Judd Nelson
Judd Nelson was an American actor who carved a unique path to fame, starting out as a rebellious bad boy teen heartthrob before transitioning into a quieter life as a well-respected (if slightly prickly and eccentric) character actor. Born on November 28, 1959 in Portland, ME, Nelson was raised in one of Portland's most prominent Jewish families; his mother was a former state legislator turned court mediator, while his father was a corporate lawyer and the first Jewish president of the Portland Symphony Orchestra. Nelson attended St. Paul's School, a distinguished boarding school in Concord, NH, before studying at Haverford College in Pennsylvania. However, he dropped out during his sophomore year, and decided to move to Manhattan, where he studied acting under the tutelage of Stella Adler. By the time he was 25, Nelson was starring in films such as "Making the Grade" (1984) and "Fandango" (1985), but it would be a film about a brain, a beauty, a jock, a rebel, and a recluse all stuck together for Saturday afternoon detention that would make Nelson a bona fide phenomenon. "The Breakfast Club" (1985) was writer/director John Hughes' second feature, an instant addition into the cannon of teen movie classics. Nelson turned in a dark, hilarious, and surprisingly vulnerable performance as John Bender, the cynical, angry burnout from a broken home who becomes an unlikely paramour for Molly Ringwald's preppy prom queen, Claire Standish. The final shot of the film, a freeze frame on Nelson raising his fist in triumph as Simple Minds' "Don't You Forget About Me" blared on the soundtrack, was instantly iconic. Then, as if "The Breakfast Club" wasn't enough, four months later, Nelson's next film, "St. Elmo's Fire" (1985) was released, quickly grossing nearly $40 million on a $10 million budget. The tale of a group of friends trying to figure out their post-college lives, "St. Elmo's Fire" showed a different, more mature side of Nelson. Taken together, these two films are perhaps best remembered for introducing the world to a group of actors who would come to be known as the Brat Pack: Nelson, Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Demi Moore, Molly Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy. The press followed their every move with intense scrutiny for most of the 1980s, and Nelson was never shy of professing his hatred for the term Brat Pack, even once saying he wished he had punched out David Blum, the journalist who coined it in an article for New York Magazine. Instead of getting mad, though, Nelson focused on the work of acting. He made his TV debut in 1986 with a cameo on "Moonlighting" (ABC, 1983-89), starred in an acclaimed production of Chekhov's "The Seagull" in L.A., and played a sleazy, fast-talking attorney in Bob Clark's courtroom comedy "From the Hip" (1987). This character type, the slimy yet charming yuppie, would come to define many of Nelson's biggest roles in the nineties, from the crime drama "New Jack City" (1991) to the goofy heavy metal comedy "Airheads" (1994), and even his villainous turn in the superhero flop "Steel" (1997), starring Shaquille O'Neal. Nelson continued to make headway in the world of television as well, turning in a memorable cameo on "Tales From the Crypt" (HBO, 1989-1996), and taking a lead role alongside Brooke Shields on the successful sitcom "Suddenly Susan" (NBC, 1996-1999). Nelson continued to work in the new millennium, most notably turning in a cameo for Brat Pack superfan Kevin Smith in "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" (2001) and playing an Italian mob boss in the cult sequel "Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day" (2009). He even reprised the role of John Bender, albeit in cartoon form, for a bit in a 2007 episode of "Family Guy" (FOX, 1999-2002, 2005-). Nelson could next be seen playing Billy Beretti on Lee Daniels' hip-hop primetime soap "Empire" (FOX, 2015-).
