Vincent D'Onofrio

D'Onofrio was born in Brooklyn, New York. He is of Italian descent, with ancestors from Naples.{{cite news|last=Mason|first=Dave|title='Criminal Intent' detective to face personal trauma|newspaper=Ventura County Star|date=October 1, 2007|url=http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2007/oct/01/criminal-intent-detective-face-personal-trauma|access-date=October 1, 2007 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071006003223/http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2007/oct/01/criminal-intent-detective-face-personal-trauma|archive-date=October 6, 2007}} His paternal grandfather was an upholsterer and his maternal grandparents opened the first Italian restaurant in Hawaii.{{Cite web |date=2019-04-08 |title=Episode 1008 - Vincent D'Onofrio |url=https://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episode-1008-vincent-donofrio |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=WTF with Marc Maron Podcast |language=en-US}} His parents Gennaro "Gene" Joseph D'Onofrio and Phyllis Ann Minicola met and married while Gennaro was stationed in Hawaii with the U.S. Air Force.{{Cite web |date=1955-07-18 |title=Gennaro "Gene" Joseph D'Onofrio -- Phyllis Ann Minicola marriage 18 Jul 1955 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/honolulu-star-advertiser-gennaro-gene/147072867/ |access-date=2025-04-16 |website=newspapers.com |publisher=Honolulu Star-Advertiser |page=9}} Gennaro was trained as an interior decorator but spent most of his spare time in amateur theater.{{Cite web|title=He's said to be the best character actor in the world |url=http://www.lawandorder-fr.com/articles/?article=3|last=Jamieson|first=Teddie|date=October 5, 2005|website=lawandorder-fr.com|publisher=The Herald|url-status= live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071011031722/http://www.lawandorder-fr.com/articles/?article=3|archive-date=October 11, 2007 |access-date=May 4, 2020}} Vincent is the youngest of three siblings. His older siblings are Antoinette (born 1956) and Elizabeth (born 1957), an actress and drama coach residing in Fort Myers Beach, Florida.{{Cite web |title= 'The Neapolitan' TV pilot wraps up filming in Naples| url= https://www.naplesnews.com/story/entertainment/television/2017/11/23/neapolitan-wraps-up-filming-naples/852922001/ |last= Collins| first= Ashley |website= Naples Daily News|language=en|access-date=May 4, 2020}}{{Clarification needed|reason=according to the WTFPOD interview, he "had three sisters" but one died. Not sure how to write that here, but it's inaccurate to say he was the youngest of three siblings.|date=April 2025}} He was raised in Hawaii and Colorado during his early years.

D'Onofrio's parents divorced when he was young; his mother later married George Meyer. He became stepbrother to Guy and Connie, Meyer's children from a previous marriage.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}} The family relocated to the Hialeah, Florida area. D'Onofrio has described himself as a shy boy who spent "a lot of time in my room, staying in my head".{{cite news |url= https://www.chicagotribune.com/2000/08/31/shy-star-of-steal/ |newspaper= Chicago Tribune |title=Shy Star Of 'Steal' – Playing Hoffman Hasn't Made Vincent D'Onofrio Better At Social Politics|date=August 31, 2000 |first=Jane| last= Wollman Rusoff |agency= Entertainment News Service}} He later became interested in magic and sleight of hand, learning from Cuban entertainers who owned a small magic shop.

In his teens, he worked backstage in set building and sound production at a number of community theaters run by his father. He graduated from Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High School.{{Cite web |date=2018-12-05 |title=Hialeah Miami Lakes alumnus gives back to school's Drama Club |url=https://miamilaker.com/hialeah-miami-lakes-alumnus-gives-back-to-schools-drama-club |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230331193946/https://miamilaker.com/hialeah-miami-lakes-alumnus-gives-back-to-schools-drama-club |archive-date=2023-03-31 |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=The Miami Laker |language=en-US}}

File:Vincent-donofrio-3.jpg

After graduating from high school, D'Onofrio started to appear on stage. During an 18-month stint at the University of Colorado in Boulder, he was involved with small, community-theater productions. He later studied method acting at the American Stanislavsky Theater and the Actors Studio, under coaches Sonia Moore and Sharon Chatten,{{cite web| url= http://sharonchatten.com/bio |title= Sharon Chatten, Acting Coach |work= Sharonchatten.com }} which landed him his first paid role in off-Broadway's This Property Is Condemned. He went on to appear in a number of their productions, including Of Mice and Men and Sexual Perversity in Chicago. D'Onofrio continued his career by performing in many New York University student productions while also working as a bouncer at the Hard Rock Cafe, a bodyguard for Robert Plant and Yul Brynner{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2479&dat=20001014&id=v1g1AAAAIBAJ&sjid=gSUMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2058,37084082|title=Vincent D'Onofrio takes oddness to a new high|newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer|page=D6|date=October 14, 2000|via=Google News}} and also worked as a deliveryman.

