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Robert Duvall

Robert Duvall is one of the industry's most esteemed and prolific actors, with a career spanning over 45 years and encompassing more than 125 film and television projects.

A six-time Academy Award nominee, Duvall earned his first Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Tom Hagen, the Corleone family consigliere in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather, for which he also won the New York Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor. His next Oscar nomination came for his work in another Coppola film, the 1979 Vietnam War epic Apocalypse Now, in which Duvall uttered the infamous line, I love the smell of napalm in the morning. For that performance, Duvall also won Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards for Best Supporting Actor. He received his third Oscar nomination, his first for Best Actor, for his performance in the title role of The Great Santini.

In 1984, Duvall won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of a down-and-out country singer in Tender Mercies, for which he also won a Golden Globe, as well as the New York and Los Angeles Film Critics Awards. He received his fifth Oscar nomination for his performance in the title role of The Apostle, which Duvall also wrote and directed, as well as executive produced under the banner of his own production company, Butcher's Run Films. Duvall's performance in that film also brought him a Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award nomination, as well as several critics groups' awards, including the Los Angeles Film Critics and National Society of Film Critics Awards for Best Actor. For The Apostle, he also won two Independent Spirit Awards for Best Actor and Best Director, and earned another Spirit Award nomination for Best Screenplay.

Duvall garnered his most recent Oscar nomination for his work in the 1998 courtroom drama A Civil Action, for which he also won a SAG Award and received another Golden Globe Award nomination. Duvall has also been recognized with an Independent Spirit Award nomination for his role in Rambling Rose, and a BAFTA Award nomination for his performance in Network. Additionally, he shared in a SAG Award nomination as part of the ensemble cast of Billy Bob Thornton's Sling Blade.

Duvall has also been repeatedly honored for his work on the small screen. He earned an Emmy nomination and won a Golden Globe Award for his role in the 1989 miniseries Lonesome Dove. Three years later, he again gained an Emmy nomination and won a Golden Globe Award for his performance in the title role of the telefilm Stalin. He received his third Emmy nomination as well as a SAG Award nomination for his chilling portrayal of Adolf Eichmann in the telefilm The Man Who Captured Eichmann. He most recently starred in the AMC's top-rated miniseries Broken Trail, directed by Walter Hill, which Duvall also executive produced. Duvall garnered Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations for Broken Trail, which also received two additional Golden Globe nominations, including one for Best Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television, two more SAG Award nominations, a Writers Guild of America Award nomination, and a Directors Guild of America Award.

Duvall made his feature film debut in the role of Boo Radley in the 1962 classic To Kill a Mockingbird. Among his other early film credits are Bullitt, with Steve McQueen; the John Wayne starrer True Grit; Robert Altman's seminal comedy M*A*S*H, in which he originated the role of Major Frank Burns; and George Lucas' directorial debut feature, THX 1138. Duvall's long list of film credits also includes The Godfather: Part II, The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, The Eagle Has Landed, True Confessions, Colors, Days of Thunder, Falling Down, Wrestling Ernest Hemingway, Something to Talk About, Phenomenon, Deep Impact, Gone in 60 Seconds, John Q, Gods and Generals, Open Range, Secondhand Lions, Kicking & Screaming and Thank You for Smoking.

In addition, Duvall produced and starred in A Family Thing, and wrote, directed, produced and starred in Assassination Tango. Both films were produced by Butcher's Run Films. He had previously directed the documentaries We're Not the Jet Set and Angelo My Love.

Duvall also has several films in the offing, including the crime drama We Own the Night, with Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg and Eva Mendes.


Note: This profile was written in or before 2007.
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Robert Duvall Facts

OccupationActor
BirthdayJanuary 5, 1931 (93)
SignCapricorn
BirthplaceSan Diego, California, USA
Height5' 10" (1m78)  How tall is Robert Duvall compared to you?
Awards2007 Emmy Awards: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie (for Broken Trail)
1999 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role (for A Civil Action)
1993 Golden Globe Awards: Best Actor in a Mini-Series or a TV Film (for Stalin)
1990 Golden Globe Awards: Best Actor in a Mini-Series or a TV Film (for Lonesome Dove)
1984 Academy Awards: Best Actor (for Tender Mercies)
1984 Golden Globe Awards: Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama (for Tender Mercies)
1980 Golden Globe Awards: Best Actor in a Supporting Role - Motion Picture (for Apocalypse Now)

Selected Filmography

Apocalypse Now
Apocalypse Now Redux
We Own The Night
The Godfather
The Handmaid's Tale
Gone in Sixty Seconds
Jack Reacher
Secondhand Lions
The Conversation
The Godfather Collection
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