John Terry (born January 25, 1950) is an American film, television, and stage

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

. He is perhaps best known for his role as

Christian Shephard Dr. Christian Shephard is a fictional character on the ABC television series ''Lost'' played by John Terry. He is the father of lead characters Jack Shephard (Matthew Fox), who becomes the de facto leader of the survivors of Oceanic 815 after i ...

in the TV series ''

Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

'' and Larry McCoy in the TV series ''

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

''. He is also the father of football player Hanna Terry of

KIF Örebro DFF KIF Örebro DFF is a Swedish women's football club based in Örebro. Founded in 1980 as the women's football section of multi-sports association Karlslunds IF, the club's first team currently plays in the Damallsvenskan, the top level of the wome ...

in the Swedish women's football league Damallsvenskan.

Early life

Terry was born in Vero Beach, Florida, where he attended

Vero Beach High School Vero Beach High School (VBHS) is a 9–12 public high school in Vero Beach, Florida, United States that was established in 1925. The school is operated by the Indian River County School District. The campus of VBHS encompasses approximately , w ...

. He was also educated at the prestigious

Loomis Chaffee The Loomis Chaffee School (; LC or Loomis) is a selective independent, coeducational, college preparatory school for boarding and day students in grades 9–12, including postgraduate students, located in Windsor, Connecticut, seven miles north ...

prep school in

Windsor, Connecticut Windsor is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, and was the first English settlement in the state. It lies on the northern border of Connecticut's capital, Hartford. The population of Windsor was 29,492 at the 2020 census. P ...

, and began a career building original custom log homes in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. He played roles in local theater before moving to

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

where he founded a river rafting company. But his interest in acting did not diminish. At age 30 he moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

and became a full-time

Career

Terry's debut role was as the title character in the 1980 fantasy film ''

Hawk the Slayer ''Hawk the Slayer'' is a 1980 British sword and sorcery adventure film directed by Terry Marcel, and starring John Terry and Jack Palance. The story follows two warring brothers who fight to gain control of a magical sword. Brave warrior, the titu ...

'', followed by roles in films such as '' There Goes the Bride'' (1980), ''Tuxedo Warrior'' (1982) and the action sequel ''

Wild Geese II ''Wild Geese II'' is a 1985 British action-thriller film directed by Peter Hunt, based on the 1982 novel '' The Square Circle'' by Daniel Carney, in which a group of mercenaries are hired to spring Rudolf Hess from Spandau Prison in Berlin. The ...

'' (1985), as

Barbara Carrera Barbara Carrera (born Barbara Kingsbury) is an American actress, model and artist. She starred in the films '' The Master Gunfighter'' (1975), '' Embryo'' (1976), '' The Island of Dr. Moreau'' (1977), ''Condorman'' (1981), ''I, the Jury'' (1982) ...

's brother. His career then took a major upswing as he was assigned the roles of Lieutenant Lockhart in Stanley Kubrick's '' Full Metal Jacket'' (1987) and

Felix Leiter Felix Leiter is a fictional character created by Ian Fleming in the ''James Bond'' books, films and other media. The character is an operative for the CIA and Bond's friend. After losing a leg and his hand to a shark attack, Leiter joined the ...

in the

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

film ''

The Living Daylights ''The Living Daylights'' is a 1987 spy film, the fifteenth entry in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first of two to star Timothy Dalton as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by John Glen, the film's ...

'' (1987). Nothing as prominent followed immediately, though he received good notices for his role as a traumatized Vietnam veteran in

Norman Jewison Norman Frederick Jewison (born July 21, 1926) is a retired Canadian film and television director, producer, and founder of the Canadian Film Centre. He has directed numerous feature films and has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best ...

's ''

In Country ''In Country'' is a 1989 American drama film produced and directed by Norman Jewison, starring Bruce Willis and Emily Lloyd. The screenplay by Frank Pierson and Cynthia Cidre was based on the novel by Bobbie Ann Mason. The original music sco ...

'' (1989). Terry subsequently played the lead in a well-regarded but short-lived TV series '' Against the Grain''. Terry played Slim in the 1992 film adaptation of ''

Of Mice and Men ''Of Mice and Men'' is a novella written by John Steinbeck. Published in 1937, it narrates the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of new job o ...

'' and also appeared in ''

The Resurrected ''The Resurrected'' (also known as ''The Ancestor'' and ''Shatterbrain'') is a 1991 American horror film directed by Dan O'Bannon, and starring John Terry, Jane Sibbett, Chris Sarandon and Robert Romanus. It is an adaptation of the H. P. Lo ...

'' (1992), an adaption of the H. P. Lovecraft novella ''

The Case of Charles Dexter Ward ''The Case of Charles Dexter Ward'' is a short horror novel (51,500 words) by American writer H. P. Lovecraft, written in early 1927, but not published during the author's lifetime. Set in Lovecraft's hometown of Providence, Rhode Island, it w ...