In 1984, he made his Broadway debut as Nick Rizzoli in Open Admissions.{{IBDB name|id=86454|name=Open Admissions}} In 1986, D'Onofrio took on the role often considered the defining moment in his acting career, as Pvt. Leonard Lawrence, an overweight, clumsy Marine recruit in the movie Full Metal Jacket. On a tip from friend Matthew Modine, D'Onofrio was urged to send audition tapes to director Stanley Kubrick, in England. Four tapes later, D'Onofrio landed the role. Originally, the character of Pvt. Lawrence had been written as a "skinny ignorant redneck"; however, Kubrick believed the role would have more impact if the character were big and clumsy. D'Onofrio gained {{convert|70|lbs|abbr=on}} for the role, bringing his weight to {{convert|280|lbs|abbr=on}}.{{cite news|first=Leslie|last=Bennetts|title=The Trauma of Being a Kubrick Marine|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/07/10/movies/the-trama-of-being-a-kubrick-marine.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 10, 1987|access-date=April 30, 2009}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.insider.com/actors-gained-weight-for-roles-2017-4#vincent-donofrio-gained-about-70-pounds-for-his-role-in-full-metal-jacket-17|title=18 actors who gained weight for movie and TV roles|website=Insider.com}} While filming an obstacle course scene for the movie, D'Onofrio injured his left knee, compounded by the excessive weight, which required surgical reconstruction.{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1987/07/24/actor-finds-70-pound-weight-gain-for-full-metal-jacket-a-heavy/|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|title= Actor Finds 70-pound Weight Gain For 'Full Metal Jacket' A Heavy Load|date=July 24, 1987}}

Over the course of nine months after filming of Full Metal Jacket was completed, D'Onofrio lost nearly all the weight he had gained for his role. He went on to play Dawson, the owner of Dawson's Garage, in Adventures in Babysitting (1987).{{cite web |title=Adventures in Babysitting - Full Cast & Crew |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/adventures-in-babysitting/cast/2000113315/ |website=TV GUIDE |access-date=14 January 2025}} He appears in one scene near the end of the film. In 1988, he was cast in another supporting role in the film Mystic Pizza, playing the fiancé of Lili Taylor's character. In the film, which was Julia Roberts' breakout film, he was billed under his full name Vincent Philip D'Onofrio. In 1989 he played a supporting role as Young Gar in The Blood of Heroes alongside Joan Chen and Rutger Hauer, for which he is also billed under his full name.

D'Onofrio continued to play a wide variety of minor or supporting roles, including the father of a saint in Nancy Savoca's Household Saints (1993), director Orson Welles in Tim Burton's Ed Wood (1994), farmer Edgar and the evil "Bug" that possesses him from Men in Black (1997), a man who claims to be from the future in Happy Accidents (2000), and the serial killer Carl Stargher, opposite Jennifer Lopez's character in The Cell (2000).

In 1992, he appeared in Robert Altman's The Player, as an aspiring screenwriter.

In 1996, he interpreted pulp writer Robert E. Howard, author of Conan the Barbarian in Dan Ireland's The Whole Wide World (1996) adapted from Novalyne Price Ellis' mémoire One Who Walked Alone: Robert E. Howard, The Final Years. The Whole Wide World was awarded Best New American Film at The Seattle International Film Festival (1996).

For the role of Robert E. Howard D'Onofrio was awarded Best Actor at the 1996 Seattle International Film Festival and Best Actor at the 1998 Lone Star Film & Television Awards.

In 1997, he made a move to television and received an Emmy nomination for his appearance as John Lange in the Homicide: Life on the Street episode "Subway".

In 1999, he turned down a role in The Sopranos.{{cite web |last=Greenleaf |first=Cat |title=Talk Stoop |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPMafRXg2j0|work=NBC New York |date=June 23, 2011}} D'Onofrio portrayed leftist radical Abbie Hoffman in Steal This Movie! in 2000, starring Janeane Garofalo as his wife.{{cn|date=November 2024}}

In 2001, he took on what became his longest and perhaps best-known role as Det. Robert Goren on the NBC/USA Network television show Law & Order: Criminal Intent. On March 1, 2008, D'Onofrio made a cameo appearance in a presidential election-related sketch in a Saturday Night Live episode as his character Det. Robert Goren.{{Cite news|last=Itzkoff|first=Dave|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/03/arts/television/03down.html|title='SNL' Writer Narrows the Gap Between Politics and Farce|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 3, 2008}} In the sketch, he interrogates Hillary Clinton (played by Amy Poehler). His entrance to and exit from the skit are punctuated by the Law & Order "dun-DUN" sound.

In 2009, it was announced that D'Onofrio would be leaving Law & Order: Criminal Intent in the spring of 2010, with his last appearance occurring in the two-part, season-9 premiere.{{cite web|url=http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2009/09/vincent-donofrio-departing-law-order-criminal-intent.html|title=Vincent D'Onofrio departing 'Law & Order: Criminal Intent|work=Zap 2 It|date=September 25, 2009|access-date=March 26, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100404021354/http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2009/09/vincent-donofrio-departing-law-order-criminal-intent.html|archive-date=April 4, 2010|url-status=dead}} He was replaced by Jeff Goldblum, but after a drop in ratings, D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe agreed to return for a 10th (and final) season of the show.{{Cite news |title='Law & Order: CI' returns to USA |newspaper = Variety |date=September 22, 2010 |url= https://variety.com/2010/tv/news/law-order-ci-returns-to-usa-1118024461/ |access-date= December 15, 2021|first= Stuart |last= Levine}}{{cite web|first=Matt Webb |last=Mitovich |url=http://www.tvline.com/2011/07/law-order-criminal-intent-series-finale-confirmed/ |title=No Reprieve for Law & Order: CI: 'It Was a Good Series Finale, ' Says USA Network Boss |work=TVLine |date=July 15, 2011 }}

