1988–1995: Career beginnings Reilly made his film debut in the
Brian De Palma war film
Casualties of War as PFC Herbert Hatcher in 1989. Although his role was written as a small one, De Palma liked Reilly's performance so much that the role was significantly expanded. He played Buck,
Tom Cruise's character's
NASCAR crew member in
Tony Scott's
Days of Thunder in June 1990. That September, he played an Irish hoodlum named Stevie McGuire in the crime film
State of Grace, which starred
Sean Penn; Reilly had previously appeared as a monk in the comedy ''
We're No Angels'' (1989), which also starred Penn. In 1992's
Hoffa, Reilly played
Jimmy Hoffa's (
Jack Nicholson) associate who testifies against him at Hoffa's trial. Reilly appeared in a supporting role in ''
What's Eating Gilbert Grape'' (1993), playing one of the title character's friends. His next role was in
The River Wild (1994), in which Reilly appeared alongside
Kevin Bacon as a pair of criminals who terrorize a family during a rafting trip. In 1995, Reilly appeared in the psychological thriller
Dolores Claiborne as a police
constable and in the drama
Georgia as a drug-addicted drummer in the band
Jennifer Jason Leigh's character joins.
1996–2003: Critical acclaim In
Paul Thomas Anderson's directorial debut film
Hard Eight (1996), Reilly played a near homeless man in
Reno, Nevada, who is taken under the wing of a senior gambler (
Philip Baker Hall). Reilly collaborated with Anderson on other films, playing a
pornographic actor in
Boogie Nights (1997);
Terrence Malick's ensemble war film,
The Thin Red Line (1998) featured Reilly in a supporting role that was written as a larger one, but much of his scenes were deleted along with those of many other cast members. In 1999, Reilly starred in the independent film
The Settlement alongside
William Fichtner, which
Variety writer Robert Koehler dismissed as a "write-off" despite praising his performance. That same year, Reilly played one of the newspaper managing editors in the romantic comedy film
Never Been Kissed. In
Sam Raimi's sports drama
For Love of the Game, released the same year, Reilly played fictional baseball
catcher Gus Sinski. The box office hit
The Perfect Storm was his only release of 2000 and featured Reilly as a veteran crew member on the
Andrea Gail fishing vessel which was caught in the
1991 Perfect Storm. In the Jennifer Jason Leigh and
Alan Cumming directed comedy
The Anniversary Party (2001), he played director Mac Forsyth. In 2002, Reilly played a stoner husband in a lackluster marriage to
Jennifer Aniston's character, who cheats on him with a younger man played by
Jake Gyllenhaal, in
Miguel Arteta's comedy-drama
The Good Girl. Later that year, Reilly appeared in three of the year's
Academy Award for Best Picture nominees –
Chicago,
Gangs of New York and
The Hours. In
Chicago, he played Amos Hart, Roxanne's (
Renée Zellweger) trusting husband and was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, as well as the
Golden Globe for
Best Supporting Actor. Zellweger remarked that "John is so often the best thing about the movies he's in" and critic
Roger Ebert praised the "pathetic sincere naivete" that Reilly brought to the role.
Martin Scorsese's
Gangs of New York featured Reilly as corrupt 19th-century
constable "Happy Jack" Mulraney, while
Stephen Daldry's drama
The Hours saw him play the husband to
Julianne Moore's character.
2004–2011: Transition to comedy Reilly has said that as a child, he was influenced by the pathos of the great clown
Emmett Kelly. In a 2025 interview on
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, he called Kelly a "genius" and said he pays homage to him with a painting of the hobo clown in his office. Reilly appeared in
Martin Scorsese's 2004
Howard Hughes biopic,
The Aviator, as
Noah Dietrich, Howard Hughes's (
Leonardo DiCaprio) trusted business partner. Of the role Reilly said, "Noah was almost a father figure to Hughes ... Howard would have a scheme, and it was Noah who had to say, 'We don't have the money.' He was one of his few friends." He played the lead role in the crime film
Criminal (2004), with
Diego Luna and
Maggie Gyllenhaal. Based on the Argentine film
Nine Queens (2000), Stephen Holden of
The New York Times felt that "John C. Reilly may be one of our finer character actors, but his portrayal of Richard Gaddis, a gimlet-eyed con man, in
Criminal allows too many vestiges of the duped schlub of a husband he played in
Chicago to leak into his performance." Reilly reportedly quit the 2005
Lars von Trier film
Manderlay to protest the on-set killing of a donkey. He played the lead in one of
Miranda July's short films,
Are You the Favorite Person of Anybody? (2005). He was in the
Jennifer Connelly-led horror film
Dark Water (2005) as the manager of a mysterious hotel. Reilly co-starred in
Adam McKay's comedy about NASCAR drivers entitled
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby in August 2006 as Cal Naughton Jr., the best friend and teammate of the title character, played by
Will Ferrell. He appeared in
Robert Altman's last film
A Prairie Home Companion that same year, in addition to making an uncredited cameo appearance in
Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny as a
Sasquatch. premiere of
Ponyo Reilly frequently appeared on the sketch comedy program
Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! from 2007 to 2010 as inept doctor and television presenter
Dr. Steve Brule. The role led to the
spin-off series
Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule, which aired from 2010 to 2016 and was written and produced by Reilly. In 2007, Reilly starred as the title character in parody bio-pic
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, singing various songs, parodying
Johnny Cash,
Ray Charles and others. He received two
Golden Globe nominations,
Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and
Best Original Song for the film's title song "Walk Hard". The next year, Reilly reunited with Ferrell to star in
Step Brothers, playing middle-aged
step brothers forced to live together. Also that year, he was among the many notable actors to perform in the online political musical,
Proposition 8 – The Musical, voiced himself in
The Simpsons episode "
Any Given Sundance", and co-starred alongside
Seann William Scott in
The Promotion. In 2009, he played vampire
Larten Crepsley in the film ''
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant and voiced "5" in 9. Reilly starred in the 2010 film Cyrus'' as a divorcé beginning a new relationship. Reilly received a
Satellite Award nomination for
Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and an
Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead nomination for his critically acclaimed performance. In early 2011, Reilly collaborated with director Miguel Arteta for a second time with the comedy
Cedar Rapids, starring
Ed Helms.
