October 9, 1970
Jason Butler Harner was born in small town Elmira, New York in a working class family, later raised in Alexandria, Virginia while his parents worked in non-profits. His parents divorced when young, and each subsequently remarrying. He has one brother, and multiple former step-siblings. A self-described character actor interested in the fullness of any character, he is perhaps best known currently for his compelling turn as Agent Petty in Ozark (2017). After years of theatrical roles as kind-hearted, erudites like Tom in The Glass Menagerie with Sally Field, A.E.Housman in the American premiere of Stoppard's The Invention of Love, and the Broadway premiere of The Coast of Utopia as Ivan Turgenev, his film debut as Gordon Northcott in the Oscar nominated Changeling (2008) offered him his first conflicted killer. Over the years, there have been a variety of characters like the young Chris Walken in The Family Fang, English copilot in NON-STOP, tech billionaire in NEXT, as well as memorable arcs on Scandal (2012), The Walking Dead, The Handmaids Tale, Ray Donovan (2013), Homeland (2011) and The Walking Dead (2010). Continuing to return to the stage whenever possible, he has appeared on Broadway, in the West End, and around the country, most recently in the world premiere of Bernhardt/Hamlet opposite Janet McTeer. A worker constantly in search of challenging roles and material, independent films have taken him to remote Texas in indie-film festival hit The Big Bend and the roof of a skyscraper in downtown Los Angeles in the recent award-winning short Elevate. He holds an MFA from NYU's Graduate Acting Program, an undergraduate degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and splits time between Los Angeles and New York. A notable activist in causes including Keep Guns Off Campus, Razia's Ray of Hope, the right to access for healthcare and abortion in A is For and Physicians for Reproductive Health, and support of LGBTQ youth and families, as well as the accessibility of the theatre to a diverse audience, he continues to attempt to balance a creative career with any not-for-profit encouragement of the appreciation and improving of all.
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