Lance Henriksen was born on
May 5, 1940 in
New York City, where he also grew up, and found a love of acting. He studied briefly at the
Actor's Studio, but was hit by
wanderlust, and set sail on a
Swedish freighter, staying on it for a trip around the
world. Eventually he returned to New York, and his desire to
act returned. He went on various
casting calls while
practicing, and continued working with
clay, which had even predated his acting interest.
He landed the lead in Eugene O'Neill's play "Three Plays of the Sea", and soon after, landed his first film role in It Ain't Easy. Two years later, he landed what could truly be considered his debut in film, as an FBI agent in Dog Day Afternoon.
Lance kept busy acting in many movies. Many of them were not very well known, but he did managed a few high profile movies, such as The Right Stuff and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. His friendship with James Cameron got him a role in cameron's first film, Piranha II: The Spawning, then later on in The Terminator, and then in his big role as the android ('artificial person') Bishop in Aliens. His success in science fiction with that role made it tougher to land good parts in mainstream movies, however. He eventually landed in bigger known movies again such as Jennifer 8 and The Quick and the Dead.
He also scored the leading role in Chris Carter's series Millennium, a rather important role, as the show was the pet project of Carter. He played agent Frank Black, who had a somewhat supernatural ability to see inside a killer's mind. His gaunt appearance and voice fit well with the really dark and creepy theme of the show, and he earned several Golden Globe nominations, though he never won before the series was eventually cancelled.
In 1995, Lance got married to Jane Pollack. The couple had a daugter, Sage Ariel, born on October 12, 1999. Lance also has a daughter from a previous marriage, Alcamy, born in 1987.
Even before he started acting, he found himself with an interest in pottery. He has since become a master potter, and his pottery is available for viewing and purchase at the web site http://www.bylancehenriksen.com. He experiments a lot with stoneware and porcelains, trying new concepts in glazing and designs. His own personal kiln is rather unique - there are only 3 others like it in the world. It has the ability to fire pieces at up to 2380 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough to melt steel and glass.
Also has been credited as either 'Lance Hendrickson' or 'Lance Henricksen'
Filmography:
- Antibody (2002) - Richard Gaynes
- The Invitation (2002) - Roland Levy
- Mangler 2 (2001) - Headmaster Badian
- Unspeakable (2001) - Pitchford
- The Omen Legacy (2001) - Himself
- The Lost Voyage (2001) - David Shaw
- Alien Evolution (2001) - Himself
- The Untold (2001) - Harlan Knowles
- Explosive Situations (2000) - Narrator
- High Speed Impacts (2000) - Narrator
- Scream 3 (2000) - John Milton
- The World's Greatest Hoaxes: Secrets Finally Revealed (1999) - Narrator
- Tarzan (1999) - Kerchak; King of the Gorillas
- The Day Lincoln Was Shot (1998) - President Abraham Lincoln
- No Contest II (aka Face the Evil) (1997) - Eric Dengler
- Profile for Murder (1997) - Adrian Cross
- Dusting Cliff 7 (aka Last Assassins) (1996) - Colonel Roger McBride
- The Criminal Mind (1996) - Agent Winslow
- Aurora: Operation Intercept (1995) - William Stenghel
- Baja (1995) - Burns
- Felony (1995) - Taft
- Gunfighter's Moon (1995) - Frank Morgan
- Nature of the Beast (aka Bad company, The Hatchet Man) (1995) - Jack Powell
- The Outpost (aka Mind Ripper, Wes Craven Presents Mind Ripper, Wes Craven's 'The Mindripper') (1995/I) - Stockton
- Powder (1995) - Sheriff Barnum
- Dead Man (aka Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man) (1995) - Cole Wilson
