Anthony Michael Hall
Encyclopedia
Michael Anthony Hall known professionally as Anthony Michael Hall, is an American actor, film producer and director who starred in several teen-oriented films of the 1980s. Hall began his career in commercials and on stage as a child, and made his screen debut in 1980. His films with director-screenwriter John Hughes, beginning with the popular 1984 coming-of-age
comedy Sixteen Candles
, shaped his early career. Hall's next movies with Hughes were the teen classics The Breakfast Club
and Weird Science
, both in 1985. His performances as lovable geek
s in these three films connected his name and face with the stereotype for an entire generation.
Hall diversified his roles to avoid becoming typecast
as his geek persona, joining the cast of Saturday Night Live
(1985–1986) and starring in films such as Out of Bounds (1986), Johnny Be Good
(1988), Edward Scissorhands
(1990) and Six Degrees of Separation
(1993). After a series of minor roles in the 1990s, he starred as Microsoft
's Bill Gates
in the 1999 television film Pirates of Silicon Valley
. He had the leading role in the USA Network
series The Dead Zone
, from 2002 to 2007. During its run, the show was one of the highest-rated cable television series.
, a neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts. He is the only child of blues-jazz singer Mercedes Hall's first marriage. She divorced Hall's father, Larry, an auto-body-shop owner, when their son was six months old. When Hall was three, he and his mother relocated to the West Coast where she found work as a featured singer. After a year and a half, they returned to the East, eventually moving to New York City, where Hall grew up. Hall's ancestry is Irish
and Italian
, He has one half-sister, Mary Chestaro, from his mother's second marriage to Thomas Chestaro, a show business manager. His half-sister is pursuing a career as a singer under the name of Mary C. Hall uses the name Anthony, rather than Michael. He transposed his first and middle names when he entered show business because another actor named Michael Hall was already a member of the Screen Actors Guild
.
Hall attended St. Hilda's & St. Hugh's School
of New York before moving on to Manhattan
's Professional Children's School
. Hall began his acting career at age eight and continued throughout high school. "I did not go to college," he has said, "but I'm an avid reader in the ongoing process of educating myself." Through the 1980s, Hall's mother managed his career, eventually relinquishing that role to her second husband.
Hall is committed to aiding at-risk youth through his literacy program, The Anthony Michael Hall Literacy Club, in association with Chapman University
. The club provides an opportunity for the students to improve their literacy skills by exploring genres not typically used to enhance literacy, such as films, music and lyrics, scripts, and novels with audio. Following family tradition, Hall is pursuing his other passion, music. He is the lead singer and songwriter for his band, Hall of Mirrors, formed in 1998. The band released an album, Welcome to the Hall of Mirrors, through Hall's own RAM Records label in 1999, with collaborations from former Guns N' Roses
guitarist Gilby Clarke
and Prince
's former keyboard player Tommy Barbarella
.
and appeared in several commercials for toys and Bounty
. His stage debut was in 1977, when he was cast as the young Steve Allen
in Allen's semi-autobiographical play The Wake. He went on to appear in the Lincoln Center Festival's production of St. Joan of the Microphone, and in a play with Woody Allen
. In 1980, he made his screen debut in the Emmy-winning TV movie The Gold Bug, in which he played the young Edgar Allan Poe
, but it was not until the release of the 1982 Kenny Rogers
film Six Pack
that he gained real notice.
The following year, Hall landed the role of Rusty Griswold, Chevy Chase
and Beverly D'Angelo
's son, in National Lampoon's Vacation
, catching the attention of the film's screenwriter John Hughes, who was about to make the jump to directing. "For [Hall] to upstage Chevy, I thought, was a remarkable accomplishment for a 13-year-old kid," said Hughes. The film was a significant box office hit in 1983, grossing over US$61 million in the United States. After Vacation, Hall moved on to other projects and declined to reprise his role in the 1985 sequel.
Hall's breakout role came in 1984, when he was cast as Farmer Ted, the scrawny, braces-wearing geek
, who pursued Molly Ringwald's character in John Hughes' directing debut Sixteen Candles
. Hall tried to avoid the clichés of geekness. "I didn't play him with 100 pens sticking out of his pocket," he said. "I just went in there and played it like a real kid. The geek is just a typical freshman." Hall landed a spot on the promotional materials, along with co-star Ringwald. Reviews of the film were positive for Hall and his co-stars, and one for People Weekly even claimed that Hall's performance "[pilfered] the film" from Ringwald. Despite achieving only moderate success at the box office, the film made overnight stars of Ringwald and Hall.
Hall starred in two 1985 teen classics, both written and directed by John Hughes. He was cast as Brian Johnson, "the brain," in the quintessential teen film The Breakfast Club
, co-starring Emilio Estevez
, Judd Nelson
, Ally Sheedy
, and Ringwald. Film critic Janet Maslin
praised Hall, stating that the 16-year-old actor and Ringwald were "the movie's standout performers." Hall and fellow costar, Molly Ringwald
, dated for a short period of time after filming The Breakfast Club
together in 1985. Later that year, Hall portrayed Gary Wallace, another likable misfit, in Weird Science
. Critic Sheila Benson from the Los Angeles Times
said "Hall [was] the role model supreme" for the character, but she also acknowledged that "he [was] outgrowing the role" and "[didn’t] need to hold the patent on the bratty bright kid." Weird Science was a moderate success at the box office but was generally well-received for a teen comedy. Those roles established him as the 80s "nerd-of-choice", as well as a member in good standing of Hollywood's Brat Pack. Hall, who portrayed John Hughes' alter ego
s in Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club and Weird Science, credits the director for putting him on the map and giving him those opportunities as a child. "I had the time of my life", he said. "I'd consider [working with Hughes again] any day of the week."
Hall joined the cast of Saturday Night Live
(SNL) during its 1985–86 season at the age of 17. He was, and remains, the youngest cast member in the show's history. His recurring characters on the show were 'Craig Sundberg, Idiot Savant,' an intelligent, talented teenager with a vacant expression and stilted speech, and 'Fed Jones,' one half of the habitually high, hustling pitchmen known as The Jones Brothers (the other Jones Brother was played by short-lived featured player Damon Wayans
). Art Garfunkel
, Edd Byrnes, Robert F. Kennedy
and Daryl Hall
were among Hall's celebrity impersonations. Hall had admired the show and its stars as a child, but he found the SNL environment to be far more competitive than he had imagined. "My year there, I didn't have any breakout characters and I didn't really do the things I dreamed I would do," he said, "but I still learned a lot, and I value that. I'll always be proud of the fact that I was a part of its history."
To avoid being typecast, Hall turned down roles written for him by John Hughes in Ferris Bueller's Day Off
(Cameron Frye
) and Pretty in Pink
(Phil "Duckie" Dale
), both in 1986. Instead, he starred in the 1986 film Out of Bounds, Hall's first excursion into the thriller and action genre. The film grossed only US$5 million domestically, and was a critical and financial disappointment. Critic Roger Ebert
described Out of Bounds as "an explosion at the cliché factory," and Caryn James from the New York Times claimed that not even "Hall, who made nerds seem lovable in John Hughes' Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club, [could] do much to reconcile" the disparate themes of the movie.
