William James Remar (born December 31, 1953) is an American actor. Highlights of his career in film include his portrayals of Ajax in The Warriors (1979), Albert Ganz in 48 Hrs. (1982), Dutch Schultz in The Cotton Club (1984), and Jack Duff in Miracle on 34th Street (1994). In television, he is best known for playing Richard Wright in Sex and the City (2001–2004), and Harry Morgan, the father of the title character, in Dexter (2006–2013) and Dexter: Resurrection (2025). Since 2009, he has done voice-over work in ads for Lexus luxury cars. Remar studied acting at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City.
Remar's more recent roles include Frank Gordon in Gotham from 2016 to 2019; Peter Gambi in Black Lightning from 2018 to 2021; Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson in Oppenheimer in 2023 and General Francis Shaw in It: Welcome to Derry (2025).
Early life William James Remar was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 31, 1953. He is the son of Elizabeth (née Boyle), who worked in mental health affairs for the state of Massachusetts, and Roy Remar, who was an attorney. His father was of Russian-Jewish descent, while his mother was a native of England and of Irish descent. He has three sisters and two brothers. Remar grew up with his family in Newton, Massachusetts.
Remar dropped out of high school when he was 15, although he attended what he described as "kind of an alternative school" for a year afterwards. He then traveled around the United States, briefly playing guitar in a rock band. Eventually, he returned home and went back to high school, although he decided not to attend college after graduating. Remar has said he decided to become an actor when he was 20; after he was laid off from his job as a roofer, he remembered a previous job performing at a summer camp, and said he would give himself three years to attempt an acting career before he would try something else.
In Florida, Remar earned a role in a state production of Cross and Sword. Afterwards, he studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, but was not asked back after his first year, which he described as "a devastating experience". Remar continued searching for other acting jobs, eventually landing the part of Kenickie in a touring production of Grease, and also performed at the Ensemble Studio Theatre, before making his film debut in On the Yard.
Career Films
Remar has spent the majority of his film career playing villains. He portrayed the violent gang member Ajax in the cult film The Warriors (1979), and the murdering sociopath Albert Ganz in the hit 48 Hrs. (1982). Both films were directed by Walter Hill. Remar also played real-life 1930s-era gangster Dutch Schultz in The Cotton Club (1984).
In contrast to these roles, Remar starred in the film Windwalker (1980) as the young Cheyenne Windwalker, for which he spoke his lines in the Cheyenne language. He also portrayed a gay man in the film Cruising (1980). That same year, Remar had a cameo in the Western The Long Riders (1980) in a bar fight scene with David Carradine.
He was the star of the film Quiet Cool (1986) and was cast as Corporal Hicks in the science-fiction/horror film Aliens (1986), but was replaced by Michael Biehn shortly into filming after being arrested for drug possession. At least one piece of footage featuring Remar made it into the final version of the film: when the Marines enter the processing station and the camera tilts down from the Alien nest, though Remar is not seen in close-up. He is also filmed from the back as the Marines first enter the compound on LV-426 and when "Hicks" approaches the cocooned woman, again filmed from the rear so the viewer is unable to tell it is Remar and not Michael Biehn.
He played Quill, one of the main villains in The Phantom (1996). In 1994 he played a supporting role in the film Renaissance Man, then appeared in Mortal Kombat Annihilation (1997), the sequel to the film Mortal Kombat (1995), taking over the role of Raiden from Christopher Lambert. He then followed this with a role in the direct-to-video science fiction film Robo Warriors (1996). Other films include Psycho (1998), in which he played the patrolman, Drugstore Cowboy (1989), Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990), Wedlock (1991), Boys on the Side (1995), The Quest (1996), Rites of Passage (1999), Hellraiser: Inferno (2000), 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), Fear X (2003), Blade: Trinity (2004), and The Girl Next Door (2004). He played a brief role as General Bratt in the prologue of Pineapple Express (2008). He also had a role in the horror film The Unborn (2009), alongside C.S. Lee, who portrays Vince Masuka in Dexter. He also played the father of Olivia Grey in Feed (2017).
Remar appeared in the film X-Men: First Class (2011) and voiced the Autobot Sideswipe in the film Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011), replacing André Sogliuzzo. He was also cast in the heist film Setup (2011) and starred in the film Arena (2011).
Remar played two different, unrelated characters in Quentin Tarantino's film Django Unchained (2012): Ace Speck and Butch Pooch. He starred, alongside Emma Roberts, Lucy Boynton, and Lauren Holly, in the thriller film The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015).
