John C Reilly

Early life and education

Reilly was born in Chicago, Illinois, the fifth of six children. His father was of Irish and Scottish descent, and his mother was of Lithuanian ancestry. His father ran an industrial linen supply company. Reilly has described himself as being mischievous during his childhood, highlighting an event when he was 12 in which he and his friends stole 500 boxes of Sugar Corn Pops from a freight train.

Reilly, though he no longer professes Catholicism, was raised Roman Catholic and attended Brother Rice High School. He is an alumnus of DePaul University in Chicago.

1989–2003: Career beginnings and critical acclaim

Reilly made his film debut in the Brian De Palma war film Casualties of War as PFC Herbert Hatcher in 1989. Although his role was written as a small one, De Palma liked Reilly's performance so much that the role was significantly expanded. He played Buck, Tom Cruise's character's NASCAR car chief in Tony Scott's Days of Thunder in 1990. In 1992's Hoffa, Reilly played Jimmy Hoffa's (Jack Nicholson) associate who testifies against him at Hoffa's trial. He played one of Gilbert's friends in What's Eating Gilbert Grape in 1993 and co-starred in the adventure thriller The River Wild in 1994. He collaborated with filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson in his directorial debut Hard Eight (1996) as a man in need of $6,000 to pay for the burial of his mother who is taken under the wing of experienced gambler Sydney (Philip Baker Hall). Reilly further collaborated with Anderson, playing pornographic actor Reed Rothchild in Boogie Nights (1997); deeply religious police officer Jim Kurring, who falls in love with a drug addict in Magnolia (1999); and a cameo in the music video for Fiona Apple's single "Across the Universe".

Terrence Malick's ensemble war film, The Thin Red Line (1998) featured Reilly in a supporting role that was written as a larger one, but much of his scenes were deleted along with many other cast members. The following year, Reilly was cast in the romantic comedy Never Been Kissed, playing the role of Drew Barrymore's newspaper managing editor. In Sam Raimi's sports drama For Love of the Game, released the same year, Reilly played fictional baseball catcher Gus Sinski. The box office hit The Perfect Storm was his only release of 2000 and featured Reilly as a veteran crew member on the Andrea Gail fishing vessel which was caught in the 1991 Perfect Storm. His first release of 2002 was Miguel Arteta's comedy-drama The Good Girl, in which he played Jennifer Aniston's character's stoner husband who is treated unfaithfully by his wife with a younger man, played by Jake Gyllenhaal. Later in the year, Reilly appeared in three of the year's Academy Award for Best Picture nominees: Chicago, Gangs of New York and The Hours. For Chicago, he played Amos Hart, Roxanne's (Renée Zellweger) trusting husband and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, as well as the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor.

2004–2011: Transition to comedy and continued acclaim

Reilly appeared in Martin Scorsese's 2004 Howard Hughes biopic, The Aviator, as Noah Dietrich, Howard Hughes' (Leonardo DiCaprio) trusted business partner. Of the role Reilly said, "Noah was almost a father figure to Hughes... Howard would have a scheme, and it was Noah who had to say, 'We don't have the money.' He was one of his few friends." He played the lead role in the crime film Criminal, with Diego Luna and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Based on the Argentine film Nine Queens (2000), Stephen Holden of The New York Times felt that "John C. Reilly may be one of our finer character actors, but his portrayal of Richard Gaddis, a gimlet-eyed con man, in Criminal allows too many vestiges of the duped schlub of a husband he played in Chicago to leak into his performance."

He reportedly quit the 2005 film Manderlay to protest the on-set killing of a donkey. His next role was in the Jennifer Connelly-led horror film Dark Water as the manager of a mysterious hotel. Reilly co-starred in Adam McKay's comedy about NASCAR drivers entitled Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby in August 2006 as Cal Naughton Jr., the best friend and teammate of the title character, played by Will Ferrell. The film was successful, grossing $163 million worldwide. He appeared in Robert Altman's last film A Prairie Home Companion that same year, in addition to making an uncredited cameo appearance in Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny as a Sasquatch.

Reilly frequently appeared on the sketch comedy program Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! from 2007 to 2010 as inept doctor and television presenter Dr. Steve Brule. The role led to the spin-off series Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule, which has aired since 2010 and is written and produced by Reilly. In 2007, Reilly starred as the title character in parody bio-pic Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, singing various songs, parodying Johnny Cash, Ray Charles and others. He received two Golden Globe nominations, Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and Best Original Song for the film's title song "Walk Hard". The next year, Reilly reunited with Ferrell to star in Step Brothers, playing middle-aged step brothers forced to live together. Also that year, he was among the many notable actors to perform in the online political musical, Proposition 8 – The Musical, voiced himself in The Simpsons episode "Any Given Sundance" and co-starred alongside Seann William Scott in The Promotion. In 2009, he played vampire Larten Crepsley in the film Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant and voiced "5" in 9. Reilly starred in the 2010 film Cyrus as a divorcé beginning a new relationship. Reilly received a Satellite Award nomination for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and a Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead nomination for his critically acclaimed performance.

In early 2011, Reilly collaborated with director Miguel Arteta for a second time with the comedy Cedar Rapids, starring Ed Helms. New York Daily News critic Elizabeth Weizxman considered Reilly a stand out in the film and he received an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male nomination. Reilly co-starred alongside Ezra Miller and Oscar-winner Tilda Swinton in the British-American drama We Need to Talk About Kevin, based on the novel by Lionel Shriver. His character in the film was Franklin, the father of the troubled Kevin. Next, he co-starred in the comedy-drama Terri alongside Jacob Wysocki, playing a school principal who takes an interest in a teenage misfit. His last release of 2011 was Roman Polanski's black comedy-drama Carnage, also starring Oscar-winners Jodie Foster as his wife, and Kate Winslet and Christoph Waltz as another married couple who engage in a conflict after their children get into a fight.

