Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsABFFPride MonthOutfest OutfrontsSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Biography
  • Awards
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Jon Voight

  • Actor
  • Producer
  • Writer
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,000166
Jon Voight at an event for The 66th Primetime Emmy Awards (2014)
Watch Official Trailer
Play trailer1:43
Mercy (2023)
99+ Videos
99+ Photos
Jon Voight is an American actor of German and Slovak descent. He has won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role as paraplegic Vietnam War veteran Luke Martin in the war film "Coming Home" (1978). He has also been nominated for the same award other two times. He was first nominated for his role as aspiring gigolo Joe Buck in "Midnight Cowboy" (1969), He was last nominated for the award for his role as escaped convict Oscar "Manny" Manheim in "Runaway Train" (1985). He was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, for his role as sports journalist Howard Cosell (1918-1995) in "Ali" (2001).

In 1938, Voight was born in Yonkers, New York. His parents were professional golfer Elmer Samuel Voight (original name Elemír Vojtka) and his wife Barbara Agnes (Kamp). His paternal grandfather was a Slovak immigrant, as were the parents of his paternal grandmother. His maternal grandfather was a German immigrant, as were the parents of his maternal grandmother. His maternal great-uncle was political activist Joseph P. Kamp (1900-1993), a leader of the anti-communist organization "Constitutional Educational League".

Voight has two siblings: volcanologist Barry Voight (1937-) and singer-songwriter James Wesley Voight (pseudonym Chip Taylor, 1940-). Barry is most famous for first predicting and then investigating the eruption of Mount St. Helens (1980). James is most famous for writing the hit songs "Wild Thing" (1965) and "Angel of the Morning" (1967).

Voight was educated at Archbishop Stepinac High School, an all-boys Roman Catholic high school located at White Plains, New York. At the time, the school was operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. He took an interest in acting in his high school years, performing a comedic role in the school's annual musical, "The Song of Norway". He graduated in 1956, at the age of 18.

Voight continued his education at The Catholic University of America, located in Washington, D.C.. He majored in art, and graduated in 1960. He was 22-years-old at the time of graduation. He then moved to New York City, having decided to pursue an acting career.

In the early 1960s, Voight primarily worked as a television actor. He guest starred in episodes of then-popular television series, such as "Naked City", "The Defenders", "NET Playhouse", "12 O'Clock High", and "Gunsmoke". His first notable theatrical role was playing the illegal immigrant Rodolfo in a 1965 Off-Broadway production of the play "A View from the Bridge" (1955) by Arthur Miller (1915-2005). In the play, Rodolfo is the love interest of the American girl Catherine, and disliked by her uncle and guardian Eddie Carbone (who is in love with his niece).

Voight made his film debut in the superhero comedy "Fearless Frank" (1967), playing the role of the eponymous superhero. Frank was depicted as a murder victim who gets resurrected and granted superpowers by a scientist. Voiight's second film role was playing historical gunman and outlaw Curly Bill Brocius (1845-1882) in the Western film "Hour of the Gun" (1967). The historical Brocius was an an enemy of the Esrp family, and was killed by Wyatt Earp (1848-1929).

Voigh't third film appearance was "Midnight Cowboy" (1969), his first great success. He played the role of a naive hustler from Texas who tries to become a gigolo in New York City. The film was critically acclaimed, and became the only X-rated feature to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Voight was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, but the award was instead won by rival actor John Wayne (1907-1979).

Voight's first role in the 1970s was playing lieutenant Milo Minderbinder in the black comedy "Catch-22" (1970). The film was based on a 1961 satirical novel by Joseph Heller (1923-1999), and offered a satirical view on war and bureaucracy. Voight's next role was playing the left-wing student A in the political drama "The Revolutionary" (1970).

Voight found further critical acclaim with the thriller film "Deliverance" (1972), playing Atlanta businessman Ed Gentry. In the film, Gentry and his first are targeted by villainous mountain men in the northern Georgia wilderness. The film earned about 46 million dollars at the domestic box office, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

His subsequent roles included idealistic schoolteacher Pat Conroy in "Conrack" (1974), journalist Peter Miller in "The Odessa File" (1974). His next great success was playing paraplegic war veteran Luke Martin in "Coming Home" (1978), in a role inspired by the life of war veteran and anti-war activist Ron Kovic (1976-). He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for this film. His co-star Jane Fonda (1937-) won her second Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in this film.