In 2003, it was reported that D'Onofrio and Joe Pantoliano had begun work on a small film titled Little Victories, about a 12-year-old boy whose perceptions of the world are forever changed when his gangster uncle comes to live with him. According to a television interview with Pantoliano, the film was not completed and went into turnaround due to a failure to raise the funds necessary for production.{{Citation needed|date=August 2007}}

In November 2005, D'Onofrio won Best Actor at the Stockholm International Film Festival for his role as Mike Cobb in the independent film Thumbsucker. In 2006, he appeared in The Break-Up, starring Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn, playing Vaughn's eccentric brother. Vaughn and he had appeared together in two previous films, The Cell (2000), wherein Vaughn played an FBI agent pursuing D'Onofrio's character, and Thumbsucker (2005). He appears in the Oscar-winning short The New Tenants (2009).{{Cite web |title= "The New Tenants" Review |url=https://theindependentcritic.com/new_tenants |access-date=March 21, 2022 |website=The Independent Critic}}

Over the next few years, D'Onofrio co-starred in films such as: Staten Island (2009), Brooklyn's Finest (2010), Kill the Irishman (2011), Crackers (2011), American Falls (2012),{{cite web| url=https://www.indiewire.com/2011/07/indiewires-project-of-the-day-civil-rights-era-motel-drama-american-falls-53082/ |title=indieWIRE's Project of the Day: Civil Rights Era Motel Drama "American Falls" |work=Indiewire|access-date=December 15, 2021|date=November 8, 2011 }} Fire with Fire (2012), and Ass Backwards (2013).

In 2011, he began work on the Jennifer Lynch 2012 film Chained (previously titled Rabbit) in which he portrays Bob, a serial killer who kidnaps a young boy, Rabbit, and makes him his protégé. When he becomes older, Rabbit must decide whether to follow in the footsteps of his captor or plan his escape. The film shot in areas in and around Regina and Moose Jaw, both in Saskatchewan.{{cite web|author=|url=http://www.mjtimes.sk.ca/Local/News/2011-07-08/article-2641066/Scary-movie-shot-in-Moose-Jaw/1|title=Scary movie shot in Moose Jaw|newspaper=Moose Jaw Times|date=July 8, 2011|access-date=July 13, 2011|archive-date=July 20, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720085338/http://www.mjtimes.sk.ca/Local/News/2011-07-08/article-2641066/Scary-movie-shot-in-Moose-Jaw/1|url-status=dead}} On May 1, 2012, due to "explicit violence", the movie was given an NC-17 rating by the MPAA, despite appeals by both Jennifer Lynch and the distributor, with scenes cut to maximize theater exposure and distribution.{{cite news|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2012/05/nc17-mpaa-rating-appeal-chained-killer-joe-shame-movie-violence-clip.html|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|title=MPAA upholds NC-17 rating on Jennifer Lynch's 'Chained'|date=May 1, 2012}} No stranger to the NC-17 ratings, Lynch, who responded to the ruling a day later{{cite news|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2012/05/chained-rating-mpaa-nc17-killer-joe.html|work=Los Angeles Times|title=MPAA: Director to recut 'Chained', but asks why she needs to|date=May 3, 2012}} had previously seen cuts made to her film Boxing Helena. In July 2012, a press release from Anchor Bay announced that the film would be released on Blu-ray and DVD on October 2, 2012, and would include the deleted scene, involving a throat being cut, which caused the NC-17 rating.{{cite press release|url=http://www.hometheaterforum.com/t/322503/anchor-bay-press-release-chained-dvd|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130125143444/http://www.hometheaterforum.com/t/322503/anchor-bay-press-release-chained-dvd|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 25, 2013|title=Chained|publisher=Anchor Bay|work=HomeTheaterForum.com|date=September 5, 2012}}

On September 14, 2011, it was announced that D'Onofrio would star alongside Ethan Hawke in a new NBC show, Blue Tilt, named after the harmful psychological effects homicide detectives experience after constantly dealing with horrific crimes.{{cite web|last=Andreeva|first=Nellie|url=https://deadline.com/2011/09/ethan-hawke-and-vince-donofrio-to-star-in-nbc-crime-drama-written-by-chris-brancato-171385/|title=Ethan Hawke And Vince D'Onofrio To Star In NBC Crime Drama Written By Chris Brancato|work=Deadline|date=September 14, 2011}} D'Onofrio and Hawke had worked together in the films The Newton Boys, Staten Island, Brooklyn's Finest and Sinister. The hour-long cop drama, in which D'Onofrio would play Sonny, was to follow the main characters' attempts to balance their careers with family life. Writer Chris Brancato, fresh from Season 10 of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, was brought on board to pen the episodes. Filming of the pilot episode was set to start in February 2012.{{cite web|url=http://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/52216|title=Capone interviews Vincent D'Onofrio about his directing debut, the horror-musical DON'T GO IN THE WOODS|work=Aintitcool.com|access-date=December 15, 2021}} On March 27, 2012, a tweet from Kevin Dunigan, the co-creator and developer of the pilot, revealed that NBC had shelved the project because it did not have enough "pop to attract viewers".

