Thomas Griffin Dunne(born June 8, 1955), known professionally as Griffin Dunne, is an American actor, producer, director, and writer. He is the son of former producer and famed writer Dominick Dunne and heiress and justice advocate Ellen Beatriz Dunne (neé Griffin), His younger sister was the late Dominique Dunne.
Early life[]
Thomas Griffin Dunne was born June 8, 1955, in New York City. Less than two years later, his brother Alexander Dunne was born. That same year, he and his family relocated to Los Angeles, California, as Dominick Dunne was starstruck by Hollywood. They soon settled in Beverly Hills, where three more children, all girls, were born. Only one, Dominique Dunne, survived infancy.
Griffin spent his youth in Hollywood circles, but did not initially have an interest in acting, assuming he’d follow suite with much of his relatives and be a writer. Later, he developed an interest in being a stage actor. He was set to play Othello in a school play his senior year of high school, but was suspended after being caught smoking marijuana. He moved back to NYC and found eventual work in film.
Career[]
His memoir, “The Friday Afternoon Club”, was released on June 11, 2024.
Personal life[]
Dunne married around the age of eighteen, but the marriage was very short-lived. Shortly after, he began his career in film.
In 1982, Dunne tragically lost his sister, Dominique, to domestic violence. He and his family would go on to advocate for victims of domestic abuse and murder.
He married actress Carey Lowell in 1989, and they had a daughter Hannah the following year. Dunne and Lowell divorced in 1995. That same year, Dunne’s brother Alex had gone missing while hiking in Arizona, but was found alive shortly after his initial disappearance. His father Dominick Dunne had also attended the murder trial of O.J. Simpson.
In 2009, he married Anna Bingemann, an Australian hairstylist, though they divorced sometime later.
Filmography[]
Acting Roles
- The Other Side of the Mountain (1975) - Herbie Johnson
- Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979) - Dr. Mark
- An American Werewolf in London (1981) - Jack Goodman
- The Fan (1981) - Production Assistant
- Cold Feet (1983) - Tom Christo
- Johnny Dangerously (1984) - Tommy Kelly
- After Hours (1985) - Paul Hackett
- Almost You (1985) - Alex Boyer
- From Here to Maternity (1986) - Stork Club Doctor
- Amazon Women on the Moon (1987) - Doctor
- Who’s That Girl (1987) - Loudon Trott
- The Big Blue (1988) - Duffy
- Me and Him (1988) - Bert Uttanzi
- Secret Weapon (1990) - Mordechai Vanunu
- My Girl (1991) - Mr. Jake Bixler
- Once Around (1991) - Rob
- Big Girls Don’t Cry… They Get Even (1992) - David Chartoff
- Straight Talk (1992) - Alan Riegert
- Naked in New York (1993) - Auditioner
- The Pickle (1993) - Planet Cleveland Man (Uncredited)
- Partners (1993) - Dean Robinson
- I Like It Like That (1994) - Stephen Price
- Quiz Show (1994) - Geritol Account Executive
- Search and Destroy (1995) - Martin Mirkheim
- The Android Affair (1995) - Teach / William
- Lisa Picard Is Famous (2000) - Andrew
- Piñero (2001) - Agent
- Sam the Man (2001) - Man in Bathroom
- Sounds from a Town I Love (2001) - Himself
- What Leonard Comes Home To (2002) - Leonard
- 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002) - Jerry Anderson
- Warning: Parental Advisory (2002) - Frank Zappa
- Cheats (2002) - Mr. Davis
- Stuck on You (2003) - Himself
- Game 6 (2005) - Elliott Litvak
- Bondage (2006) - Dr. Simon
- Snow Angels (2007) - Don Parkinson
- The Great Buck Howard (2008) - Jonathan Finerman
- Shrink (2009) - Uncredited role
- Last Night (2010) - Truman
- The Discoverers (2012) - Lewis Birch
- Broken City (2013) - Sam Lancaster
- Blood Ties (2013) - McNally
- Dallas Buyers Club (2013) - Dr. Vass
- Rob the Mob (2014) - Dave Lovell
- Fugly! (2014) - Jefferey
- Touched with Fire (2015) - George
- Tumbledown (2015) - Upton
- Consumed (2015) - Peter
- My Dead Boyfriend (2016) - Joey Lucas / Nick McCrawley
- War Machine (2017) - Ray Canucci
- Gore (2018) - Leonard Bernstein (film shelved)
- Ocean’s 8 (2018) - Parole Board Officer
- Alright Now (2018) - Joanne's Dad
- Bittersweet Symphony (2019) - Griffin
- With/In (2021) - Segment: “One Night Stand”
- The French Dispatch (2021) - Legal Advisor
- Ex-Husbands (2023) - Peter Pearce
- Junction (2024) - Lawrence
- Caught Stealing (?) - Upcoming film
Other
External links[]
Griffin Dunne on Wikipedia
Griffin Dunne on IMDb