1963–1989: Early roles and breakthrough Langella appeared
off-Broadway (in
The Immoralist at the
Bouwerie Lane Theatre in 1963 and
Robert Lowell's
The Old Glory in 1965 among other shows) before he made his first foray onto a
Broadway stage in New York in
Federico García Lorca's
Yerma at the
Vivian Beaumont Theater, Lincoln Center, on December 8, 1966. He followed this role by appearing in William Gibson's
A Cry of Players, playing a young, highly fictionalized
William Shakespeare opposite
Anne Bancroft in 1968. Bancroft suggested Langella to her husband
Mel Brooks, who cast him in a leading role in
The Twelve Chairs (1970). The same year, he also appeared in
Frank Perry's
Diary of a Mad Housewife, being nominated for a
Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer. Langella won his first
Tony Award for his performance in
Edward Albee's
Seascape in 1975 and was nominated again for what may have been the performance for which he was best known in the early part of his career: the title role of the 1977 Broadway production of
Dracula. Despite his initial misgivings about continuing to play the role, he was persuaded to star opposite
Laurence Olivier in the
subsequent film version directed by
John Badham. Langella continued to alternate film and television roles with his stage work, playing
Sherlock Holmes in a 1981 adaptation of
William Gillette's play
Sherlock Holmes. He repeated the role on Broadway in 1987 in
Charles Marowitz's play ''Sherlock's Last Case
. That same year, Langella portrayed the villain Skeletor in Masters of the Universe, one of his favorite parts. In 1988, he co-starred in the film And God Created Woman. In 1982 Langella portrayed Antonio Salieri the Broadway production of Amadeus replacing Ian McKellen. During this time he also acted in Passion'' in 1983,
Noël Coward's
Design for Living in 1984,
Arthur Miller's
After the Fall in 1984, and
David Rabe's
Hurlyburly in 1985. He also portrayed
Prospero in the revival of
William Shakespeare revival
The Tempest.
1990–2008: Broadway acclaim and Frost/Nixon In 1993, Langella made a three-episode appearance on
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as the devious
Bajoran Minister Jaro Essa. That same year, he also starred in the political comedy
Dave starring
Kevin Kline and
Sigourney Weaver. He also played a supporting role in the
Ivan Reitman comedy
Junior with
Arnold Schwarzenegger,
Danny DeVito, and
Emma Thompson. In 1994, he narrated the
American Masters documentary on
Tennessee Williams. In 1996, Langella starred in the Broadway revival of
August Strindberg's
The Father. That same year, Langella starred in the comedy film
Eddie, starring
Whoopi Goldberg, with whom he was involved romantically until 2000. He also played Clare Quilty in the 1997 film adaptation of
Lolita, starring
Jeremy Irons and
Melanie Griffith. In 1999, Langella also starred opposite
Johnny Depp in
Roman Polanski's film
The Ninth Gate. In 2000, Langella played Ebenezer Scrooge in a musical version of
A Christmas Carol at
Madison Square Garden. He has also appeared in notable off-Broadway productions, including in the title role of
Robert Kalfin's
Chelsea Theater Center production of
The Prince of Homburg, which was filmed by
PBS for the Theatre in America series. Langella also appeared as Al Baker in "Dominance", a 2003 episode of
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and had a recurring role as Pino in the 2005 short-lived sitcom
Kitchen Confidential. Langella returned to the stage in the 2002 Broadway revival of the
Ivan Turgenev play ''
Fortune's Fool. In the play Langella portrayed Flegont Alexandrovitch Tropatcho opposite Alan Bates. The production received critical acclaim with Langella winning his second Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play and a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play. In 2004 he acted in the original Broadway play Match by Stephen Belber. In the play, Langella portrayed an aging dance choreographer. He acted alongside Jane Adams, and Ray Liotta. Langella received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play, his fourth nomination. He starred as Sir Thomas More in the 2008 Broadway revival of A Man for All Seasons''. Langella was cast as
Richard Nixon opposite
Michael Sheen in
Peter Morgan's play
Frost/Nixon, which received enthusiastic reviews during a run at the
Donmar Warehouse and Gielgud Theatre in London before moving to
Broadway in New York's Bernard B. Jacobs Theater in April 2007. Langella won his third
Tony Award for the role. He reprised the role of Nixon in the 2008 Oscar-nominated film of the play directed by
Ron Howard. Langella also earned
Golden Globe,
Actor Award, and
BAFTA nominations for Best Actor for the same performance. Langella was also nominated for an
Academy Award in the Best Actor category for the role, losing to
Sean Penn's performance in
Milk. Langella's film work also includes roles in
George Clooney's
Good Night, and Good Luck (2005) as former
CBS chief executive
William S. Paley, for which he was nominated for the
Screen Actors Guild Award for Ensemble Cast. He also appeared in
Bryan Singer's
Superman Returns (2006) as
Daily Planet editor
Perry White. Langella was praised as well with the
Boston Society of Film Critics Award in 2007 for his sensitive portrayal of an elderly novelist in
Starting Out in the Evening.
