| Bradley Whitford | |
| Birth Date: | 10 October 1959 |
| Birth Place: | Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Other Names: | Brad Whitford |
| Education: | Wesleyan University (BA) Juilliard School (GrDip) |
| Years Active: | 1985present |
| Spouse: | |
| Children: | 3 |
Bradley Whitford (born October 10, 1959)[1] is an American actor and producer. From 1999 to 2006, Whitford starred as Josh Lyman, White House Deputy Chief of Staff, in NBC's political drama television series The West Wing. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the role in 2001.
In addition to The West Wing, Whitford played Danny Tripp in Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, Dan Stark in the Fox police buddy-comedy The Good Guys, Timothy Carter, a character who was believed to be Red John, in the CBS series The Mentalist, antagonist Eric Gordon in the film Billy Madison, Arthur Parsons in The Post, Dean Armitage in the horror film Get Out, Roger Peralta in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, President Gray in the dystopian science fiction film The Darkest Minds and Rick Stanton in the monster film Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
In 2015, he won a second Primetime Emmy Award for his guest role as Marcy in Transparent and later garnered a fifth Primetime Emmy Award nomination for portraying Magnus Hirschfeld in the same series. From 2018 to 2025, Whitford portrayed Commander Joseph Lawrence in Hulu dystopian drama The Handmaid's Tale, for which he won his third Primetime Emmy Award in 2019.
Bradley Whitford was born in Madison, Wisconsin, to Genevieve Louie [2] and George Van Norman Whitford.[3] [2] Between the ages of three and 14, he lived in Wayne, Pennsylvania. He grew up in a Quaker household.[4] In an appearance on Live with Kelly and Mark on October 13, 2025, he said, "I am from a strange family. My parents... they lived very long lives... It would have been their 89th (wedding) anniversary... I have a sister, same parents, 85 years old, 19 or 20 years older than me. They (his parents) had three (children). (Ten years later they had) my brother Dave... I grew up watching my older siblings raise families." His mother, a poet, later lived in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia.[3]
Whitford graduated from Madison East High School in Madison in 1977. He majored in English and theater at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, and was a roommate of producer Paul Schiff, the brother of his future West Wing cast mate Richard Schiff.[5] Whitford graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1981.[6] He then studied drama at the Juilliard School in Manhattan, New York where he was a member of "Group 14". Wendell Pierce, an actor is also from Group 14.[7]
The NBC series Who Do You Think You Are? explored Whitford's ancestry in an August 2022 episode, including ancestors who fought in a crucial American Civil War battle, the Battle of Vicksburg.[8] [9] [10]
Whitford first appeared on television in a 1985 episode of The Equalizer, followed by a two-year recurring role on the ABC daytime drama All My Children. His film debut was in the 1986 film Dead as a Doorman. He made his Broadway theatre debut in 1990[11] playing Lt. Jack Ross (followed a few months later in the lead role of Lt. Daniel Kaffee), in the Aaron Sorkin written play A Few Good Men. This was the beginning of a recurring working relationship between Whitford and Sorkin.
Whitford's film roles during the 1980s and 1990s included Elisabeth Shue's boyfriend Mike Todwell in Adventures in Babysitting (1987), Roger Latimer in (1987), Jamie Kemp in Presumed Innocent (1990), Charles Phalen in Young Guns II (1990), Dr. Tyler in Awakenings (1990), Al Pacino's nephew Randy Slade in Scent of a Woman (1992), FBI sharpshooter Bobby Lee in A Perfect World (1993), lawyer Jamey Collins in Philadelphia (1993), Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Fink in The Client (1994), antagonist Eric Gordon in Billy Madison (1995), and Lloyd Charney in Bicentennial Man (1999). His television appearances during this time included Guiding Light, NYPD Blue, Ellen, The X-Files, Touched by an Angel, and a guest appearance on ER in the Emmy Award-winning episode "Love's Labor Lost".
Whitford joined the cast of Sorkin's The West Wing as Josh Lyman with the show's premiere in 1999.[12] For his role, he won an Emmy Award in 2001 for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. Whitford also wrote two episodes of the series ("Faith Based Initiative" in the sixth season and "Internal Displacement" in the seventh). After The West Wing ended in May 2006, Whitford appeared in Sorkin's later series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip playing the role of Danny Tripp.[13] He appeared in the British drama Burn Up on the BBC in July 2008.
