John Lithgow
Acting Born Oct 19, 1945 Rochester, New York, USA 228 credits
Biography
John Arthur Lithgow was born on October 19, 1945, in Rochester, New York, United States. He is an American actor, author, musician, poet, voice actor, singer, and producer. He studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before building a career known for diverse work on stage and screen. His accolades include six Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and two Tony Awards. He also received nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, four Grammy Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Laurence Olivier Award. His Tony Award wins include Best Featured Actor in a Play for his Broadway debut in The Changing Room in 1972, and Best Actor in a Musical for Sweet Smell of Success.
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Career overview
John Arthur Lithgow is an American actor, author, musician, poet, voice actor, singer, and producer. Born in Rochester, New York, on October 19, 1945, he studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before establishing a diverse body of work on stage and screen.
Lithgow has received numerous accolades throughout his career. His honors include six Primetime Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and two Tony Awards. He also holds nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, four Grammy Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Laurence Olivier Award.
His Tony Awards include his first for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his Broadway debut in The Changing Room in 1972, and his second for Best Actor in a Musical for Sweet Smell of Success. Known for his extensive career, he has accumulated known credits across television and film.
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Career timeline
Harry PotterFinding Harry: The Craft Behind the MagicJimpaFinding Harry: The Craft Behind The MagicGiant
Dexter: ResurrectionSNL50: Beyond Saturday NightThe Rule of Jenny PenThe Rule of Jenny Pen · Executive Producer
ConclaveSpellboundCabriniArt Happens Here with John LithgowArt Happens Here with John Lithgow · Executive Producer
Killers of the Flower MoonSharperLiv Ullmann: A Road Less TravelledDick Van Dyke: 98 Years of Magic
SherriThe Old ManBlack TarThe BubbleChez Bob
Dexter: New BloodShow of TitlesEmily @ the Edge of ChaosLive in Front of a Studio Audience: The Facts of Life and Diff'rent StrokesMyths and Hymns
Stars in the HousePerry MasonGive My Regards to Broadway
The Kelly Clarkson ShowPet SemataryBombshellLate NightThe Tomorrow Man
Firing Line with Margaret HooverThe Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To CancerJames Cameron's Story of Science FictionMister Rogers: It's You I LikePet Sematary: The Tale of Timmy Baterman
Trial & ErrorDaddy's Home 2Pitch Perfect 3Beatriz at DinnerThe Pulitzer At 100
The CrownThe AccountantMiss SloaneShakespeare Live! From the RSCOde to Joy: Beethoven's Symphony No. 9
The Late Show with Stephen ColbertThe Late Show with Stephen ColbertThe Late Show with Stephen ColbertThe Late Late Show with James CordenClose Up with The Hollywood Reporter
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy FallonLate Night with Seth MeyersInterstellarVariety Studio: Actors on ActorsThe Homesman
Once Upon a Time in WonderlandTimms ValleyShrek StoriesMarvin Hamlisch: What He Did For LoveNational Theatre Live: The Magistrate
Finding Your RootsThe CampaignThis Is 40Casting By
Rise of the Planet of the ApesNew Year's EveProhibitionShrek: Once Upon a Time
ConanLeap Year
Watch What Happens Live with Andy CohenConfessions of a ShopaholicThe Macabre World of Lavender WilliamsMiracle in a Box: A Piano Reborn
Car of the Future
The Graham Norton ShowShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway
DexterThe One Show30 RockDreamgirlsTwenty Good Years
The Colbert ReportHow I Met Your MotherEinstein's Big IdeaThe Apprentice: Martha Stewart
The Tony Danza ShowShrek 3-DKinseyFootloose: A Modern MusicalFootloose: A Modern Musical · Thanks
Jimmy Kimmel Live!DreamWorks 6 Spooky Stories CollectionVH1 Goes InsideBark, George