On April 30, 2012, the short film Crackers, starring D'Onofrio as Gus, won a People's Choice Award at the Fort Myers Beach Film Festival. The festival, which had been dormant for six years, was rekindled and partly organized by Vincent's sister, actress Elizabeth D'Onofrio.{{cite web|url=http://holidaytripper.com/florida-travel-guide/the-winners-at-the-fort-myers-beach-film-festival|title=The Winners at the Fort Myers Film Festival|website=HolidayTripper.com|date=April 30, 2012|access-date=April 2, 2015}}

Also in November, filming began on the Vidhu Vinod Chopra movie Broken Horses, which focused on gang warfare around the border between the United States and Mexico. D'Onofrio starred alongside Chris Marquette and Anton Yelchin.{{cite web| url= http://www.screendaily.com/news/asia-pacific/chopras-broken-horses-starts-shooting-with-donofrio/5049204.article|title= Chopra's Broken Horses starts shooting with D'Onofrio|work=ScreenDaily|access-date=April 23, 2015}}{{cite news|url-status=dead|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/457680/Broken-Horses/details|title=Broken-Horses – Cast, Crew, Director and Awards|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511223435/https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/457680/Broken-Horses/details| archive-date=May 11, 2011|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=The New York Times|date=2011|access-date=April 1, 2018}}

In 2013, D'Onofrio co-starred in the film Escape Plan, filmed in New Orleans, also starring Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and 50 Cent. D'Onofrio portrayed Lester Clark, deputy director of the Prisons Bureau.{{cite news|url=https://variety.com/2012/film/news/d-onofrio-50-cent-enter-the-tomb-1118052301/|newspaper=Variety|first1=Jeff|last1=Sneider|first2=Justin|last2=Kroll|title=D'Onofrio, 50 Cent enter 'The Tomb'|date=April 4, 2012|access-date=December 15, 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://collider.com/the-tomb-filming-sam-neill/166127|title=Production Begins on 'The Tomb'|work=Collider|access-date=April 25, 2018|archive-date=January 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200105201122/https://collider.com/the-tomb-filming-sam-neill/166127/|url-status=dead}}

D'Onofrio co-starred in the film drama The Judge (2014).{{cite news| newspaper= The Hollywood Reporter| url= https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/robert-downey-jrs-judge-hit-597220|title='The Judge' Gets a Fall 2014 Release|first=Pamela|last=McClintock|date=July 31, 2013|access-date=April 2, 2015}}

His other projects included a role in Supreme Ruler with Marcia Gay Harden and Jeffrey Dean Morgan,{{cite web |last= Brooks |first= Brian |url=https://deadline.com/2012/02/marcia-gay-harden-set-for-supreme-ruler-234078/|title=Marcia Gay Harden, Brian Geraghty, Vincent D'Onofrio, Jeffrey Dean Morgan Set For Supreme Ruler|work=Deadline |date=February 21, 2012}} Eric Bogosian's Mall which he co-wrote with his former Law & Order: Criminal Intent co-star, and Pawn Shop Chronicles.{{cite web|last=Fleming |first=Mike |url=https://deadline.com/2012/06/matt-dillon-brendan-fraser-elijah-wood-vincent-donofrio-join-wayne-kramers-pawn-shop-chronicles-281632/|title=Pawn Shop Chronicles|work=Deadline Hollywood|date=June 4, 2012}}

In 2015, D'Onofrio made his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut as Wilson Fisk in the first season of Daredevil.{{cite web| url= http://marvel.com/news/tv/2014/6/10/22659/vincent_donofrio_is_wilson_fisk_on_marvels_daredevil_on_netflix| title= Vincent D'Onofrio is Wilson Fisk on Marvel's Daredevil on Netflix| work= Marvel.com| date= June 10, 2014| access-date= June 10, 2014| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140614000121/http://marvel.com/news/tv/2014/6/10/22659/vincent_donofrio_is_wilson_fisk_on_marvels_daredevil_on_netflix| archive-date= June 14, 2014| url-status=dead}} He reprised the role in an extended cameo appearance in season 2, and in season 3 as a series regular.{{cite web|url=https://news.marvel.com/tv/79287/vincent-donofrio-returns-as-wilson-fisk-in-season-3-of-marvels-daredevil|title=Vincent D'Onofrio Returns As Wilson Fisk In Season 3 Of 'Marvel's Daredevil'|last=Dinh|first=Christine|website=Marvel|date=October 25, 2017|access-date=October 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026053750/https://news.marvel.com/tv/79287/vincent-donofrio-returns-as-wilson-fisk-in-season-3-of-marvels-daredevil/|archive-date=October 26, 2017|url-status=dead}} He also portrayed Victor "Vic" Hoskins in the action adventure film Jurassic World (2015),{{cite web|url=https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/89348/new-jurassic-world-viral-now-100-vincent-donofrio|title= Vincent D'Onofrio as Vic Hoskins|date=February 10, 2015|first=Steve|last=Barton|work=dreadcentral.com}} and Jack Horne in Antoine Fuqua's 2016 remake of The Magnificent Seven.

