CHRIS COOPER made his motion picture debut in John Sayles’ 1987 drama "Matewan." A favorite of Sayles, Cooper also co-starred in his sprawling urban epic "City of Hope" and as a Texas border sheriff investigating an unsolved murder in Sayles’ Oscar-nominated drama "Lone Star," for which Cooper earned a Best Actor nomination from the Independent Spirit Awards.
He recently co-starred in "American Beauty" opposite Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening. He will next be seen opposite Mel Gibson in Roland Emmerich’s epic "The Patriot." Other feature film credits include "October Sky," "The Horse Whisperer," "Great Expectations," "A Time To Kill," "Money Train," "Boys," "Pharaoh’s Army," "This Boy’s Life," "Guilty by Suspicion," "To the Moon, Alice" and "A Thousand Pieces of Gold."
On television, Cooper portrayed July Johnson in the memorable miniseries "Lonesome Dove," and reprised the role in the sequel, "Return to Lonesome Dove." Other television credits include Horton Foote’s "Alone," "One More Mountain," "Ned Blessing," "Bed of Lies," "In Broad Daylight," "Darrow," "A Little Piece of Sunshine," "Lifestories" and "Journey to Genius." He has also guest-starred on such series as "Law and Order," "Miami Vice" and "The Equalizer."
Following high school, the Kansas City, Missouri native served in the U.S. Coast Guard before graduating from the University of Missouri, where he made his acting debut understudying for an ill Tom Berenger. He relocated to New York and studied his craft with renowned coach Stella Adler before beginning a career that included several stage appearances on Broadway, off-Broadway and in regional theater. His theater credits include "Of the Fields Lately," "Cobb," "The Ballad of Soapy Smith," "The Grapes of Wrath" and "Sweet Bird of Youth."