--- name: "William Forsythe" canonical: "https://film.one/person/william-forsythe" fi1m_id: "william-forsythe" imdb_id: "nm0001235" tmdb_id: 4520 wikidata_id: "Q350255" roles: ["Actor"] born: "7 June 1955" reviewed_on_fi1m: 4 average_fi1m_score: 74 average_as: "actor" average_over: 4 updated: "2026-09-24T08:02:21.429755+00:00" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # William Forsythe ## Identity William Forsythe - **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/william-forsythe - **Type:** Person - **Fi1m ID:** william-forsythe - **IMDb ID:** nm0001235 - **TMDB ID:** 4520 - **Wikidata ID:** Q350255 - **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Forsythe_(actor), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q350255, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001235/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4520 Actor. Born 7 June 1955 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, USA. ## Details - **Work:** Actor - **Born:** 7 June 1955, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, USA - **Active:** 1984–2006 - **Also known as:** Bill Forsythe, Уильям Форсайт, 윌리엄 포사이스 - **Frequently works with:** [Nicolas Cage](https://film.one/person/nicolas-cage.md) - **Average Fi1m score:** 74, as actor, over 4 titles - **Fi1m score by decade:** 1980s 82 (2), 1990s 78 (1), 2000s 55 (1) - **Fi1m against the critics:** 81 to 70 across 3 titles - **Score spread:** 2 at 80+, 1 at 60–79, 1 under 60 - **Lead roles:** 0 of 3 acting credits billed first or second - **Genres:** Crime 3, Drama 2, Action 1, Adventure 1, Comedy 1, Mystery 1 - **Screen time:** 6 hours of reviewed films - **Box office:** $370m across 3 films with figures - **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Forsythe_(actor), https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q350255, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001235/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4520 ## Fi1m on William Forsythe > William Forsythe makes a convincing threat, but the comic timing of *Raising Arizona* is reason enough to resist filing him away with the heavies. We rate him, and wish he were asked to look dangerous less often. William Forsythe is often cast as a man it would be unwise to argue with. His bulk and intensity make that an easy choice, but the more useful quality is his conviction: a lawman is as plausible as a criminal. We value him as a supporting actor, even when the parts offered to him are repetitive. Cockeye in *Once Upon a Time in America* (1984) and Special Agent Ernest Paxton in *The Rock* (1996) make a useful pair to start with. Sergio Leone gave him his breakthrough with Cockeye, though Robert De Niro and Ennio Morricone provide much of the film's feeling. We found *Once Upon a Time in America* deeply sad, and Morricone's music accounts for much of that response. Our reservation is with Leone's fondness for his gangsters and the sometimes arbitrary plotting; neither is a reason to dismiss the conviction of the men playing them. Forsythe belongs in this company, without being its principal attraction. In *The Rock*, Michael Bay puts that forcefulness on the side of the law. The principal pleasure remains Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris making an implausible story good company, despite editing that sometimes makes it harder to follow. Forsythe's Paxton is a useful reminder that he need not play a criminal to be convincingly tough. We would start elsewhere to see what he can do, but an actor who makes his part believable is useful in a film this loud. Earlier roles give a fuller picture: his Evelle in the Coen brothers' *Raising Arizona* (1987) allows for comic timing, while *The Waterdance* (1992) belongs to the independent-film work that sits alongside the studio parts. Later, Rob Zombie's *The Devil's Rejects* (2005) draws on his intensity as Sheriff John Quincy Wydell. Television returns him to gangsters with Manny Horvitz in *Boardwalk Empire*. The repeated casting as heavies has limited what he gets to show us. Start with *Raising Arizona* if the threatening men are all you know. ## Biography William Forsythe is an American actor. He was born on 7 June 1955 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, and studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse. He is known for portraying tough-guy and criminal characters in films including *Once Upon a Time in America* (1984), *Raising Arizona* (1987), *Dick Tracy* (1990), *American Me* (1992), *Gotti* (1996), *The Rock* (1996) as Special Agent Ernest Paxton, and *The Devil's Rejects* (2005). He received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for his performance in *The Waterdance* (1992). On television he has played Al Capone in the series *The Untouchables* (1993–94) and Manny Horvitz in *Boardwalk Empire* (2011–12). *Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.