Michael Monks is an American actor, director, and producer born in Indiana, who grew up in Colorado. He graduated from Colorado State University with a degree in Industrial Construction Management before studying acting with Sanford Meisner at The Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City. He previously worked as a project engineer before transitioning to full-time acting in the early 1990s. His best-known television role is George Vogelman on The Practice (1997–1999). His notable film credits include What's Love Got to Do with It (1993, with Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne), Air Force One (1997, with Harrison Ford), Hard Rain (1998, with George Clooney and Nicolas Cage), Harsh Times (2005, with Charlize Theron and Forest Whitaker), Street Kings (2008, with Whitaker and Kevin Bacon), End of Watch (2012, with Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña), Sabotage (2014, with Arnold Schwarzenegger), and Doctor Sleep (2019, dir. Mike Flanagan, with Ewan McGregor).