Hall was offered the starring role in the 1987 film Full Metal Jacket
in a conversation with Stanley Kubrick
, but after an eight-month negotiation, a financial agreement could not be reached. "It was a difficult decision, because in that eight-month period, I read everything I could about the guy, and I was really fascinated by him," Hall said when asked about the film. "I wanted to be a part of that film, but it didn't work out. But all sorts of stories circulated, like I got on set and I was fired, or I was pissed at him for shooting too long. It's all not true." He was replaced with Matthew Modine
. His next film would be 1988's Johnny Be Good
, in which he worked with Uma Thurman
and fellow Saturday Night Live cast member Robert Downey, Jr. The film was a critical failure, and some critics panned Hall's performance as a high school football
star, claiming that he, the movies' reigning geek, was miscast for the role. A review for The Washington Post
claimed that the film was "crass, vulgar, and relentlessly brain-dead."
and Winona Ryder
in Tim Burton
's 1990 hit Edward Scissorhands
, this time as the film's villain. By then in his 20s, he shifted to more mature roles, trying to establish himself as an adult actor. After Scissorhands, he appeared in a series of low-budget films, including the 1992 comedy Into the Sun, where he starred as a visiting celebrity at a military air base. Film critic Janet Maslin praised his performance, writing that "Mr. Hall, whose earlier performances (in films like National Lampoon's Vacation and Sixteen Candles) have been much goofier, remains coolly funny and graduates to subtler forms of comedy with this role." The following year, he played a gay man who teaches down-and-out Will Smith
to dupe rich people in the critically acclaimed film Six Degrees of Separation
. Hall claimed that it was "the hardest role [he] ever had."
In 1994, Hall starred in and directed his first feature film, a low-budget Showtime comedy named Hail Caesar
about a would-be rock star who works in a pencil eraser factory. The film also co-starred Samuel L. Jackson
, Robert Downey, Jr., and Judd Nelson
. In addition, he produced
the soundtrack for the film with composer Herbie Tribino. The film featured songs written and performed by Hall.
After a series of appearances in low-budget films and guest roles on TV series in the mid and late 1990s, he gained media attention once again in the 1999 Emmy-nominated TNT
original movie Pirates of Silicon Valley
, co-starring Noah Wyle
as Apple Computer
's Steve Jobs
. Hall was widely praised for his portrayal of Microsoft
billionaire Bill Gates
. "I really fought for this part because I knew it would be the role of a lifetime," Hall said. "It was a thrill and a daunting challenge to play someone of his stature and brilliance." Hall described his physical appearance as 20-year-old Gates to the San Francisco Chronicle
:
, Hall appeared in several made-for-TV films. He starred opposite Sheryl Lee
as a cheating husband in the 2001 USA Network
cable movie Hitched. That same year, he played renowned music producer Robert "Mutt" Lange
in VH1
's original movie Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story and starred as legendary lefty baseball
pitcher
Whitey Ford
in Billy Crystal
's highly acclaimed HBO film, 61*.
On the big screen, Hall took on supporting roles in the mystery-drama The Caveman's Valentine
(2001) opposite Samuel L. Jackson
, the critically panned Freddy Got Fingered
(2001) opposite Tom Green
, and the action-comedy All About the Benjamins
(2002) opposite Ice Cube
.
Hall began his first regular series role in 2002, starring as Johnny Smith in USA Network
's supernatural drama The Dead Zone
, a TV series adapted from Stephen King
's best-selling novel
. He was cast in the show after executive producer Michael Piller
saw his performance in Pirates of Silicon Valley. The show debuted on June 16, 2002, and drew higher ratings for a premiere than any other cable series in television history with 6.4 million viewers. The Dead Zone quickly developed a loyal audience, with the show and Hall receiving strong reviews. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
wrote that "Hall's Johnny flashes the qualities - comic timing, great facial expressions - that made him a star in the 1980s movies Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club." The Dead Zone, Hall said, "has transformed my career." The show proved to be one of USA Network's top shows and one of the highest-rated programs on basic cable.
The Dead Zone opening credits list Hall as co-producer (seasons 1-3), producer
(seasons 5) and co-executive producer (season 6). Hall also directed an episode from season three, "The Cold Hard Truth", guest starring standup comic Richard Lewis
. "[The Cold Hard Truth], I feel, is my best work as a director, because I had this great crew that knows me well and has been working with me", said Hall. "I also had the best script that I've had an opportunity to direct." The show's sixth and final season premiered on June 17, 2007. USA Network officially canceled The Dead Zone in December 2007.
Hall also participated in Mind Freak's 10th episode of season 4.
In addition, Hall is developing film and television projects under his production company banner AMH Entertainment. Most recently, Hall starred in Aftermath, an independent crime-drama film, with Tony Danza
and Chris Penn
. In 2008, Hall appeared as Gotham City
television reporter/anchor Mike Engel in The Dark Knight
.
series Community
. During 2011, he played the main antagonist of Season 3 of Warehouse 13
, Walter Sykes.
In 1990, Hall's physical appearance in Edward Scissorhands
caught audiences off guard. His more muscular image provoked rumors of steroids, but Hall later said that "the weight gain was natural."
Hall's role in the 1993 film Six Degrees of Separation
managed to make news not because of what occurred onscreen, but rather what failed to occur. Hall played a gay love interest to Will Smith
, who had previously agreed to a kissing scene between the two. However, on the day of the shoot, Smith backed off. Smith told the press that he called Denzel Washington
for advice, who told him that an onscreen same-sex kiss was a bad career move. When asked about the incident during an interview, Hall said, "I didn't care. I wasn't that comfortable with it, either, and ultimately, we used a camera trick."
pays tribute to Hall's numerous appearances in the teen-oriented, '80s comedy films parodied by the movie. A brief shot of the sign over the door of a high school cafeteria reveals that the facility is named the "Anthony Michael Dining Hall." In 2006, Hall was ranked # 4 in VH1
's list of the "100 Greatest Teen Stars" and # 41 in "100 Greatest Kid Stars."
In June 2005, The Breakfast Club was rewarded with the "Silver Bucket of Excellence Award" at the MTV Movie Awards
, in honor of the film's twentieth anniversary. MTV
attempted to reunite the original cast; Sheedy, Ringwald, and Hall appeared together on stage, and Paul Gleason
personally gave the award to his former castmates. Estevez could not attend because of family commitments, and Nelson appeared earlier on the red carpet but left before the on-stage reunion for reasons unknown. Hall joked that the two were "in Africa with Dave Chappelle
."
Coming of age
Coming of age is a young person's transition from childhood to adulthood. The age at which this transition takes place varies in society, as does the nature of the transition. It can be a simple legal convention or can be part of a ritual, as practiced by many societies...
comedy Sixteen Candles
Sixteen Candles
Sixteen Candles is a 1984 American film starring Molly Ringwald, Michael Schoeffling and Anthony Michael Hall. It was written and directed by John Hughes.- Plot :...