Television Remar's television appearances include the series Miami Vice, Hill Street Blues, Sex and the City (as the on-again, off-again boyfriend of Kim Cattrall's character), Tales from the Crypt, Jericho, Third Watch, Justice League Unlimited, and Battlestar Galactica. He also appeared as a possessed mental patient in The X-Files ninth-season episode "Dæmonicus". He starred as Tiny Bellows on the short-lived television series The Huntress (2000–2001). He appeared in the miniseries The Grid (2004) as Hudson "Hud", the love interest of Julianna Margulies's character. He had a recurring guest role in the 2006 television series Jericho on CBS. Remar guest-starred in the CBS crime drama Numbers, playing a weapons dealer who later turns good and helps the FBI.
From 2006 to 2013, Remar co-starred in Dexter on Showtime. He was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Dexter Morgan's adoptive father, Harry Morgan.
In 2010, he played guest roles as Giuseppe Salvatore in The CW series The Vampire Diaries and as James Ermine, a general for Jericho, a black-ops military contractor, on FlashForward.
He also voiced Vilgax in the animated television series Ben 10: Alien Force and Ben 10: Ultimate Alien, replacing Steve Blum. He guest-starred in Private Practice in 2010, playing a physician named Gibby, who works with Doctors Without Borders. On July 23, 2017, Remar was cast as Peter Gambi on the superhero drama Black Lightning. The series would run for four seasons from January 2018 to May 2021, Remar's Gambi a series regular for its entirety. He would then be cast in a recurring role on The Rookie as Tom Bradford, Tim’s father. He was later cast as General Shaw in It: Welcome to Derry, a television series prequel to the 2017 supernatural horror film It, which released on HBO in 2025. In December 2024, it was reported that he would reprise his role as Harry Morgan in Dexter: Resurrection, which premiered in 2025.
Personal life In 1984, he married Atsuko Remar. They have two children. He speaks conversational Japanese.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes Reference(s) 1978 On the Yard Larson 1979 The Warriors Ajax 1980 Cruising Gregory The Long Riders Sam Starr Windwalker Young Windwalker 1982 Partners Edward K. Petersen 48 Hrs. Albert Ganz 1984 The Cotton Club Dutch Schultz 1986 The Clan of the Cave Bear Creb Band of the Hand Nestor Quiet Cool Officer Joe Dylanne 1987 Rent-A-Cop Dancer 1989 The Dream Team Gianelli Drugstore Cowboy Gentry 1990 Tales from the Darkside: The Movie Preston Segment: "Lover's Vow" 1991 White Fang "Beauty" Smith Session Man McQueen Short film 1992 The Tigress Andrei 1993 Fatal Instinct Max Shady Blink Thomas Ridgely 1994 Renaissance Man Captain Tom Murdoch Miracle on 34th Street Jack Duff1995 Boys on the Side Alex The Surgeon Dr. Benjamin Hendricks Judge Dredd Monroe, Block Warlord Uncredited Wild Bill Donnie Lonigan 1996 The Quest Maxie Devine The Phantom Quill 1997 Mortal Kombat Annihilation Lord Raiden 1998 Psycho Highway Patrolman 1999 Rites of Passage Frank Dabbo 2000 Blowback John Matthew Whitman / Schmidt Direct-to-video What Lies Beneath Warren Feur Hellraiser: Inferno Dr. Paul Gregory Direct-to-video 2003 Fear X Peter 2 Fast 2 Furious United States Customs Agent Markham Duplex Chick 2004 The Girl Next Door Hugo Posh Blade: Trinity FBI Agent Ray Cumberland 2007 Ratatouille Larousse Voice A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. 2008 Pineapple Express General Bratt 2009 The Unborn Gordon Beldon 2B Tom Mortlake Endless Bummer Sam Kramer Direct-to-video 2010 Gun Detective Rogers Red Gabriel Singer 2011 The FP Narrator Voice X-Men: First Class United States General Transformers: Dark of the Moon Sideswipe Voice Setup William Long Direct-to-video Arena FBI Agent Sam McCarty / Sam Lord All Superheroes Must Die Rickshaw 2012 Django Unchained "Ace" Speck, Butch Pooch 2013 Horns Derrick Perrish 2014 Persecuted John Luther Lap Dance Patrick Moore 2015 The Blackcoat's Daughter Bill Eden Coach DaFoe Papa: Hemingway in Cuba Santo Trafficante Jr. 2016 USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage Rear Admiral William S. Parnell 2017 The Night Watchmen Randall The Saint Arnold Valecross Direct-to-video Feed Tom Grey 2018 Speed Kills Meyer Lansky Direct-to-video 2019 Once Upon a Time in Hollywood "Ugly Owl" Hoot Scene deleted 2020 Dead Reckoning Agent Richard Cantrell Direct-to-video 2022 The Noel Diary Scott Turner 2023 Oppenheimer Henry L. Stimson 2024 Drugstore June Arnold Megalopolis Charles Cothope Transformers One Zeta Prime Voice 2026 They Will Kill You Pig's Head The Odyssey Tiresias
Television