Physically striking and extremely talented, this tall, eccentric actor never became a big star, but he has remained active in a variety of projects, faring best when playing offbeat characters. He initially made his mark portraying military men in a trio of films set during the Vietnam War. Modine provided solid support in the ensemble film
Streamers and soon landed the breakthrough title role in
Birdy as an emotionally disturbed soldier. After appearing in some teen fluff (
Vision Quest), he turned in another top-notch performance in Stanley Kubrick's brutal war-is-hell film
Full Metal Jacket. Then his career stalled as mainstream Hollywood tried to figure out what to do with him. Some of his films were modest hits (the comedy
Married to the Mob), but mostly he did time in flops (the medical drama
Gross Anatomy, the sailing movie
Wind), and had the dubious distinction of taking over the lead role from Michael Douglas in the notorious pirate megabomb
Cutthroat Island. Modine aged gracefully as the '90s wore on and became a busy character actor (which is really what he always was anyway), often appearing in indie films or headlining TV-movies.
Matthew Modine Fast Facts:- Grew up in Utah, the youngest of seven children in a Mormon family.
- Decided on an acting career after seeing a documentary about the making of the 1968 Oscar winner Oliver!
- Dropped out of college and moved to New York at 18; worked as a chef at a Manhattan restaurant; took another employee's advice and studied acting with Stella Adler.
- Turned down the Tom Cruise role in Top Gun.
- Movie debut was in Baby, It's You (1983); breakthrough role was in 1984's Birdy.
- In 2005, published Full Metal Jacket Diary, based on his experiences making the 1987 Stanley Kubrick film.
- Matthew Modine Relationships:
- Boman Modine - Son
- Caridad 'Cari' Rivera Modine - Wife
- Dolores Modine - Mother
- Elizabeth Modine - Sister
- Marcia Modine - Sister
- Mark Alexander Modine - Father
- Mark Modine - Brother
- Maury Modine - Brother
- Michael Modine - Brother
- Ruby Modine - Daughter
- Russell Modine - Brother
- Matthew Modine Awards:
- 1998 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television - Nominee
- 1994 Emmy: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Special - Nominee
- 1994 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television - Nominee
- College:
- Attended Brigham Young University, Provo, UT
