James Tupper (born August 4, 1965) is a Canadian actor known for his roles as Jack Slattery on the ABC television series Men in Trees, Dr. Chris Sands on the NBC medical drama series Mercy, and David Clarke on ABC's Revenge. He also starred in the post-apocalyptic thriller Aftermath, on Space in Canada and Syfy in the U.S., and in the HBO series Big Little Lies.
Early life
Tupper was born in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. He studied acting at Concordia University, Montreal, and later at Rutgers University in New Jersey, where he earned a master's degree.
Career
Tupper acted in several off-Broadway plays, including An Actor Prepares and After the Rain. He co-wrote and appeared in 2005's Loudmouth Soup, a fully improvised independent film that was filmed in one night with no script and no second takes.
In 2006, Tupper started portraying Jack Slattery in the ABC series Men in Trees, credited for all 36 episodes of the show's run. He then appeared as Dr. Chris Sands in the NBC medical drama Mercy for 22 episodes before it was cancelled in 2010.
Tupper appeared as Dr. Andrew Perkins, a trauma counselor, on ABC's Grey's Anatomy. He appeared in seven episodes in the show's seventh season.
Tupper appeared on ABC's Revenge from 2011 to its cancellation in 2015. He portrayed the character of David Clarke, the supposedly deceased father of the main character. His character had a recurring role for the first three seasons, appearing only in flashbacks and videos. Tupper was promoted to main cast for season four after it was revealed in the season three finale that his character was still alive.
On September 27, 2016, the British Columbia, Canada-produced post-apocalyptic action thriller Aftermath debuted on Canada's Space network and on America's Syfy network. While starring in this series, his real-life partner Anne Heche played his wife for the series. In addition to his acting role on the series, Tupper also served as co-producer. The freshman season's 13-episode run ended in December 2016; the series was not renewed.
From 2017 to 2019, Tupper had a supporting role in the HBO drama series Big Little Lies, portraying Nathan Carlson, husband of Zoë Kravitz's Bonnie Carlson and ex-husband of Reese Witherspoon's Madeline Mackenzie.
Personal life Tupper split from his wife, Kate Mayfield, in November 2006; they were still married as of early 2009. He began dating actress Anne Heche in 2007, they met on the set of Men in Trees and went on to co-star in the 2008 film Toxic Skies. Their son Atlas Heche Tupper was born in March 2009. They split in January 2018. After her death in 2022, he filed an application to be executor of her estate but was denied in favor of her son.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes2001Corky Romano FBI Agent Joe Dirt Cop at the Bridge Peroxide Passion Jed 2005 Loudmouth Soup Keith Miller2006 Invisible Joe Love's Abiding Joy Henry Klein2008 For Heaven's Sake Peter Whitman Toxic Skies Jack Me and Orson Welles Joseph Cotten2011 Mr. Popper's Penguins Rick Girl Fight Ray 2012 Playing for Keeps Matt2013 Nothing Left to Fear Dan Decoding Annie Parker Steven 2016 My Sweet Audrina Damian 2020 Beneath Us Ben Rhodes 2022 The Requin Kyle2023 Cold Copy2024RideCody
Television Year Title Role Notes 2000 Time of Your Life Kedrick Episode: "The Time She Found Her Father"2005 Gilmore Girls Biker #1 2 episodes How I Met Your Mother Derek Episode: "The Limo" CSI: NY Paul Zernecky Episode: "Dancing with the Fishes" Love's Long Journey Henry TV movie 2006 Dr. Vegas Paramedic Episode: "Heal Thyself" 2006–2008 Men in Trees Jack Slattery Main role; 36 episodes 2007 Pictures of Hollis Woods John Regan TV movie2008 Samantha Who? Owen 4 episodes The Ex List Dan Episode: "Flower King" 2009–2010 Mercy Dr. Chris Sands Main role; 22 episodes2009 A New Beginning Chris Daniels TV movie The Gambler, the Girl and the Gunslinger B.J. Stoker TV movie 2010–2011 Grey's Anatomy Dr. Andrew Perkins Recurring role; 7 episodes 2011–2015 Revenge David Clarke Recurring role (season 1–3); main role (season 4) 2013 Secret Lives of Husbands and Wives TV movie2014 Resurrection Dr. Eric Ward Recurring role Mom's Day Away Michael Miller TV movie 2016 Aftermath Joshua Copeland Lead role 2017–2019 Big Little Lies Nathan Carlson Main role 2017Site Unseen: An Emma Fielding Mystery Special Agent Jim Connor TV movie 2018 Past Malice: An Emma Fielding Mystery Special Agent Jim Connor TV movie The Brave Alex Hoffman 2 episodes American Woman Steve Nolan Recurring role No Apologies Moses Fallon TV movie 2018–2019 A Million Little Things Andrew Pollock Recurring role 2019 Emma Fielding: More Bitter Than Death Special Agent John Connor TV movie 2020 The Detectives Detective Hank Idsinga 2 episodes The Hardy Boys Fenton Hardy Main role2021My Christmas Family TreeRichard HendricksTV movie2022Mid-Love CrisisSamTV movie2023Fall Into WinterBrooks McLeodTV movie (Great American Family)
References
External links
James Tupper Bio 5