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IMDbPro

Josh Brolin

  • Actor
  • Producer
  • Director
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 5,00057
Josh Brolin
Here's a look back at the various roles Josh Brolin has played throughout his acting career.
Play clip1:20
Josh Brolin | Career Retrospective
99+ Videos
99+ Photos
Rugged features and a natural charm have worked for Josh Brolin, the son of actor James Brolin. He has played roles as a policeman, a hunter, and the President of the United States.

Brolin was born February 12, 1968 in Santa Monica, California, to Jane Cameron (Agee), a Texas-born wildlife activist, and James Brolin. Josh was not interested at first in the lifestyle of the entertainment business, in light of his parents' divorce, and both of them being actors. However, during junior year in high school, he took an acting class to see what it was like. He played Stanley in "A Streetcar Named Desire" and became hooked. His first major screen role was as the older brother in the film The Goonies (1985), based on a story by Steven Spielberg. He then immediately moved on to work on television, taking roles on such series as Pilot (1987) and The Young Riders (1989). "Private Eye" was a chance for Brolin to play a detective. "The Young Riders" was set just before the Civil War, and was co-directed by Brolin's father, James Brolin.

After The Young Riders (1989), Brolin moved back to the big screen, with mediocre success. He played a supporting role in The Road Killers (1994), but the film was not a success. He followed up with the crime film Gang in Blue (1996), the romantic film Bed of Roses (1996), the thriller film Nightwatch (1997), and appeared with his father in My Brother's War (1997). However, nothing truly stuck out, especially not the box office flop The Mod Squad (1999). The 2000s initially brought no significant change in Brolin's career. He appeared in the independent film Slow Burn (2000), the sci-if thriller Hollow Man (2000) and starred on the television series Mister Sterling (2003). In 2004, he married actress Diane Lane but later divorced in 2013.

It was not until 2007 that Brolin received much acclaim for his films. He took a supporting role in the Quentin Tarantino-written Grindhouse (2007) which was a two-part film accounting two horror stories. He also played two policemen that year: corrupt officer Nick Trupo in the crime epic American Gangster (2007), and an honest police chief in the emotional drama In the Valley of Elah (2007) which starred Tommy Lee Jones and was directed by Paul Haggis. However, it was his involvement in No Country for Old Men (2007) that truly pushed him into the limelight. The film, directed by the Coen brothers, was about a man (Brolin) who finds a satchel containing two million dollars in cash. He is pursued by an unstoppable assassin (Javier Bardem, who won an Oscar for his work) and his friend, a local sheriff (Tommy Lee Jones). The film won four Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director.

Brolin found high-profile work the next year, being cast as Supervisor Dan White in the film Milk (2008). His performance as the weak and bitter politician earned him an Oscar nomination, and Brolin received more praise for his fascinating portrayal of George W. Bush in the Oliver Stone film W. (2008). Despite the mediocre success of W. (2008), he was recognized as the best part of the film, and Milk (2008) was another triumph, critically and commercially.

Brolin then acted in the smaller comedy Women in Trouble (2009) before landing a number of large roles in 2010. The first of these was the film based on the comic book figure Jonah Hex (2010). The film was a box office flop and critically panned, but Brolin also forged a second collaboration with legendary director Oliver Stone for Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010). Brolin played a large role alongside such young stars as Carey Mulligan and Shia LaBeouf, and older thespians such as Michael Douglas, Eli Wallach, and Frank Langella. Brolin's character was Bretton James, a top banker in the film, and also the film's chief antagonist. Brolin also appeared in Woody Allen's London-based film You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010) and a second collaboration with the Coen Brothers, which was a remake of True Grit (1969).

Despite his earlier mediocre success and fame, Brolin has maintained a choosiness in his films and, recently, these choices have paid off profoundly. Hopefully, he continues this streak of good fortune that his talents have finally given him.
BornFebruary 12, 1968
  • More at IMDbPro
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    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornFebruary 12, 1968
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 5,00057
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Nominated for 1 Oscar

Superhero Stars Before They Took Flight

Superhero Stars Before They Took Flight

Check out some of our favorite superhero stars from movies and television, before they suited up.
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Photos

Photos808

Josh Brolin and Imogen Poots in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin and Zoe Saldana in Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Josh Brolin in Outer Range (2022)
Lili Taylor, Josh Brolin, and Tom Pelphrey in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin, Noah Reid, Shaun Sipos, Tom Pelphrey, Matt Lauria, and Lewis Pullman in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin, Tom Pelphrey, and Lewis Pullman in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin and Imogen Poots in Outer Range (2022)
Josh Brolin

Known for

Don Cheadle, Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Bradley Cooper, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Brie Larson, Jeremy Renner, Paul Rudd, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Danai Gurira, and Karen Gillan in Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Avengers: Endgame
8.4
  • Thanos
  • 2019
Javier Bardem and Josh Brolin in No Country for Old Men (2007)
No Country for Old Men
8.2
  • Llewelyn Moss
  • 2007
Don Cheadle, Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Vin Diesel, Paul Bettany, Bradley Cooper, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Elizabeth Olsen, Chris Pratt, Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Benedict Wong, Anthony Mackie, Chris Hemsworth, Dave Bautista, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chadwick Boseman, Sebastian Stan, Danai Gurira, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Letitia Wright, and Tom Holland in Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Avengers: Infinity War
8.4
  • Thanos
  • 2018
Inherent Vice (2014)
Inherent Vice
6.6
  • Lt. Det. Christian F. "Bigfoot" Bjornsen
  • 2014