, shaped his early career. Hall's next movies with Hughes were the teen classics The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club is a 1985 American teen drama film written and directed by John Hughes. The storyline follows five teenagers as they spend a Saturday in detention together and come to realize that they are all deeper than their respective stereotypes.-Plot:The plot follows five students at...
and Weird Science
Weird Science (film)
Weird Science is a 1985 American teen comedy film written and directed by John Hughes and starring Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, and Kelly LeBrock...
, both in 1985. His performances as lovable geek
Geek
The word geek is a slang term, with different meanings ranging from "a computer expert or enthusiast" to "a carnival performer who performs sensationally morbid or disgusting acts", with a general pejorative meaning of "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp[ecially] one who is perceived to...
s in these three films connected his name and face with the stereotype for an entire generation.
Hall diversified his roles to avoid becoming typecast
Typecasting (acting)
In TV, film, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character; one or more particular roles; or, characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ethnic groups...
as his geek persona, joining the cast of Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
(1985–1986) and starring in films such as Out of Bounds (1986), Johnny Be Good
Johnny Be Good
Johnny Be Good is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Bud Smith, starring Anthony Michael Hall as the main character, Johnny Walker. The film also features Robert Downey Jr., Steve James, Jennifer Tilly and Uma Thurman in her film debut...
(1988), Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands is a 1990 romantic fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film shows the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter...
(1990) and Six Degrees of Separation
Six Degrees of Separation (film)
Six Degrees of Separation is a 1990 play written by John Guare that premiered at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Lincoln Center on May 16, 1990, directed by Jerry Zaks and starring Stockard Channing...
(1993). After a series of minor roles in the 1990s, he starred as Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
's Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
in the 1999 television film Pirates of Silicon Valley
Pirates of Silicon Valley
Pirates of Silicon Valley is a 1999 made-for-television film directed by Martyn Burke and based on the book Fire in the Valley: The Making of The Personal Computer by Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine. The film documents the impact on the development of the personal computer of the rivalry between...
. He had the leading role in the USA Network
USA Network
USA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
series The Dead Zone
The Dead Zone (TV series)
The Dead Zone, aka Stephen King's Dead Zone is an American-Canadian science fiction/suspense series starring Anthony Michael Hall as Johnny Smith, who discovers he has developed psychic abilities after a coma...
, from 2002 to 2007. During its run, the show was one of the highest-rated cable television series.
Personal life
Anthony Michael Hall was born in West RoxburyWest Roxbury, Massachusetts
West Roxbury is a neighborhood in Boston bordered by Roslindale to the north, the Town of Dedham to the east and south, the Town of Brookline and the City of Newton to the west. Many people mistakenly confuse West Roxbury with Roxbury, but the two are not connected. West Roxbury is separated from...
, a neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts. He is the only child of blues-jazz singer Mercedes Hall's first marriage. She divorced Hall's father, Larry, an auto-body-shop owner, when their son was six months old. When Hall was three, he and his mother relocated to the West Coast where she found work as a featured singer. After a year and a half, they returned to the East, eventually moving to New York City, where Hall grew up. Hall's ancestry is Irish
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
and Italian
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
, He has one half-sister, Mary Chestaro, from his mother's second marriage to Thomas Chestaro, a show business manager. His half-sister is pursuing a career as a singer under the name of Mary C. Hall uses the name Anthony, rather than Michael. He transposed his first and middle names when he entered show business because another actor named Michael Hall was already a member of the Screen Actors Guild
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
.
Hall attended St. Hilda's & St. Hugh's School
St. Hilda's & St. Hugh's School
St. Hilda's & St. Hugh's School is an independent, Episcopal day school in New York City. It is located in Morningside Heights on the Upper West Side of Manhattan...
of New York before moving on to Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
's Professional Children's School
Professional Children's School
Professional Children's School is a not for profit, college preparatory school that was founded in New York City in 1914 to provide an education to young people working on the New York stage, in Vaudeville, or "on the road."-History:...
. Hall began his acting career at age eight and continued throughout high school. "I did not go to college," he has said, "but I'm an avid reader in the ongoing process of educating myself." Through the 1980s, Hall's mother managed his career, eventually relinquishing that role to her second husband.
Hall is committed to aiding at-risk youth through his literacy program, The Anthony Michael Hall Literacy Club, in association with Chapman University
Chapman University
Chapman University is a private, non-profit university located in Orange, California affiliated with the Christian Church . Known for its blend of liberal arts and professional programs, Chapman University encompasses seven schools and colleges: Lawrence and Kristina Dodge College of Film and Media...
. The club provides an opportunity for the students to improve their literacy skills by exploring genres not typically used to enhance literacy, such as films, music and lyrics, scripts, and novels with audio. Following family tradition, Hall is pursuing his other passion, music. He is the lead singer and songwriter for his band, Hall of Mirrors, formed in 1998. The band released an album, Welcome to the Hall of Mirrors, through Hall's own RAM Records label in 1999, with collaborations from former Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
guitarist Gilby Clarke
Gilby Clarke
Gilbert "Gilby" Clarke is an American guitarist and record producer best known for a 3-year tenure as the rhythm guitarist of Guns N' Roses, replacing Izzy Stradlin in 1991 during the Use Your Illusion Tour...
and Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
's former keyboard player Tommy Barbarella
Tommy Barbarella
Tommy Barbarella is an American keyboardist. He was a member of The New Power Generation, Prince's recording and stage band, from 1991–1996.In 2010, Barbarella became a member of Nick Jonas and the Administration along with other former members of The New Power Generation, drummer Michael Bland...
.
1980s
Hall started his career in commercials when he was seven years old. He was the Honeycomb cereal kidHoneycomb Kid
The Honeycomb Kid was the mascot of Post's Honeycomb cereal for several decades until 1995, when he was replaced by Crazy Craving. Over the years, the Kid appeared in various incarnations.- High-tech Honeycomb Kid :...
and appeared in several commercials for toys and Bounty
Bounty (chocolate bar)
Bounty is a chocolate bar manufactured by Mars Incorporated and sold internationally. It is not marketed in the United States , where a similar product, Mounds, is marketed by Hershey's...
. His stage debut was in 1977, when he was cast as the young Steve Allen
Steve Allen (comedian)
Stephen Valentine Patrick William "Steve" Allen was an American television personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, and writer. Though he got his start in radio, Allen is best known for his television career. He first gained national attention as a guest host on Arthur Godfrey's Talent...
in Allen's semi-autobiographical play The Wake. He went on to appear in the Lincoln Center Festival's production of St. Joan of the Microphone, and in a play with Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
. In 1980, he made his screen debut in the Emmy-winning TV movie The Gold Bug, in which he played the young Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
, but it was not until the release of the 1982 Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
film Six Pack
Six Pack (film)
Six Pack is a 1982 American comedy-drama film directed by Daniel Petrie and starring Kenny Rogers, Diane Lane, Erin Gray, Anthony Michael Hall, and Barry Corbin-Plot:...
that he gained real notice.
Chevy Chase
Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase is an American comedian, writer, and television and film actor, born into a prominent entertainment industry family. Chase worked a plethora of odd jobs before moving into comedy acting with National Lampoon...
and Beverly D'Angelo
Beverly D'Angelo
Beverly Heather D'Angelo is an American actress and singer.-Early life:D'Angelo was born in Columbus, Ohio, the daughter of Priscilla , a violinist, and Gene D'Angelo, a bass player and television station manager. She is of part Italian ancestry...