In 2016, he played the role of the evil Duke Luca Abele in the video game Dishonored 2.{{Cite news|url=https://www.pcgamer.com/dishonored-2-voice-cast-features-vincent-donofrio-rosario-dawson-and-an-old-thief/|title = Dishonored 2 voice cast features Vincent d'Onofrio, Rosario Dawson, and an old Thief|newspaper = Pc Gamer|date = May 3, 2016}} He was able to draw upon his extensive acting experience to fully flesh out the voice of the corrupt Duke Abele in various public speeches that were broadcast in-game over large speakers suspended in the game area.

He plays the role of Vincent "The Chin" Gigante in the American crime drama television series Godfather of Harlem.{{Cite web |date=September 27, 2019 |title=Vincent D'Onofrio portrays a legendary mob boss |url=https://www.audacy.com/1010wins/articles/vincent-donofrio-portrays-legendary-mob-boss |access-date=May 16, 2022 |website=Audacy}} The series began in 2019 and is scheduled for a third season in 2023.{{Cite web |last=Murphy |first=J. Kim |date=January 13, 2022 |title='Godfather of Harlem' Renewed for Season 3 at Epix |url=https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/godfather-of-harlem-renewed-season-3-forest-whitaker-1235153088/ |access-date=May 16, 2022 |website=Variety}}

D'Onofrio returned to the role of Wilson Fisk/Kingpin in the Marvel Studios Disney+ series Hawkeye (2021), Echo (2024), and Daredevil: Born Again (2025–present).[https://abc7.com/post/daredevil-born-will-reunite-original-cast-seasons-disney/15183017/ 'DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN' WILL REUNITE THE ORIGINAL CAST FOR TWO SEASONS ON DISNEY PLUS]{{cite web |last1=Kit |first1=Borys |last2=Couch |first2=Aaron |title=Charlie Cox, Vincent D'Onofrio Returning for Marvel Series 'Echo' |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/charlie-cox-vincent-donofrio-echo-1235170929/ |website=The Hollywood Reporter |access-date=July 7, 2022 |date=July 7, 2022}}{{Cite web |last=Vary |first=Adam B. |date=July 24, 2022 |title=Marvel Studios' Phases 5 and 6: Everything We Learned at Comic-Con About the Multiverse Saga |url=https://variety.com/2022/film/news/marvel-studios-phase-5-phase-6-multiverse-saga-comic-con-1235323893/ |access-date=January 17, 2024 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}

D'Onofrio has also had success behind the camera, producing The Whole Wide World (1996), in which he also starred, and Guy (1997) as well as executive producing The Velocity of Gary (1998) and Steal This Movie! (2000). In 2005, he directed and starred in the short film Five Minutes, Mr. Welles (2005), which represented a culmination of D'Onofrio's desire to improve on his performance as Welles in Ed Wood, which reportedly left director Tim Burton underwhelmed. Burton decided to procure the services of Maurice LaMarche, a voiceoover artist known for his imitation of Welles' voice, to produce a more dramatically effective rendering of the character's dialogue. Disappointed with his performance, having been given two weeks notice to prepare for the role, D'Onofrio wrote, produced, directed, and starred in the short in answer to the critics and himself. The film depicts D'Onofrio as Welles preparing for his role in The Third Man.{{YouTube|id=s-4PPr3r_r0|title=Five Minutes, Mr Welles}}

In 2008, he returned to directing with the feature-length musical slasher Don't Go in the Woods (2010), written by his friend Joe Vinciguerra, featuring a score by Sam Bisbee, and starring various unknown actors hand-picked by D'Onofrio. It follows an indie rock band who venture into the woods to write new music, only to meet a crazed murderer (Tim Lajcik).{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/29/nyregion/29moviecast.html|title=Acting in a Film: It Could Happen to You|date=May 29, 2010|newspaper=The New York Times}} The film, shot in 13 days near Kingston, New York, had a budget of $100,000 and played at numerous festivals throughout 2009 and 2010. Initially slated for national release in December 2011,{{cite web |url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/2011/03/24/tribeca_films |title=Tribeca Films to Release Movies During Festival |work=Indiewire |access-date=August 15, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812123727/http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/2011/03/24/tribeca_films/ |archive-date=August 12, 2011 |url-status=dead }} the film opened to limited theaters on January 13, 2012,{{cite web|url=http://www.coveringmedia.com/movie/2012/01/dont-go-in-the-woods.html|title=Don't Go in the Woods Release Dates|work=Coveringmedia.com}} and was released on DVD on June 12, 2012. His next project is directing and starring in the 2019 western The Kid.{{Cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/07/dane-dehaan-billy-the-kid-vincent-donofrio-valerian-the-kid-suretone-pictures-1202131369/|title=Vincent D'Onofrio Taps 'Valarian's Dane DeHaan to Play Billy the Kid in Suretone Western|date=July 19, 2017|work=Deadline|access-date=June 24, 2018}}

