Matt Frewer

Canadian-American actor (born 1958) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Matthew George Frewer (born January 4, 1958) is an American-Canadian actor, voice actor and comedian.[1] He is best known for portraying the 1980s icon Max Headroom[2] in the 1985 TV film and 1987 television series of the same name.

Born
Matthew George Frewer

(1958-01-04) January 4, 1958 (age 68)
Citizenship
Occupations
  • Actor
  • comedian
  • voice actor
Quick facts Born, Citizenship ...
Matt Frewer
Frewer at the 2013 FedCon
Born
Matthew George Frewer

(1958-01-04) January 4, 1958 (age 68)
Citizenship
Alma materBristol Old Vic Theatre School (1980)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • comedian
  • voice actor
Years active1983–present
Spouse
(m. 1984)
Children1
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He first became prominent for film roles like Russell Thompson Sr. in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989), Jobe Smith in Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace (1996), Frank in Dawn of the Dead (2004), Moloch in Watchmen (2009), Mitch in 50/50 (2011), and Archibald Stanley in Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (2014).

His television credits include Dr. Mike Stratford on Doctor Doctor (1989–91), Bob on Shaky Ground (1992–93), the Trashcan Man on The Stand (1994), Matt Prager on Psi Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal (1997–99), Dr. Jim Taggart on Eureka (2006–12), Dr. Leekie on science fiction drama Orphan Black (2013–17), Carnage on Altered Carbon (2018), Logan on Fear the Walking Dead (2019), The Binder on The Magicians (2019–20), and Peter Morton on The Order (2019−20). He portrayed Sherlock Holmes in a series of television films for CTV/Hallmark Channel (2000−02).

His voice acting roles include Panic in the Disney animated film Hercules (1997) and its subsequent television series, the Pink Panther on the 1993 television series of the same name, Lloyd Christmas on the Dumb and Dumber animated series, Jackal on Gargoyles, Samuel Sterns / Leader on The Incredible Hulk, and Dedgar Deadman on Toonsylvania.

Early life

Frewer was born in Washington, D.C., to Canadian parents, one of five children born to Gillian Anne (née German)[3] and Captain Frederick Charlesley Frewer, a Royal Canadian Navy officer.[4][5] He was raised in Peterborough, Ontario, attending Glenlyon Norfolk School[6] and Lakefield College School.[7] He briefly attended Queen's University at Kingston,[6] before moving to England to train at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He graduated in 1980.[8]

Career

Frewer in 2007

Frewer portrayed the artificial intelligence character Max Headroom in the 1980s, starring in the 1985 eponymous science fiction television film; Frewer also played award-winning Network 23 journalist Edison Carter in the film. This led to a series on the UK Channel 4 network with the Max Headroom character as a video jockey and interviewer. This ran for two seasons, the second of which featured a studio audience with whom Max interacted. In 1987, an American series based upon the 1985 film aired, titled Max Headroom (1987–88).[8] From 1993 to 1995, Frewer voiced the Pink Panther for the television series. Frewer guest-starred in the fifth-season Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "A Matter of Time". He also portrayed Max Headroom in other media, including a series of television commercials for "New Coke" and "Radio Rentals", as well as the single and music video for "Paranoimia" by Art of Noise. He reprised this role in the science fiction comedy film Pixels (2015).[9]

Frewer starred as Mike Stratford in Doctor Doctor (1989–91).[9] He also appeared as Trashcan Man in the television miniseries The Stand.[9] Frewer has also appeared in such films as The Fourth Protocol (1987), Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989),[8][9] National Lampoon's Senior Trip (1995), and the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead.[9]

Frewer was nominated for two Gemini Awards in 2000, one for a guest appearance on Da Vinci's Inquest[10] and another for his work on the series Mentors. He was a regular on Eureka during the series' first two seasons, playing Jim Taggart.[9][11] He has done voice-over work on several animated projects, including Batman: The Animated Series (1993) and The Incredible Hulk (1996–97). Frewer portrayed Matt Praeger in Psi Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal from 1997 to 2000.[9]

In 2009, Frewer portrayed the retired villain Moloch the Mystic in Watchmen[9] and appeared as the White Knight in the December 2009 Syfy two-part miniseries Alice, based upon Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.[9][8] He starred as Pestilence in two episodes of Season 5 of Supernatural.[12] He has appeared in several adaptations of Stephen King stories, such as The Stand.[9] Quicksilver Highway, Riding the Bullet, Desperation and Bag of Bones.[13]

