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IMDbPro

Roger Rees(1944-2015)

  • Actor
  • Director
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
Roger Rees
A teen starts working for the mafia to help pay for photography school in this trailer
Play trailer1:18
The Narrows (2008)
10 Videos
29 Photos
Like a number of British actors of the same generation (John Hurt and Alan Rickman, to name two), Roger Rees originally trained for the visual arts. He was born on May 5 1944 in Aberystwyth, Wales, and acted in church and Boy Scouts stage productions while growing up in South London, but studied painting and lithography at the Slade School of Art. He had to quit his studies, however, when his father died and he had to help support the family. His first paying jobs in show business were as a scenery painter. He was painting scenery, in fact, when he was asked to sub in for a part and made his acting debut. He put away his brushes for good after this.

He turned to acting on a full-time basis in the mid-1960s and appeared on both the London and Scottish stages. After his fourth audition, the Royal Shakespeare Company finally hired him as a walk-on, sword carrier and bit player in 1968. He then worked his way up through the RSC's ranks, finally achieving stardom in the early 1980s in the 8-1/2 hour stage adaptation of "The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickelby", which had a cast of 40 actors, and for which he won both an Olivier Award and a Tony Award. Rees was also nominated for an Emmy Award for the television version of the play. By this time, he had several TV movies to his name, but he did not make his big-screen debut until Star 80 (1983).

Living in the United States since 1989, Roger made a name for himself in America when he joined the cast of the TV hit comedy Cheers (1982) as the priggish Britisher Robin Colcord and later the glib British ambassador Lord John Marbury on the series The West Wing (1999). More recently, he appeared as a frequent guest in several British and American television series and in a number of independent films.

However, Roger Rees remained primarily a man of the theatre with secondary careers as a playwright and stage director. Married to theatre collaborator Rick Elice since 2011, Roger was subsequently diagnosed with cancer. Performing on Broadway in the musical "The Visit" starring Chita Rivera, he was forced to quit the show in late May of 2015. The 71-year-old actor died on July 10, 2015.
BornMay 5, 1944
DiedJuly 10, 2015(71)
BornMay 5, 1944
DiedJuly 10, 2015(71)
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
  • Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy

Photos29

Roger Rees in The Return of Sam McCloud (1989)
Roger Rees in Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot (1992)
Roger Rees in Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot (1992)
Roger Rees and Yvonne Suhor in The Young Riders (1989)
Roger Rees in Cheers (1982)
Kirstie Alley and Roger Rees in Cheers (1982)
Carl Lumbly and Roger Rees in M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994)
Chris Gartin, Carl Lumbly, and Roger Rees in M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994)
Carl Lumbly and Roger Rees in M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994)
Galyn Görg, Carl Lumbly, and Roger Rees in M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994)
Carl Lumbly and Roger Rees in M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994)
Roger Rees in My So-Called Life (1994)

Known for

Salma Hayek in Frida (2002)
Frida
7.3
  • Guillermo Kahlo
  • 2002
Cary Elwes in Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)
Robin Hood: Men in Tights
6.7
  • Sheriff of Rottingham
  • 1993
Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman, and Scarlett Johansson in The Prestige (2006)
The Prestige
8.5
  • Owens
  • 2006
Steve Martin in The Pink Panther (2006)
The Pink Panther
5.6
  • Raymond Larocque
  • 2006

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actor

  • The Pilgrims (2015)
    The Pilgrims
  • David Ogden Stiers, David McCullough, and Michael Murphy in American Experience (1987)
    American Experience
  • Pierce Brosnan and Milla Jovovich in Survivor (2015)
    Survivor
  • Ioan Gruffudd in Forever (2014)
    Forever
  • It Could Be Worse (2013)
    It Could Be Worse
  • Gregg Sulkin, Nicola Peltz Beckham, Grant Gustin, and Ben Rosenfield in Affluenza (2014)
    Affluenza
  • Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu in Elementary (2012)
    Elementary
  • Saul Rubinek, Eddie McClintock, Joanne Kelly, and Allison Scagliotti in Warehouse 13 (2009)
    Warehouse 13
  • The Middle (2009)
    The Middle
  • Submissions Only (2010)
    Submissions Only
  • Kelly Hu, Edison Chen, and Ivan Shaw in Almost Perfect (2011)
    Almost Perfect
  • Julianna Margulies in The Good Wife (2009)
    The Good Wife
  • Jamie Kennedy, Sanaa Lathan, Will Forte, Reagan Gomez-Preston, Arianna Huffington, Seth MacFarlane, Kevin Michael Richardson, Craig Robinson, Jason Sudeikis, John Viener, Glenn Howerton, Alec Sulkin, Mike Henry, Nickie Bryar, and Aseem Batra in The Cleveland Show (2009)
    The Cleveland Show
    • (voice)
  • Vincent D'Onofrio, Kathryn Erbe, Eric Bogosian, Julianne Nicholson, and Chris Noth in Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001)
    Law & Order: Criminal Intent
  • Happy Tears (2009)
    Happy Tears

Director

  • Oz (1997)
    Oz

Soundtrack

  • Valentines. A Bouquet of Letters and Poetry of Lovers (1994)
    Valentines. A Bouquet of Letters and Poetry of Lovers

Videos10

Official Trailer
Trailer 2:35
Official Trailer
Frida
Trailer 1:39
Frida
The Narrows
Trailer 1:18
The Narrows
Stop! or My Mom Will Shoot
Trailer 2:20
Stop! or My Mom Will Shoot
Robin Hood: Men in Tights
Trailer 1:32
Robin Hood: Men in Tights
Sudden Manhattan
Trailer 1:29
Sudden Manhattan
If Looks Could Kill
Trailer 1:40
If Looks Could Kill
BlackMale
Trailer 1:32
BlackMale
The Narrows
Trailer 1:17
The Narrows
In Memoriam: 2015
Video 2:42
In Memoriam: 2015

Personal details

Edit
    • May 5, 1944
    • Aberystwyth, Wales, UK
    • July 10, 2015
    • Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA(cancer)
    • Rick EliceAugust 2011 - July 10, 2015 (his death)
  • Other works
    'Is There Honey Still for Tea?' (play), 1978.
  • Publicity listings
    • 6 Interviews
    • 5 Articles

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    His ashes were sprinkled into the Atlantic Ocean.
  • Quotes
    In Julius Caesar, I died early in the scene and used to fall asleep under the shield until I was waken up by applause. I didn't have any lines, other than "The Queen!" or "Ah, my Lord!" for four years. -- RR, commenting on his first few years as a bit actor with the Royal Shakespeare Company
    • Rich smooth voice

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