On October 27, 2009, D'Onofrio made his musical debut, appearing in character as comedic country singer George Geronimo Gerkie at Joe's Pub in New York City.{{cite web |url=http://www.gothamjazz.com/evdb/E0-001-025740830-6 |title=Vincent D'Onofrio presents The George Gerkie Cowboy Experience featuring Laura Cantrell, Joe Vinciguerra & special guest Sam Bisbee at Joe's Pub |work=Gotham Jazz |access-date=February 23, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111231135550/http://www.gothamjazz.com/evdb/E0-001-025740830-6 |archive-date=December 31, 2011 |url-status=dead }} He appeared as Gerkie again at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom on December 6, 2009, during Matt Pinfield's Holiday Extravaganza Show and at the premiere of his movie Don't Go in the Woods at Joe's Pub on May 28, 2010. A fourth concert was held at the pub on July 22, 2010, with proceeds from the event going to the Utah Meth Cops project.{{cite web|url=http://www.utah-detox.org/ |title=Utah Detox official website |work=Utah-detox.org }}

On November 11, 2011, while teaching students at the Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy, D'Onofrio discussed plans for further concerts, and a George Gerkie documentary which is to be filmed by Ultrasuede: In Search of Halston director Whitney Smith.{{cn|date=November 2024}}

In September 2011, Australian hip hop band The Funkoars, released an album titled The Quickening, featuring the song "Being Vincent D'Onofrio", an homage to D'Onofrio's career and his work on Law and Order: Criminal Intent.{{YouTube|id=njwzW7MV-fk|title=The Funkoars – Being Vincent D'Onofrio}} In February 2012, the band announced their upcoming "Being Vincent D'Onofrio Tour 2012" with artwork featuring D'Onofrio's face in place of the band members'.{{cite web |url=http://www.funkoars.com/tour/ |title=Being Vincent D'Onofrio Tour 2012 |work=The Funkoars }}

In 2014, D'Onofrio released two songs as part of an avant garde spoken-word project with multi-instrumentalist and composer Dana Lyn. The first single, "I'm a Hamster", gathered attention on social media. The full album was made available for purchase in March 2015, on the band's website.{{citation needed|date=April 2016}}

In August 2022 D'Onofrio announced the upcoming publication of a children's book based on his viral tweet about pigs and their reputed inability to look up.{{cite web |url= https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/viral-tweet-inspires-vincent-donofrio-kids-book/ |title=Viral Tweet Inspires Kids Book}} The book, entitled Pigs Can't Look Up, was published in May 2023 and expanded on D'Onofrio's original tweet, creating a character who commits to the act of kindness the tweet described.{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=JKWQzgEACAAJ |title=Google Books: Pigs Can't Look Up|isbn=9781951836757 |last1=d'Onofrio |first1=Vincent |year=2023 |publisher=Cameron + Company }}

File:Vincent Utah.jpg

In 1998, D'Onofrio, with his father Gene and sister Elizabeth, founded the RiverRun International Film Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.{{cite web|url=http://www.riverrunfilm.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13&Itemid=11 |title=RiverRun International Film Festival history |work=RiverRun Film |date=July 2, 2012 }} In 2003, former film producer and dean of the School of Filmmaking at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Dale Pollock, took over the festival and moved it from Brevard, North Carolina, to Winston-Salem. Annually, the festival showcases the best films offered from the independent and international industry, as well as those from student filmmakers.{{cite web |url=http://www.riverrunfilm.com/content/history |title=History of the RiverRun Festival |work=RiverRun Film |access-date=July 12, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711224141/http://www.riverrunfilm.com/content/history |archive-date=July 11, 2011 |url-status=dead }}

In 2008, alongside his sister, Toni, D'Onofrio began hosting events to raise money for the Utah Meth Cops Project.{{cite web|url=http://www.policemag.com/Channel/Patrol/News/2010/07/06/FLEOA-Vincent-D-Onofrio-Support-Detox-Program-for-Meth-Cops.aspx |title=Vincent D'Onofrio Support Detox Program for Meth Cops |work=Policemag.com |date=July 6, 2010 }}{{YouTube|id=MhltXAQd8X0|title=Vincent D'Onofrio supporting Meth Cops Project}} He served as the project's spokesperson from 2009 to 2012.{{cite web |first=Emiley |last=Morgan |url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705331633/Actor-helps-sell-detox-program.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120730023422/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705331633/Actor-helps-sell-detox-program.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 30, 2012 |title=Actor Helps 'sell' detox program |newspaper=Deseret News |date=September 22, 2009 }}

In the fall of 2011, D'Onofrio became a member of the advisory board for the Woodstock Film Festival, which holds an annual event for independent films.{{cite web|url=http://www.woodstockfilmfestival.com/advisory.htm |title=Woodstock Film Festival Advisory Board |work=Woodstock Film Festival}} Other members of the board include Griffin Dunne, Ethan Hawke, and Aidan Quinn.