Live from E!Orange CountyBuckaroo Banzai Declassified
ShrekShrek in the Swamp Karaoke Dance Party
Rugrats in Paris: The MovieDon QuixoteDon Quixote · Executive Producer95 Worlds and Counting
The Early ShowTales from the Crypt: The Robert Zemeckis Collection
A Civil ActionHomegrownJohnny Skidmarks
The ViewThe ViewOfficer Buckle and Gloria
Full Filmography
228 titles- Harry Potter (2026) as Albus Dumbledore
- Finding Harry: The Craft Behind the Magic (2026) as Self
- Jimpa (2026) as Jimpa
- Finding Harry: The Craft Behind The Magic (2026) as Himself
- Giant (2026) as Roald Dahl
- Dexter: Resurrection (2025) as Arthur Mitchell
- SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night (2025) as Self
- The Rule of Jenny Pen (2025) as Dave Crealy
- The Rule of Jenny Pen (2025) Executive Producer
- Conclave (2024) as Tremblay
- Spellbound (2024) as Bolinar (voice)
- Cabrini (2024) as Mayor Gould
- Art Happens Here with John Lithgow (2024) as Self
- Art Happens Here with John Lithgow (2024) Executive Producer
- Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) as Prosecutor Peter Leaward
- Sharper (2023) as Richard Hobbes
- Liv Ullmann: A Road Less Travelled (2023) as Self
- Dick Van Dyke: 98 Years of Magic (2023) as Self
- Sherri (2022) as Self - Guest
- The Old Man (2022) as Harold Harper
- Black Tar (2022) as Dale Kemp
- The Bubble (2022) as Tom the Studio Chairman
- Chez Bob (2022)
- Dexter: New Blood (2021) as Arthur Mitchell
- Show of Titles (2021) as "There's No Business Like Show Business" Performer
- Emily @ the Edge of Chaos (2021) as Sir Isaac Newton (voice)
- Live in Front of a Studio Audience: The Facts of Life and Diff'rent Strokes (2021) as Philip Drummond
- Myths and Hymns (2021)
- Stars in the House (2020) as Self - Special Guest
- Perry Mason (2020) as Elias Birchard 'E.B.' Jonathan
- Give My Regards to Broadway (2020) as Self
- The Kelly Clarkson Show (2019) as Self
- Pet Sematary (2019) as Jud Crandall
- Bombshell (2019) as Roger Ailes
- Late Night (2019) as Walter Lovell
- The Tomorrow Man (2019) as Ed Hemsler
- On Broadway (2019) as Self
- The Investigation: A Search for the Truth in Ten Acts (2019) as President Donald J. Trump
- Firing Line with Margaret Hoover (2018)
- The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer (2018) as Self - Guest
- James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction (2018) as Self
- Mister Rogers: It's You I Like (2018) as Self
- Pet Sematary: The Tale of Timmy Baterman (2018) as Jud Crandall
- Trial & Error (2017) as Larry Henderson
- Daddy's Home 2 (2017) as Don
- Pitch Perfect 3 (2017) as Fergus
- Beatriz at Dinner (2017) as Doug Strutt
- The Pulitzer At 100 (2017) as Self
- Hickory Dickory Doc (2017) as Himself
- They All Saw a Cat (2017)
- The Crown (2016) as Winston Churchill
- The Accountant (2016) as Lamar Blackburn
- Miss Sloane (2016) as Senator Ronald Sperling
- Shakespeare Live! From the RSC (2016) as Self - Performer
- Ode to Joy: Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 (2016) as Narrator
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2015) as Self - Guest
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2015)
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2015) as Self
- The Late Late Show with James Corden (2015) as Self - Guest
- Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter (2015) as Self
- Inside 'Interstellar' (2015) as Self
- Best of Enemies (2015) as Voice of Gore Vidal
- Lord John (2015)
- Projections of America (2015) as Self - Narrator (voice)
- The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (2014) as Self - Guest
- Late Night with Seth Meyers (2014) as Self
- Interstellar (2014) as Donald
- Variety Studio: Actors on Actors (2014) as Self
- The Homesman (2014) as Reverend Alfred Dowd
- The Roosevelts: An Intimate History (2014) as James Roosevelt (voice)
- 9 Kisses (2014) as Man in Club
- Love Is Strange (2014) as Ben
- The Jungle Bunch 2: The Great Treasure Quest (2014) as Maurice (voice)
- Once Upon a Time in Wonderland (2013) as The White Rabbit (voice)
- Timms Valley (2013) as Ol' Gregory Timms