Voight's early 1980s roles included conman Alex Kovac in "Lookin' to Get Out" (1982) and widowed father J. P. Tannen in "Table for Five" (1983). His next big success was the role of escaped convict Oscar "Manny" Manheim in "Runaway Train" (1985). He was again nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, but the Award was instead won by rival actor William Hurt (1950-).

Voight's next role was that of Jack Chismore in the drama film "Desert Bloom" (1986). Chismore is depicted as a war veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), who is trying to raise three stepdaughters. He frequently abuses his stepdaughter Rose Chismore (played by Annabeth Gish), but is genuinely concerned for her safety when Rose runs away from home. This film was Voigh's last film role for several years, as he took a hiatus from acting.

Voight returned to acting with the drama film "Eternity" (1990), where he was also the screenwriter. The film deals with reincarnation, as a medieval war within brothers continues in modern American politics. Following his return to acting, Voight started appearing frequently in television films and miniseries. He also guest-starred in a 1994 episode of "Seinfeld", playing himself.

Voight returned to film acting with the crime drama "Heat" (1995), where he had a minor role as a fence. He had a more substantial role in the spy film "Mission: Impossible" (1996), where he played spymaster James Phelps. The film was an adaptation of the popular television series "Mission: Impossible" (1966-1973), about the adventures of a group of secret agents. The role of James Phelps was previously played by actor Peter Graves (1926-2010). The film was a great commercial success, earning about 458 million dollars at the worldwide box office.

Voight appeared in six different films in 1997, one of the busiest years of his career. The most notable among them was the horror film "Anaconda" (1997), where he played obsessive hunter Paul Serone, the film's main antagonist. The film won about 137 million dollars at the box office, despite a mostly negative critical reception. For this role, Voight was nominated for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor. He lost the award to rival actor Kevin Costner (1955-).

His next notable role was that Thomas Brian Reynolds, agent of the National Security Agency (NSA) in the action thriller "Enemy of the State" (1998). In the film, the NSA conspires to expand the surveillance powers of intelligence agencies over individuals and groups, at the cost of American citizens' right to privacy. The film was another box office success in Voight's career, earning about 251 million dollars at the box office.

In the same year, Voight played inspector Ned Kenny in the crime film "The General" (1998). The film was loosely based on the career of Irish crime boss Martin Cahill (1949-1994), who was nicknamed "the General". The film was critically acclaimed and director John Boorman won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Director.

Voight's next notable role was that of domineering coach Bud Kilmer in the sports film "Varsity Blues" (1999). The film dealt with the difficulties in the life of the players of a Texas-based high school football team, and was not expected to attract much attention by audiences. It earned about 54 million dollars at the box office, making it a modest box office hit. It is credited with introducing Voight to a next generation of fans.

Voight's final film in the 1990s was "A Dog of Flanders" (1999), based on a 1872 novel by Ouida (1839-1908). He played the role of artist Michel La Grande, the mentor of Nello (played by Jeremy James Kissner), who is eventually revealed to be Nello's biological father. The film failed at the box office, failing to earn as much as its modest budget.

Voight appeared in no film released in 2000, but had a busy year in 2001. He appeared in several box office hits of the year. He played President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945, term 1933-1945) in the war drama "Pearl Harbor", Lara Croft's father Lord Richard Croft in the action film "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider", coal-miner and working class father Larry Zoolander in action comedy "Zoolander", and sports journalist Howard Cosell in the biographical film "Ali". For his role in "Ali", Voight was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. The award was instead won by rival actor Jim Broadbent (1949-). It was Voight's fourth and (so far) last nomination for an Academy Award.

Voight had a notable role playing Pope John Paul II (1920-2005, term 1978-2005) in the miniseries "Pope John Paul II" (2005). He was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie, but the award was instead won by rival actor Andre Braugher (1962-).

Voight had a supporting role as John Keller, United States Secretary of Defense in the science fiction film "Transformers" (2007). The film was based on the Transformers toy line by Hasbro.It earned about 710 million dollars at the box office, one of the most commercially successful films in Voight's career.

In 2009, Voight had a notable television role, playing Jonas Hodges, the CEO of a Virginia-based private military company in the then-popular television series "24" (2001-2010, 2014). He was a main antagonist in the seventh season of the series. His role was inspired by the careers of Hessian colonel Johann Rall (c. 1726-1776), German industrialist Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach (1907-1967), and private military company CEO Erik Prince (1969-).

