to the Director's Fortnight program at the Cannes Film Festival. It is Egoyan's fourth feature film, and the firs ...

'' (1991) and ''

'' (1994), the latter of which earned him the Genie for best supporting actor. McKellar collaborated with

François Girard François Girard (born January 12, 1963) is a French Canadian director and screenwriter from Montreal. Born in Saint-Félicien, Quebec, Girard's career began on the Montreal art video circuit. In 1990, he produced his first feature film, ''Car ...

, authoring the screenplays for his films ''

'' (1992), and the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

winning (Best Original Score) ''

'' (1998), in which McKellar starred alongside

Samuel L. Jackson Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American actor and producer. One of the most widely recognized actors of his generation, the films in which he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him ...

. He also appeared alongside

Jude Law David Jude Heyworth Law (born 29 December 1972) is an English actor. He received a British Academy Film Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, two Tony Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. In 2007, he received an Honorary Césa ...

and

Jennifer Jason Leigh Jennifer Jason Leigh (born Jennifer Leigh Morrow; February 5, 1962) is an American actress. She began her career on television during the 1970s before making her film breakthrough as Stacy Hamilton in '' Fast Times at Ridgemont High'' (1982). Sh ...

's 1999 film '' eXistenZ''. McKellar has emerged as a filmmaker in his own right; his directorial debut, '' Last Night'' (1998), which he also wrote and in which he also starred, garnered impressive critical acclaim, winning the Prix de la Jeunesse at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

and the Claude Jutra Award at the Genies. In 2001, he played the role of Oliver Tapscrew in the TV children's drama series ''

I Was a Rat ''I Was a Rat'' is a children's drama television series broadcast on BBC One from 9 to 23 December 2001, based on the popular 1999 children's novel '' I Was a Rat! or The Scarlet Slippers'' by Philip Pullman. It was aired in the Sunday tea-time sl ...

''. His second film, ''

Childstar ''Childstar'' is a 2004 Canadian comedy film directed and co-written by Don McKellar, and starring McKellar, Peter Paige, Gil Bellows, Mark Rendall, Michael Murphy, with Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Alan Thicke. It premiered at the Toronto Internat ...

'', opened in 2004 at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

to enthusiastic reviews. McKellar also starred in the animated sitcom ''

'' as the titular hero, Jack Ryder, which ran for four seasons between 2004 and 2007 on

The Comedy Network CTV Comedy Channel (often shortened to CTV Comedy and formerly known as The Comedy Network) is a Canadian English-language specialty channel owned by Bell Media which focuses primarily on comedy programming. The channel first launched on Octob ...

. McKellar has appeared in all three seasons of television's ''

Slings & Arrows ''Slings & Arrows'' is a Canadian television series set at the fictional New Burbage Festival, a Shakespearean festival similar to the real-world Stratford Festival. It stars Paul Gross, Stephen Ouimette and Martha Burns. Rachel McAdams appeared ...

'', as Darren Nichols, a theatre director. The show is co-written by Bob Martin, who collaborated with McKellar on the musical ''

''. Martin and McKellar also cocreated the Canadian television sitcom '' Michael, Tuesdays and Thursdays'', scheduled to debut on

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

in fall 2011."Camelot & cover songs: Inside CBC’s new fall lineup"
. ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

'', June 8, 2011. In 2006, he appeared in

Ken Finkleman Ken Finkleman (born 1946) is a Canadian television and film writer and producer, actor, and novelist. Biography Finkleman was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In Canada, Finkleman is best known as the writer, creator and producer of the CBC Televisi ...

's miniseries '' At The Hotel''. In June 2006 he won the

Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical The Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical is awarded to librettists of the spoken, non-sung dialogue, and storyline of a musical play. Eligibility is restricted to works with original narrative framework; plotless revues and revivals are ineligib ...

and the

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical is an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre among Broadway, Off Broadway and Off-Off Broadway productions. For two years, in addition to the award ...

for ''The Drowsy Chaperone''. He received a Gemini Award nomination for his role as

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

Clarence Fines Clarence Melvin Fines (August 16, 1905 – October 27, 1993) was a Canadian politician, teacher and union leader. He was provincial treasurer of the province of Saskatchewan during the Tommy Douglas era, and also served as Deputy Premier. Born i ...

in '' Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story''. McKellar hosted the

CBC Radio One CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent of Ca ...

series '' High Definition''. He co-starred in and wrote the 2008 screen adaptation of José Saramago's 1995 novel ''

''. In 2016, he was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

"for his contributions to Canadian culture as an actor, writer and director".

