1980s Before starting his acting career, Baldwin was a fashion model for Calvin Klein. His first starring role was in a TV movie as
Robert Chambers, alongside
Danny Aiello and
Lara Flynn Boyle in
The Preppie Murder, which aired on
ABC in 1989. Baldwin also appeared in the 1989 film
Born on the Fourth of July, starring
Tom Cruise, where he had a minor role as a U.S. Marine during the Vietnam War. His brothers Daniel and Stephen also had minor parts in the film. at the
1988 Academy Awards 1990s Baldwin's first featured film was
Internal Affairs, in which he starred alongside
Richard Gere and
Andy García. He then starred in big-budget films such as
Flatliners with stars such as
Julia Roberts,
Kiefer Sutherland and
Kevin Bacon. He portrayed Chicago
firefighter Brian McCaffrey in
Backdraft with
Kurt Russell and also with an ensemble cast including
Donald Sutherland,
Scott Glenn,
Rebecca De Mornay, and
Robert De Niro. His role in 1993 film
Sliver along with
Sharon Stone earned him the
MTV Movie Award for Most Desirable Male. In 1995, among other diverse characters he has played in his career, Baldwin was on
Joel Schumacher's shortlist for
Batman Forever to play the
title character; Schumacher's four diverse choices were
Daniel Day-Lewis,
Ralph Fiennes,
Val Kilmer and Baldwin. The role went to
Val Kilmer. Baldwin starred alongside
Cindy Crawford in
Fair Game. Then in 1996, he starred in a low-budget film by
Miramax Films titled
Curdled and was paid US$150,000 for his performance, compared to the $1.7 million he received for his role in
Sliver; his performance in the film was slightly acclaimed by critics. In 1998, he appeared in
Warren Beatty's film
Bulworth as Constance Bulworth's lover. In 1999, Baldwin teamed up with
Jamie Lee Curtis and
Donald Sutherland for the science fiction thriller
Virus and played alongside
Peter Gallagher in the
Showtime original movie,
Brotherhood of Murder.
2000s In 2001, Baldwin played a leading role in the television film
Double Bang which aired on
HBO. Since then, Baldwin has played in other projects such as
Red Rover in 2003,
Park,
Feel and
Lenexa, 1 Mile in 2006, and
Adrift in Manhattan,
A Plumm Summer,
Noise, and
Humble Pie in 2007. His 2004 film
Art Heist received much attention when it was released on DVD. Baldwin has continued to act in films and on television, but has not taken many leading roles. He was well received in a supporting role in the 2005 film
The Squid and the Whale alongside
Laura Linney and
Jeff Daniels, for which he earned the
Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Cast. He also co-starred in
ABC's Dirty Sexy Money as
Donald Sutherland's oldest son, Patrick Darling IV, for the duration of the show until April 2009. In 2008, he appeared in the comedy film
Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which stars
Jason Segel and
Kristen Bell, as Detective Hunter Rush.
2010s In February 2010, Baldwin played
Batman in
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, a loose adaptation of
Grant Morrison's
JLA: Earth 2 story. The documentary was made by
Namrata Singh Gujral, and features breast cancer survivors
Olivia Newton-John,
Diahann Carroll,
Melissa Etheridge,
Namrata Singh Gujral,
Mumtaz,
Jaclyn Smith,
Daniel Baldwin and
Priya Dutt. Baldwin was cast in the second season of
Parenthood, which aired Fall 2010. He played Gordon Flint: a charismatic bachelor, the boss of Adam Braverman (
Peter Krause) and a love-interest for Adam's sister, Sarah (
Lauren Graham). In 2011, Baldwin starred in the
Lifetime Original Movie,
The Craigslist Killer which aired January 3, 2011. He played the lead detective on the case of the killer,
Philip Markoff, who connected with victims through
Craigslist ads placed in Boston, Massachusetts. On June 1, 2011, Baldwin starred in the indie film
Sexy Evil Genius, alongside
Seth Green,
Harold Perrineau Jr.,
Katee Sackhoff and
Michelle Trachtenberg. The film was directed by
Shawn Piller. In July 2011, Baldwin joined the CBS drama
Hawaii Five-0 for a multi-episode arc. On March 22, 2012, Baldwin guest starred on the NBC show
30 Rock. Baldwin plays Lance Drake Mandrell, an actor who plays Jack Donaghy – the role played in the series by Baldwin's real-life brother
Alec – in a made-for-TV movie within the show. Baldwin is currently a model for
Sacoor Brothers. Baldwin appeared in the fourth and final season of
Wilfred, replacing
Dwight Yoakam in the role of Bruce. In 2015, he narrated for the documentary
A Wing and a Prayer, a film about American fighter pilots who assisted in the
1948 Arab–Israeli War and the founding of the
Israeli Air Force. In 2016, Baldwin signed on and currently has a recurring role on the
2016 reboot of the television series
MacGyver as Elwood Davis, Riley's estranged father on
CBS Television Studios. On November 21, 2017, Baldwin joined the main cast on a television series along with
Miles Teller in
Too Old to Die Young which was released in the summer of 2019 on
Amazon Video. Currently, Baldwin stars and executive produces
Northern Rescue, a Canadian
drama television series produced by
CBC Television distributed internationally on
Netflix. The first season of 10 episodes debuted on March 1, 2019.
2020s In 2021, Baldwin starred in
War of the Worlds: Annihilation. Baldwin appeared in the horror film
Candyland. In 2024, he narrated the documentary
Americans with No Address, a film that explores the causes of the
homeless crisis in the United States. The documentary serves as a companion piece to the upcoming narrative feature film
No Address, which aims to raise awareness about homelessness. ==Personal life==