Dafoe, Willem (1955– )

US actor. He is known for his characterizations of disturbed, tightly sprung eccentrics, but has acted in a wide range of roles, from the title role in Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) to the evil Green Goblin in Spider-Man (2002). He has also frequently appeared in war films, such as Platoon (1986), Born on the Fourth of July (1989), Clear and Present Danger (1994), and The English Patient (1996).

His breakthrough role was in Oliver Stone's Vietnam War film Platoon. Other roles include an idealistic FBI agent in the racial conflict drama Mississippi Burning (1986), a psychopathic ex-marine in David Lynch's Wild at Heart (1990), the poet T S Eliot in Tom and Viv (1994), a villainous gas station attendant in eXistenZ (1999), and a sinister actor in Shadow of the Vampire (2000).

He was born in Appleton, Wisconsin, one of seven children. After studying theatre at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, he joined the Theatre X experimental troupe, with whom he travelled around the USA and internationally. He moved to New York City in 1977, and joined the Wooster Group, an avant-garde troupe, in 1977. Early films include The Hunger (1983) and To Live and Die in LA (1985). Other films include the thrillers Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997), American Psycho (2000), Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003), and The Clearing (2004), as well as Wes Anderson's quirky comedy The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004).