He starred in the play Boeing-Boeing which opened on Broadway on May 4, 2008.[14] He co-starred in the Joss Whedon/Drew Goddard horror film The Cabin in the Woods,[15] filmed in 2009 but not released until April 2012. In 2010, Whitford starred as Dan Stark in the Fox TV comedy The Good Guys opposite Colin Hanks. In 2011, Whitford guest-starred in In Plain Sight on USA Network as a man combating paranoia. He appeared in the season three finale of The Mentalist as a minion of and decoy for "Red John", the long-sought nemesis of the show's protagonist Patrick Jane. Whitford appeared on as a lawyer. On September 15, 2011, he starred in the one-night-only staged reading of 8, a play written by Dustin Lance Black[16] chronicling the events of a trial surrounding California's Proposition 8.
In 2013, Whitford played Pete Harrison in the ABC comedy Trophy Wife, which was canceled after one season. Also in the same year, he played Don DaGradi in Saving Mr. Banks. In 2014, he appeared in a recurring role as a cross-dressing businessman during the first season of the Amazon Studios series Transparent.[17] He won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his performance.[18] He returned during the series' second season as Magnus Hirschfeld.[19] In February 2014, it was announced that he was cast in Midnight Rider, a biopic of Gregg Allman directed by Randall Miller.[20] Starting in 2015, Whitford had a recurring role in Brooklyn Nine-Nine as Roger Peralta, father of a lead character Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg).[21] [22] In 2017, Whitford played Dean Armitage, a father and neurosurgeon, in the horror film Get Out[23] and antagonist Arthur Parsons in the political thriller The Post.[24]
In 2018, Whitford played President Gray in the dystopian science fiction film The Darkest Minds. He joined the cast of the web dystopian tragedy The Handmaid's Tale as Commander Joseph Lawrence, guest starring in the final two episodes of the second season.[25] He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2019 for his performance becoming the first person to have won the guest acting Emmy Awards for both comedy and drama.[26] He returned as a series regular for the third season and received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.[27] [28] In 2019, Whitford played Rick Stanton in the monster film Godzilla: King of the Monsters,[29] and from 2019 to 2020, he starred in the musical comedy series Perfect Harmony, which ran for one season on NBC.[30]
In August 2023, he portrayed Francis in the Los Angeles production of Peter Pan Goes Wrong.[31]
Whitford married actress Jane Kaczmarek in August 1992[32] and they have three children together.[33] [32] Inspired by their own frequent red carpet appearances, in 2002 the couple founded the charity "Clothes off our Back", which auctioned outfits and accessories worn by celebrities at award ceremonies.[34] They were sometimes referred to as a celebrity "power couple".[35]
In May 2007, Whitford was honored by Alliance for Justice, a nonprofit organization, as the 2007 Champion of Justice. He delivered the commencement address at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 2004.[36] He was the keynote speaker for Class Day at Princeton University in June 2007.[37] As of 2012, Whitford serves on the board of trustees of his alma mater, Wesleyan University.[38]
In June 2009, Whitford and Kaczmarek announced that they were divorcing after almost 17 years of marriage.[39] The divorce was finalized in October 2010.[40] Whitford and his Transparent co-star Amy Landecker began dating in 2015 and they announced their engagement in March 2018.[41] Whitford and Landecker eloped on July 17, 2019.[42]
Whitford has been said to have "liberal views".[40] He contributed to The Huffington Post as a columnist.[43] He serves on the Board of Advisors of Let America Vote, an organization founded by former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander that aims to end voter suppression.[44] He serves on the advisory board of Citizens' Climate Lobby, an international grassroots environmental group founded by Marshall L. Saunders which trains and supports volunteers to build relationships with their elected representatives in efforts to influence climate policy.[45]