His 2010s notable film roles include the role of Dracula's enemy Loonardo Van Helsing in the horror film "Dracula: The Dark Prince" (2013), football coach Paul William "Bear" Bryant (1913-1983) in the sports drama "Woodlawn" (2015), and newspaper owner Henry Shaw Sr. in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" (2016). "Fantastic Beasts" earned about 814 million dollars at the worldwide box office, being one of the most commercially successful films that Voight ever appeared in.

In 2020, was 82-years-old, and he is still working as an actor.
BornDecember 29, 1938
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornDecember 29, 1938
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,000166
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Won 1 Oscar
    • 28 wins & 36 nominations total

Photos564

Jon Voight and Ned Beatty in Deliverance (1972)
Jon Voight in Coming Home (1978)
Jon Voight in Runaway Train (1985)
Jon Voight in Deliverance (1972)
Burt Reynolds, Jon Voight, and Ned Beatty in Deliverance (1972)
Jon Voight, Faye Dunaway, and Ricky Schroder in The Champ (1979)
Jon Voight and Lada Edmund Jr. in Out of It (1969)
Jon Voight and Graham Rogers in Bugs (2020)
Liev Schreiber and Jon Voight in Family Pictures (2019)
Jon Voight in Ray Donovan (2013)
Jon Voight and Martin Balsam in Catch-22 (1970)
Jon Voight in Catch-22 (1970)

Known for

Midnight Cowboy (1969)
Midnight Cowboy
7.8
  • Joe Buck
  • 1969
Jennifer Lopez, Jon Voight, and Ice Cube in Anaconda (1997)
Anaconda
4.8
  • Paul Serone
  • 1997
Deliverance (1972)
Deliverance
7.7
  • Ed
  • 1972
Rebecca De Mornay, Eric Roberts, and Jon Voight in Runaway Train (1985)
Runaway Train
7.2
  • Manny
  • 1985

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Lone Star
    • Clint Thatcher
    • Released
    • TV Series
    • 2010
  • Megalopolis
    • Post-production
  • Reagan
    • Viktor Petrovich
    • Post-production
  • Mercy (2023)
    Mercy
    • Patrick Quinn
    • 2023
  • Jon Voight, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Laura Mennell, Will Sasso, Skyler Shaye, Bradley Stryker, Kaya Coleman, Megan Charpentier, and Dylan Playfair in Dangerous Game: The Legacy Murders (2022)
    Dangerous Game: The Legacy Murders
    • Ellison Betts
    • 2022
  • Liev Schreiber in Ray Donovan: The Movie (2022)
    Ray Donovan: The Movie
    • Mickey Donovan
    • TV Movie
    • 2022
  • JL Family Ranch 2 (2020)
    JL Family Ranch 2
    • John Landsburg
    • TV Movie
    • 2020
  • Liev Schreiber in Ray Donovan (2013)
    Ray Donovan
    • Mickey Donovan
    • TV Series
    • 2013–2020
  • Laura Flannery in Roe v. Wade (2019)
    Roe v. Wade
    • Justice Warren Burger
    • 2019
  • Jon Voight, Eva LaRue, Sean McNamara, Steven Paul, Vail Bloom, Sweta Rai, and Alexa Nisenson in Orphan Horse (2018)
    Orphan Horse
    • Ben Crowley
    • 2018
  • Jon Voight, Jamie Kennedy, and Aidan Cullen in Surviving the Wild (2018)
    Surviving the Wild
    • Gus
    • 2018
  • Renée Zellweger, Jon Voight, Greg Kinnear, and Djimon Hounsou in Same Kind of Different as Me (2017)
    Same Kind of Different as Me
    • Earl
    • 2017
  • Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Eddie Redmayne, and Katherine Waterston in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)
    Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
    • Shaw Senior
    • 2016
  • Melanie Griffith, Jon Voight, James Caan, Teri Polo, and Grant Bowler in JL Ranch (2016)
    JL Ranch
    • John
    • 2016
  • Jon Voight, William Fichtner, Ali Afshar, Lia Marie Johnson, and George Thomas in American Wrestler: The Wizard (2016)
    American Wrestler: The Wizard
    • Principal Skinner
    • 2016
  • Court of Conscience (2015)
    Court of Conscience
    • Father Peter
    • Short
    • 2015
  • Baby Geniuses and the Space Baby (2015)
    Baby Geniuses and the Space Baby
    • Moriarty
    • Video
    • 2015
  • A Christmas Eve Miracle (2015)
    A Christmas Eve Miracle
    • Jerry the Dog (voice)
    • 2015