Selected filmography

* '' Highway 61'' (1991) * ''

Arrowhead An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an arrow, which contributes a majority of the projectile mass and is responsible for impacting and penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as sign ...

'' (1994) * ''

'' (1998) * '' Last Night'' (1998) * ''

Elimination Dance ''Elimination Dance'' is a 1998 Canadian short drama film. Directed by Bruce McDonald, Don McKellar and Michael Ondaatje based on Ondaatje's poem of the same name, the film stars McKellar and Tracy Wright as a couple in a jazz dance competition, ...

'' (1998) * '' The Herd'' (1998) * '' eXistenZ'' (1999) * '' A Word from the Management'' (2000) * ''

'' (2004) * ''

Green Door "The Green Door" (or "Green Door") is a 1956 popular song, with music composed by Bob "Hutch" Davie and lyrics by Marvin J. Moore. It was first recorded by Jim Lowe which reached number one on the US chart in 1956. The song has been covere ...

'' (2008) * ''

Cooking With Stella ''Cooking with Stella'' is a 2009 film written by siblings Deepa Mehta and Dilip Mehta. The film is a light comedy about a Canadian diplomat (Lisa Ray) and her husband (Don McKellar) living in New Delhi, and their cook, Stella (Seema Biswas).Sus ...

'' (2010) * ''

The Grand Seduction ''The Grand Seduction'' is a 2013 Canadian comedy film directed by Don McKellar and written by Ken Scott and Michael Dowse. The film stars Taylor Kitsch, Brendan Gleeson, Liane Balaban and Gordon Pinsent. It is based on a 2003 French-Canadian ...

'' (2013) * ''

Treading Water Treading water or water treading is what a Human swimming, swimmer can do while in a vertical position to keep their head above the surface of the water, while not providing sufficient directional thrust to overcome inertia and propel the swimmer ...

'' (2013) * ''

Zoom Zoom may refer to: Technology Computing * Zoom (software), videoconferencing application * Page zooming, the ability to magnify or shrink a portion of a page on a computer display * Zooming user interface, a graphical interface allowing for image ...

'' (2015) * '' Meditation Park'' (2017) * '' Blood Honey'' (2017) * '' Through Black Spruce'' (2018) * ''

Most Wanted Most Wanted may refer to: Law enforcement A most wanted list used by a law enforcement agency to alert the public, such as: *FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives *FBI Most Wanted Terrorists *ICE Most Wanted *List of Mexico's 37 most-wanted drug lords *Lis ...

'' (2020) * ''

The Curse of Audrey Earnshaw ''The Curse of Audrey Earnshaw'' (released as ''Blood Harvest'' in the United Kingdom) is a 2020 Canadian supernatural horror film written and directed by Thomas Robert Lee. It stars Catherine Walker, Jessica Reynolds, Jared Abrahamson and ...

'' (2020) * '' The Middle Man'' (2021) * '' Crimes of the Future'' (2022)

Television

* ''

'' (1998-2000) * ''

'' (2003-2006) * ''

'' (2003-2007) * '' Michael: Tuesdays and Thursdays'' (2011) * '' Sensitive Skin'' (2014, 6 episodes)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McKellar, Don 1963 births Living people Male actors from Toronto Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Best First Feature Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Film directors from Toronto Best Screenplay Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Best Supporting Actor Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Members of the Order of Canada University of Toronto alumni 20th-century Canadian male actors 21st-century Canadian male actors Best Actor in a Comedy Series Canadian Screen Award winners Canadian Film Centre alumni Canadian Comedy Award winners Tony Award winners