
Robert John Burke
Personal Info
Known for
Acting
Gender
Male
Birthday
1960-09-12 (64 years old)
Place of Birth
New York City, New York, USA
Robert John Burke
Biography
A born-and-bred New Yorker, Robert John Burke made his film debut while in his early 20s with a small part in the drama "The Chosen" (1981), based on the Chaim Potok story. He went on to study acting at SUNY Purchase where he met aspiring filmmaker Hal Hartley, who cast him as one of the leads in his debut feature "The Unbelievable Truth," an offbeat indie tale where he played a man trying to escape his troubled past. Working with Hartley again on the charming brother-centric dark comedy "Simple Men," Burke caught a major break when Hollywood producers decided that his chiseled jawline was the right one to replace Peter Weller's in the sci-fi/action sequel "RoboCop 3." Despite Burke's efforts, the movie tanked, and he went on to smaller roles in major films, including the lauded Western "Tombstone" (1993) and the prison-break movie "Fled" (1996). Burke landed his second chance in a Hollywood starring role with the Stephen King adaptation "Thinner" (1996), but the macabre tale, which featured him under heavy makeup to depict a callous man who magically loses weight, was deemed almost universally unlikable.Though Burke's leading-man days were mostly behind him, his beastly role in Hartley's "No Such Thing" (2001) aside, he soldiered on, and began increasingly working on television with recurring roles on the grim prison drama "Oz" and the police procedural "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (NBC, 1999- ). Appearing in George Clooney's first two movies as director, "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" (2002) and "Good Night, and Good Luck." (2005), Burke nonetheless became more familiar to TV audiences, particularly when he signed on to play Mickey Gavin, the ex-priest cousin of Denis Leary's lead character on the firefighter series "Rescue Me," a part that dovetailed with Burke's real-life second job as a New York State fireman.Often cast as a tough guy, the ruggedly handsome and tall actor continued to play imposing figures such as Major General James "Chaos" Mattis in the Iraq War miniseries "Generation Kill" (HBO, 2008) and Bart Bass, the controlling billionaire father of Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick) on the soapy drama "Gossip Girl." Before long, he was juggling his ongoing "Law & Order: SVU" part with regular spots on the military drama "Army Wives" (Lifetime, 2007- ) and the tense crime show "Person of Interest" (CBS, 2011- ), while still finding time for supporting turns in films, including the Denzel Washington/Mark Wahlberg action movie "2 Guns" (2013).
Acting
(2023)
Boston Strangler
as Eddie Holland
(2022)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
as Smitty
(2022)
The Retaliators
as Captain Briggs
(2022)
Triggered
as David
(2021)
Intrusion
as Detective Steven Morse
(2020)
Being
as Sheriff Campbell
(2018)
BlacKkKlansman
as Chief Bridges
(2018)
Boarding School
as Mr. Holcomb
(2018)
We Only Know So Much
as Hal
(2017)
Future '38
as General Sportwood
(2017)
Where There's Smoke
as Captain Frascone
(2015)
True Story
as Greg Ganley
(2015)
Ned Rifle
as Chet
(2015)
Bait
as Uncle Mack
(2013)
2 Guns
as Jessup
(2012)
Safe
as Captain Wolf
(2011)
Limitless
as Pierce
(2010)
Brooklyn's Finest
as State Trooper #1
(2010)
(2008)
Miracle at St. Anna
as General Ned Almond
(2006)
The Ex
as Colonel
(2006)
The Oh in Ohio
as Binky Taylor
(2006)
Jack's Law
as Det. Ron Banks
(2005)
Munich
as Belligerent American
(2005)
Good Night, and Good Luck.
as Charlie Mack
(2005)
Hide and Seek
as Steven
(2004)
Speak
as Mr. Neck
(2004)
Connie and Carla
as Rudy
(2003)
Piggie
as Jim
(2002)
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
as Instructor Jenks
(2002)
State Property
as Bob
(2002)
No Such Thing
as The Monster
(1998)
A Bright Shining Lie
as Frank Drummond
(1998)
First Love, Last Rites
as Henry
(1998)
Midnight Flight
as Paul Bacon
(1998)
Somewhere in the City
as Frankie
(1997)
Cop Land
as Officer B
(1997)
Mayday - Flug in den Tod
as Tom Hutton
(1996)
Thinner
as Billy Halleck
(1996)
If Lucy Fell
as Handsome Man
(1996)
Fled
as Pat Schiller
(1996)
Killer: A Journal of Murder
as R.G. Greiser
(1995)
Flirt
as Men's Room Man #2
(1995)
Crazy for a Kiss
as Steve
(1993)
Tombstone
as Frank McLaury
(1993)
RoboCop 3
as Robocop
(1993)
Heaven & Earth
as Paul
(1993)
A Far Off Place
as Paul Parker
(1993)
Flirt
as Men's Room Man
(1992)
Dust Devil
as Dust Devil
(1992)
Simple Men
as Bill McCabe
(1991)
Rambling Rose
as Dave Wilkie
(1990)
The Unbelievable Truth
as Josh
(1986)
Nightmare Weekend
as Dave
(1981)
The Chosen
as Levi Saunders
(1981)
Gangster Wars
as Officer Reardon
(1977)
Looking for Mr. Goodbar
as Patrick