2009–2019: Established career In late 2009, Langella starred in the
Richard Kelly film
The Box with
Cameron Diaz and
James Marsden. In 2010, he played Louis Zabel in
Oliver Stone's
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, alongside
Michael Douglas,
Shia LaBeouf, and
Carey Mulligan. That same year, he played a supporting role in
All Good Things, with
Ryan Gosling and
Kirsten Dunst. In 2011, Langella starred in the drama thriller
Unknown, opposite
Liam Neeson and
Diane Kruger. In 2012, Langella earned critical praise for his role in the independent film
Robot & Frank, with
Peter Travers of
Rolling Stone magazine calling his performance "a masterclass in acting". In 2013, Langella starred as
Chief Justice Warren E. Burger in the
Stephen Frears'
HBO film ''
Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight, with Christopher Plummer playing Justice John Marshall Harlan. In October and November 2013, Langella played King Lear at the Minerva, Chichester Festival Theatre in Chichester, UK. The play travelled to the Harvey Theater at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York in 2014. Langella also played Cleveland Browns owner Anthony Molina in the movie Draft Day'', which also starred Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, and Dennis Leary. In 2015, Langella joined the cast of
FX's critically praised drama
The Americans with
Keri Russell and
Matthew Rhys. He appeared in seasons 3 through 5. In 2016, Langella played the title role in
Doug Hughes' production of the US premiere of
Florian Zeller's play
The Father at the
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on Broadway. He won his fourth
Tony Award for that performance. That same year, he appeared in
Captain Fantastic with
Viggo Mortensen and was again nominated with the ensemble cast for the
Screen Actors Guild Award. He also starred in the
HBO television movie
All the Way (2016) as
Senator Richard Russell Jr., with
Bryan Cranston as
Lyndon B. Johnson. Langella received a
Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Movie/Miniseries nomination for his performance. From 2018 to 2020, Langella appeared as Sebestian in
Showtime's
Kidding, starring
Jim Carrey. The show's executive producer was
Michel Gondry, and it received positive reviews.
2020–present In 2020, Langella played Judge
Julius Hoffman in
Aaron Sorkin's
The Trial of the Chicago 7. The film follows the
Chicago Seven, a group of
anti-Vietnam War protesters charged with conspiracy and crossing state lines with the intention of inciting riots at the
1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. It was released in September, by
Netflix. In 2022, following investigations into claims of sexual harassment on set, Langella was fired from
The Fall of the House of Usher and replaced by
Bruce Greenwood. In a guest column for
Deadline, he claimed to have been "
canceled" and denied allegations of unacceptable behavior while telling his version of events; this included calling cast members "baby" or "honey", in addition to describing guidance from an
intimacy coordinator as "absurd" and ultimately going against the agreed
blocking for a scene, leading his scene partner to walk off set. ==Personal life==