Photos
Judd Nelson
Filmography
Movies
Credit | |||||
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No Score Yet | No Score Yet | South of Hope Street | Tom (Character) | - | 2024 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Engagement Plan | Dash Donnelly (Character) | - | 2024 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Dante's Hotel | Brayer (Character) | - | 2023 |
No Score Yet |
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The Most Dangerous Game | Marcus Rainsford (Character) | - | 2022 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | A Tale of Two Guns | Captain Mathias (Character) | - | 2022 |
No Score Yet |
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Girl in the Basement | Don (Character) | - | 2021 |
No Score Yet |
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Electric Jesus | Pastor Wember (Character) | - | 2020 |
No Score Yet |
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Iceland Is Best | Mr. Sonquist (Character) | - | 2020 |
No Score Yet |
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Santa Fake | Seb (Character) | - | 2019 |
No Score Yet |
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Dauntless | Admirial Raymond Spruance (Character) | - | 2019 |
17% |
|
Dead Water | McLean (Character) | - | 2019 |
7% |
|
Billionaire Boys Club | Ryan Hunt (Character) | - | 2018 |
No Score Yet |
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1/1 | Robert (Character) | - | 2018 |
No Score Yet |
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From Straight A's to XXX | Don (Character) | - | 2017 |
No Score Yet |
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Stagecoach: The Texas Jack Story | Sid (Character) | - | 2016 |
No Score Yet |
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The Bandit Hound | Manny (Character) | - | 2016 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | When Duty Calls | Gary Lawton (Character) | - | 2016 |
44% |
|
This Is Happening | Steven (Character) | - | 2015 |
No Score Yet |
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Road to the Open | Anger Management Therapist (Character) | - | 2014 |
No Score Yet |
|
Private Number | Sheriff Stance (Character) | - | 2014 |
No Score Yet |
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Bigfoot Wars | Dr. Leonard Evans (Character) | - | 2014 |
64% |
|
Nurse | Dr. Morris (Character) | - | 2014 |
No Score Yet |
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Haunting of the Innocent | Mr. Franklin (Character) | - | 2014 |
No Score Yet |
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Kristin's Christmas Past | Glenn (Character) | - | 2013 |
60% |
|
Down and Dangerous | Charles (Character) | - | 2013 |
18% |
|
Just 45 Minutes From Broadway | Unknown (Character) | - | 2012 |
44% |
|
Bad Kids Go to Hell | Headmaster Nash (Character) | - | 2012 |
No Score Yet |
|
Mayor Cupcake | Donald Maroni (Character) | - | 2011 |
No Score Yet |
|
Cancel Christmas |
Santa Claus/ |
- | 2010 |
No Score Yet |
|
Endure | Emory Lane (Character) | - | 2010 |
No Score Yet |
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The Terror Experiment | Agent Wilson (Character) | - | 2010 |
No Score Yet |
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Little Hercules | Kevin (Character) | - | 2009 |
23% |
|
The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day | Concezio Yakavetta (Character) | $10.3M | 2009 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Dirty Politics | Billy (Character) | - | 2009 |
No Score Yet |
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A Single Woman | Unknown (Character) | - | 2009 |
No Score Yet |
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The Day the Earth Stopped | Charlie (Character) | - | 2008 |
No Score Yet |
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The Caretaker | Unknown (Character) | - | 2008 |
No Score Yet |
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Infected | Malcolm Burgess (Character) | - | 2008 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Crenshaw Nights | Jared Greene (Character) | - | 2008 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Black Friday | Glen (Character) | - | 2007 |
No Score Yet |
|
Netherbeast Incorporated | Steven P.D. Landry (Character) | - | 2007 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Nevermore | Jonathan Usher (Character) | - | 2007 |
No Score Yet |
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The Black Hole | Eric Bryce (Character) | - | 2006 |
No Score Yet |
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Lethal Eviction | Shep (Character) | - | 2005 |
No Score Yet |
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Three Wise Guys | George (Character) | - | 2005 |
No Score Yet |
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The Lost Angel | Father Brian (Character) | - | 2004 |
No Score Yet |
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The Freediver | Ziad (Character) | - | 2004 |
No Score Yet |
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White Rush | Brian Nathanson (Character) | - | 2003 |
