Robert John Burke

Robert John Burke

A born-and-bred New Yorker, Robert John Burke made his film debut while in his early 20s with a small part in the drama "The Chosen" (1981), based on the Chaim Potok story. He went on to study acting at SUNY Purchase where he met aspiring filmmaker Hal Hartley, who cast him as one of the leads in his debut feature "The Unbelievable Truth," an offbeat indie tale where he played a man trying to escape his troubled past. Working with Hartley again on the charming brother-centric dark comedy "Simple Men," Burke caught a major break when Hollywood producers decided that his chiseled jawline was the right one to replace Peter Weller's in the sci-fi/action sequel "RoboCop 3." Despite Burke's efforts, the movie tanked, and he went on to smaller roles in major films, including the lauded Western "Tombstone" (1993) and the prison-break movie "Fled" (1996). Burke landed his second chance in a Hollywood starring role with the Stephen King adaptation "Thinner" (1996), but the macabre tale, which featured him under heavy makeup to depict a callous man who magically loses weight, was deemed almost universally unlikable.Though Burke's leading-man days were mostly behind him, his beastly role in Hartley's "No Such Thing" (2001) aside, he soldiered on, and began increasingly working on television with recurring roles on the grim prison drama "Oz" and the police procedural "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (NBC, 1999- ). Appearing in George Clooney's first two movies as director, "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" (2002) and "Good Night, and Good Luck." (2005), Burke nonetheless became more familiar to TV audiences, particularly when he signed on to play Mickey Gavin, the ex-priest cousin of Denis Leary's lead character on the firefighter series "Rescue Me," a part that dovetailed with Burke's real-life second job as a New York State fireman.Often cast as a tough guy, the ruggedly handsome and tall actor continued to play imposing figures such as Major General James "Chaos" Mattis in the Iraq War miniseries "Generation Kill" (HBO, 2008) and Bart Bass, the controlling billionaire father of Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick) on the soapy drama "Gossip Girl." Before long, he was juggling his ongoing "Law & Order: SVU" part with regular spots on the military drama "Army Wives" (Lifetime, 2007- ) and the tense crime show "Person of Interest" (CBS, 2011- ), while still finding time for supporting turns in films, including the Denzel Washington/Mark Wahlberg action movie "2 Guns" (2013).
    Known for
    Acting
    Place of birth
    New York City, New York, USA
    Birthday
    12 September 1960
Thinner
Thinner
5.922
Dust Devil
Dust Devil
6.381
RoboCop 3
RoboCop 3
4.807
Simple Men
Simple Men
6.7
Midnight Flight
Midnight Flight
4.7
No Such Thing
No Such Thing
5.9
The Unbelievable Truth
The Unbelievable Truth
6.842
Where There's Smoke
Where There's Smoke
0
Being
Being
4.4
Bait
Bait
0
Mayday - Flug in den Tod
Mayday - Flug in den Tod
5.5
Piggie
Piggie
2
Intrusion
Intrusion
5.97
Triggered
Triggered
0
First Love, Last Rites
First Love, Last Rites
4.273
Ned Rifle
Ned Rifle
5.722
Somewhere in the City
Somewhere in the City
0
Years Later: The Unbelievable Truth and Its Consequences
0
A Bright Shining Lie
A Bright Shining Lie
5.5
Flirt
Flirt
0
A Far Off Place
A Far Off Place
6.204
Fled
Fled
5.532
Safe
Safe
6.487
Killer: A Journal of Murder
Killer: A Journal of Murder
5.849
Nightmare Weekend
Nightmare Weekend
3.707
True Story
True Story
6.27
If Lucy Fell
If Lucy Fell
5
We Only Know So Much
We Only Know So Much
5.9
Rambling Rose
Rambling Rose
6.2
Speak
Speak
6.949
Future '38
Future '38
7.056
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
6.705
The Oh in Ohio
The Oh in Ohio
5.242
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Good Night, and Good Luck.
7.089
Hide and Seek
Hide and Seek
6.3
Limitless
Limitless
7.189
2 Guns
2 Guns
6.539
The Chosen
The Chosen
7.143
The Retaliators
The Retaliators
6.128
Boston Strangler
Boston Strangler
6.672
Connie and Carla
Connie and Carla
5.9
Boarding School
Boarding School
6.37
BlacKkKlansman
BlacKkKlansman
7.5
Crazy for a Kiss
Crazy for a Kiss
0
Flirt
Flirt
6.1
Heaven & Earth
Heaven & Earth
6.644
Miracle at St. Anna
Miracle at St. Anna
6.136
Gangster Wars
Gangster Wars
7.5
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
7.142
The Ex
The Ex
5.202
Brooklyn's Finest
Brooklyn's Finest
6.286
Looking for Mr. Goodbar
Looking for Mr. Goodbar
6.34
Tombstone
Tombstone
7.599
Cop Land
Cop Land
6.8
Munich
Munich
7.152