's son, in National Lampoon's Vacation
National Lampoon's Vacation
Vacation, sometimes referred as National Lampoon's Vacation, is a 1983 comedy film directed by Harold Ramis and starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Randy Quaid, Dana Barron and Anthony Michael Hall...
, catching the attention of the film's screenwriter John Hughes, who was about to make the jump to directing. "For [Hall] to upstage Chevy, I thought, was a remarkable accomplishment for a 13-year-old kid," said Hughes. The film was a significant box office hit in 1983, grossing over US$61 million in the United States. After Vacation, Hall moved on to other projects and declined to reprise his role in the 1985 sequel.
Hall's breakout role came in 1984, when he was cast as Farmer Ted, the scrawny, braces-wearing geek
Geek
The word geek is a slang term, with different meanings ranging from "a computer expert or enthusiast" to "a carnival performer who performs sensationally morbid or disgusting acts", with a general pejorative meaning of "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp[ecially] one who is perceived to...
, who pursued Molly Ringwald's character in John Hughes' directing debut Sixteen Candles
Sixteen Candles
Sixteen Candles is a 1984 American film starring Molly Ringwald, Michael Schoeffling and Anthony Michael Hall. It was written and directed by John Hughes.- Plot :...
. Hall tried to avoid the clichés of geekness. "I didn't play him with 100 pens sticking out of his pocket," he said. "I just went in there and played it like a real kid. The geek is just a typical freshman." Hall landed a spot on the promotional materials, along with co-star Ringwald. Reviews of the film were positive for Hall and his co-stars, and one for People Weekly even claimed that Hall's performance "[pilfered] the film" from Ringwald. Despite achieving only moderate success at the box office, the film made overnight stars of Ringwald and Hall.
The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club is a 1985 American teen drama film written and directed by John Hughes. The storyline follows five teenagers as they spend a Saturday in detention together and come to realize that they are all deeper than their respective stereotypes.-Plot:The plot follows five students at...
, co-starring Emilio Estevez
Emilio Estevez
Emilio Estevez is an American actor, film director, and writer. He started his career as an actor and is well-known for being a member of the acting Brat Pack of the 1980s, starring in The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire...
, Judd Nelson
Judd Nelson
Judd Asher Nelson is an American actor. He is best known for being a member of the "Brat Pack" in the mid-1980s; and for his roles as John Bender in The Breakfast Club, Alec Newbary in St...
, Ally Sheedy
Ally Sheedy
Alexandra Elizabeth "Ally" Sheedy is an American film and stage actress, as well as the author of two books. She is best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire.-Early life:...
, and Ringwald. Film critic Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for The New York Times. She served as the Times film critic from 1977–1999.- Biography :...
praised Hall, stating that the 16-year-old actor and Ringwald were "the movie's standout performers." Hall and fellow costar, Molly Ringwald
Molly Ringwald
Molly Kathleen Ringwald is an American actress, singer and dancer. Having appeared in the John Hughes movies Sixteen Candles , The Breakfast Club , and Pretty in Pink , Ringwald has been frequently named the greatest teen star of all time...
, dated for a short period of time after filming The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club is a 1985 American teen drama film written and directed by John Hughes. The storyline follows five teenagers as they spend a Saturday in detention together and come to realize that they are all deeper than their respective stereotypes.-Plot:The plot follows five students at...
together in 1985. Later that year, Hall portrayed Gary Wallace, another likable misfit, in Weird Science
Weird Science (film)
Weird Science is a 1985 American teen comedy film written and directed by John Hughes and starring Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, and Kelly LeBrock...
. Critic Sheila Benson from the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
said "Hall [was] the role model supreme" for the character, but she also acknowledged that "he [was] outgrowing the role" and "[didn’t] need to hold the patent on the bratty bright kid." Weird Science was a moderate success at the box office but was generally well-received for a teen comedy. Those roles established him as the 80s "nerd-of-choice", as well as a member in good standing of Hollywood's Brat Pack. Hall, who portrayed John Hughes' alter ego
Alter ego
An alter ego is a second self, which is believe to be distinct from a person's normal or original personality. The term was coined in the early nineteenth century when dissociative identity disorder was first described by psychologists...
s in Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club and Weird Science, credits the director for putting him on the map and giving him those opportunities as a child. "I had the time of my life", he said. "I'd consider [working with Hughes again] any day of the week."
Hall joined the cast of Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
(SNL) during its 1985–86 season at the age of 17. He was, and remains, the youngest cast member in the show's history. His recurring characters on the show were 'Craig Sundberg, Idiot Savant,' an intelligent, talented teenager with a vacant expression and stilted speech, and 'Fed Jones,' one half of the habitually high, hustling pitchmen known as The Jones Brothers (the other Jones Brother was played by short-lived featured player Damon Wayans
Damon Wayans
Damon Kyle Wayans is an American stand-up comedian, writer and actor, one of the Wayans brothers.-Early life:Wayans was born in New York City, New York, the son of Elvira, a homemaker and social worker, and Howell Wayans, a supermarket manager...
). Art Garfunkel
Art Garfunkel
Arthur Ira "Art" Garfunkel is an American singer-songwriter, poet, and actor, best known as being a member of the folk duo Simon & Garfunkel...
, Edd Byrnes, Robert F. Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
and Daryl Hall
Daryl Hall
Daryl Hall is an American rock, R&B and soul singer, keyboardist, guitarist, songwriter and producer, best known as the co-founder and lead vocalist of Hall & Oates . Hall scored several Billboard chart hits in the 1970s and early 1980s, and is regarded as one of the best blue eyed soul singers...
were among Hall's celebrity impersonations. Hall had admired the show and its stars as a child, but he found the SNL environment to be far more competitive than he had imagined. "My year there, I didn't have any breakout characters and I didn't really do the things I dreamed I would do," he said, "but I still learned a lot, and I value that. I'll always be proud of the fact that I was a part of its history."
To avoid being typecast, Hall turned down roles written for him by John Hughes in Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Ferris Bueller's Day Off is a 1986 American teen coming-of-age comedy film written and directed by John Hughes.The film follows high school senior Ferris Bueller , who decides to skip school and spend the day in downtown Chicago...
(Cameron Frye
Alan Ruck
Alan Ruck is an American film, stage and television actor, perhaps best known for his roles as Cameron Frye in Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Stuart Bondek on Spin City.-Early life:...
) and Pretty in Pink
Pretty in Pink
Pretty in Pink is a 1986 American teen romantic comedy-drama film about teenage love and social cliques in 1980s American high schools. It is one of a group of John Hughes films starring Molly Ringwald, and is commonly identified as a "Brat Pack" film...
(Phil "Duckie" Dale
Jon Cryer
Jonathan Niven "Jon" Cryer is an American actor, screenwriter and film producer. He is the son of actress–singer Gretchen Cryer. He made his motion picture debut in the 1984 romantic comedy No Small Affair, but gained greater fame as "Duckie" in the 1986 John Hughes-scripted film Pretty in Pink...