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actor

  • Dune: Part Two
    • Post-production
  • The Untitled Josh Brolin Project
    • In Development
  • Brothers
    • Post-production
  • Outer Range (2022)
    Outer Range
  • Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Rebecca Ferguson, Jason Momoa, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Oscar Isaac, Timothée Chalamet, and Zendaya in Dune (2021)
    Dune
  • Josh Keaton, Jeffrey Wright, Lake Bell, Chadwick Boseman, Cynthia Kaye McWilliams, Hudson Thames, Hayley Atwell, and Ross Marquand in What If...? (2021)
    What If...?
    • (voice)
  • Sean Penn and Dylan Penn in Flag Day (2021)
    Flag Day
  • Don Cheadle, Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Bradley Cooper, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Brie Larson, Jeremy Renner, Paul Rudd, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Danai Gurira, and Karen Gillan in Avengers: Endgame (2019)
    Avengers: Endgame
  • Asesinato en el Hormiguero Express (2018)
    Asesinato en el Hormiguero Express
  • Josh Brolin and Benicio Del Toro in Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018)
    Sicario: Day of the Soldado
  • Brad Pitt, Josh Brolin, Ryan Reynolds, Terry Crews, Bill Skarsgård, Leslie Uggams, Morena Baccarin, Lewis Tan, Stefan Kapicic, Rob Delaney, Shioli Kutsuna, Julian Dennison, Zazie Beetz, and Brianna Hildebrand in Deadpool 2 (2018)
    Deadpool 2
  • Don Cheadle, Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Vin Diesel, Paul Bettany, Bradley Cooper, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Elizabeth Olsen, Chris Pratt, Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Benedict Wong, Anthony Mackie, Chris Hemsworth, Dave Bautista, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chadwick Boseman, Sebastian Stan, Danai Gurira, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Letitia Wright, and Tom Holland in Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
    Avengers: Infinity War
  • The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter (2018)
    The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter
  • Jennifer Connelly, Jeff Bridges, Josh Brolin, and Miles Teller in Only the Brave (2017)
    Only the Brave
  • George Clooney, Josh Brolin, Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum, and Jonah Hill in Hail, Caesar! (2016)
    Hail, Caesar!
  • Everest (2015)
    Everest
  • Josh Brolin, Benicio Del Toro, and Emily Blunt in Sicario (2015)
    Sicario
  • Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Downey Jr., James Spader, Paul Bettany, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Elizabeth Olsen, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Chris Hemsworth in Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
    Avengers: Age of Ultron
    • (uncredited)

Producer

  • The Untitled Josh Brolin Project
    • In Development
  • Brothers
    • Post-production
  • Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain in George & Tammy (2022)
    George & Tammy
  • Outer Range (2022)
    Outer Range
  • Kathy Kiera Clarke, Jacqueline Kealy, and Brendan Broderick in A Bend in the River (2020)
    A Bend in the River
  • Josh Brolin, Tony Hawk, Travis Pastrana, Brian Deegan, Mike Metzger, Seth Enslow, and Carey Hart in Unchained: The Untold Story of Freestyle Motocross (2016)
    Unchained: The Untold Story of Freestyle Motocross
  • Be Water (2020)
    30 for 30
  • The People Speak UK
  • The People Speak (2009)
    The People Speak
  • No Country for Old Men: Josh Brolin's Unauthorized Behind the Scenes
  • X (2008)
    X

Director

  • No Country for Old Men: Josh Brolin's Unauthorized Behind the Scenes
  • X (2008)
    X
  • In-development projects at IMDbPro

Videos150

Goofs! 'The Goonies'
Clip 2:12
Goofs! 'The Goonies'
Josh Brolin | Career Retrospective
Clip 1:20
Josh Brolin | Career Retrospective
'Avengers: Endgame' White Suits Are Probably NOT for Outer Space
Clip 3:02
'Avengers: Endgame' White Suits Are Probably NOT for Outer Space
'Avengers: Endgame' Teaser Breakdown
Clip 2:33
'Avengers: Endgame' Teaser Breakdown
Who Nearly Starred in 'Justice League?'
Clip 3:48
Who Nearly Starred in 'Justice League?'
IMDb's Most Anticipated Movies of 2019
Clip 3:44
IMDb's Most Anticipated Movies of 2019
Josh Brolin | Top Stars of 2018 | Supercut
Clip 0:48
Josh Brolin | Top Stars of 2018 | Supercut
'Avengers 4' Fan Theories: The Good, The Strange, and The Absolutely Insane
Clip 2:41
'Avengers 4' Fan Theories: The Good, The Strange, and The Absolutely Insane
The Evolution of Characters in 'Sicario: Day of the Soldado'
Clip 1:55
The Evolution of Characters in 'Sicario: Day of the Soldado'
How Thanos Got Six Infinity Stones in 10 Minutes
Clip 10:47
How Thanos Got Six Infinity Stones in 10 Minutes
trailer friday
Clip 0:16
trailer friday
Exclusive Clip
Clip 0:26
Exclusive Clip

Personal details

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    • Instagram
    • February 12, 1968
    • Santa Monica, California, USA
    • Kathryn Boyd BrolinSeptember 24, 2016 - present (2 children)
    • Eden Brolin
    • James Brolin
    • Barbra Streisand(Stepparent)
  • Other works
    Cyndi Lauper music video "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough" (from the film The Goonies (1985)).
  • Publicity listings
    • 6 Interviews
    • 14 Articles
    • 3 Pictorials
    • 7 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Has written various stories and poems based on his mother Jane Cameron Agee (died 1995).
  • Quotes
    (On Mister Sterling (2003)) I'm so glad that show didn't go, because it was more work then I ever wanna do again, and I love film.
    • Has frequently been cast in the role of an enforcer of the law
    • Dune
      (2021)
      $350,000

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