John C. McGinley’s path to stardom is a story that reads like a classic Hollywood script. While an understudy in New York in the Circle-In-The-Square production of John Patrick Shanley’s Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, he was spotted by director Oliver Stone and soon after was cast in Platoon, the first of a long list of collaborations between Stone and McGinley which includes Wall Street, Talk Radio, Born on the Fourth of July, Nixon, and Any Given Sunday.
John C. has received rave reviews for his standout role opposite Steve Carell in HBO’s hit comedy series, “Rooster,” which has been renewed for a second season. Set on a college campus, the show follows the complicated relationship between an author (Carell) and his daughter. John C. portrays ‘Walter Mann,’ President of the University. Of his performance, Collider proclaims, “McGinley inhabits Walt with a blunt, deadpan certainty only he can pull off. He’s direct, but also incredibly sincere. As someone who’s almost like the Greek chorus lending an ear (or even his heart) to others, he makes even the most uncomfortable moments feel like a performance piece.” “Rooster” marks his fifth collaboration with “Scrubs” creator Bill Lawrence.
He is an audience favorite for his iconic portrayal of ‘Dr. Perry Cox’ on the Emmy-nominated medical comedy series, “Scrubs,” which ran for nine seasons. He has recently reprised his role of ‘Dr. Cox’ in a critically-acclaimed guest starring turn in ABC’s hit “Scrubs” revival series. At the start of the tenth season, ‘Dr. Cox’ retires and ‘J.D.’ Braff becomes Chief of Medicine. In a devastating blow, ‘Cox’ returns to Sacred Heart, no longer as the Mentor, but now as the Patient. According to TV Line, “Cox had never been more vulnerable with J.D., and McGinley had never been more exposed on screen.” He is currently in production on a new season of the hit series!
John C. has expanded his creative juices to create, produce and host a riveting podcast called “Connective Tissue,” where he explores storytelling in unbridled conversations with distinctly different storyTELLERS he has connected with along his journey within the entertainment industry, to discuss current events, ethics, conflict and kindness. All of these seemingly disparate elements are brought to the same table to see if there is some Connective Tissue to be found. To date, John C. has had provocative conversations with Brian Helgeland, Randall Wallace, Kenny Chesney, Benjamin Bryon Davis, Scott Silver, Scott Rosenberg, Brian Currie, Mike Tollin, Keith David, Rory Kennedy, Todd Garner, Peter Berg, Captain Dale Dye, Chris Cortazzo and Sean Penn. Each colloquy explores storytelling from radically different points of view, but with abundantly similar points of connective tissue. He often blends humor, personal anecdotes and meaningful conversations, making the interviews both entertaining and insightful. Listeners appreciate John C.’s engaging storytelling, his authentic and relatable approach, his genuine curiosity and his ability to bring together a diverse range of guests from different fields.
His impressive career in film spans a diverse range of characters in over seventy films to date, including such features as The Good Catholic, Wild Hogs, Identity, The Animal, The Rock, Nothing to Lose, Set It Off, Seven, Office Space, Mother, Wagons East, Surviving the Game, On Deadly Ground, Point Break, Highlander II, A Midnight Clear, and Fat Man and Little Boy. He also previously starred opposite Ice Cube in Sony/Revolution Studios’ feature, Are We Done Yet?, the sequel to the hit comedy Are We There Yet? He received critical acclaim for his role as Brooklyn Dodgers’ radio broadcaster ‘Red Barber’ in Warner Bros.’ 42, the life story of Jackie Robinson and his history-making signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He starred opposite Tony Goldwyn in writer/producer James Gunn’s action/horror/thriller The Belko Experiment, directed by Greg McLean.
In addition to film and television, John C.’s background is heavily rooted in theater. He received stellar reviews for his starring performance as ‘Dave Moss’ in the Broadway revival of David Mamet’s acclaimed Pulitzer Prize-winning drama Glengarry Glen Ross. According to Newsday, “John C. McGinley is especially dazzling as the hothead who plans the office crime.” The play also starred Al Pacino and Bobby Cannavale and ran through January 20, 2013.
As the father of Max, his son with Down syndrome, John C. is committed to building awareness and acceptance of people with Down syndrome. He currently serves as an Ambassador for Special Olympics and is a board member of the Global Down Syndrome Foundation. John C. is also one of the original creators, in conjunction with Special Olympics, of the groundbreaking “Spread the Word to End the Word” national campaign to eradicate the “R” word. He has blogged repeatedly on the Huffington Post, advocating acceptance and awareness of people with special needs as well as the importance of eliminating the “R” word.
John C. is a proud Quincy Jones Exceptional Advocacy Awardee.
Meet John at GLOBAL’s Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show:
