Back when this Canadian-born performer was honing his acting skills in Shakespearean theater roles, he couldn't have imagined the groundbreaking sitcom character that would make him a star. A versatile performer, McCormack alternated between stage and screen, playing serious, comic and even musical parts. But after a decade of toiling in relative obscurity, he burst into the limelight as a neurotic gay lawyer on
Will & Grace. Although McCormack is straight in real life, he helped push open the closet door for actors to play all sexual orientations. In 2001, he fulfilled a lifelong dream and made his Broadway debut in a revival of
The Music Man.
Eric McCormack Fast Facts:- Holds dual citizenship in the U.S. and Canada (living in both Vancouver and Los Angeles).
- Began his career as a member of the acting company at the prestigious Shakespeare Theatre Festival in Ontario.
- Made his Broadway debut in the summer of 2001, in The Music Man, playing the lead, Professor Harold Hill.
- Made his writing/directing debut with the film short Pirates (2003).
- Eric McCormack Relationships:
- Doris McCormack - Mother
- Finnigan Holden McCormack - Son
- Janet Holden - Wife
- Keith McCormack - Father
- Eric McCormack Awards:
- 2000 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2001 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series - Winner
- 2003 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2005 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2000 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2001 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2002 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2003 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2004 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- College:
- Attended Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (1982)
