David Thornton

David Thornton is perhaps most recognizable to modern audiences as the inimical but effective defense attorney Lionel Granger. As Granger, Thornton has often gone toe-to-toe with the (revolving door of) assistant District Attorneys on both "Law & Order" and its even more popular spin-off, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." While these procedural police dramas have produced a seemingly endless supply of attorneys to represent their rogues' gallery of defendants, Thornton has been given the opportunity to shine as Lionel Granger on multiple occasions. When he is given more air-time by clients who kill (or try to kill) the ADA assigned to their cases, the Machiavellian Granger never fails to take advantage of these convenient "accidents." Far from typecast as the sleazy lawyer, though, Thornton has had the opportunity to stretch his wings as an actor in critically acclaimed independent films like "Here and There." In that film, he starred as an emotionally detached but sympathetic New Yorker down on his luck and out of his element in Serbia. Thornton has also played key roles in more mainstream fare, such as "The Notebook," a tear-jerker of a romance, and "John Q," an action film starring Denzel Washington that is layered with social commentary.