* ## On Fi1m (4) - *Shark* (2006), Fi1m 55, as Harry Russo — [page](https://film.one/tv/shark.md) - *The Rock* (1996), Fi1m 78, as Special Agent Ernest Paxton — [page](https://film.one/film/the-rock.md) - *Raising Arizona* (1987), Fi1m 84, as Evelle — [page](https://film.one/film/raising-arizona.md) - *Once Upon a Time in America* (1984), Fi1m 81, as Cockeye — [page](https://film.one/film/once-upon-a-time-in-america.md) ## Complete filmography (150) Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page. - *A Crime Story* (2026), Actor - *Straight Shot* (2026), as Frank Senior - *The Roaring Game* (2026), as Coach - *Just Breathe* (2025), as Tony - *9 Windows* (2024), as Det. Tim Boyle - *Open* (2023), as Capt. Edgar J. Steadman - *Ida Red* (2021), as Lawrence Twilley - *God's Not Dead: We The People* (2021), as Senator Robert Benson - *Roe v. Wade* (2021), as Justice Potter Stewart - *A Perfect Plan* (2020), as Grayson - *I Am Fear* (2020), as Marco - *Run with the Hunted* (2019), as Augustus - *Awake* (2019), as Roger Bower - *Vault* (2019), as Buddy Providence - *Betrayal: When the Government Took Over the Teamsters Union* (2019), as narrator - *Cold Pursuit* (2019), as Brock 'Wingman' Coxman - *Magnum P.I.* (2018), series, as Harry Brown - *The Little Mermaid* (2018), Actor - *The Networker* (2017), as Charles Mangano - *Check Point* (2017), as The Sheriff · Producer - *The Hollow* (2016), as Big John Dawson - *The Bronx Bull* (2016), as Jake LaMotta - *The Midnight Man* (2016), as Fairbanks - *Echoes of War* (2015), as Randolph McCluskey - *Laugh Killer Laugh* (2015), as Frank Stone - *Road to Juarez* (2015), as Doug Hermann - *Marvel's Daredevil* (2015), series, as Dutton — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/marvels-daredevil.md) - *The Man in the High Castle* (2015), series, as J. Edgar Hoover - *Hidden in the Woods* (2014), as Uncle Costello - *Tom Holland's Twisted Tales* (2014), as Mr. Smith (segment "To Hell With You") - *Tom Holland's Twisted Tales* (2013), series, as Mr. Smith - *The Ghost Club: Spirits Never Die* (2013), as Stanley - *Infected* (2013), as Dr. Edward Dennehey - *The Mob Doctor* (2012), series, as Constantine Alexander - *Loosies* (2012), as Captain Tom Edwards - *Inkubus* (2011), as Ret. Detective Gil Diamante - *Born to Ride* (2011), as Jack Steele - *Underground Entertainment: The Movie* (2011), as Bill - *L.A., I Hate You* (2011), as Uncle Rip - *Jesse* (2011), as Vince the Godfather - *Slip and Fall* (2011), as Jerry - *The Rig* (2010), as Jim Fleming - *Hawaii Five-0* (2010), series, as Harry Brown — Fi1m 65, [page](https://film.one/tv/hawaii-five-0.md) - *Boardwalk Empire* (2010), series, as Manny — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/boardwalk-empire.md) - *Dear Mr. Gacy* (2010), as John Wayne Gacy - *Justified* (2010), series, as Michael — Fi1m 87, [page](https://film.one/tv/justified.md) - *The Nail* (2009), as Massimo - *Happy in the Valley* (2009), as Stewart - *The Mentalist* (2008), series, as Steve Rigsby — Fi1m 71, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-mentalist.md) - *iMurders* (2008), as Professor Uberoth - *Final Approach* (2008), as Silas Jansen - *Stiletto* (2008), as Alex - *Halloween* (2007), as Ronnie White - *Hack!* (2007), as Willy - *Southern Gothic* (2007), as Pitt - *88 Minutes* (2007), as FBI Special Agent Frank Parks - *We All Scream for Ice Cream* (2007), as Buster - *Shark* (2006), series, as Harry Russo — Fi1m 55, [page](https://film.one/tv/shark.md) - *Jam* (2006), as Ted - *Freedomland* (2006), as Boyle - *Masters of Horror* (2005), series, Actor - *The Devil's Rejects* (2005), as Sheriff John Quincy Wydel - *Hammerhead* (2005), as Tom Reed - *The L.A. Riot Spectacular* (2005), as George Holliday - *Larva* (2005), as Jacob Long - *The Librarians* (2004), as Simon · Screenplay - *Entourage* (2004), series, as Eddie Kapowski — Fi1m 63, [page](https://film.one/tv/entourage.md) - *The Last Letter* (2004), as Mr. Griffith · Executive Producer - *Las Vegas* (2003), series, as Uncle Luke - *Blue Hill Avenue* (2003), as Det. Torrance - *The Technical Writer* (2003), as Joe - *CSI: Miami* (2002), series, as Captain Chris Sutter - *John Doe* (2002), series, as Digger - *City by the Sea* (2002), as Spyder - *Hard Cash* (2002), as Bo Young - *Coastlines* (2002), as Fred Vance - *UC: Undercover* (2001), series, Actor - *Camouflage* (2001), as Alton Owens - *Outlaw* (2001), as Ted Castle - *G-Men from Hell* (2000), as Dean Crept - *Civility* (2000), as Andrew LeBretian - *Luck of the