Michael Philip Des Barres (January 24, 1948) is an English actor and rock singer. As an actor, his first credited role was as a student in To Sir, with Love, when he was a teenager. After that, he mostly played character parts in B movies and TV shows, including as the recurring villain Murdoc on MacGyver (1985) (1987-1991) and as a DJ in the main cast during the first season of The New WKRP in Cincinnati (1991). He also had a small part in Mulholland Dr. (2001).
He is the former lead singer of Detective, a rock band that released on Led Zeppelin's Swan Song label. He's also released a few solo albums and fronted the Supergroup Chequered Past (along with former members of Blondie, The Sex Pistols, and Iggy Pop) and toured with another supergroup, the Power Station, after lead singer Robert Palmer backed out. But his best-known song is "Obsession," which he originally wrote and recorded as a duet with Holly Knight but was Covered Up by Animotion, who made it an international hit in 1985. He also co-wrote and played on "I Do What I Do," a modest hit from the 9½ Weeks soundtrack that was performed by Duran Duran's John Taylor.
He was married to Wendy Hamilton and Pamela Des Barres, is currently married to Britta Hayertz, and has one child with Des Barres. In 2020, he was the subject of a documentary film.
Filmography
- 1966: Arrivederci Baby as Boy in Orphanage (Uncredited Role)
- 1967: To Sir, with Love as Williams
- 1971: I, Monster as Boy in Alley
- 1984: Ghoulies as Malcolm Graves
- 1987: Nightflyers as Jon Winderman
- 1989: Pink Cadillac as Alex
- 1990: Midnight Cabaret as Paul Van Dyke
- 1992: Waxwork II: Lost in Time as George
- 1992: Under Siege as Damiani
- 1994: Deep Red as Lew Ramirez
- 1994: The High Crusade as Monsieur du Lac
- 1994: Silk Degrees as Degrillo
- 1994: A Simple Twist Of Fate as Bryce
- 1996: Widows Kiss as Steven Rose
- 1996: Limp Fangs as Narrator
- 1997: Poison Ivy The New Seduction as Ivan Greer
- 1998: The Jungle Book Search For The Lost Treasure as Kohabeez
- 1999: Sugar Town as Nick
- 1999: The Hungry Bachelors Club as Harold Spinner
- 2000: Poison as Evan Lazlo
- 2001: Mulholland Dr. as Billy
- 2001: Good Avice as Michael Des Barres
- 2001: The Man From Elysian Fields as Nigel
- 2001: Diary Of A Sex Addict as Sammy/Husband
- 2002: Ocean Park as Gower
- 2004: Catch That Kid as Brisbane
- 2012: California Solo as Wendell
- 2014: Me as Sanford
- 1960: Whack O as Floyd
- 1967: Mrs Thursday as Laurence Mayne
- 1967: Z Cars as Young Drunk
- 1968: Dixon of Dock Green as Philip Baker
- 1972: Six Days Of Justice as Glover
- 1978: WKRP in Cincinnati as Dog
- 1979: The Rockford Files as Gordon Flack/Keith
- 1980: Hart to Hart as Syd Sado
- 1983: Cagney & Lacey as Malcolm Kingsley
- 1985: St. Elsewhere as Donald
- 1985-1986: The Insiders as Jimmy Randall/Little Moe
- 1985-1988: Miami Vice as Shane Dubois/Power Station Vocalist
- 1986: The Hitchhiker as The Wise Man
- 1986: My Sister Sam as Emmet Gentry
- 1987: The Magical World Of Disney as Simon
- 1987: Sledge Hammer! as Sir Guy
- 1987-1991: MacGyver (1985) as Murdoc
- 1988: JJ Starbuck as Benny 'Ben Franklin' Bijou
- 1988: Ohara as Roderick McConnell
- 1988: ALF as Eddie
- 1989: 21 Jump Street as Gavin McHugh/Mr. Karst
- 1990: Father Dowling Mysteries as Alex Sawyer
- 1990: Super Force as Jesse Caldwell
- 1991: The Adventures of Superboy as Adam Verrell
- 1991-1992: The New WKRP in Cincinnati as Jack Allen
- 1991-1997: Roseanne as Dr. Phillips/Steven/Jerry Gimbel
- 1992: Batman: The Animated Series as Nostromos/Carl Fowler
- 1992: The Legend of Prince Valiant as John/Black Rose Member
- 1993: The Jackie Thomas Show as Documentary Director
- 1993: Seinfeld as Restaurateur
- 1993: The Hat Squad as Carlton Fischer
- 1994: L.A. Law as Mr. Allesio
- 1994: Lois & Clark as Lenny Stoke
- 1994: Northern Exposure as Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky
- 1995: Marker as Beau
- 1995: The Commish as Aaron DeFord
- 1995: Renegade as Michael St. John
- 1995: Freakazoid! as Man in Hole
- 1995-1997: Ellen as The Patient/Nigel the Director
- 1996: Spider-Man: The Animated Series as Jackson Wheele
- 1996: The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest as Rodney/Merlin
- 1996: Sliders as Prof. Vincent Cardoza
- 1996: Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm as Kano/Shao Khan/Captain
- 1996-1997: Melrose Place as Arthur Field
- 1997: Adventures from the Book of Virtues as Haman/Royal Guard
- 1997-2004: JAG as Howie Black/King Josif
- 1998: Just Shoot Me! as Nick Hewitt
- 1998: The Pretender as Douglas Willard
- 1999: Nash Bridges as Niles Maynard
- 1999: The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries as Immigration Agent #2
- 2001: Dead Last as J.L. Crawford
- 2002: Providence as Yule
- 2002: Charmed (1998) as Dark Priest
- 2002: She Spies as Dr. Zirby
- 2002: My Guide To Becoming A Rock Star as Eric Darnell
- 2002: Gilmore Girls as Claude Clemenceau
- 2004: Frasier as Georges
- 2004: Dead Like Me as Gideon Jeffries
- 2004: Hawaii as Preston Tucker
- 2005: Alias as Miles Devereaux
- 2006: Four Kings as Nick Dresden
- 2007: Nip/Tuck as Everett Poe
- 2010: Bones as Simon Graham
- 2012: The Finder as Icepick
- 2012: Suits as Sergei Baskov
- 2012: NCIS as Del Finney
- 2014: CSI as Marty 'The Cat' Kirch
- 2018-2019: MacGyver (2016) as Nicholas Helman
Video Game Roles
- 2017: Dishonored: Death of the Outsider as Cultists
Discography:
With Silverhead:
- Silverhead (1972)
- 16 and Savaged (1973)
- Live at the Rainbow (1975)
With Detective:
- Detective (1977)
- It Takes One to Know One (1977)
- Live from the Atlantic Studios (1978)
With Chequered Past:
- Chequered Past (1984)
With The Michael Des Barres Band:
- Carnaby Street (2012)
- Hot n Sticky Live (2013)
Solo:
- I'm Only Human (1980)
- Somebody Up There Likes Me (1986)
- The Key to the Universe (2015)