), both in 1986. Instead, he starred in the 1986 film Out of Bounds, Hall's first excursion into the thriller and action genre. The film grossed only US$5 million domestically, and was a critical and financial disappointment. Critic Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
described Out of Bounds as "an explosion at the cliché factory," and Caryn James from the New York Times claimed that not even "Hall, who made nerds seem lovable in John Hughes' Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club, [could] do much to reconcile" the disparate themes of the movie.
Hall was offered the starring role in the 1987 film Full Metal Jacket
Full Metal Jacket
Full Metal Jacket is a 1987 war film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. It is an adaptation of the 1979 novel The Short-Timers by Gustav Hasford and stars Matthew Modine, Vincent D'Onofrio, R. Lee Ermey, Arliss Howard and Adam Baldwin. The film follows a platoon of U.S...
in a conversation with Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
, but after an eight-month negotiation, a financial agreement could not be reached. "It was a difficult decision, because in that eight-month period, I read everything I could about the guy, and I was really fascinated by him," Hall said when asked about the film. "I wanted to be a part of that film, but it didn't work out. But all sorts of stories circulated, like I got on set and I was fired, or I was pissed at him for shooting too long. It's all not true." He was replaced with Matthew Modine
Matthew Modine
Matthew Avery Modine is an award-winning American actor. His film roles include Private Joker in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, the title character in Alan Parker's Birdy, high school wrestler Louden Swain in Vision Quest, football star turned spy Alec McCall in Funky Monkey and the...
. His next film would be 1988's Johnny Be Good
Johnny Be Good
Johnny Be Good is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Bud Smith, starring Anthony Michael Hall as the main character, Johnny Walker. The film also features Robert Downey Jr., Steve James, Jennifer Tilly and Uma Thurman in her film debut...
, in which he worked with Uma Thurman
Uma Thurman
Uma Karuna Thurman is an American actress and model. She has performed in leading roles in a variety of films, ranging from romantic comedies and dramas to science fiction and action movies. Among her best-known roles are those in the Quentin Tarantino films Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill...
and fellow Saturday Night Live cast member Robert Downey, Jr. The film was a critical failure, and some critics panned Hall's performance as a high school football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
star, claiming that he, the movies' reigning geek, was miscast for the role. A review for The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
claimed that the film was "crass, vulgar, and relentlessly brain-dead."
1990s
After a two-year hiatus due to a drinking problem, Hall returned to acting by starring opposite Johnny DeppJohnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
and Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder is an American actress. She made her film debut in the 1986 film Lucas. Ryder's first significant role came in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice as a goth teenager, which won her critical and commercial recognition...
in Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
's 1990 hit Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands is a 1990 romantic fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film shows the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter...
, this time as the film's villain. By then in his 20s, he shifted to more mature roles, trying to establish himself as an adult actor. After Scissorhands, he appeared in a series of low-budget films, including the 1992 comedy Into the Sun, where he starred as a visiting celebrity at a military air base. Film critic Janet Maslin praised his performance, writing that "Mr. Hall, whose earlier performances (in films like National Lampoon's Vacation and Sixteen Candles) have been much goofier, remains coolly funny and graduates to subtler forms of comedy with this role." The following year, he played a gay man who teaches down-and-out Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
to dupe rich people in the critically acclaimed film Six Degrees of Separation
Six Degrees of Separation (film)
Six Degrees of Separation is a 1990 play written by John Guare that premiered at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Lincoln Center on May 16, 1990, directed by Jerry Zaks and starring Stockard Channing...
. Hall claimed that it was "the hardest role [he] ever had."
In 1994, Hall starred in and directed his first feature film, a low-budget Showtime comedy named Hail Caesar
Hail Caesar (1994 film)
Hail Caesar is a 1994 American heavy metal comedy film directed by Anthony Michael Hall and starring Hall, Robert Downey, Jr., Samuel L. Jackson, Judd Nelson, and Bobbie Phillips.-Plot:...
about a would-be rock star who works in a pencil eraser factory. The film also co-starred Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
, Robert Downey, Jr., and Judd Nelson
Judd Nelson
Judd Asher Nelson is an American actor. He is best known for being a member of the "Brat Pack" in the mid-1980s; and for his roles as John Bender in The Breakfast Club, Alec Newbary in St...
. In addition, he produced
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
the soundtrack for the film with composer Herbie Tribino. The film featured songs written and performed by Hall.
Turner Network Television
Turner Network Television is an American cable television channel created by media mogul Ted Turner and currently owned by the Turner Broadcasting System division of Time Warner...
original movie Pirates of Silicon Valley
Pirates of Silicon Valley
Pirates of Silicon Valley is a 1999 made-for-television film directed by Martyn Burke and based on the book Fire in the Valley: The Making of The Personal Computer by Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine. The film documents the impact on the development of the personal computer of the rivalry between...
, co-starring Noah Wyle
Noah Wyle
Noah Strausser Speer Wyle is an American film, television and theatre actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. John Truman Carter III in the Medical drama ER. He has also played Steve Jobs in the 1999 docudrama Pirates of Silicon Valley and Flynn Carsen in The Librarian franchise...
as Apple Computer
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...
's Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs
Steven Paul Jobs was an American businessman and inventor widely recognized as a charismatic pioneer of the personal computer revolution. He was co-founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Apple Inc...
. Hall was widely praised for his portrayal of Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
billionaire Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
. "I really fought for this part because I knew it would be the role of a lifetime," Hall said. "It was a thrill and a daunting challenge to play someone of his stature and brilliance." Hall described his physical appearance as 20-year-old Gates to the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
:
"First, you have to lose the neck." The top six inches of his spine seem to disappear. "You go down, down. You lose the body; you get softer shoulders, you slump, you create a little gut." He is almost there. "Then you extend the neck and you do a little duck walk." He walks across the room. Add ill-fitting clothes, mop-top hair, a pair of oversize glasses and a cold stare, and the impersonation is complete.
2000s
After making a cameo appearance as himself in the 2000 comedy film Happy AccidentsHappy Accidents
Happy Accidents is a 2000 American film starring Marisa Tomei and Vincent D'Onofrio. The movie revolves around Ruby Weaver, a New York woman with a string of failed relationships, and Sam Deed, a man who claims to be from the year 2470...
, Hall appeared in several made-for-TV films. He starred opposite Sheryl Lee
Sheryl Lee
Sheryl Lee is an American actress. She came to international attention for her performances as Laura Palmer and Maddy Ferguson on the 1990 cult TV series Twin Peaks and in the 1992 film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me...
as a cheating husband in the 2001 USA Network
USA Network
USA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
cable movie Hitched. That same year, he played renowned music producer Robert "Mutt" Lange
Robert Lange
Robert John "Mutt" Lange is a Zambian-born British record producer and songwriter, usually known by his nickname "Mutt". Lange is one of the most successful producers in rock history. He has produced albums for artists such as AC/DC, Nickelback, Def Leppard, Outlaws, Foreigner, The Cars, Bryan...
in VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's original movie Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story and starred as legendary lefty baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
Whitey Ford
Whitey Ford
Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who spent his entire 18-year career with the New York Yankees. He was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.-Early life and career:...
in Billy Crystal
Billy Crystal
William Edward "Billy" Crystal is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian and film director. He gained prominence in the 1970s for playing Jodie Dallas on the ABC sitcom Soap and became a Hollywood film star during the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing in the critical and box office successes...