Draw* (2000), as Max Fenton - *Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo* (1999), as Det. Chuck Fowler - *The Last Marshal* (1999), as DeClerc - *Blue Streak* (1999), as Detective Hardcastle - *Four Days* (1999), as Milt - *18 Shades of Dust* (1999), as Tommy Cucci - *Paradise Lost* (1999), as Mike Stark - *Row Your Boat* (1999), as Gil Meadows - *Soundman* (1999), as Frank Rosenfeld - *Dollar for the Dead* (1998), as Dooley - *Hell's Kitchen* (1998), as Lou Reilly - *Ambushed* (1998), as Mike Organski - *The Pass* (1998), as Charles Duprey - *Firestorm* (1998), as Randall Shaye - *Big City Blues* (1997), as Hudson - *First Time Felon* (1997), as Sorley - *Palookaville* (1996), as Sid Dunleavy - *Gotti* (1996), as Sammy Gravano - *The Rock* (1996), as Special Agent Ernest Paxton — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/the-rock.md) - *For Which He Stands* (1996), as Johnny Rochetti - *The Substitute* (1996), as Hollan - *Peacock Blues* (1996), Actor - *Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead* (1995), as Franchise - *The Immortals* (1995), as Tim - *Virtuosity* (1995), as William Cochran - *Beyond Desire* (1995), as Ray Patterson · Executive Producer - *Cybill* (1995), series, as Bruce - *Thriller Zone* (1995), as Marcus Deerfield (segment "The Final Hour") - *Direct Hit* (1994), as John Hatch - *A Kiss to Die For* (1993), as Detective Mike Stoller - *Relentless 3* (1993), as Walter Hilderman - *The Untouchables* (1993), series, as Al Capone - *Willing to Kill: The Texas Cheerleader Story* (1992), as Terry Harper - *The Gun in Betty Lou's Handbag* (1992), as Beaudeen - *Cruel Doubt* (1992), series, as Police Chief John Crone - *The Waterdance* (1992), as Bloss - *American Me* (1992), as J.D. - *Stone Cold* (1991), as Ice - *Out for Justice* (1991), as Richie Madano - *Career Opportunities* (1991), as Custodian - *Dick Tracy* (1990), as Flattop - *Blind Faith* (1990), series, as Ferlin L'Heureux - *Sons* (1990), as Mike - *Torrents of Spring* (1989), as Prince Ippolito Polozov - *Dead Bang* (1989), as Arthur Kressler - *Patty Hearst* (1988), as Teko - *Baja Oklahoma* (1988), as Tommy Earl Browner - *Weeds* (1987), as Burt the Booster - *Extreme Prejudice* (1987), as Sgt. Buck Atwater - *Raising Arizona* (1987), as Evelle — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/raising-arizona.md) - *Savage Dawn* (1985), as Pigiron - *The Lightship* (1985), as Gene - *The Long Hot Summer* (1985), series, as Isaac - *Command 5* (1985), as Hawk - *Cloak & Dagger* (1984), as Morris - *Once Upon a Time in America* (1984), as Cockeye — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/film/once-upon-a-time-in-america.md) - *The Man Who Wasn't There* (1983), as Pug Face Crusher - *Tales of the Gold Monkey* (1982), series, Actor - *T. J. Hooker* (1982), series, as Wounded Assailant - *Fame* (1982), series, Actor - *The Miracle of Kathy Miller* (1981), as Mark - *Smokey Bites the Dust* (1981), as Kenny - *Hill Street Blues* (1981), series, Actor — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/tv/hill-street-blues.md) - *Long Shot* (1978), as Bille - *The Young Land* (1959), Assistant Director - *The Witching Hour*, as Devlin Deeds - *A Christmas Cop*, as Captain Carol - *Godshot*, Actor - *Rule of Three*, as Mitch ## Gallery - ![Shel Dorf (in brown jacket) (1933-2009) on the set of the 1990 Warren Beatty/Madonna Dick Tracy movie - Ed O'Ross as Itchy is at top left. - Permission granted (2006)](https://film.one/media/person/86941/gallery-64d07d222f4d.jpg) Shel Dorf (in brown jacket) (1933-2009) on the set of the 1990 Warren Beatty/Madonna Dick Tracy movie - Ed O'Ross as Itchy is at top left. - Permission granted (2006) — Alan Light, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Shel_Dorf_with_Dick_Tracy_actors.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled) - ![William Forsythe, character actor and fan of Rogue's Dead Guy Ale - nicest guy ever. (2007)](https://film.one/media/person/86941/gallery-72d82ecd8e74.jpg) William Forsythe, character actor and fan of Rogue's Dead Guy Ale - nicest guy ever. (2007) — Jim Reynolds from Akron, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/William_Forsythe.jpg/1280px-William_Forsythe.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail) - ![William Forsythe](https://film.one/media/person/86941/gallery-249f3d930575.jpg) William Forsythe — Image via TMDB - ![William Forsythe](https://film.one/media/person/86941/gallery-c9b829086390.jpg) William Forsythe — Image via TMDB ## Awards ### Other awards — 1 won - Kulturgroschen 2003: Kulturgroschen (won) *From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.* --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/william-forsythe