Richard Jenkins

Born in DeKalb, Illinois, Richard Jenkins has built up an impressive list of credits since he began working as an actor in 1980. Yet with all his credits, Jenkins has remained strictly in supporting roles. After his first feature film, the sci-fi drama The Falls (1980), Jenkins landed work in a number of TV movies. In 1985 he returned to features, landing small roles in various films such as Silverado, Witches of Eastwick and Little Nikita (1988).
From 1985 to 1994, Jenkins found television more profitable, and spent most of his time working in mini-series and television movies. It was in this arena that he finally found starring roles in films such as Into Thin Air: Death on Everest, And the Band Played On and The Boys Next Door.
This lead to supporting roles in various large budget films such as Flirting with Disaster (1996) (for which he was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award), Absolute Power, There’s Something About Mary, The Mod Squad, Snow Falling on Cedars, Random Hearts, Me Myself and Irene and Say It Isn’t So (2001).
In 2001 he landed the recurring role of Nate Fisher, Sr. in HBO’s television series Six Feet Under. He continues to appear in major motion pictures such as The Core (2003) with Hilary Swank, Shall We Dance (2004) with Richard Gere and North Country (2005) with Charlize Theron.
In 2009, he received his first Academy Award nomination, for his work in The Visitor (2008).