Michael Emmet Walsh (March 22, 1935 – March 19, 2024) was an American character actor who has appeared in over 200 films and television series, including supporting roles in dozens of major studio features of the 1970s and 1980s. He starred in Blood Simple (1984), the Coen Brothers' first film for which he won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead. He also appeared in The Jerk (1979), Ordinary People (1980), Blade Runner (1982), Wild Wild West (1999), and The Iron Giant (1999). His final films included Knives Out (2019) and Brothers (2024).

Filmography

• 2025Green and Gold — Scotty
• 2024Brothers — Judge Farful
• 2024Outlaw Posse — Catfish
• 2023A Little White Lie — Arthur Baldwin
• 2023Dotty and Soul — Harold Eichelbaum
• American Gigolo — Coleman
• 2022The Immaculate Room — Kate's Father
• 2021The Mimic — The Director
• 2019Faith, Hope & Love — Fr. John
• 2019Knives Out — Mr. Proofroc
• 2019Raising Buchanan — Larry Kiesling
• 2019Sorry, Not Sorry — Harry's Father
• 2019South of Bix — Grandpa
• The Righteous Gemstones — Roy Gemstone
• 2018Change in the Air — Walter Lemke
• 2018Shifting Gears — Hank
• 2018Toto — Toto
• 2015Boiling Pot — Dean Marison
• Empire — Harold Blakeley
• Sneaky Pete — Tex Hopkins
• 2015The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power — Gorak
• 2014Calvary — The Writer
• Tim and Eric's Bedtime Stories — Detective
• 2012Arthur Newman — Zazek
• 2012Love Sick Love — Ed
• 2012The Odd Life of Timothy Green — Uncle Bub
• 2011Sam Steele and the Junior Detective Agency — Chief Van Owen
• Adventure Time — Cosmic Owl (voice)
• 2010Chasing 3000 — Chuck Ireland
• Pound Puppies — Olaf (voice)
• 2010The Assignment — Mr. Beudreaux
• 2009Don McKay — Samuel
• 2009Youth in Revolt — Mr. Saunders
• 2008Haunted Echoes — Neil
• 2008Your Name Here — Kroger
• Army Wives — Bernie Wallacheck
• 2007Big Stan — Lew Popper
• Damages — Lyle Hewes
• 2007Man in the Chair — Mickey Hopkins
• 'Til Death — Uncle Rudolph
• 2005Greener Mountains — Muggs
• 2005Racing Stripes — Woodzie
• 2004Christmas with the Kranks — Walt Scheel
• 2003Baggage — Sandy Westphall
• Charlie Lawrence — Cubby
• 2003Tracey Ullman in the Trailer Tales — Wally Westland
• 2002Snow Dogs — George
• What's New, Scooby-Doo? — Jeb (voice)
• 2001Christmas in the Clouds — Stu O'Malley
• 2001Eyeball Eddie — Coach Cook
• Night Visions — Gus (segment "Reunion")
• The Guardian — Ezra Pence
• Ed — Mayor Wally Kendricks
• 2000Jack of Hearts — Comissioner Menlo Boyce
• 2000Poor White Trash — Judge Pike
• 1999Me and Will — Dean
• 1999Monster! — Lloyd Reeves
• 1999Random Hearts — Billy (uncredited)
• The Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot — Mack (voice)
• 1999The Iron Giant — Earl Stutz (voice)
• 1999Wild Wild West — Coleman
• 1998Chairman of the Board — Freemont
• 1998Erasable You — Ralph Worth
• 1998Men in White — Stanley
• 1998Nightmare in Big Sky Country — Marshal Jim Phillips
• The Wild Thornberrys — Gemsbok #1 (voice)
• 1998Twilight — Lester Ivar
• 1997Albino Alligator — Dino
• 1997My Best Friend's Wedding — Joe O'Neal
• 1997Retroactive — Sam
• 1997The Killing Jar — Sheriff Foley
• 1996A Time to Kill — Willard Tyrell Bass (uncredited)
• 1996Criminal Hearts — Martin
• Early Edition — Santa
• 1996Portraits of a Killer — Raymond Garrison
• 1996Romeo + Juliet — Apothecary
• 1996The Lottery — Chief Davis
• Tracey Takes On...
• 1995Dead Badge — Sergeant Miller Hoskins
• 1995Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home — Bill Wilcox
• 1995From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler — Morris
• 1995Panther — Dorsett
• The Outer Limits — Sanford Vallé
• Baseball — (voice)
• 1994Camp Nowhere — T.R. Polk
• 1994Cops & Robbersons — Captain Ted Corbett (uncredited)
• 1994Madness of Method — Rudolph Thorndyke
• 1994Probable Cause — Sadler
• 1994Relative Fear — Earl Ladelle
• 1994The Glass Shield — Det. Jesse Hall
• 1993Bitter Harvest — Sheriff Bob
• Frasier — Rich Koechner
• NYPD Blue — Joe Kroft
• 1993The Music of Chance — Calvin Murks
• The X-Files — Arthur Dales
• 1993Wilder Napalm — Fire Chief
• 1992Equinox — Pete Petosa
• 1992Four Eyes and Six-Guns — Mayor Thornbush
• 1992Killer Image — John Kane
• 1992The Naked Truth — Garcia / Gesundheim
• 1992White Sands — Bert Gibson
• 1992Wild Card — Mose
• 1991Fourth Story — Harry
• Home Improvement — Colonel
• 1991Silverfox — Charles Blankenship