In 2011, Whitford spoke at a protest in his native Madison, Wisconsin, in opposition to Governor Scott Walker's budget repair bill.[46] Prior to the 2012 United States elections, Whitford and Courage Campaign founder, Rick Jacobs, appeared together in a video about California's Proposition 30 and Proposition 32;[47] the video encouraged viewers to vote "yes" on the former and "no" on the latter.[48] Leading up to the 2014 Wisconsin gubernatorial election, Whitford visited multiple University of Wisconsin System campuses in support of nominee Mary Burke, who went on to lose against the incumbent, Governor Walker.[49] Whitford supported Hillary Clinton in the 2016 United States presidential election.[50] He has been a vocal critic of Donald Trump.[51]
In 2019, he co-hosted a fundraiser for Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg alongside actress Gwyneth Paltrow as well as donated to Buttigieg's 2020 presidential campaign.[52] Also in 2019, Whitford appeared in a public service announcement in support of abortion rights alongside other cast members of The Handmaid's Tale.[53] In 2020, he appeared as part of a series of "surprise virtual appearances" in support of Joe Biden's 2020 presidential campaign.[54] He supported Joe Biden[55] and Kamala Harris in the 2024 United States presidential election.[56] [57] [58] In September 2025 he was one of over 400 artists who signed an open letter from the American Civil Liberties Union in support of Jimmy Kimmel following ABC's suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live!.[59] In October 2025, he criticized the destruction of the East Wing of the White House in an appearance on CNN.[60]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Dead as a Doorman | Terry Reilly | |
| 1987 | Adventures in Babysitting | Mike Todwell | |
| Roger Latimer | |||
| 1990 | Vital Signs | Dr. Donald Ballentine | |
| Presumed Innocent | Jamie Kemp | ||
| Young Guns II | Charles Phalen | Credited as Brad Whitford | |
| Awakenings | Dr. Tyler | ||
| 1992 | Scent of a Woman | Randy Slade | |
| 1993 | RoboCop 3 | Jeffrey Fleck | |
| My Life | Paul Ivanovich | ||
| A Perfect World | FBI Agent Bobby Lee | ||
| Philadelphia | Jamey Collins | ||
| 1994 | The Client | Assistant District Attorney Thomas Fink | |
| Cobb | Process Server | ||
| 1995 | Billy Madison | Eric Gordon | |
| The Desperate Trail | Tommy Donnelly | ||
| 1996 | My Fellow Americans | Chief of Staff Carl Witnaur | |
| Wildly Available | Professor | ||
| 1997 | Masterminds | Miles Lawrence | Credited as Brad Whitford |
| Red Corner | Bob Ghery | ||
| The People | Michael Leary | ||
| 1999 | The Muse | Hal | |
| Bicentennial Man | Lloyd Charney | ||
| 2001 | Kate & Leopold | J.J. Camden | |
| 2005 | The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants | Al Lowell | |
| Little Manhattan | Adam Burton | ||
| 2007 | An American Crime | Prosecutor Leroy K. New | |
| 2008 | Bottle Shock | Professor Saunders | |
| 2012 | The Cabin in the Woods | Steve Hadley | |
| 2013 | Savannah | Jack Cay | |
| Decoding Annie Parker | Marshall Parker | ||
| CBGB | Nicky Gant | ||
| Saving Mr. Banks | Don DaGradi | ||
| Agent Carter | Agent John Flynn | Short film | |
| 2015 | I Saw the Light | Fred Rose | [61] |
| 2016 | Other People | Norman Mulcahey | |
| 2017 | Get Out | Dean Armitage | |
| A Happening of Monumental Proportions | Arthur Schneedy | ||
| Megan Leavey | Bob Leavey | ||
| Unicorn Store | Gene | ||
| Three Christs | Clyde | ||
| The Post | Arthur Parsons | ||
| 2018 | The Darkest Minds | President Gray | |
| Destroyer | Dennis DiFranco | ||
| 2019 | Phil | Michael Fisk | |
| Godzilla: King of the Monsters | Dr. Rick Stanton | ||
| The Last Full Measure | Carlton Stanton | ||
| 2020 | Sergio | Paul Bremer | |
| The Call of the Wild | Judge Miller | ||
| Songbird | William Griffin | ||
| 2021 | How It Ends | Kenny | |
| Not Going Quietly | Executive producer | ||
| Tick, Tick... Boom! | Stephen Sondheim | ||
| 2022 | Rosaline | Adrian Capulet | |
| 2023 | I'll Be Right There | Henry | |
| 2025 | For Worse | Dave | |
| 2026 | Reminders of Him | Patrick Landry | Post-production |
| Office Romance | Post-production |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | The Equalizer | Dillart | Episode: "The Children's Song" |
| 1985–1987 | All My Children | Jason | 3 episodes |
| 1986 | C.A.T. Squad | Leon Trepper | Television film |
| 1987 | The Betty Ford Story | Jack Ford | Television film |
| 1988 | Guiding Light | Dr. Jones | 2 episodes |
| Tales from the Darkside | Tom Dash | Episode: "The Deal" | |
| 1993 | Black Tie Affair | Dave Brodsky | 5 episodes |
| 1994 | NYPD Blue | Norman Gardner | 4 episodes |
| Ellen | Doug | Episode: "The Fix-Up" | |
