William Devane makes authority convincing and seldom entirely comfortable. We value the things he leaves unsaid, though casting him repeatedly as men in charge can mean asking too little of an actor who works well through restraint.
Fi1m perspective
William Devane plays Janeway straight in Marathon Man (1976), leaving us to decide how much reassurance to take from him. That is useful in John Schlesinger’s uneven thriller, where the conspiracy takes too long to become clear. Devane can suggest knowledge held back without insisting that we notice him doing it. We were unsettled by Laurence Olivier’s performance, which makes the danger feel close even when the plotting is cumbersome. Devane’s restraint belongs in a film whose performances are more convincing than its construction.
His lawyer in Robert Altman’s McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) places that authority in a Western. This is the stronger of the two films, though Devane is not the chief reason we recommend it. Warren Beatty and Julie Christie make business feel painfully personal, and Altman allows the film to be funny without softening its sadness. Some dialogue gets lost, but the patience is worth it; we would not rush past this appearance on the way to the better-known parts.
The breakthrough was his President John F. Kennedy in The Missiles of October (1974), followed by leading film roles in the mid-1970s. The risk of typecasting was apparent in the recurring calls for presidents, agents and executives. Television gave him a longer association with Greg Sumner in Knots Landing, which he played from 1983 to 1993, before James Heller in 24 from 2005 to 2007 and again in 2014.
Speaking about Sumner, he put it plainly: “I tried to bring that to Greg Sumner. It was always about what’s not being said.” That is the quality we value, and also the one that familiar casting can waste. If the role requires nothing beyond an authoritative presence, much of the interest has gone before he speaks. Start with Marathon Man, but allow Schlesinger some time to get the conspiracy in order.
Biography
William Devane is an American actor. He trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and began his career with the New York Shakespeare Festival, appearing in fifteen plays. His early stage work included the role of Robert F. Kennedy in the 1966 Off-Broadway production MacBird.
Devane gained attention for his performance as President John F. Kennedy in the 1974 television film The Missiles of October and as John Henry Faulk in the Emmy Award-winning Fear on Trial (1975). He is known for his long-running role as Greg Sumner in the soap opera Knots Landing (1983–1993) and as James Heller in the series 24 (2005–2007) and its 2014 sequel 24: Live Another Day. His film credits include McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), Family Plot (1976), Marathon Man (1976), Payback (1999) and Space Cowboys (2000).