In February 2011, D'Onofrio became a public face of the gun control debate, appearing in an ad by the Citizens Crime Commission of New York City urging a ban on large-capacity ammunition magazines.{{YouTube|id=SLthSyDQ8a0|title=NYC Crime Commission D'Onofrio Ban Large Capacity Ammunition Magazines}}{{cite web|url=http://edition.cnn.com/video/?/video/crime/2011/02/05/candiotti.gun.control.ad.cnn |title=Actor Vincent D'Onofrio urges the public to ban the sale of high capacity magazines in a new political ad |work=CNN |date=July 16, 2010 }}

In 2012, D'Onofrio returned to teach at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute where his daughter was a student.{{cite web|url=http://www.methodactingstrasberg.com/workingwithdirector/vincent-donofrios-acting-for-film-and-tv-class-7|title=Vincent D'Onofrio's Acting for Film and TV class|work=The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute|date=March 2, 2012|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151121015616/http://www.methodactingstrasberg.com/workingwithdirector/vincent-donofrios-acting-for-film-and-tv-class-7|archive-date=November 21, 2015}}

On August 9, 2012, it was announced that D'Onofrio had been chosen to narrate the documentary, Heroes Behind The Badge (2012). The film follows four fallen officers and the impact their deaths have had on their families, colleagues, and communities. The proceeds are benefitting a memorial museum being built in Washington, D.C.{{cite web |url=http://www.policeone.com/police-products/duty-gear/badges/press-releases/5908002-Vincent-D-Onofrio-On-board-to-Narrate-Heroes-Behind-the-Badge-Documentary/ |title=Vincent D'Onofrio to narrate Heroes Behind the Badge Documentary |work=Policeone.com |date=August 9, 2012 }} A longtime supporter of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, D'Onofrio has been the spokesperson for the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and Museum since 2010.{{cite web |url=http://www.nleomf.org/newsroom/news-releases/the-honorable-michael-2.html |title=The Honorable Michael Chertoff, Actors Richard Belzer and Vincent D'Onofrio and Others Headline the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial's 20th Anniversary Gala |work=NLEOMF.org |date=October 12, 2011 |access-date=February 15, 2012 |archive-date=January 26, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120126222730/http://www.nleomf.org/newsroom/news-releases/the-honorable-michael-2.html |url-status=dead }} A follow-up to the documentary, subtitled Sacrifice and Survival, was released in the fall of 2013.{{YouTube|Qfry34HylCE|Heroes Behind The Badge: Sacrifice & Survival -Documentary- Official HD Trailer}}

On November 13, 2012, D'Onofrio joined the cast of the off-Broadway production Clive, alongside Brooks Ashmanskas and Zoe Kazan. Produced by Jonathan Marc Sherman and directed by Ethan Hawke, the play, based on Baal by Bertolt Brecht, opened at The New Group at Theatre Row on February 7, 2013.{{cite web |url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/172204-Brooks-Ashmanskas-Vincent-DOnofrio-and-Zoe-Kazan-Will-Join-Ethan-Hawke-in-Off-Broadways-Clive |title=Brooks Ashmanskas, Vincent D'Onofrio and Zoe Kazan Will Join Ethan Hawke in Off-Broadway's Clive |work=Playbill |access-date=April 23, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130604215106/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/172204-Brooks-Ashmanskas-Vincent-DOnofrio-and-Zoe-Kazan-Will-Join-Ethan-Hawke-in-Off-Broadways-Clive |archive-date=June 4, 2013 |url-status=dead }}

Image:Vincent D'Onofrio and wife Carin van der Donk.jpg in New York City for the premiere of Speed Racer in 2008]]

In the early 1990s, D'Onofrio dated actress Greta Scacchi, with whom he starred in several films during that period (including The Player and Fires Within). Their daughter is actress Leila George (b. ~1992).{{cite news| last= Macdonald |first= Marianne |date= November 28, 1999 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/1999/nov/28/2 |title=Trainspotting, I'd love to do that... |newspaper=The Guardian |quote=Her daughter's father is the actor Vincent D'Onofrio, with whom Scacchi had a four-year relationship that ended acrimoniously not long after the baby, Leila, was born. |access-date= September 19, 2015}}{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3561370/Greta-Scacchi-glad-to-be-back.html |title=Greta Scacchi: glad to be back |first=Marianne |last=Macdonald |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=September 28, 2008 |access-date=August 4, 2020 |url-access=limited |archive-date=September 15, 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120915092117/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3561370/Greta-Scacchi-glad-to-be-back.html|url-status=live|quote=...Leila, 16, Scacchi's daughter by D'Onofrio.}}{{cite magazine|url= https://www.wmagazine.com/story/leila-george-the-kid-vincent-donofrio-daughter/|title=Meet Leila George, a Hollywood Royal Emerging as a Star in The Kid|first=Jenny|last= Comita|date=March 11, 2019|magazine= W|publisher=Future Media Group|access-date=August 4, 2020|archive-date=January 26, 2020| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200126042649/https://www.wmagazine.com/story/leila-george-the-kid-vincent-donofrio-daughter/|url-status=live|quote=...the Australian-born, English-bred 26-year-old...}} He was the father-in-law of actor Sean Penn, who was married to George from 2020 to 2022.{{cite web |last1=Kasprak |first1=Alex |title=Is Sean Penn Vincent D'Onofrio's Son-In-Law? |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/sean-penn-vincent-donofrio/ |website=Snopes |access-date=September 9, 2024 |date=February 14, 2021}}

