American actor (born 1953)
James Russo
Born James Vincent Russo
(1953-04-23 ) April 23, 1953 (age 71) Alma mater New York University Occupation Actor Years active 1977–present Spouse
Bettina Russo
(
m. 1995;
div. 2020)
Children 2
James Vincent Russo (born April 23, 1953)[ 1] is an American film and television actor. He has appeared in over 150 films in three decades.
Early life
Russo was born in New York City , New York , to an Italian father and German mother.[ 2] A graduate of the High School of Art and Design and New York University (NYU), he wrote and starred in the prize-winning short film The Candy Store . Before his first break in acting, he drove for a cab company, worked as a construction worker and a gravedigger.[ 2] He was raised in Flushing, New York and spent his formative years on 156th Street.[citation needed ]
Career
Russo's first role in his acting career was in the 1981 made-for-television film Chicago Story . He then went on to star in many hit films of the 1980s.
His big break came in the form of a small role in the 1982 comedy film Fast Times at Ridgemont High , as a convenience store robber. In 1984, he appeared in Beverly Hills Cop as Mikey Tandino, a friend of Axel Foley who is murdered.[ 3] That same year he starred in The Cotton Club and played small-time hood Bugsy in Sergio Leone 's Once Upon a Time in America . Another major role was as a brutal rapist in the 1986 drama Extremities , opposite Farrah Fawcett .[ 2] He starred in the 1988 drama-suspense-thriller film Freeway .
Russo's film roles in the 1990s include State of Grace (1990), A Kiss Before Dying (1991),[ 4] and My Own Private Idaho (1991).[ 5] Russo was a co-lead in Abel Ferrara 's Dangerous Game (1993) alongside Madonna and Harvey Keitel . He also had roles in the 1994 Western Bad Girls ,[ 6] the 1997 films The Postman ,[ 7] and Donnie Brasco .[ 8] In 2009 he had a small role in Michael Mann 's Public Enemies as a member of John Dillinger 's gang.[ 9]
In 2003, Russo was reunited with his co-star from The Postman , Kevin Costner , in the Western film Open Range .[ 10] He made guest appearances in many TV dramas and films, including The Equalizer , Miami Vice , CSI , CSI: Miami , and Las Vegas .
In the summer of 2009, Russo starred in the psychological thriller 7E with Brendan Sexton III , John Savage and Natasha Lyonne . The film was released on December 10, 2013.[ 11] Russo had a supporting role in Quentin Tarantino 's 2012 film Django Unchained .[ 12]
In 2011, Russo provided video game voice talent for Rage and provided additional voice work for Star Wars: The Old Republic .
He appeared on Bastille 's music video for "Of the Night ".[ 13]
In 2024, he appeared in frequent collaborator Kevin Costner ’s latest project, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 as store owner Abel Naughton.
Filmography
Film
Television
Video games
Stage
Music videos
Awards
References
^ "James Russo" . AllMovie . Retrieved February 6, 2020 .
^ a b c Staff, People (September 22, 1986). "James Russo Makes a Big Splash Stalking Farrah in Extremities, but as a Talker He's All Wet" . People . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ Pirnia, Garin (December 5, 2014). "6 Ways Beverly Hills Cop Changed Comedy Forever" . Esquire . Retrieved December 5, 2014 .
^ Cedrone, Lou (April 26, 1991). "Pucker up for murder 'Kiss Before Dying' packs potent punch" . The Evening Sun . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ Kehr, Dave (October 18, 1991). " 'MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO' PUTS FILMMAKING IN A GREAT STATE" . Chicago Tribune . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ Rainer, Peter (April 22, 1994). "Movie Reviews : 'Bad Girls': A High-Fashion Western" . Los Angeles Times . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ Johnson, Malcolm (December 24, 1997). "CREDIT DUE: 'THE POSTMAN' DELIVERS" . Hartford Courant . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ Maslin, Janet (February 28, 1997). "Al Pacino as Gangster, A Guy Who's Not Wise" . The New York Times . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ Sragow, Michael (July 1, 2009). "DEPP AND HIS INNER OUTLAW" . The Baltimore Sun . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ McCarthy, Todd (August 10, 2003). "Open Range" . Variety . Retrieved October 18, 2017 .
^ Jagernauth, Kevin (November 4, 2013). "Exclusive: Trailer For Thriller '7E' Starring Brendan Sexton III, James Russo & Natasha Lyonne" . IndieWire . Retrieved July 31, 2017 .
^ Sneider, Jeff (November 9, 2011). "Thesps line up for 'Django Unchained' " . Variety . Retrieved November 11, 2011 .
^ Trendell, Andrew (October 9, 2013). "Bastille to re-release Bad Blood with new tracks and new single" . Gigwise . Retrieved October 14, 2013 .
^ James Russo - Awards Archived October 20, 2012, at the Wayback Machine at Internet Broadway Database
^ "Award Winners" . August 28, 2010. Archived from the original on August 28, 2010. Retrieved September 23, 2019 .
External links
International National Artists Other