''. He found new success on television. He appeared in the first episodes of '' ER'' playing Dr. Div Cvetic, the love interest of Dr. Lewis, who disappeared after a nervous breakdown. He later played a recurring role in season two of Fox's real-time thriller '' 24'', as Bob Warner, the father of both the love interest of hero

Jack Bauer Jack Bauer is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Fox television series '' 24''. His character has worked in various capacities on the show, often as a federal agent of the Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) based in Los Angeles, and w ...

and of another daughter whose fiancé is suspected of being a terrorist. After a brief stint on

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 ...

's ''

'', he was cast as

, the father of

Jack Shephard Dr. Jack Shephard is a fictional character and the protagonist of the ABC television series ''Lost'', played by Matthew Fox. ''Lost'' follows the journey of the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815 on a mysterious island and their attempts to survi ...

and

Claire Littleton Claire Littleton is a fictional character played by Emilie de Ravin on the ABC drama television series ''Lost'', which chronicles the lives of the survivors of a plane crash in the South Pacific. Claire is introduced in the pilot episode as a pre ...

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 ''

''. Terry reprised his role as Shephard on several occasions in flashbacks before appearing frequently in real time on the island as an incarnation of "the man in black". He had a guest role in a 2006 episode of '' Law & Order'', as well as the part of older Jacob Wheeler in Steven Spielberg's '' Into the West'' mini series, which was nominated for 16 Emmy Awards in 2006. He also appeared in David Fincher's ''

Zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. The pat ...

'',

Matthew McConaughey Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He had his breakout role with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first succes ...

's ''

Surfer, Dude ''Surfer, Dude'' is a 2008 American comedy film directed by S.R. Bindler and starring Matthew McConaughey. Woody Harrelson claims the film is the most "non-work" he has ever done. McConaughey and Harrelson, who previously appeared together in ''ED ...

'', and the horror thriller '' Nine Dead''.

Filmography

*'' There Goes the Bride'' (1980) – Nicholas Babcock *''Hotwire'' (1980) – Billy Ed Wallace *''

'' (1980) – Hawk *''Wilhelm Cuceritorul'' (1982) – King Harold II *''Tuxedo Warrior'' (1982) – Wiley *'' The Scarlet and the Black'' (1983) – Lt. Harry Barnett *''

'' (1985) – Michael *'' Full Metal Jacket'' (1987) – Lt. Lockhart *''

'' (1987) –

*''

'' (1989) – Tom *''

'' (1991) – John March *''

'' (1992) – Slim *'' A Dangerous Woman'' (1993) – Steve *''

Iron Will ''Iron Will'' is a 1994 American adventure film. It is based on the true story of a 1917 dog-sled race from Winnipeg, Manitoba to Saint Paul, Minnesota, a 522-mile-long stretch and part of the "Red River-St. Paul Sports Carnival Derby." It is d ...

'' (1994) – Jack Stoneman *''

Reflections on a Crime ''Reflections on a Crime'' (also known as ''Reflections in the Dark'') is a 1994 American prison thriller written and directed by Jon Purdy. Mimi Rogers stars as a woman in the final hours of Death Row retelling the murder of her husband that she ...

'' (1994) – James *'' The Big Green'' (1995) – Edwin V. Douglas *''

Heartwood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

'' (1998) – Joe Orsini *''

Blue Valley Songbird ''Blue Valley Songbird'' is a 1999 American made-for-television musical drama film directed by Richard A. Colla and starring Dolly Parton. It was filmed in Nashville, Tennessee and originally premiered on Lifetime on November 1, 1999. Plot Do ...

'' (1999) – Hank *''

'' (2004–2010) - Dr. Christian Shephard *''Steal Me'' (2005) – Father *''Crazylove'' (2005) – Mr. Mayer *''

'' (2007) – Charles Thieriot *''

'' (2008) – Mercer Martin *''

The Way of War ''The Way of War'' is a 2009 American film directed by John Carter and starring Cuba Gooding Jr., John Terry, Lance Reddick, J. K. Simmons, Clarence Williams III, and Jaclyn DeSantis. The screenplay was written by John Carter and Scott Schafe. Fil ...

'' (2009) – Secretary of Defence *'' Nine Dead'' (2009) – Shooter *''

CSI: NY ''CSI: NY'' (''Crime Scene Investigation: New York'', stylized as ''CSI: NY/Crime Scene Investigation'') is an American police procedural television series that ran on CBS from September 22, 2004, to February 22, 2013, for a total of nine seaso ...

'' (2009) – McCanna Taylor *''The Fortune Theory'' (2013) – Howard Fitzroy

References

External links

*
John Terry profile
Felixleiter.com; accessed October 10, 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Terry, John 1950 births American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors American people of Irish descent Living people Male actors from Florida Vero Beach High School alumni Place of birth missing (living people) Loomis Chaffee School alumni