On March 22, 1997, D'Onofrio married Dutch model Carin van der Donk{{cn|date=November 2024}} and the couple had a son (born 1999). They separated in the early 2000s,{{cite news |last=Davlin |first=Darren |title=Going, going Goren|agency=Australian Associated Press|work=Perth Now |date=February 27, 2007 |url=http://www.perthnow.com.au/entertainment/television/going-going-goren/story-e6frg3h3-1111113073257 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120918145329/http://www.perthnow.com.au/entertainment/television/going-going-goren/story-e6frg3h3-1111113073257 |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 18, 2012 |access-date=February 12, 2012 |quote=D'Onofrio also has a son Elias, 5, the product of his now-dissolved marriage to Carin van der Donk. }} but reconciled and had a second son (born 2008).{{cite web |url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20179202,00.html |title=Criminal Intent's Vincent D'Onofrio Welcomes a Son |work=People |date=February 21, 2008 |access-date=April 11, 2008 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924154737/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20179202,00.html |url-status=dead }}

In June 2023, D'Onofrio filed for divorce in Manhattan Supreme Court.{{cn|date=November 2024}}

On November 10, 2004, D'Onofrio collapsed on the set of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. He collapsed again at home a few days later and was diagnosed with exhaustion, attributed to his 14-hour days filming Criminal Intent, and the making of his short film Five Minutes, Mr. Welles during the show's hiatus.{{cite news| url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0DE4D91E30F936A15751C1A9629C8B63&pagewanted=all | newspaper=The New York Times | first=Mark | last=Lasswell | title=An Exhausting Season For an Implacable TV Cop | date=December 25, 2004}}

D'Onofrio is dyslexic.{{cite web |last1=Bramesco |first1=Charles |title=Vincent D'Onofrio: 'I really did get mugged by a monkey' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2021/may/12/vincent-donofrio-interview-book-mutha-poetry |website=The Guardian |access-date=July 11, 2024 |date=May 12, 2021}} In 2011, he stated his belief that he might have been diagnosed with autism as a child had knowledge of the condition been more advanced at the time.{{cite AV media |date=October 24, 2011 |title=Vincent D'Onofrio on Johnny and Me&Autism-September 25, 2011 |type=YouTube video |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvI6pMyAMHk |access-date=July 11, 2024 |format= |time=2:25 |quote= }}

• Mr. Laughs: A Look Behind The Curtain (2008), narrator for autobiographical documentary based on the life of comedian Sal Richards.{{cite web|last=Haag |first=James |url=http://sachem.patch.com/articles/comedian-signs-copies-of-book-at-macarthur-airport |title=Article on "Mr. Laughs – A Look Behind the Curtain" |work=Sachem.patch.com |date=August 9, 2010 }}
• Man on the Ledge (October 2010), radio play.{{cite web |last=Maggio |first=Joe |url=http://talesfrombeyondthepale.com/tales/season-1/man-on-the-ledge/ |title=Tales from Beyond the Pale: Man on the Ledge |work=Talesfrombeyondthepale.com |date=October 26, 2010 |access-date=July 12, 2011 |archive-date=August 16, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110816175034/http://talesfrombeyondthepale.com/tales/season-1/man-on-the-ledge/ |url-status=dead }}
• Heroes Behind The Badge (Fall 2012), narrator for documentary.{{cn|date=November 2024}}
• Like Father, Like Son and Ram King (October 2012), Tales From Beyond The Pale live radio play performed live at Dixon Place in NYC.
• Citizen Jane: Battle for the City (April 2017), voice of Robert Moses for documentary on Jane Jacobs' crusade to save Washington Square Park from being overrun by an expressway.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=107&v=hKjkjntspfA Citizen Jane: The Battle for the City – Official Trailer I HD I Sundance Selects (YouTube)]

{{reflist}}

{{Commons category}}

• [http://www.nbc.com/Law_&_Order:_Criminal_Intent/bios/Vincent_DOnofrio.shtml Official NBC biography][https://web.archive.org/web/20060412095339/http://www.nbc.com/Law_&_Order:_Criminal_Intent/bios/Vincent_DOnofrio.shtml Archived]
• {{IMDb name|352}}

{{s-start}} {{s-ach}}

|-

! colspan="3" style="background: #DAA520;" | Seattle International Film Festival

|-

{{Succession box

| title = Best Actor

| years = for The Whole Wide World
1996

| before= Kevin Spacey for
The Usual Suspects

| after = Brendan Fraser for
Still Breathing

}}

|-

! colspan="3" style="background: #DAA520;" | Saturn Awards

|-

{{Succession box

| title = Best Supporting Actor

| years = for Men in Black
1997

| before = Brent Spiner for
Star Trek: First Contact

| after = Ian McKellen for
Apt Pupil

}}

{{S-end}}

{{Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:D'Onofrio, Vincent}}

Category:1959 births

Category:20th-century American male actors

Category:21st-century American male actors

Category:Actors with dyslexia

Category:American actors with disabilities

Category:American male film actors

Category:American male screenwriters

Category:American male singers

Category:American male television actors

Category:American male video game actors

Category:American male voice actors

Category:American people of Italian descent

Category:American writers with disabilities

Category:Autistic actors

Category:Autistic writers

Category:Film directors from Brooklyn

Category:Film directors with dyslexia

Category:Film producers from New York (state)

Category:Living people

Category:Male actors from Brooklyn

Category:Male actors from Manhattan

Category:Method actors

Category:Musicians from Brooklyn

Category:People from Bensonhurst, Brooklyn

Category:People from Gramercy Park

Category:People of Sicilian descent

Category:People self-diagnosed with autism

Category:Writers with dyslexia