- Shrek Stories (2013) as Lord Farquaad (voice)
- Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love (2013) as Self
- National Theatre Live: The Magistrate (2013) as Posket
- Finding Your Roots (2012) as Self
- The Campaign (2012) as Glen Motch
- This Is 40 (2012) as Oliver
- Casting By (2012) as Self
- Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) as Charles Rodman
- New Year's Eve (2011) as Jonathan Cox (uncredited)
- Prohibition (2011) as Reader / H.L. Mencken (voice)
- Shrek: Once Upon a Time (2011) as Self
- Conan (2010) as Self
- Leap Year (2010) as Jack Brady
- Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen (2009) as Self - Guest
- Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009) as Edgar West
- The Macabre World of Lavender Williams (2009) as God
- Miracle in a Box: A Piano Reborn (2009) as Narrator
- Car of the Future (2008) as Narrator
- The Graham Norton Show (2007) as Self
- ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway (2007) as Self
- Dexter (2006) as Arthur Mitchell
- The One Show (2006) as Self
- 30 Rock (2006) as John Lithgow
- Dreamgirls (2006) as Jerry Harris
- Twenty Good Years (2006) as John Mason
- Sangre (2006) as Cafe chef and owner
- The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays (2006) as René Gallimard (segment "M. Butterfly")
- The Great Robot Race: The DARPA Grand Challenge (2006) as Narrator
- The Colbert Report (2005)
- How I Met Your Mother (2005) as Jerry Whittaker
- Einstein's Big Idea (2005) as Narrator (voice) U.S. edition
- The Apprentice: Martha Stewart (2005)
- The Tony Danza Show (2004) as Self
- Shrek 3-D (2004) as Ghost of Farquaad (voice)
- Kinsey (2004) as Alfred Seguine Kinsey
- Footloose: A Modern Musical (2004) as Self
- Footloose: A Modern Musical (2004) Thanks
- The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004) as Blake Edwards
- Dogs and More Dogs (2004) as Narrator
- Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2003) as Self - Guest
- DreamWorks 6 Spooky Stories Collection (2003) as Ghost of Farquaad (voice)
- VH1 Goes Inside (2003)
- Bark, George (2003)
- Live from E! (2002) as Self
- Orange County (2002) as Bud Brumder
- Buckaroo Banzai Declassified (2002) as Self
- Shrek (2001) as Lord Farquaad (voice)
- Shrek in the Swamp Karaoke Dance Party (2001) as Lord Farquaad (singing voice)
- Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000) as Jean-Claude (voice)
- Don Quixote (2000) as Don Quixote de La Mancha / Alonso Quixano
- Don Quixote (2000) Executive Producer
- 95 Worlds and Counting (2000) as Narrator
- The Early Show (1999) as Self
- Tales from the Crypt: The Robert Zemeckis Collection (1999) as Dr. Oscar Charles
- A Civil Action (1998) as Judge Walter J. Skinner
- Homegrown (1998) as Malcolm / Robert Stockman
- Johnny Skidmarks (1998) as Sergeant Larry Skovik
- The View (1997) as Self
- The View (1997) as Self - Guest
- Officer Buckle and Gloria (1997) as Narrator (voice)
- The Daily Show (1996) as Self
- 3rd Rock from the Sun (1996) as Dick Solomon
- Cosby (1996) as John Lithgow
- The Rosie O'Donnell Show (1996) as Self - Guest
- The West (1996) as Self
- The West (1996) as Self / Uriah Oblinger (voice)
- Hollow Point (1996) as Thomas Livingston
- Special Effects: Anything Can Happen (1996) as Narrator
- Redwood Curtain (1995) as Laird Riordan
- The Tuskegee Airmen (1995) as Senator Conyers
- My Brother's Keeper (1995) as Tom Bradley / Bob Bradley
- American Cinema (1994) as Self - Host
- Princess Caraboo (1994) as Professor Wilkinson
- A Good Man in Africa (1994) as Arthur Fanshawe, British High Commissioner
- World War II: When Lions Roared (1994) as Franklin Delano Roosevelt
- Silent Fall (1994) as Dr. Rene Harlinger
- Masters of Illusion: The Wizards of Special Effects (1994) as Self
- Frasier (1993) as Madman Martinez (voice)
- Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993) as Self - Guest
- Cliffhanger (1993) as Qualen
- The Pelican Brief (1993) as Smith Keen
- Love, Cheat & Steal (1993) as Paul Harrington
- The Wrong Man (1993) as Phillip Mills
- Sylvester and the Magic Pebble (1993) as Narrator