's highly acclaimed HBO film, 61*.
On the big screen, Hall took on supporting roles in the mystery-drama The Caveman's Valentine
The Caveman's Valentine
The Caveman's Valentine is a 2001 American mystery-drama film directed by Kasi Lemmons and starring Samuel L. Jackson based on George Dawes Green's novel of the same name. The film was released by Universal Focus, a subsidiary of Universal Studios and Focus Features.-Plot:A former family man and...
(2001) opposite Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor,...
, the critically panned Freddy Got Fingered
Freddy Got Fingered
Freddy Got Fingered is a 2001 American comedy film directed, co-written by and starring Tom Green. Some of the scenes feature similar antics to those seen in his own The Tom Green Show and scenes in Road Trip. It is largely built around gross-out and shock humor...
(2001) opposite Tom Green
Tom Green
Michael Thomas "Tom" Green is a Canadian actor, rapper, writer, comedian, talk show host and media personality. Best known for his shock humour brand of comedy, Green found mainstream prominence via his MTV television show The Tom Green Show...
, and the action-comedy All About the Benjamins
All about the Benjamins
All About the Benjamins is a 2002 action movie/comedy movie directed by Kevin Bray, and starring Ice Cube and Mike Epps as a bounty hunter and repeat offender who join forces to find a group of diamond thieves, the former for glory, and the latter to retrieve a winning lottery ticket.-Cast:*Ice...
(2002) opposite Ice Cube
Ice Cube
O'Shea Jackson , better known by his stage name Ice Cube, is an American rapper and actor. He began his career as a member of the hip-hop group C.I.A. and later joined the rap group N.W.A. After leaving N.W.A in December 1989, he built a successful solo career in music, and also as a writer,...
.
Hall began his first regular series role in 2002, starring as Johnny Smith in USA Network
USA Network
USA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
's supernatural drama The Dead Zone
The Dead Zone (TV series)
The Dead Zone, aka Stephen King's Dead Zone is an American-Canadian science fiction/suspense series starring Anthony Michael Hall as Johnny Smith, who discovers he has developed psychic abilities after a coma...
, a TV series adapted from Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
's best-selling novel
The Dead Zone (novel)
The Dead Zone is a horror novel by Stephen King published in 1979. It concerns Johnny Smith, who is injured in an accident and enters a coma for nearly five years. When he emerges, he can see horrifying secrets but cannot identify all the details in his "dead zone", an area of his brain that...
. He was cast in the show after executive producer Michael Piller
Michael Piller
Michael Piller was an American television scriptwriter and producer, who was most famous for his contributions to the Star Trek franchise.-Early life and career:Piller was born in Port Chester, New York...
saw his performance in Pirates of Silicon Valley. The show debuted on June 16, 2002, and drew higher ratings for a premiere than any other cable series in television history with 6.4 million viewers. The Dead Zone quickly developed a loyal audience, with the show and Hall receiving strong reviews. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
wrote that "Hall's Johnny flashes the qualities - comic timing, great facial expressions - that made him a star in the 1980s movies Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club." The Dead Zone, Hall said, "has transformed my career." The show proved to be one of USA Network's top shows and one of the highest-rated programs on basic cable.
The Dead Zone opening credits list Hall as co-producer (seasons 1-3), producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
(seasons 5) and co-executive producer (season 6). Hall also directed an episode from season three, "The Cold Hard Truth", guest starring standup comic Richard Lewis
Richard Lewis (comedian)
-Early life:Lewis was born in Brooklyn, New York City and was raised in Englewood, New Jersey. His father worked as a caterer and his mother was an actress. Lewis is Jewish. He later attended Ohio State University and was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity....
. "[The Cold Hard Truth], I feel, is my best work as a director, because I had this great crew that knows me well and has been working with me", said Hall. "I also had the best script that I've had an opportunity to direct." The show's sixth and final season premiered on June 17, 2007. USA Network officially canceled The Dead Zone in December 2007.
Hall also participated in Mind Freak's 10th episode of season 4.
In addition, Hall is developing film and television projects under his production company banner AMH Entertainment. Most recently, Hall starred in Aftermath, an independent crime-drama film, with Tony Danza
Tony Danza
Tony Danza is an American actor best known for starring on the TV series Taxi and Who's the Boss?, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award and four Golden Globe Awards...
and Chris Penn
Chris Penn
Christopher Shannon "Chris" Penn was an American film and television actor known for his roles in such films as The Wild Life, Reservoir Dogs, Footloose, Rush Hour, True Romance, All the Right Moves and Pale Rider.-Early life:Penn was born in Los Angeles, California, the youngest son of Leo Penn,...
. In 2008, Hall appeared as Gotham City
Gotham City
Gotham City is a fictional U.S. city appearing in DC Comics, best known as the home of Batman. Batman's place of residence was first identified as Gotham City in Batman #4 . Gotham City is strongly inspired by Trenton, Ontario's history, location, atmosphere, and various architectural styles...
television reporter/anchor Mike Engel in The Dark Knight
The Dark Knight (film)
The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
.
2010s
In 2010, Hall made a guest appearance on the NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
series Community
Community (TV series)
Community is an American television comedy series created by Dan Harmon that airs on NBC. The series is about a group of students at a community college in the fictional locale of Greendale, Colorado. The series heavily uses meta-humor and pop culture references, often parodying film and television...
. During 2011, he played the main antagonist of Season 3 of Warehouse 13
Warehouse 13
Warehouse 13 is an American fantasy television series that premiered on July 7, 2009 on the Syfy network.Executive-produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins, the dramatic comedy from Universal Media Studios has been described as borrowing much from 1980s television series Friday the 13th: The...
, Walter Sykes.
In the media
Hall became a regular subject of tabloid media after New York Magazine named him a member of the "Brat Pack", the group of young actors who became famous in the 1980s and frequently starred together. In the late '80s, Hall's drinking problem, which began in his early teens, made headlines. Hall eventually quit drinking and became fully sober by 1990. "The truth is, I had my partying nights, but I never really bounced at the bottom", he said. "I never went to rehab...I was able to govern myself and continue my work."In 1990, Hall's physical appearance in Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands is a 1990 romantic fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film shows the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter...
caught audiences off guard. His more muscular image provoked rumors of steroids, but Hall later said that "the weight gain was natural."
Hall's role in the 1993 film Six Degrees of Separation
Six Degrees of Separation (film)
Six Degrees of Separation is a 1990 play written by John Guare that premiered at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Lincoln Center on May 16, 1990, directed by Jerry Zaks and starring Stockard Channing...
managed to make news not because of what occurred onscreen, but rather what failed to occur. Hall played a gay love interest to Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
, who had previously agreed to a kissing scene between the two. However, on the day of the shoot, Smith backed off. Smith told the press that he called Denzel Washington
Denzel Washington
Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He first rose to prominence when he joined the cast of the medical drama, St. Elsewhere, playing Dr...
for advice, who told him that an onscreen same-sex kiss was a bad career move. When asked about the incident during an interview, Hall said, "I didn't care. I wasn't that comfortable with it, either, and ultimately, we used a camera trick."
