James Oliver Cromwell is an American film and television actor, probably best known for his role as Dr. Zefram Cochrane in Star Trek: First Contact. He has been nominated for an Oscar, three Emmy Awards, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards during his career. Cromwell was born in Los Angeles, California and was raised in Manhattan, New York. He was adopted by actress Kay Johnson and actor, director and producer John Cromwell, who was blacklisted during the McCarthy era. He was educated at The Hill School, Middlebury College and Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University), where he studied engineering. Like both his parents, he was drawn to the theater, doing everything from Shakespeare to experimental plays. He has long been an advocate of leftist causes. In an October 2008 interview, he strongly attacked the Republican Party and the George W. Bush administration, saying their controversial foreign policy would "either destroy us or the entire planet." He became a vegetarian in 1974 after seeing a stockyard in Texas and experiencing the "smell, terror and anxiety." He became an ethical vegan while playing the character of Farmer Hoggett in the movie Babe in 1995. He frequently speaks out on issues regarding animal cruelty for PETA, largely the treatment of pigs. Cromwell was married to Anne Ulvestad from 1976 to 1986. They had three children. He married his second wife, Julie Cobb, on 29 May 1986.
Movie | Rebel Ridge | 2025 | |
Series | The Last Days of Lehman Brothers | 2025 | |
Movie | Night Vet | Dr. Abel Evergood | 2025 |
Series | Sugar | Jonathan Siegel | 2024-04-04 |
Movie | Merry Little Batman | Alfred Pennyworth (voice) | 2023-12-08 |
Movie | Prancer: A Christmas Tale | Bud | 2022-11-22 |
Series | Operation Buffalo | Cranky | 2020-05-31 |
Movie | Emperor | John Brown | 2020-08-18 |
Movie | Never Too Late | Jack Bronson | 2020-04-23 |
Movie | That Guy... Who Was In That Thing 3: Trek Stars | Self | 2019-08-08 |
Movie | Countdown to Year Zero | 2019-07-11 | |
Movie | The Immortal | Grandfather | 2019-11-30 |
Series | The Family | Douglas Coe | 2019-08-09 |
Movie | The Laundromat | Joseph David Martin | 2019-09-27 |
Movie | Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom | Sir Benjamin Lockwood | 2018-06-06 |
Series | Counterpart | Yanek | 2017-12-10 |
Movie | Marshall | The Judge | 2017-10-13 |
Movie | The Promise | Henry Morgenthau Sr. | 2016-12-02 |
Series | The Young Pope | Cardinal Michael Spencer | 2016-10-21 |
Movie | 50 Years of Star Trek | Self | 2016-08-14 |
Series | The Detour | J.R. | 2016-04-11 |
Movie | The Perfect Crime: Leopold & Loeb | Narrator | 2016-02-09 |
Movie | Big Hero 6 | Professor Robert Callaghan (voice) | 2014-10-24 |
Movie | The Trials of Cate McCall | Justice Sumpter | 2013-11-28 |
Movie | Cowgirls n' Angels | Terence Parker | 2012-05-25 |
Movie | Soldiers of Fortune | Haussman | 2012-06-07 |
Movie | La Classe américaine | Self | 2012-10-05 |
Movie | Still Mine | Craig Morrison | 2012-09-10 |
Movie | Hide Away | The Ancient Mariner | 2011-10-30 |
Movie | The Artist | Clifton | 2011-10-12 |
Series | American Horror Story | Dr. Arthur Arden | 2011-10-05 |