New York Daily News critic Elizabeth Weizxman considered Reilly a stand out in the film and he received an
Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male nomination. Reilly co-starred alongside
Ezra Miller and Oscar-winner
Tilda Swinton in the British-American drama
We Need to Talk About Kevin, based on the
novel by
Lionel Shriver. His character in the film was Franklin, the father of the troubled Kevin; his performance was described as being "heartbreakingly sweet" by
Slate critic
Dana Stevens. Next, he co-starred in the comedy-drama
Terri alongside
Jacob Wysocki, playing a school principal who takes an interest in a teenage misfit. His last release of 2011 was
Roman Polanski's black comedy-drama
Carnage, which takes place mostly in a single apartment. It also starred Oscar-winners
Jodie Foster as his wife, and
Kate Winslet and
Christoph Waltz as another married couple who engage in a conflict after their children get into a fight. Reilly was approached to appear in a production of the play it was based on,
God of Carnage, but he couldn't fit it into his schedule and remarked "I think I've spent enough time in that apartment".
2012–present: Blockbuster films Reilly voiced the title character in the 2012 animated film
Wreck-It Ralph, which follows an
arcade game villain who is determined to prove himself as the hero. Reilly made contributions to the film's script. The film was positively received, with
Los Angeles Times writer Betsy Sharkey saying, "The movie's subversive sensibility and old-school/new-school feel are a total kick."
Wreck-It Ralph not only grossed over $471 million but also a sequel titled
Ralph Breaks the Internet was released in November 2018. Also that year, Reilly appeared in ''
Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie as the dim-witted Taquito and made an uncredited cameo appearance in the comedy The Dictator, starring Sacha Baron Cohen. He had a cameo in the 2013 comedy sequel Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues'', playing the ghost of
Confederate General Stonewall Jackson in the film's fight scene. In 2014, Reilly narrated the
nature documentary Bears. He played
Nova Corps corpsman
Rhomann Dey in the
Marvel Studios film
Guardians of the Galaxy, released in August 2014. Reilly began co-starring in the animated television series
Stone Quackers on
FXX in January 2015. In addition to voicing the inept police officer Barry, Reilly also executive produced the series. 2015 saw him appear in five films: the drama
Entertainment;
Yorgos Lanthimos' comedy-drama
The Lobster as Robert, a man with a
lisp who is given 45 days to find a romantic partner or otherwise be turned into an animal; the fantasy horror
Tale of Tales, in which he played a king who tries to conceive a child with his queen–played by
Salma Hayek–through an unconventional method, and the English
dub of the
Studio Ghibli animated film
When Marnie Was There. Reilly also starred in and co-wrote the television special
Bagboy, reprising his role as Dr. Steve Brule in a fictional television pilot for a sitcom created by Brule. It aired on February 21, 2015, with
Vanity Fair writer Melissa Locker saying "If you get it, the show is knockout hilarious, but truthfully, it is not for everyone and Reilly is O.K. with that." Reilly voiced a sheep in the ensemble cast of the animated musical comedy
Sing, which was released in December 2016. Reilly appeared in the 2017 monster film reboot
Kong: Skull Island, as Hank Marlow, a World War II lieutenant who has spent 28 years stranded on the titular island. The actor, who described his character as "essentially a love-letter to Chicago", was singled out for praise for his performance out of what is generally considered to be an underwhelming ensemble cast. Film critic
Matt Zoller Seitz noted that Reilly "steals the film instantly and never gives it back" in playing the "wisecracking castaway", and
Owen Gleiberman praised his performance for being "terrifically dry and sly" in what could have been a cliché character. Reilly co-starred with
Steve Coogan in the 2018 biopic
Stan & Ollie about the comic
double act Laurel and Hardy, with Reilly portraying
Oliver Hardy and Coogan
Stan Laurel. Also that year, he played hitman Eli Sisters in
The Sisters Brothers, based on the
Patrick deWitt Western novel, with
Joaquin Phoenix co-starring as his brother Charlie,
Jacques Audiard directing, and Reilly as a producer. Reilly himself optioned the rights in 2011, and production took place in the summer of 2017. In 2018, Reilly played
Dr. Watson in a comedic adaptation of the
Sherlock Holmes stories,
Holmes & Watson; Will Ferrell played Holmes. In the same year, Reilly reprised his role as Wreck-It Ralph in
Ralph Breaks the Internet, and again in 2023 for Disney's centenary short film
Once Upon a Studio. He made an uncredited cameo appearance as
Munsters star
Fred Gwynne in
Paul Thomas Anderson's
Licorice Pizza (2021).