Recognition
The 2001 film Not Another Teen MovieNot Another Teen Movie
Not Another Teen Movie is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Joel Gallen, released on December 14, 2001 by Columbia Pictures. It is a parody of teen movies which have accumulated in Hollywood over the last few decades...
pays tribute to Hall's numerous appearances in the teen-oriented, '80s comedy films parodied by the movie. A brief shot of the sign over the door of a high school cafeteria reveals that the facility is named the "Anthony Michael Dining Hall." In 2006, Hall was ranked # 4 in VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's list of the "100 Greatest Teen Stars" and # 41 in "100 Greatest Kid Stars."
In June 2005, The Breakfast Club was rewarded with the "Silver Bucket of Excellence Award" at the MTV Movie Awards
MTV Movie Awards
The MTV Movie Awards is a film awards show presented annually on MTV . It also contains movie parodies that used official movie footage with hosts and other celebrities and music performances. The nominees are decided by producers and executives at MTV. Winners are decided online by the general...
, in honor of the film's twentieth anniversary. MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
attempted to reunite the original cast; Sheedy, Ringwald, and Hall appeared together on stage, and Paul Gleason
Paul Gleason
Paul Xavier Gleason was an American film and television actor, known for his roles on TV series such as All My Children and films such as The Breakfast Club, Trading Places and Die Hard.-Early life:...
personally gave the award to his former castmates. Estevez could not attend because of family commitments, and Nelson appeared earlier on the red carpet but left before the on-stage reunion for reasons unknown. Hall joked that the two were "in Africa with Dave Chappelle
Dave Chappelle
David Khari Webber "Dave" Chappelle is an American comedian, screenwriter, television/film producer, actor, and artist. Chappelle began his film career in the film Robin Hood: Men in Tights in 1993 and continued to star in minor roles in the films The Nutty Professor, Con Air, and Blue Streak. His...
."
Films
| Year | Film | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | The Gold Bug | Young Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective... |
Made-for-TV |
| 1981 | Jennifer's Journey | Michael | |
| 1982 | Rascals and Robbers: The Secret Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn | Huckleberry "Huck" Finn | Made-for-TV |
| Six Pack Six Pack (film) Six Pack is a 1982 American comedy-drama film directed by Daniel Petrie and starring Kenny Rogers, Diane Lane, Erin Gray, Anthony Michael Hall, and Barry Corbin-Plot:... |
Doc | ||
| 1983 | National Lampoon's Vacation National Lampoon's Vacation Vacation, sometimes referred as National Lampoon's Vacation, is a 1983 comedy film directed by Harold Ramis and starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Randy Quaid, Dana Barron and Anthony Michael Hall... |
Russell 'Rusty' Griswold | |
| 1984 | Sixteen Candles Sixteen Candles Sixteen Candles is a 1984 American film starring Molly Ringwald, Michael Schoeffling and Anthony Michael Hall. It was written and directed by John Hughes.- Plot :... |
Farmer Ted (The Geek) | |
| 1985 | The Breakfast Club The Breakfast Club The Breakfast Club is a 1985 American teen drama film written and directed by John Hughes. The storyline follows five teenagers as they spend a Saturday in detention together and come to realize that they are all deeper than their respective stereotypes.-Plot:The plot follows five students at... |
Brian R. Johnson | |
| Weird Science Weird Science (film) Weird Science is a 1985 American teen comedy film written and directed by John Hughes and starring Anthony Michael Hall, Ilan Mitchell-Smith, and Kelly LeBrock... |
Gary Wallace | ||
| 1986 | Out of Bounds | Daryl Cage | |
| 1988 | Johnny Be Good Johnny Be Good Johnny Be Good is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Bud Smith, starring Anthony Michael Hall as the main character, Johnny Walker. The film also features Robert Downey Jr., Steve James, Jennifer Tilly and Uma Thurman in her film debut... |
Johnny Walker | |
| 1990 | Edward Scissorhands Edward Scissorhands Edward Scissorhands is a 1990 romantic fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film shows the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter... |
Jim | |
| A Gnome Named Gnorm | Casey Gallagher | ||
| Whatever Happened to Mason Reese | Mason Reese | Voice | |
| 1992 | Into the Sun Into the Sun (1992 film) Into the Sun is a 1992 action comedy film starring Michael Paré and Anthony Michael Hall.- Synopsis :Paul Watkins is an American pilot stationed in the middle east is taken away from his normal duties of protecting the skies, to show an actor everything he needs to know about being a pilot in the... |
Tom Slade | |
| 1993 | Six Degrees of Separation Six Degrees of Separation (film) Six Degrees of Separation is a 1990 play written by John Guare that premiered at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Lincoln Center on May 16, 1990, directed by Jerry Zaks and starring Stockard Channing... |
Trent Conway | |
| 1994 | Hail Caesar Hail Caesar (1994 film) Hail Caesar is a 1994 American heavy metal comedy film directed by Anthony Michael Hall and starring Hall, Robert Downey, Jr., Samuel L. Jackson, Judd Nelson, and Bobbie Phillips.-Plot:... |
Julius Caesar McMurty | Also director |
| Texas | Yancey Quimper | Made-for-TV | |
| Who Do I Gotta Kill? Who Do I Gotta Kill? Who Do I Gotta Kill? is a 1992 film directed by Frank Rainone. It is written by James Lorinz, Tom Klassen, and Frank Rainone.-Cast:*Sandra Bullock as Lori*Sandy Colosimo as Agency Receptionist... |
Jimmy's Friend Kevin Friedland | ||
| 1995 | A Bucket of Blood A Bucket of Blood (1995 film) A Bucket of Blood is a 1995 American black comedy film. It was directed by Michael James McDonald, and starred Anthony Michael Hall. It is a remake of A Bucket of Blood, the 1959 cult film directed by Roger Corman, who produced the remake. Both films tell the story of a nerdy busboy who turns to... |
Walter Paisley | Made-for-TV |
| Ripple | Marshall Gray | ||
| 1996 | Hijacked: Flight 285 | Peter Cronin | Made-for-TV |
| Exit in Red | Nick | ||
| The Grave | Travis | ||
| 1997 | Trojan War | Bus Driver | |
| Cold Night Into Dawn | Eddie Rodgers | ||
| 1999 | Pirates of Silicon Valley Pirates of Silicon Valley Pirates of Silicon Valley is a 1999 made-for-television film directed by Martyn Burke and based on the book Fire in the Valley: The Making of The Personal Computer by Paul Freiberger and Michael Swaine. The film documents the impact on the development of the personal computer of the rivalry between... |
Bill Gates Bill Gates William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen... |
Made-for-TV |
| A Touch of Hope | Dean Kraft | Made-for-TV | |
| 2 Little, 2 Late | Mr. Burggins | ||
| Revenge | Brian Cutler | ||
| Dirt Merchant | Jeffry Alan Spacy | ||
| 2000 | Happy Accidents Happy Accidents Happy Accidents is a 2000 American film starring Marisa Tomei and Vincent D'Onofrio. The movie revolves around Ruby Weaver, a New York woman with a string of failed relationships, and Sam Deed, a man who claims to be from the year 2470... |