Movie | Memorial Day | Bud Vogel | 2011-06-06 |
Movie | Farm to Fridge | Narrator | 2011-02-01 |
Movie | Pope Pius XII | Pope Pius XII | 2010-10-31 |
Movie | Secretariat | Ogden Phipps | 2010-08-20 |
Movie | Surrogates | Dr. Lionel Canter | 2009-09-24 |
Movie | The Last Days of Lehman Brothers | Hank Paulson | 2009-09-09 |
Movie | Starz Inside - Unforgettably Evil | Self | 2009-07-26 |
Series | Impact | Lloyd | 2009-02-14 |
Movie | A Lonely Place for Dying | Howard Simons | 2009-01-01 |
Movie | Tortured | Jack | 2008-09-10 |
Movie | Whatever You Desire: Making 'L.A. Confidential' | Self | 2008-09-23 |
Movie | W. | George H.W. Bush | 2008-10-17 |
Movie | Spider-Man 3 | Captain Stacey | 2007-05-01 |
Movie | Becoming Jane | Mr. Austen | 2007-03-02 |
Series | Masters of Science Fiction | Unknown | 2007-08-04 |
Movie | Dante's Inferno | Virgil (voice) | 2007-01-18 |
Movie | Avenger | Paul Devereaux | 2006-04-09 |
Movie | The Queen | Philip of Edinburgh | 2006-09-15 |
Series | Pope John Paul II | Cardinal Adam Sapieha | 2005-12-04 |
Movie | Shadows in the Dark: The Val Lewton Legacy | Narrator | 2005-10-04 |
Movie | The Longest Yard | Warden Hazen | 2005-05-27 |
Movie | I, Robot | Dr. Alfred Lanning | 2004-07-15 |
Series | Salem's Lot | Donald Callahan | 2004-06-20 |
Series | Angels in America | Henry | 2003-12-07 |
Movie | A Carol Christmas | Ghost of Christmas Future (uncredited) | 2003-12-07 |
Movie | The Snow Walker | Walter "Shep" Shepherd | 2003-09-11 |
Movie | Blackball | Ray Speight | 2003-05-18 |
Movie | The John Garfield Story | Self | 2003-02-03 |
Movie | The Magnificent Ambersons | Major Amberson | 2002-01-12 |
Movie | The Sum of All Fears | President Fowler | 2002-05-31 |
Movie | A Death in the Family | Joel Lynch | 2002-03-25 |
Movie | Project Viper | MP 1 | 2002-05-15 |
Movie | Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron | The Colonel (voice) | 2002-05-24 |
Movie | RFK | President Lyndon Baines Johnson | 2002-08-25 |
Series | 24 | Phillip Bauer | 2001-11-06 |
Movie | Raptor | Benny | 2001-11-06 |
Series | Citizen Baines | 2001-09-29 | |
Series | Six Feet Under | George Sibley | 2001-06-03 |
Movie | Space Cowboys | Bob Gerson | 2000-08-04 |
Movie | Walking the Mile: The Making of The Green Mile | Self / Warden Hal Moores | 2000-06-13 |
Movie | Fail Safe | Gordon Knapp | 2000-04-09 |
Movie | RKO 281 | William Randolph Hearst | 2000-04-07 |
Series | The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn | Unknown | 1999-03-30 |
Movie | The General's Daughter | General Joseph Campbell | 1999-06-18 |
Movie | A Slight Case of Murder | John Edgarson | 1999-09-19 |
Movie | The Green Mile | Warden Hal Moores | 1999-12-10 |
Movie | Snow Falling on Cedars | Judge Fielding | 1999-12-22 |
Movie | The Bachelor | Priest | 1999-11-05 |
Movie | Owd Bob | Adam MacAdam | 1998-01-01 |
Movie | Species II | Senator Ross | 1998-04-10 |
Movie | Deep Impact | Alan Rittenhouse | 1998-05-08 |
Movie | Babe: Pig in the City | Farmer Arthur Hoggett | 1998-11-25 |
Movie | The Education of Little Tree | Nonno | 1997-12-25 |
Movie | L.A. Confidential | Dudley Smith | 1997-09-19 |
Movie | Eraser | William Donohue | 1996-06-21 |