| The X-Files | Daniel Trepkos | Episode: "Firewalker" | |
| Web of Deception | Larry Lake | Television film | |
| 1995 | ER | Sean O'Brien | Episodes: "Love's Labor Lost" and "A Miracle Happens Here" |
| Nothing But the Truth | Lieutenant Thomas 'Mac' McCarthy | Television film | |
| 1996 | Touched by an Angel | Steven Thomas Bell | Episode: "Out of the Darkness" |
| 1997 | Tracey Takes On... | Nik | Episode: "Vegas" |
| In the Line of Duty: Blaze of Glory | Tom LaSalle | Television film | |
| Cloned | Rick Weston | Television film | |
| High Incident | Deputy Carl Engler | Episode: "Black & Blue" | |
| 1998 | The Secret Lives of Men | Phil | 13 episodes |
| 1999–2006 | The West Wing | Josh Lyman | 155 episodes |
| 1999 | Felicity | Tom Anderson | Episode: "Happy Birthday"; uncredited |
| Behind the Mask | Brian Shushan | Television film; credited as Brad Whitford | |
| The Sky's On Fire | John Morgan | Television film | |
| 2002 | Malcolm in the Middle | Meg's Husband | Episode: "Company Picnic: Part 2" |
| Frasier | Stu | Voice, episode: "Kissing Cousin"[62] | |
| 2005 | Fathers and Sons | Anthony | Television film |
| 2006–2007 | Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip | Danny Tripp | 22 episodes |
| 2008 | Burn Up | James Mackintosh | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Monk | Dean Berry | Episode: "Mr. Monk on Wheels" |
| Off Duty | Detective Glenn Falcon | Television film; also producer | |
| 2010 | The Sarah Silverman Program | Toby Grossnickel | Episode: "Nightmayor" |
| The Good Guys | Detective Dan Stark | 20 episodes; also producer | |
| Glenn Martin, DDS | 'Gonzo' Gonzales | Voice, episode: "Camp" | |
| 2011 | In Plain Sight | Adam Wilson / Adam Roston | Episode: "Crazy Like a Witness" |
| Attorney Miklin | Episode: "Big Rock Mesa" | ||
| The Mentalist | Timothy Carter / Red John claimant | 3 episodes; uncredited | |
| Have a Little Faith | Mitch Albom | Television film | |
| 2012 | Parks and Recreation | Councilman Pillner | Episode: "Live Ammo" |
| The Asset | Leo Maxiell | Television film | |
| 2013 | Shameless | Abraham Paige | 2 episodes |
| Go On | Huey | Episode: "Ring and a Miss" | |
| Lauren | Paul Milgram | Recurring role, 6 episodes | |
| Drunk History | William Jennings Bryan | Episode: "Nashville" | |
| 2013–2014 | Trophy Wife | Pete Harrison | Main role |
| 2014 | Frank Maddox | Episode: "Reasonable Doubt" | |
| 2014–2019 | Transparent | Marcy / Magnus Hirschfeld | Recurring role, 8 episodes |
| 2014 | Alpha House | Senator Ned | Episode: "The Retreat" |
| 2015–2020 | Brooklyn Nine-Nine | Captain Roger Peralta | 4 episodes |
| 2015 | Happyish | Jonathan Cooke | 10 episodes |
| 2016 | All the Way | Hubert Humphrey | Television film |
| Better Things | Gary | Episode: "Sam/Pilot" | |
| 2017, 2019 | Mom | Mitch | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | Chicago Justice | Albert Forest | Episode: "Fake" |
| 2017–2019 | Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure | King Trevor | Voice, 3 episodes |
| The Handmaid's Tale | Commander Joseph Lawrence | Main role, 35 episodes | |
| 2019 | Valley of the Boom | James L. Barksdale | Miniseries |
| Flack | Calvin Cooper | Episode: "Calvin" | |
| 2019–2020 | Infinity Train | Agent Sieve | Voice, 5 episodes |
| Perfect Harmony | Arthur Cochran | Main role; also executive producer | |
| 2020 | A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote | Josh Lyman | Television special; recreation of "Hartsfield's Landing" |
| American Dad! | Vic Mancuso | Voice, episode: "Yule. Tide. Repeat." | |
| 2021 | Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous | Mitch | Voice, 5 episodes |
| What If...? | Colonel John Flynn | Voice, episode: "What If... Captain Carter Were the First Avenger?" | |
| 2022 | We Baby Bears | Glen | Voice, episode: "Tooth Fairy Tech" |
| Echo 3 | Eric Haas II | 3 episodes | |
| 2023 | Pence Humphreys | Episode: "King of the Moon" | |
| The Wonder Years | Dennis Van Der Kamp | Episode: "Bill's New Friend" | |
| 2024 | Parish | Anton | 4 episodes |
| The Madness | Stu Magnusson | 2 episodes | |
| 2025 |
| Principal | Voice, episode: "Daughter President!" |
| The Diplomat | Todd Penn | Recurring role | |
| Death by Lightning | James Blaine | Miniseries | |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Dr. Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow | Voice role | ||
| 2022 | The Big Lie | Michael Wilson | Voice role | [63] |
See main article: List of awards and nominations received by Bradley Whitford.