Producer

  • The Final Song (2014)
    The Final Song
    • executive producer
    • 2014
  • Nicholas Gonzalez and Marisol Nichols in The Princess & the Barrio Boy (2000)
    The Princess & the Barrio Boy
    • executive producer
    • TV Movie
    • 2000
  • Christopher Lloyd, Kathleen Turner, Gerry Fitzgerald, Leo Fitzgerald, Myles Fitzgerald, and Miko Hughes in Baby Geniuses (1999)
    Baby Geniuses
    • co-executive producer
    • 1999
  • The Fixer (1998)
    The Fixer
    • executive producer
    • TV Movie
    • 1998

Writer

  • Jon Voight, Armand Assante, and Eileen Davidson in Eternity (1990)
    Eternity
    • Writer
    • 1990
  • Lookin' to Get Out (1982)
    Lookin' to Get Out
    • written by
    • 1982

Videos105

Lonestar #4
Clip 1:03
Lonestar #4
Lonestar #3
Clip 1:07
Lonestar #3
Season 7 DVD - Disc 7 Special Features - 12:00 a.m.-1:00 a.m.
Clip 0:48
Season 7 DVD - Disc 7 Special Features - 12:00 a.m.-1:00 a.m.
Heat: Director's Definitive Edition
Clip 1:45
Heat: Director's Definitive Edition
Heat: Director's Definitive Edition
Clip 1:45
Heat: Director's Definitive Edition
Heat: Director's Definitive Edition
Clip 1:25
Heat: Director's Definitive Edition
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
Clip 1:10
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
Clip 0:54
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
National Treasure
Clip 1:41
National Treasure
National Treasure
Clip 1:05
National Treasure
National Treasure
Clip 1:04
National Treasure
National Treasure
Clip 1:54
National Treasure

Personal details

Edit
  • Official sites
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
  • Alternative name
    • John Voight
  • Height
    • 6′ 2½″ (1.89 m)
  • Born
    • December 29, 1938
    • Yonkers, New York, USA
  • Spouses
      Marcheline BertrandDecember 12, 1971 - April 14, 1980 (divorced, 2 children)
  • Children
      James Haven
  • Parents
      Barbara Voight
  • Relatives
      Vivienne Jolie-Pitt(Grandchild)
  • Other works
    Was replacement in role of Rolf in The Sound of Music on Broadway (his first wife, Lauri Peters, played Liesl for the show's entire run).
  • Publicity listings
    • 6 Interviews
    • 15 Articles
    • 3 Pictorials
    • 8 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Was cast as President Franklin D. Roosevelt in Pearl Harbor (2001) after Gene Hackman declined the role. Hackman's wife was of Japanese ancestry, and appearing in a film about the Japanese attack that precipitated the entry of the United States into World War II would have been painful for her, so Hackman turned down the role.
  • Quotes
    In most ways it was a damn good picture. But if we remade Midnight Cowboy (1969) today, the whole relationship between Buck and Ratso would have to be sexualized or at least made, you know, like in love... to be sexually or erotically honest.
  • Trademarks
      Models a unique voice and accent for each role
  • Salary
    • Midnight Cowboy
      (1969)
      $17,000

Related news

Contribute to this page

Suggest an edit or add missing content
  • Learn more about contributing
Edit page

More to explore

Production art
List
The Best Things to Watch in June
See the list
Production art
Photos
See These Trending Actors in Early Roles
Can you place the face?

Add demo reel with IMDbPro

Demo reel thumbnail
Make your IMDb page stand out by adding a demo reel
Upload your demo reel

Add demo reel with IMDbPro

Make your IMDb page stand out by adding a demo reel
Upload your demo reel
Demo reel thumbnail

How much have you seen?

Keep track of how much of Jon Voight’s work you have seen. Go to your list.
Production art
Photos
LGBTQIA+ Power Couples of Hollywood
See the photos

Recently viewed

Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
Get the IMDb App
Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
  • Get the IMDb App
  • Help
  • Site Index
  • IMDbPro
  • Box Office Mojo
  • IMDb Developer
  • Press Room
  • Advertising
  • Jobs
  • Conditions of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Ads Privacy Choices
IMDb, an Amazon company

© 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.