No Score Yet |
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Cybermutt | Alex (Character) | - | 2003 |
No Score Yet |
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Deceived | Jack Jones (Character) | - | 2002 |
No Score Yet |
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Santa Jr. | Darryl Bedford (Character) | - | 2002 |
No Score Yet |
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Lost Voyage | Aaron Roberts (Character) | - | 2001 |
No Score Yet |
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Strange Frequency | Martin Potter (Character) | - | 2001 |
No Score Yet |
|
Dark Asylum | Quitz (Character) | - | 2001 |
52% |
|
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back | Sheriff (Character) | $30.1M | 2001 |
No Score Yet |
|
Return to Cabin by the Lake | Stanley Caldwell (Character) | - | 2001 |
No Score Yet |
|
Falcon Down | Harold Peters (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet |
|
The Spiral Staircase | Phillip Warren (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Sex & Bullets | Max (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Hide and Shriek: A New Spin and Marty Adventure | Jack Hulka (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet |
|
Cabin by the Lake | Stanley (Character) | - | 2000 |
No Score Yet |
|
Mr. Rock 'n' Roll: The Alan Freed Story | Alan Freed (Character) | - | 1999 |
40% |
|
Light It Up | Ken Knowles (Character) | $5.9M | 1999 |
8% |
|
Steel | Nathaniel Burke (Character) | $1.7M | 1997 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | For a Few Lousy Dollars | Hitman (Character) | - | 1996 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Blackwater Trail | Matt (Character) | - | 1995 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Circumstances Unknown | Paul Kinsey (Character) | - | 1995 |
No Score Yet |
|
Hail Caesar | Prisoner One (Character) | - | 1994 |
29% |
|
Airheads | Jimmie Wing (Character) | $4.9M | 1994 |
No Score Yet |
|
Blindfold: Acts of Obsession | Dr. Jennings (Character) | - | 1994 |
No Score Yet |
|
Entangled | David (Character) | - | 1993 |
No Score Yet |
|
Flinch | Harry Mirapolsky (Character) | - | 1993 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Every Breath |
Jimmy (Character), Screenwriter |
- | 1993 |
No Score Yet |
|
Caroline at Midnight | Phil Gallo (Character) | - | 1993 |
No Score Yet |
|
Conflict of Interest | Gideon (Character) | - | 1993 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Primary Motive | Andrew Blumenthal (Character) | - | 1992 |
45% |
|
The Dark Backward | Marty Malt (Character) | $7.9K | 1991 |
81% |
|
New Jack City | Nick Peretti (Character) | $44.1M | 1991 |
No Score Yet |
|
Hiroshima: Out of the Ashes | Pete Dunham (Character) | - | 1990 |
No Score Yet |
|
Far Out Man | Self | $71.4K | 1990 |
50% |
|
Relentless | Arthur "Buck" Taylor (Character) | $7.0M | 1989 |
No Score Yet |
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Never on Tuesday | Motorcycle cop (Character) | - | 1988 |
No Score Yet |
|
Billionaire Boys Club | Joe Hunt (Character) | - | 1987 |
30% |
|
From the Hip | Robin "Stormy" Weathers (Character) | $7.0M | 1987 |
62% |
|
The Transformers: The Movie |
Hot Rod/ |
$5.8M | 1986 |
0% |
|
Blue City | Billy Turner (Character) | $6.0M | 1986 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Shattered: If Your Kid's on Drugs | Unknown (Character) | - | 1986 |
89% |
|
The Breakfast Club | John Bender (Character) | - | 1985 |
63% |
|
Fandango | Phil Hicks (Character) | - | 1985 |
43% |
|
St. Elmo's Fire | Alec Newbary (Character) | - | 1985 |
No Score Yet |
|
Making the Grade | Eddie Keaton (Character) | - | 1984 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Rock 'n' Roll Hotel | Johnny (Character) | - | 1983 |
TV
Credit | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
84% | 47% | Empire | Billy Beretti (Guest Star) | 2015 2019 |
No Score Yet | 12% | The View | Guest | 2015 |
40% | No Score Yet | Heartbreakers | Unknown (Character) | 2014 |
85% | 69% | Nikita | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2013 |
31% | 82% | The Neighbors | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2013 |
65% | 66% | Two and a Half Men | Chris Makelroy (Guest Star) | 2010 |
89% | 94% | Psych | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2010 |
35% | 67% | Eleventh Hour | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2008 |
No Score Yet | 64% | Family Guy | John Bender (Guest Voice) | 2007 |
No Score Yet | 82% | CSI: New York | Cigarette Company Executive (Guest Star) | 2007 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Las Vegas | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2007 |
No Score Yet | 80% | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2006 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Suddenly Susan | Jack Richmond (Character) | 1996-2000 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Outer Limits | Harry Longworth (Guest Star) | 2000 |
82% | 90% | Tales From the Crypt | Unknown (Character) | 1992 |