He played Dr. Aldous Leekie in the first two seasons of Orphan Black.[9][8]

In 2018, Frewer portrayed Carnage in the Netflix series Altered Carbon.[14] In the same year, Frewer was cast in the Netflix horror-drama series The Order.[15]

Personal life

Frewer has been married to Amanda Hillwood since 1984 and the couple have a daughter.[16][17] In 1989, they bought a house in Marina del Rey, California.[18]

Filmography

Film

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Role Notes
1983 The Lords of Discipline Senior Cadet
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life Very Big Corporation of America Yuppie Segment: "The Crimson Permanent Assurance"
1984 Supergirl Eddie
1985 Spies Like Us Soldier
1987 The Fourth Protocol Tom McWhirter
Ishtar CIA Agent
1989 Speed Zone Alec Stewart
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Russell 'Russ' Thompson, Sr.
Far from Home Charlie Cox
1990 Short Time Ernie Dills
1991 The Taking of Beverly Hills Ed Kelvin
1993 Twenty Bucks Receding Bingo Winner
1995 Return to Two Moon Junction Cleo, Leo Uncredited
Driving Mr. Pink The Pink Panther (voice) Short film
National Lampoon's Senior Trip Principal Todd Moss
BugHunt Edward Schulze (voice)
1996 Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace Jobe Smith
1997 Hercules Panic (voice) [19]
1998 Heartwood Frank Burris (voice) Uncredited
1999 6ix Satan, Nathan, Lucy, Mother, Father Short film
Hercules: Zero to Hero Panic (voice)
2000 Cyberworld Frazzled (voice) Short film
2004 Dawn of the Dead Frank
A Home at the End of the World Ned Glover
Going the Distance Farmer Joseph
Intern Academy Dr. Anton Keller
Geraldine's Fortune Cameron Geary
Riding the Bullet Mr. Clarkson
2007 Weirdsville Jason Taylor
2009 Watchmen Edgar Jacobi / Moloch
Rampage Mr. Williamson
Darfur Ted Duncan
2010 Frankie and Alice Dr. Strassfield
2011 Wushu Warrior Lord Edward Lindsey
50/50 Mitch
Foreverland Mr. Steadman
2014 Rampage: Capital Punishment Mr. Williamson (voice) Uncredited
Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb Archibald Stanley
2015 Pixels Max Headroom (voice)
2016 The BFG General
2017 Residue Mr. Fairweather
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Television