• 1991Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat — Mort
• 1990Chattahoochee — Morris
• 1990Love and Lies — Clyde Wilson
• 1990Narrow Margin — Sergeant Dominick Benti
• The Civil War — Various (voice)
• 1990The Flash — Henry Allen
• The Flash — Henry Allen
• Brotherhood of the Rose — Hardy
• 1989Catch Me... If You Can — Johnny Phatmun
• Tales from the Crypt — Jonas
• 1989The Mighty Quinn — Fred Miller
• 1989Thunderground — Wedge
• Unsub — Ned Platt
• 1988Clean and Sober — Richard Dirks
• 1988Red Scorpion — Dewey Ferguson
• 1988Sunset — Chief Marvin Dibner
• 1988The Milagro Beanfield War — Governor
• 1988War Party — Colin Ditweiler
• 1987Broken Vows — Detective Mulligan
• 1987Harry and the Hendersons — George Henderson Sr.
• 1987Murder Ordained — Vern Humphrey
• Murder Ordained — Vern Humphrey
• 1987No Man's Land — Captain Haun
• 1987Raising Arizona — Machine Shop Ear-Bender
• 1987The Abduction of Kari Swenson — Don Nichols
• 1986Back to School — Coach Turnbull
• 1986Critters — Harv
• 1986Hero in the Family — General Presser
• 1986Resting Place — Sarge
• 1986The Best of Times — Charlie
• 1986The Deliberate Stranger — Det. Sam Davies
• The Deliberate Stranger — Det. Sam Davies
• 1986The Right of the People — Sindaco
• 1986Wildcats — Walt Coes
• Amazing Stories — Grandpa
• 1985Blood Simple — Private Detective
• 1985Fletch — Dr. Joseph Dolan
• 1985The Adventures of Con Sawyer and Hucklemary Finn — Rocco
• The Twilight Zone — Peter (segment "Dealer's Choice")
• 1984Courage — Colonel Crouse
• 1984Grandview, U.S.A. — Mr. Clark
• 1984Missing in Action — Tuck
• 1984Scandalous — Simon Reynolds
• 1984The Outlaws — Warden MacDonald
• 1984The Pope of Greenwich Village — Burns
• AfterMASH — Reverend Horn
• 1983Night Partners — Joe Kirby
• 1983Silkwood — Walt Yarborough
• The Hitchhiker — Detective Underhill
• 1983The Woman Who Willed a Miracle — Joe Lemke
• 1982Blade Runner — Bryant
• 1982Cannery Row — Mack
• 1982Fast-Walking — Sergeant Sanger
• 1982The Escape Artist — Fritz
• 1981Back Roads — Arthur
• East of Eden — Sheriff Horace Quinn
• 1981Hellinger's Law — Mr. Graebner
• 1981Reds — Speaker at Liberal Club
• 1980Brubaker — C.P. Woodward
• 1980City in Fear — Sheldon Lewis
• 1980High Noon, Part II: The Return of Will Kane — Harold Patton
• 1980Ordinary People — Swim Coach
• 1980Raise the Titanic — Master Chief Vinnie Walker
• 1980Skag — Moran
• 1979Dear Detective — Capt. Gorcey
• 1979No Other Love — DeFranco
• 1979The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh — Wally Cantrell
• The French Atlantic Affair — Harry
• 1979The Gift — Legion Commander
• 1979The Jerk — Madman
• 1978A Question of Guilt — Inspector McCartney
• 1978Straight Time — Earl Frank
• 1978Superdome — Whitley
• 1977Airport '77 — Dr. Williams
• 1977Red Alert — Sheriff Sweeney
• 1977Slap Shot — Dickie Dunn
• 1976Bound for Glory — Husband
• 1976Mikey and Nicky — Bus Driver
• 1976Nickelodeon — "Father" Logan
• 1976The Invasion of Johnson County — Irvine
• 1975At Long Last Love — Harold
• Baretta
• 1975Crime Club — Jack Doyle
• 1975Sarah T. - Portrait of a Teenage Alcoholic — Mr. Peterson
• Starsky & Hutch — Freddie, Lloyd Herman Eckworth
• 1975The Prisoner of Second Avenue — Doorman
• Little House on the Prairie — Callahan
• 1974The Gambler — Las Vegas Gambler
• The Rockford Files — Edgar Burch
• 1973Kid Blue — Barber
• 1973Serpico — Gallagher
• 1972Get to Know Your Rabbit — Mr. Wendel
• The Bob Newhart Show — Jack Hoover
• The Sandy Duncan Show
• The Waltons — David Fletcher
• 1972What's Up, Doc? — Arresting Officer
• All in the Family — Billy Hartfield
• 1971Cold Turkey — Art
• 1971Escape from the Planet of the Apes — Aide
• McMillan & Wife — Officer Ames
• Nichols — Gabe McCutcheon
• 1971They Might Be Giants — 1st Sanitation Man
• Arnie
• 1970End of the Road — Crab Man / Tutu Man
• 1970Little Big Man — Shotgun Guard
• 1970The Traveling Executioner — Warden Brodski
• 1969Alice's Restaurant — Group W Sergeant
• 1969Midnight Cowboy — Bus Passenger (uncredited)
• 1969Stiletto — Racing Partner (uncredited)
• Ironside — Telegraph Clerk
• Bonanza — Mattheson
• The Wonderful World of Disney — General Presser
• Hallmark Hall of Fame — Sarge

Appearances as themselves (4)

• 2008A True Character — Self
• 2007Dangerous Days: Making Blade Runner — Self
• 2000On the Edge of 'Blade Runner' — Self
• The West — Self (voice)