2012–present: Blockbuster films and other roles

Reilly voiced the title character in the 2012 Disney animated film Wreck-It Ralph, which follows an arcade game villain who is determined to prove himself as the hero. The film was positively received, with Los Angeles Times writer Betsy Sharkey saying of it, "The movie's subversive sensibility and old-school/new-school feel are a total kick." The film grossed over $471 million and a sequel titled Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2 development for a November 2018 release. He had a cameo in the 2013 comedy sequel Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, playing the ghost of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson in the film's fight scene.

Reilly played Nova Corps corpsman Rhomann Dey in the 2014 Marvel Studios film Guardians of the Galaxy. 2015 saw him appear in the drama Entertainment, the comedy-drama The Lobster as "Lisping Man", the fantasy horror Tale of Tales, and the English dub of the Studio Ghibli animated film When Marnie Was There. Reilly also starred in and co-wrote the television special Bagboy, reprising his role as Dr. Steve Brule in a fictional television pilot for a sitcom created by Brule. It aired on February 21, 2015, with Vanity Fair saying "If you get it, the show is knockout hilarious, but truthfully, it is not for everyone and Reilly is O.K. with that."

He voiced a sheep in the ensemble cast of the computer-animated musical comedy Sing, which was released in December 2016. Reilly appeared in the 2017 monster film reboot Kong: Skull Island, as Hank Marlow, a World War II lieutenant who has spent 28 years stranded on the titular island. The actor, who described his character as "essentially a love-letter to Chicago", was singled out for praise for his performance out of what is generally considered to be an underwhelming ensemble cast. Film critic Matt Zoller Seitz noted that Reilly "steals the film instantly and never gives it back" in playing the "wisecracking castaway", and Owen Gleiberman praised his performance for being "terrifically dry and sly" in what could have been a cliché character.

He will play Dr. Watson in a comedic adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes stories called Holmes and Watson in 2018. Will Ferrell will play Holmes. He is expected to co-star with Steve Coogan in the biopic Stan and Ollie about the comic double act Laurel and Hardy, with Reilly portraying Oliver Hardy and Coogan portraying Stan Laurel. He optioned the film rights for the Patrick deWitt Western novel The Sisters Brothers in 2011, with the intention of starring as hitman Eli Sisters. By April 2016, Joaquin Phoenix was in talks to co-star in the film with Reilly as his brother Charlie, with Jacques Audiard on board as director and Reilly as a producer. Production began in the summer of 2017.

Music

In 1998, Reilly appeared, along with Giovanni Ribisi and Winona Ryder, as Jon Spencer Blues Explosion in their video "Talk About The Blues". In 2002, he played the role of Amos Hart, Roxie Hart's naïve husband, in the musical film Chicago. In 2006, he performed two songs on Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs, and Chanteys: "Fathom the Bowl" and "My Son John". In 2007, Reilly starred in the biopic parody Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. In addition to his acting role, he also performed as a vocalist and songwriter on the movie's soundtrack, for which he was nominated for a Grammy. Reilly went on a concert performance tour in the US, performing as his character Dewey Cox in the Cox Across America 2007 Tour.

In 2011, he recorded songs produced by Jack White and released as two singles by White's Third Man Records. The first single features two The Delmore Brothers songs: "Gonna Lay Down My Old Guitar" and "Lonesome Yodel Blues #2", both performed with Tom Brosseau. The second single features Ray Price's "I'll Be There If You Ever Want" as well as the country classic "I'm Making Plans", performed with Becky Stark. He also appeared as "future Mike D" in the Beastie Boys' video "Make Some Noise." In 2012, his current band, John Reilly & Friends, was slated to perform in the Railroad Revival Tour, alongside Willie Nelson & Family, Band of Horses and Jamey Johnson. However, the event was cancelled.

In 2014, Reilly appeared on the music video for Mr. Oizo's song "HAM" in which he played Father. Directed by Eric Wareheim, "HAM" is an excerpt from the television comedy Rubberhead, which displays sketches from various comedians. In February 2015, John Reilly & Friends performed on NPR Music's Tiny Desk Concert series.

Theatre

Reilly is known as a versatile stage actor. He has participated in numerous Broadway productions and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for the 2000 Broadway production of Sam Shepard's True West. He and co-star Philip Seymour Hoffman (after starring in Hard Eight and Boogie Nights) were both nominated, alternating between the two lead characters during separate performances. Reilly stated that he would be very determined to play the lead role of Nathan Detroit if a revival of the musical Guys and Dolls were to occur.

In March 2012, he was featured in a performance of Dustin Lance Black's play, 8—a staged reenactment of the federal trial that overturned California's Prop 8 ban on same-sex marriage—as David Blankenhorn. The production was held at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre and broadcast on YouTube to raise money for the American Foundation for Equal Rights, a non-profit organization funding the plaintiffs' legal team and sponsoring the play.

Personal life

Reilly married Alison Dickey, an independent film producer, in 1992 after their meeting on the set of Casualties of War in Thailand. They have two sons, one born in late 1998, and the second born in September 2001. Reilly practices Transcendental Meditation.