Himself | Cameo |
| The Photographer The Photographer (film) The Photographer is a 2000 film directed by Jeremy Stein. It revolves around a photographer who has a single evening to find ten magical photographs, or else he stands to lose everything that is important to him.-Plot:... |
Greg | ||
| 2001 | Hitched | Ted Robbins | Made-for-TV |
| The Caveman's Valentine The Caveman's Valentine The Caveman's Valentine is a 2001 American mystery-drama film directed by Kasi Lemmons and starring Samuel L. Jackson based on George Dawes Green's novel of the same name. The film was released by Universal Focus, a subsidiary of Universal Studios and Focus Features.-Plot:A former family man and... |
Bob | ||
| Freddy Got Fingered Freddy Got Fingered Freddy Got Fingered is a 2001 American comedy film directed, co-written by and starring Tom Green. Some of the scenes feature similar antics to those seen in his own The Tom Green Show and scenes in Road Trip. It is largely built around gross-out and shock humor... |
Mr. Dave Davidson | ||
| Hysteria - The Def Leppard Story Hysteria - The Def Leppard Story Hysteria – The Def Leppard Story is a 2001 made-for-television movie about the English hard rock/ heavy metal band Def Leppard. The film premiered on July 18, 2001 and is available on DVD in the US.-Plot:... |
Robert "Mutt" Lange Robert Lange Robert John "Mutt" Lange is a Zambian-born British record producer and songwriter, usually known by his nickname "Mutt". Lange is one of the most successful producers in rock history. He has produced albums for artists such as AC/DC, Nickelback, Def Leppard, Outlaws, Foreigner, The Cars, Bryan... |
||
| 61* | Whitey Ford Whitey Ford Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who spent his entire 18-year career with the New York Yankees. He was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.-Early life and career:... |
Made-for-TV | |
| 2002 | All About the Benjamins All about the Benjamins All About the Benjamins is a 2002 action movie/comedy movie directed by Kevin Bray, and starring Ice Cube and Mike Epps as a bounty hunter and repeat offender who join forces to find a group of diamond thieves, the former for glory, and the latter to retrieve a winning lottery ticket.-Cast:*Ice... |
Lil J | |
| 2005 | Funny Valentine | Josh | Also co-producer |
| 2007 | LA Blues | Larry | |
| Final Approach Final Approach (2007 film) Final Approach is an action/thriller TV movie that premiered on Hallmark Channel on May 24, 2008. The ensemble cast is led by Dean Cain as disgraced FBI hostage negotiator Jack Bender.-Plot summary:... |
Greg Gilliad | Made-for-TV | |
| 2008 | The Dark Knight The Dark Knight (film) The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins... |
Mike Engel | |
| 2009 | Aftermath | Tom Fiorini | Also producer |
Television
| Year | Show | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985–1986 | Saturday Night Live Saturday Night Live Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture... |
Various | Cast member |
| 1993 | Tales from the Crypt Tales from the Crypt (TV series) Tales from the Crypt, sometimes titled HBO's Tales from the Crypt, is an American horror anthology television series that ran from 1989 to 1996 on the premium cable channel HBO... |
Reggie Skulnick | Ep. # 5.9 |
| 1995 | NYPD Blue NYPD Blue NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan... |
Hanson Riker | Ep. # 2.13 |
| Deadly Games Deadly Games Deadly Games was an American sci fi show that appeared on UPN as part of its 1995 season. The basic plot of the show is about video game characters that come to life, re-enacting their deadly plans in the real world.-Story:... |
Chuck Manley | Ep. # 1.6 | |
| 1996 | Murder, She Wrote Murder, She Wrote Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,... |
Les Franklin | Ep. # 12.22 |
| Touched by an Angel Touched by an Angel Touched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della... |
Thomas Prescott | Ep. # 2.22 | |
| 1997 | The Jamie Foxx Show The Jamie Foxx Show The Jamie Foxx Show is an American television sitcom that aired on the WB Network from August 28, 1996 to January 14, 2001. The series starred Jamie Foxx, Garcelle Beauvais, Christopher B. Duncan, Ellia English, and Garrett Morris.-Synopsis:... |
Tim | Ep. # 2.6 |
| Diagnosis: Murder Diagnosis: Murder Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman... |
Dr. Johnson | Ep. # 5.6 | |
| 1998 | Poltergeist: The Legacy Poltergeist: The Legacy Poltergeist: The Legacy is a Canadian horror television series which ran from 1996 to 1999. The series tells the story of the members of a secret society known as the Legacy, and their efforts to protect humankind from occult dangers... |
John Griffin | Ep. # 3.8 |
| 1999 | Touched by an Angel Touched by an Angel Touched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della... |
Thomas Prescott | Ep. # 5.22 |
| The Crow: Stairway to Heaven The Crow: Stairway to Heaven The Crow: Stairway to Heaven was a 1998 Canadian television series created by Bryce Zabel based on The Crow comic by James O'Barr starring Mark Dacascos in the lead role as Eric Draven, reprising the role originally played by Brandon Lee in the 1994 film The Crow... |
Officer Reid Truax | Ep. # 1.21 | |
| 2007 | Entourage Entourage (TV series) Entourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons... |
Himself | Ep. # 4.02 |
| 2002–2007 | The Dead Zone The Dead Zone (TV series) The Dead Zone, aka Stephen King's Dead Zone is an American-Canadian science fiction/suspense series starring Anthony Michael Hall as Johnny Smith, who discovers he has developed psychic abilities after a coma... |
Johnny Smith | Starring role, also producer Television producer The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking... |
| 2009-2011 | Community Community (TV series) Community is an American television comedy series created by Dan Harmon that airs on NBC. The series is about a group of students at a community college in the fictional locale of Greendale, Colorado. The series heavily uses meta-humor and pop culture references, often parodying film and television... |
Mike | Ep. # 1.12, 2.23 |
| 2010 | CSI: Miami CSI: Miami CSI: Miami is an American police procedural television series, which premiered on September 23, 2002 on CBS. The series is a spin-off of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.... |
Dr. James Bradstone | Ep. # 8.14 |
| 2011 | No Ordinary Family No Ordinary Family No Ordinary Family is an American television series on ABC. The 45-minute science fiction comedy-drama was produced by ABC Studios for the 2010–11 television season. The series ran from September 28, 2010 to April 5, 2011, on Tuesdays at 8 pm ET/PT... |
Roy Minor | Ep. #16 |
| 2011 | Warehouse 13 Warehouse 13 Warehouse 13 is an American fantasy television series that premiered on July 7, 2009 on the Syfy network.Executive-produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins, the dramatic comedy from Universal Media Studios has been described as borrowing much from 1980s television series Friday the 13th: The... |
Walter Sykes | Ep. # 3.01, 3.06, 3.08, 3.09, 3.11, 3.12 |