- The Country Mouse & the City Mouse: A Christmas Tale (1993) as Alexander (voice)
- Raising Cain (1992) as Carter Nix / Cain / Dr. Nix / Josh / Margo
- Ricochet (1991) as Earl Talbott Blake
- The Boys (1991) as Artie Margulies
- At Play in the Fields of the Lord (1991) as Leslie Huben
- Memphis Belle (1990) as Bruce Derringer
- Night of 100 Stars III (1990) as Self
- Amazing Stories: The Movie II (1990) as John Walters (archive footage)
- Happy Birthday, Bugs! 50 Looney Years (1990) as Self
- Ivory Hunters (1990) as Robert Carter
- John Lithgow's Kid-Sized Concert (1990)
- The Simpsons (1989) as Gus (voice)
- The Simpsons (1989) as John Lithgow (voice)
- Tales from the Crypt (1989) as Dr. Oscar Charles
- Traveling Man (1989) as Ben Cluett
- Out Cold (1989) as Dave
- Distant Thunder (1988) as Mark Lambert
- Harry and the Hendersons (1987) as George Henderson
- Baby Girl Scott (1987) as Neil Scott
- The Amazing Bone (1987) as Narrator
- Resting Place (1986) as Maj. Kendall Laird
- The Manhattan Project (1986) as John Mathewson
- Amazing Stories (1985) as John Walters
- Santa Claus: The Movie (1985) as B.Z.
- Mesmerized (1985) as Oliver Thompson
- Santa Claus: The Making of the Movie (1985) as Self
- 2010 (1984) as Dr. Walter Curnow
- Footloose (1984) as Rev. Shaw Moore
- The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) as Lord John Whorfin
- The Glitter Dome (1984) as Sgt. Marty Wellborn
- 2010 : The Odyssey Continues (1984) as Himself
- Goldilocks and the Three Bears (1984) as Goldilocks' Father
- Terms of Endearment (1983) as Sam Burns
- Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983) as Valentine
- The Day After (1983) as Joe Huxley
- Faerie Tale Theatre (1982) as Goldilocks' Father
- The World According to Garp (1982) as Roberta Muldoon
- I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can (1982) as Mr. Brunner
- Not in Front of the Children (1982) as Richard Carruthers
- Blow Out (1981) as Burke
- Big Blonde (1980) as Herbie Morse
- Mom, the Wolfman and Me (1980) as Wally
- The Oldest Living Graduate (1980) as Clarence
- All That Jazz (1979) as Lucas Sergeant
- Rich Kids (1979) as Paul Philips
- The Big Fix (1978) as Sam Sebastian
- Secret Service (1977) as Capt. Thorne
- Obsession (1976) as Robert Lasalle
- Saturday Night Live (1975) as Self - Host
- NOVA (1974) as Narrator
- The Country Girl (1974) as Paul Unger
- Dealing: Or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues (1972) as John
- Great Performances (1971) as Capt. Thorne
- Film '72 (1971) as Self
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) as Self
- Tony Awards (1956) as Self - Winner
- Tony Awards (1956) as Self - Nominee
- Tony Awards (1956) as Self - Presenter
- Tony Awards (1956) as Self - Nominee / Performer
- The Oscars (1953) as Self - Presenter
- Today (1952) as Self
- Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Paul Unger
- Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Major Kendall Laird
- Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Laird Riordan
- Golden Globe Awards (1944) as Self - Nominee
- Golden Globe Awards (1944) as Self - Presenter
- Golden Globe Awards (1944) as Self - Winner
- Broadway: The Next Generation as Self
- Stallone on the Edge: The Making of Cliffhanger as Self
Frequently Asked Questions
What movies or TV shows is John Lithgow best known for?
John Lithgow is widely recognized for notable roles and projects including Harry Potter (2026), Finding Harry: The Craft Behind the Magic (2026), Jimpa (2026), Dexter: Resurrection (2025).
When and where was John Lithgow born?
John Lithgow was born on October 19, 1945 in Rochester, New York, USA.
How many credits does John Lithgow have?
John Lithgow has accumulated over 228 film and television credits across a career spanning from 1944 to 2026.
What is John Lithgow's background in cinema and television?
John Arthur Lithgow was born on October 19, 1945, in Rochester, New York, United States. He is an American actor, author, musician, poet, voice actor, singer, and producer. He studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before building a career known for diverse work on stage and scre...