"I've had a lot more good luck than bad, and I've made a lot more good pictures than bad ones, and I'm pretty happy with what I have. I don't walk around regretting too many things."
Michael Søren Madsen (born September 25, 1958 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American actor, poet and photographer with Irish and Danish roots. His sister is actress Virginia Madsen, but he is completely unrelated to Mads Mikkelsen.
Madsen's roles include:
Film
- Steve in WarGames (1983)
- Bump Bailey in The Natural (1984)
- Tom Baker in The Doors (1991)
- Jimmy in Thelma & Louise (1991)
- Mr. Blonde in Reservoir Dogs (1992)
- Steve in Straight Talk (1992)
- Blood in Beyond the Law (1992)
- Cliff Burden in Fatal Instinct (1992)
- Glen Greenwood in Free Willy (1993) and Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995)
- Rudy Travis in The Getaway (1994)
- Virgil Earp in Wyatt Earp (1994)
- Eddie Hall in Mulholland Falls (1995)
- Preston Lennox in Species (1995) and Species II (1998)
- Sonny Black in Donnie Brasco (1997)
- Damian Falco in Die Another Day (2002)
- Budd in Kill Bill (2003/2004)
- Bob in Sin City (2005)
- Vladimir in BloodRayne (2005)
- Maugrim (voice) in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005)
- Oliver in Scary Movie 4 (2006)
- Colonel J.T. Colt in The Last Drop (2006)
- J.T. Goldman in Hoboken Hollow (2006)
- Hawkins in Croc (2007)
- Father Roy in The Bleeding (2009)
- Kilowog (voice) in Green Lantern: First Flight (2009)
- The Boss in Skin Traffik (2015)
- Joe Gage in Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight (2015)
- Moreau in Vigilante Diaries (2016)
- Sheriff Hackett in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)
- Bill in Every Last One of Them (2021)
- Dan Clancy in Max Dagan (TBA)
- Mike O'Connor in St. Elsewhere (1983)
- Boyd Evans Strout in Cagney & Lacey, episode "Heat" (1984)
- Sally Alvarado in Miami Vice, episode "Give a Little, Take a Little" (1985)
- Blue in Quantum Leap episode "Jimmy - October 14, 1964" (1989)
- Mr. Chapel in Vengeance Unlimited (1998-99)
- Cooper Daly in CSI: Miami, episode "L.A." (2010)
- Jim Ricker in 24, Day 8 (2010)
- Kevin Costner in Bob's Burgers, episode "Moody Foodie" (2012)
- John in Blue Bloods, episode "Family Business" (2012)
- Walter Clark Sr. in Golden Boy (2013)
- Toni Cipriani in Grand Theft Auto III (2001)
- Rafferty in True Crime: Streets of LA (2003)
- Tanner in Driv3r (2004)
- Jack Frozenski in Narc (2005)
- Shimano in Yakuza (2005)
- Daud in Dishonored (2012) and Death of the Outsider (2017)
- Finn O'Leary in Call of Duty: Zombies (2013)
- Bill Carver in The Walking Dead (2014)
- Travis Baker in Crime Boss: Rockay City (2023)
Provides examples of
- Cheshire Cat Grin: Has one that could rival Jack Nicholson.
- Cool Shades: Wears them in a few films, most notably as Mr Blonde.
- Creator Backlash: He likes to be honest with his fans and is very self-critical of his own works; in 2009, he mentioned he only considers six of his movies as good: Kill Bill, Species, Free Willy, Thelma & Louise, Reservoir Dogs and Donnie Brasco.
- I Am Not Spock: He once joked in an interview that whenever English people recognize him, they stop and yell, "FOCKING HELL, IT'S MISTER BLOHND!"
- Money, Dear Boy: As he openly put it
back in 2009: "I've made some crap, but you've got to pay the bills." - Playing Against Type: Usually plays bad guys with serious issues, but in Free Willy he plays a kindly, understanding man who, while far from perfect, is doing his best to be a decent foster dad to a troubled kid.
- Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Just over six feet with thick dark hair and rugged good looks.