Movie | The People vs. Larry Flynt | Charles Keating | 1996-12-25 |
Movie | Star Trek: First Contact | Dr. Zefram Cochrane | 1996-11-22 |
Movie | Indictment: The McMartin Trial | Judge Pounders | 1995-05-20 |
Movie | Babe | Farmer Hoggett | 1995-07-18 |
Movie | The Shaggy Dog | Charlie Mulvihill | 1994-11-12 |
Movie | Revenge of the Nerds IV: Nerds In Love | Mr. Skolnick | 1994-05-09 |
Movie | Romeo Is Bleeding | Cage | 1993-09-13 |
Movie | Revenge of the Nerds III: The Next Generation | Mr. Skolnick | 1992-07-13 |
Movie | The Babe | Brother Mathias | 1992-04-17 |
Movie | Miracle Landing | B.J Cocker | 1990-02-11 |
Movie | The Runnin' Kind | Uncle Phil | 1989-09-08 |
Movie | Pink Cadillac | 1989-05-26 | |
Movie | The Rescue | Adm. Rothman | 1988-08-05 |
Movie | Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise | Mr. Skolnick | 1987-07-10 |
Series | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Unknown | 1987-09-28 |
Series | Jake and the Fatman | Unknown | 1987-09-26 |
Movie | A Fine Mess | Detective Blist | 1986-08-08 |
Series | Matlock | Unknown | 1986-03-03 |
Series | Easy Street | 1986-09-13 | |
Series | The Twilight Zone | Unknown | 1985-09-27 |
Movie | Explorers | Mr. Müller | 1985-07-12 |
Movie | Oh, God! You Devil | Priest | 1984-11-07 |
Series | Hunter | Unknown | 1984-09-18 |
Movie | Revenge of the Nerds | Mr. Skolnick | 1984-07-20 |
Movie | Tank | Deputy Euclid | 1984-03-16 |
Series | Night Court | Unknown | 1984-01-04 |
Movie | The House of God | Officer Quick | 1984-01-01 |
Series | Scarecrow and Mrs. King | Unknown | 1983-10-03 |
Movie | The Man with Two Brains | Realtor | 1983-06-10 |
Series | Family Ties | Unknown | 1982-09-22 |
Movie | Barefoot In the Park | Harry Pepper | 1982-03-20 |
Series | Knight Rider | Unknown | 1982-09-26 |
Movie | The Rainmaker | Noah Curry | 1982-10-23 |
Movie | The Wall | Francisek | 1982-02-16 |
Series | Foul Play | Unknown | 1981-01-26 |
Series | Hill Street Blues | Unknown | 1981-01-15 |
Movie | Nobody's Perfekt | Dr. Carson | 1981-08-07 |
Movie | A Christmas Without Snow | Reverend Lohman | 1980-12-09 |
Series | Flo | Unknown | 1980-03-21 |
Series | Diff'rent Strokes | Unknown | 1978-11-03 |
Movie | The Cheap Detective | Schnell | 1978-06-23 |
Movie | Peeping Times | Bernard Mantee | 1978-01-25 |
Movie | Deadly Game | Deputy Malcom Rossiter Jr. | 1977-12-01 |
Movie | The Girl in the Empty Grave | Deputy Malcolm Rossiter Jr. | 1977-09-20 |
Series | Three's Company | Unknown | 1977-03-15 |
Series | Eight Is Enough | Unknown | 1977-03-15 |
Movie | Murder by Death | Marcel Cassette | 1976-06-23 |
Series | The Nancy Walker Show | Glen | 1976-09-30 |
Series | Alice | Unknown | 1976-08-31 |
Series | Once an Eagle | J.L. Cleghorne | 1976-12-02 |
Series | Barbary Coast | Unknown | 1975-09-08 |
Series | Hot l Baltimore | 1975-01-24 | |
Series | Barney Miller | Unknown | 1975-01-23 |
Series | Little House on the Prairie | Unknown | 1974-09-11 |
Series | Police Story | Unknown | 1973-03-20 |
Series | M*A*S*H | Unknown | 1972-09-17 |
Series | All in the Family | Unknown | 1971-01-12 |
Series | The Fugitive | Unknown | 1963-09-17 |
Movie | Daddy Long Legs | Extra (uncredited) | 1955-05-05 |