in 2009 Shannon's first screen role was the main character in the music video for the
Every Mother's Nightmare song "House of Pain", where he played a troubled teenager who had run away from his abusive home. Shannon performed on stage in Chicago, where he helped found
A Red Orchid Theatre. Shannon originated the role of Peter Evans in
Bug in 1996 and starred in the 2006
film adaptation. His roles in
Bug and
Killer Joe were written by Steppenwolf ensemble member
Tracy Letts. He had roles in ''
Jesus' Son, Pearl Harbor, 8 Mile,
Vanilla Sky, Kangaroo Jack, Bad Boys II, and a role in Grand Theft Parsons'' as hippie Larry Oster-Berg. Shannon appeared in ''
Let's Go to Prison in 2006, where he portrayed Lynard, the leader of a prison white supremacist group. He appeared in a production of Woyzeck'' in the
West End in
London, under the direction of playwright Sarah Kane. In 2008, Shannon was featured in the
off-Broadway production of
Stephen Adly Guirgis's
The Little Flower of East Orange, presented by
LAByrinth Theater Company and
The Public Theater, directed by
Philip Seymour Hoffman. In 2007, Shannon began the first of his many collaborations with director
Jeff Nichols, when cast in the movie
Shotgun Stories. Shannon was singled out for praise for his performance as the elder brother of three in a morality tale on the dangers of unresolved family enmities. In 2008, he starred in the romantic drama film
Revolutionary Road, alongside
Leonardo DiCaprio and
Kate Winslet. His performance as the clinically insane son earned him universal acclaim, and he won the
Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture and received an
Academy Award nomination for
Best Supporting Actor. In 2010, he portrayed Doc Cross Williams in the film adaptation of
Jonah Hex. Shannon played Federal Prohibition agent Nelson Van Alden in the
HBO television show
Boardwalk Empire, which began in 2010. In November of that year, he began starring in the one man play
Mistakes Were Made at the
Barrow Street Theatre in
New York City, with performances having run through February 27, 2012. Shannon had performed the show in 2009 at
A Red Orchid Theatre in Chicago. In 2011, Shannon starred in the drama film
Take Shelter. He received rave reviews for his performance, and a
Saturn Award for
Best Actor. In 2012, he played a corrupt cop in the film
Premium Rush, written and directed by
David Koepp, and appeared on
Broadway along with
Paul Rudd and
Ed Asner in
Grace written by
Craig Wright. In 2013, he starred as legendary mob hitman
Richard Kuklinski in
The Iceman, which was distributed in May of that year. Later in 2013, Shannon portrayed
General Zod, the main antagonist in
Zack Snyder's film
Man of Steel. In 2015, he performed in the biographical drama
Freeheld, and the independent drama
99 Homes, as housing agent Rick Carver, a role that earned him nominations for the
Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture and the
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role. Shannon played Mr. Green in
The Night Before in 2015. Shannon starred in the 2016 psychological thriller film
Nocturnal Animals, with
Amy Adams and
Jake Gyllenhaal. His performance as a detective investigating a double homicide garnered him critical acclaim and a second nomination for the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Also in 2016, Shannon portrayed music icon
Elvis Presley alongside
Kevin Spacey as President
Richard Nixon in
Elvis & Nixon. In 2017, Shannon played Col. Richard Strickland in
Guillermo del Toro's romantic fantasy film
The Shape of Water. The film premiered at the
74th Venice International Film Festival, where it won the
Golden Lion.
The Shape of Water went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture at the
Academy Awards. Shannon played the lead role as Gary Noesner, head of the
FBI Crisis Negotiation Unit, in
Waco on
Paramount Network in 2018. He appeared in
Long Way Back Home, an extended film clip for the song of the same name by
Memphis country-punk rock band,
Lucero, from its album
Among The Ghosts. Lucero's frontman, Ben Nichols, is the older brother of frequent Shannon collaborator
Jeff Nichols. Shannon contributed spoken word vocals to Lucero's "Back To The Night", also from
Among The Ghosts. In 2019, Shannon joined an ensemble cast in
Rian Johnson's mystery film
Knives Out, portraying Walt Thrombey. In 2021, Shannon played Napoleon Marconi in the
Hulu miniseries
Nine Perfect Strangers, based on the novel of the same name by
Liane Moriarty. Shannon reprised his role as General Zod in
The Flash, released by
Warner Bros. in 2023. In April 2022, a follow-up series to
Waco, titled
American Tragedies: Waco – The Trials was announced and was set to premiere on
Paramount+ in 2023. The miniseries centered on the fallout from the Waco siege as well as the emerging
patriot movement. In February 2023, the series was retitled
Waco: The Aftermath and would instead premiere on
Showtime on April 16, 2023. Shannon reprised his lead role as Gary Noesner and also served as an executive producer for the show. Shannon also starred as
United States President James A. Garfield in the 2025
Netflix miniseries
Death by Lightning, and as judge
Robert H. Jackson in the film
Nuremberg. ==Personal life==