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Role Notes
1986 Robin of Sherwood Roger de Carnac Episode "The Betrayal"
1987 St. Elsewhere Pee-Wee, Walter Sandler Episode: "No Chemo, Sabe?"
1987–88 Max Headroom Max Headroom, Edison Carter 14 episodes
1988 Miami Vice Cliff King Episodes: "Hostile Takeover" and "Redemption in Blood"
Sesame Street Max Headroom 2 episodes
1989–91 Doctor Doctor Dr. Mike Stratford Lead role, 40 episodes
1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation Berlinghoff Rasmussen Episode: "A Matter of Time"
1992 Tiny Toon Adventures Mac Duff (voice) 2 episodes[19]
1992–93 Shaky Ground Bob Moody 17 episodes
1992 Eerie, Indiana Howard Paymer Episode: "Tornado Days"
1993 Batman: The Animated Series Sid the Squid / Sidney Debris (voice) Episode: "The Man Who Killed Batman"[19]
Bonkers Peter Blaine (voice) Episode: "Trains, Toons, and Toon Trains"
1993–96 The Pink Panther The Pink Panther (voice) Main role[19]
1994 American Playhouse Ambassador Edwin Reischauer Episode: "Long Shadows"
1994–96 Gargoyles Jackal (voice) 7 episodes[19]
Itsy Bitsy Spider The Exterminator (voice) 26 episodes
1994 Aladdin Chaos (voice) Episode: "When Chaos Comes Calling"
1995 Captain Planet and the Planeteers Adolf Hitler (voice) Episode: "A Good Bomb Is Hard To Find"[20]
1995–96 Dumb and Dumber Lloyd Christmas (voice) 13 episodes[19]
1996–97 The Incredible Hulk The Leader (voice)[19] 10 episodes
1996 Iron Man Episode: "Hulk Buster"
Bruno the Kid Bobby Vicious (voice) Episode: "Searching for Bobby Vicious"
Quack Pack Additional voices Episode: "Tasty Paste"
Mighty Ducks: The Animated Series Dr. Wally Pretorius (voice) Episode: "The Human Factor"
The Outer Limits Norman Glass Episode: "First Anniversary"
The Magic School Bus Inspector 47 (voice) Episode: "In the Rainforest"[19]
Late Night with Conan O'Brien Himself 1 Episode
1997 Dead Man's Gun Norbert Datry Episode: "Fool's Gold - Pilot #2"
Tracey Takes On... Bob Episode: "Supernatural"
1997–99 Psi Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal Matt Praeger 49 episodes
1998 Toonsylvania Dedgar Deadman (voice) 14 episodes
1998–99 Hercules Panic (voice) 24 episodes
1999 Mentors Frederick Banting Episode: "A Transient, Shining Trouble"
Mickey Mouse Works Toymaker (voice) Episode: "#1.4"
2000 Da Vinci's Inquest Larry Williams 2 episodes
2001–02 House of Mouse Panic, Toymaker (voice) 6 episodes
2004 The Eleventh Hour Dr. Lansing Episode: "Wonderland"
2005 Masters of Horror Wally Episode: "Chocolate"
2006–07 Intelligence Ted Altman 26 episodes
2006–12 Eureka Dr. Jim Taggart 18 episodes
2010 How I Met Your Mother Carriage Driver Uncredited
Episode: "Of Course"
Supernatural Pestilence, Dr. Green 2 episodes
2012–13 Falling Skies General Bressler 7 episodes
2013–17 Orphan Black Dr. Aldous Leekie 11 episodes
2013 Witches of East End Vidar 2 episodes
2014 The Knick Dr. J.M. Christiansen 5 episodes
2014–15 The Librarians Dulaque, Lancelot
2015 Olympus Daedalus, Prometheus 12 episodes
2016 The Art of More Paul Rice 6 episodes
12 Monkeys Dr. Kirschner Episode: "Fatherland"
2016–17 Timeless Anthony Bruhl 5 episodes
2017–18 Castlevania The Bishop (voice) 4 episodes
2018 Altered Carbon Carnage 3 episodes
2019 The Order Peter Morton 7 episodes
2019–20 The Magicians The Binder 3 episodes
2019 Fear the Walking Dead Logan 6 episodes
2020 Perry Mason Judge Fred Wright 3 episodes
2025 The Hunting Party Dr. Henry Dulles 4 episodes
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TV films, specials, and miniseries

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Role Notes
1984 The First Olympics: Athens 1896 Francis Lane
1985 Max Headroom: 20 Minutes Into The Future Max Headroom, Edison Carter
1993 The Day My Parents Ran Away Bob Miller
1994 In Search of Dr. Seuss The Cat in the Hat
The Stand Trashcan Man
1996 Generation X Russel Tresh
Apollo 11 Gene Kranz
1997 Quicksilver Highway Dr. Charles "Charlie" George
Desert's Edge Greg
Dead Fire Max Durbin
Breast Men Gerald Krzemien
2000 Jailbait Al Fisher
The Hound of the Baskervilles Sherlock Holmes
2001 The Sign of Four
The Royal Scandal
2002 The Case of the Whitechapel Vampire
Taken Dr. Chet Wakeman
2006 Desperation Ralph Carver
2009 Alice White Knight
2010 Battle of the Bulbs Stu Jones
2011 Bag of Bones Sid Noonan
2012 Delete Arthur Bowden
2016 Love in Paradise Dr. Frank
2018 The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair Reverend Kellergan
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Video games

More information Year, Title ...
Year Title Voice role Notes
1997 Hercules Panic [19]
Disney's Animated Storybook: Hercules
1998 Disney's Hades Challenge
2012 Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom
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Radio

  • Tales from the Mausoleum Club: Episode 2, "Heart of Skegness"

Awards and nominations

More information Award, Year ...
Award YearCategoryWorkResultRef.
CableACE Award 1987Best Music HostThe Max Headroom ShowWon[21]
1988 Best Program Interviewer won
Gemini Award 2000Best Performance in a Children's or Youth Program or SeriesMentorsWon[22]
2000Da Vinci's InquestNominated[22]
Leo Award 2010Best Lead Performance by a Male in a Feature Length DramaAliceNominated[23]
2011Best Guest Performance by a Male in a Dramatic SeriesSupernatural ("Two Minutes To Midnight")Nominated[24]
2014Orphan Black ("Unconscious Selection")Nominated[25]
2019Best Supporting Performance by a Male in a Dramatic SeriesThe Order ("Finals: Part 1")Nominated[26]
Satellite Award 2014 Best Cast – Television Series The Knick won [27]
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References

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