Music In 1998, Reilly appeared, along with
Giovanni Ribisi and
Winona Ryder, as
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion in their video "Talk About The Blues". In 2002, he played the role of Amos Hart,
Roxie Hart's naïve husband, in the musical film
Chicago. In 2006, he performed two songs on ''
Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs, and Chanteys: "Fathom the Bowl" and "My Son John". In 2007, Reilly starred in the biopic parody Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story''. In addition to his acting role, he also performed as a vocalist and songwriter on the movie's
soundtrack, for which he was nominated for a
Grammy. Reilly went on a concert performance tour in the US, performing as his character Dewey Cox in the Cox Across America 2007 Tour. In 2011, he recorded songs produced by
Jack White and released as two singles by White's
Third Man Records. The first single features two
The Delmore Brothers songs: "Gonna Lay Down My Old Guitar" and "Lonesome Yodel Blues #2", both performed with
Tom Brosseau. The second single features
Ray Price's "I'll Be There If You Ever Want" as well as the country classic "I'm Making Plans", performed with
Becky Stark. He also appeared as "future
Mike D" in the
Beastie Boys' video "
Make Some Noise". In 2012, his current band, John Reilly & Friends, was slated to perform in the
Railroad Revival Tour, alongside
Willie Nelson & Family,
Band of Horses and
Jamey Johnson. However, the event was cancelled. On April 21, 2011, Reilly appeared at a New LA Folk Festival event to benefit the
Japanese Red Cross Society, in response to the devastating
earthquake. The event featured material from the
Louvin Brothers and included performances by
Sean Watkins, and
Wimberley Bluegrass Band. In 2014, Reilly appeared on the music video for
Mr. Oizo's song "HAM" in which he played Father. Directed by
Eric Wareheim, "HAM" is an excerpt from the television comedy
Rubberhead, which displays sketches from various comedians. In February 2015, John Reilly & Friends performed on
NPR Music's Tiny Desk Concert series. In 2017, Reilly appeared in Lil Dicky's music video for "Pillow Talking". Additionally in 2017, Reilly appeared on
A$AP Mob's album
Cozy Tapes Vol. 2: Too Cozy as Principal Daryl Choad. In 2022, he sang the
Percy French-composed song "Eileen Óg" with singer and button accordion player Séamus Begley on the Irish traditional band
Téada's album "Coiscéim Coiligh /As the Days Brighten." On June 13, 2025, Reilly released his debut album ''What's Not To Love?'' under the pseudonym Mister Romantic. On June 17, he appeared as the titular character in the music video for "Archbishop Harold Homes" by Jack White.
Theatre Reilly is known as a versatile stage actor. He has participated in numerous
Broadway productions and was nominated for a
Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for the 2000 Broadway production of
Sam Shepard's
True West. He and co-star
Philip Seymour Hoffman (after starring in
Hard Eight and
Boogie Nights) were both nominated, alternating between the two lead characters during separate performances. From October to November 2002, Reilly starred as the title character in the musical
Marty, a musical adaptation of the
Paddy Chayefsky-penned film
Marty (1955). In 2005, he appeared as
Stanley Kowalski in
Edward Hall's production of the
Tennessee Williams play
A Streetcar Named Desire. Reilly stated in 2010 that he would be very determined to play the lead role of Nathan Detroit if a revival of the musical
Guys and Dolls were to occur. In March 2012, he was featured in a performance of
Dustin Lance Black's play,
8—a staged reenactment of the
federal trial that overturned California's
Prop 8 ban on
same-sex marriage—as
David Blankenhorn. The production was held at the
Wilshire Ebell Theatre and broadcast on
YouTube to raise money for the
American Foundation for Equal Rights, a non-profit organization funding the plaintiffs' legal team and sponsoring the play. == Personal life ==