- The Quick and the Dead (1995) - Ace Hanlon
- Boulevard (1994) - McClaren
- Cinema of Vengeance (1994)
- Spitfire (1994) - Richard Charles
- Color of Night (1994) - Buck
- No Escape (aka Escape from Absolom) (1994) - The Father
- Knights (1993) - Job
- The Outfit (1993) - Dutch Schultz
- Man's Best Friend (1993) - Dr. Jarret
- Hard Target (1993) - Fouchon
- Super Mario Bros. (1993) - The King
- Delta Heat (1992) - Jackson Rivers
- Excessive Force (1992) - Devlin
- Jennifer Eight (aka Jennifer 8) (1992) - Freddy Ross
- Alien³3 (1992) - Bishop II
- Comrades in Arms (1991) - Rob Green
- Two-Fisted Tales (1991) - (segment Yellow)
- Reason for Living: The Jill Ireland Story (1991) - Charles Bronson
- Stone Cold (1991/I) - Chains Cooper
- The Last Samurai (1990) - Johnny Congo
- The Pit and the Pendulum (aka The Inquisitor) (1990) - Torquemada
- Survival Quest (1989) - Hank
- Johnny Handsome (1989) - Rafe Garrett
- The Horror Show (aka Horror House, House 3, House III: The Horror Show) (1989) - Detective Lucas McCarthy
- Deadly Intent (1988) - Raymond
- Hit List (1988) - Chris Caleek
- Paul Reiser Out on a Whim (1988)
- Pumpkinhead (aka Vengeance: the Demon (1988) - Ed Harley
- Near Dark (1987) - Jesse
- Choke Canyon (aka On Dangerous Ground) (1986) - Brook Alastair
- Aliens (1986) - L. Bishop
- Savage Dawn (1985) - Stryker
- Streets of Justice (1985) - District Attorney Jerry Logan
- Jagged Edge (1985) - Frank Martin
- The Terminator (1984) - Detective Vukovich, LAPD
- The Making of 'Terminator' (1984) - Himself
- Nightmares (1983) - MacLeod (segment "The Benediction")
- The Right Stuff (1983) - Walter Schirra
- Blood Feud (1983) - Mel Pierce
- A Question of Honor (1982) - Wiley
- Piranha II: The Spawning (aka Piranha II: Flying Killers, Piranha Part Two: The Spawning, Piranha paura, The Spawning) (1981) - Steve Kimbrough, St. Anns Police Dept.
- Prince of the City (1981) - D.A. Burano
- The Dark End of the Street (1981) - Jimmy
- The Visitor (aka Stridulum) (1979) - Raymond Armstead
- Damien: Omen II (aka Omen II, Omen II: Damien) (1978) - Sergeant Neff
- Mansion of the Doomed (aka Eyes, Eyes of Dr. Chaney, House of Blood, Massacre Mansion, The Terror of Dr. Chaney) (1977) - Dr. Dan Bryan
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) - Robert
- Network (1976) - Lawyer
- The Next Man (aka The Arab Conspiracy, Double Hit) (1976) - Federal Security
- Return to Earth (1976)
- Dog Day Afternoon (1975) - Murphy
- To Kill the King (1974) - Hank Adams
- It Ain't Easy (1972) - Randy
Video Games:
- Run Like Hell (aka RLH) (2000) - Nick Conner
Television Series Roles:
- Millennium (1996) - Frank Black
- B.A.D. Cats (1980) - Timothy
Noteworthy TV Guest Appearances:
- "The Legend of Tarzan" (2001) in episode: "Tarzan and Tublat's Revenge" 11/23/2001
- "The X Files" (1999) playing "Frank Black" in episode: "Millennium" 11/28/1999
- "Harsh Realm" (1999) playing "General" in episode: "Pilot" 10/8/1999
- "Tales from the Crypt" (1991) in episode: "Yellow" 8/28/1991
- "Tales from the Crypt" (1990) playing "Reno Crevice" in episode: "Cutting Cards" 4/17/1990
- "Beauty and the Beast" (1989/I) playing "Snow" in episode: "Snow" 12/27/1989
- "Hardcastle and McCormick" (1984) playing "Josh Fulton" in episode: "Never My Love" 10/28/1984
- "Cagney & Lacey" (1984) playing "Sgt. King" in episode: "Heat" 10/22/1984
- "Legmen" (1984) playing "Finch" in episode: "A Woman's Work" 9/1/1984
- "The A-Team" (1984) playing "Dalton" in episode: "In Plane Sight" 1/3/1984
- "Riptide" (1984)
- "Hardcastle and McCormick" (1983) playing "Deseau" in episode: "Man in a Glass House" 9/25/1983
- "Cagney & Lacey" (1982) playing "Johnny "Nose"" in episode: "Recreational Use" 12/27/1982
Sources:
The Internet Movie Database, http://www.imdb.com
Lance Henriksen, the Actor - http://www.bylancehenriksen.com/actor.htm