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James Spader

James Spader

Biography

James Todd Spader (born February 7, 1960) is an American actor. He is known for often portraying eccentric and morally ambiguous characters. He started his career in critically acclaimed independent films before transitioning into television, for which he received numerous awards and acclaim, including three Primetime Emmy Awards as well as nominations for three Golden Globe Awards and ten Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Spader started his career acting in youth-orientated films such as Tuff Turf (1985), Pretty in Pink (1986), and Mannequin (1987). His breakthrough role came with the Steven Soderbergh drama Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989), for which he received the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor. He then starred in films such as White Palace (1990), True Colours (1991), Stargate (1994), 2 Days in the Valley (1996), and Secretary (2002). Spader took supporting roles in Bob Roberts (1992), Wolf (1994), Lincoln (2012), and The Homesman (2014). He also played the role of Ultron in Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015).

His television roles include the attorney Alan Shore in the last season of The Practice (2003–2004) and its spin-off Boston Legal (2004–2008), which earned him three Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. He portrayed Robert California in the sitcom The Office (2011–2012). Spader is also known for starring as Raymond Reddington in the NBC crime thriller series The Blacklist (2013–2023), for which he received two Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Actor—TV Series Drama.

Description above is from the Wikipedia article James Spader, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

CritifyHub Reviews Featuring James Spader

Tangled Hearts, Taped Truths: The Lasting Sting of ’sex, lies, and videotape’

on sex, lies, and videotape | Aug 24, 2025

Why does a 1989 indie flick about four people talking their way through desire and deception still feel like a gut-punch? Steven Soderbergh’s ’sex, lies, and videotape’ isn’t just a time capsule of la... Read more

Lincoln’s Whisper: Power, Pain, and a Nation’s Soul in Spielberg’s Gaze

on Lincoln | Aug 24, 2025

Ever wonder what it takes to bend history’s arc with words sharper than swords? Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln (2012) doesn’t just dramatize the 16th president’s fight to pass the 13th Amendment; it disse... Read more

Shadows of Ambition: The Fractured Symphony of Avengers: Age of Ultron

on Avengers: Age of Ultron | Jul 27, 2025

Avengers: Age of Ultron, directed by Joss Whedon, is a cinematic juggernaut that teeters between exhilarating spectacle and narrative overload, its ambition both its greatest strength and its Achilles... Read more

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