
Jay O. Sanders
Biography
Jay Olcutt Sanders (born April 16, 1953) is an American film, theatre and television actor and playwright. He frequently appears in plays off-Broadway at The Public Theatre. He has received a Drama Desk Award and a New York Drama Critics' Circle Award.
Sanders made his off-Broadway debut in a Shakespeare in the Park production of Henry V in 1976. He originated the role of Bradley in Sam Shepard's Buried Child (1978). He made his Broadway debut in the play Loose Ends (1979). He returned to Broadway in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (1983), Saint Joan (1993), Pygmalion (2007), Girl from the North Country (2020), and Purlie Victorious (2023).
He made his feature film debut in the comedy Starting Over (1979). He had notable roles in films such as Cross Creek (1983), Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988), Glory (1989), JFK (1991), Hostages (1992), Angels in the Outfield (1994), Music of the Heart (1999), Tumbleweeds (1999), and Revolutionary Road (2008). He took recurring roles in television series including Law & Order: Criminal Intent, The Good Wife, Person of Interest, Blindspot, and Sneaky Pete. He has served as the narrator for the shows Wide Angle, Nova, and Secrets of the Dead.
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Gallery




Known For
Acting History
2026
Remain
2024Girl From the North Country as Nick Laine
2024His Three Daughters as Vincent
2024Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch as Ol' Cap'n Cotchipee
2024Decoding the Universe as Narrator
2023Outrage as Frank Brand
2023When You Finish Saving the World as Roger
2022BARDO, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths as Ambassador Jones
2022The Road to Galena as John Baird
2020Incidental Moments of the Day as Richard Apple
2020And So We Come Forth as Richard Apple
2020Tapes
2020What Do We Need to Talk About? as Richard Apple
2020That Hopey Changey Thing as Richard Apple
2020Sweet and Sad as Richard Apple
2020Regular Singing as Richard Apple
2020Sorry as Richard Apple
2020Stars in the House as Self
2020The Assistant as Boss (voice)
2019NOVA: Decoding da Vinci as Narrator (voice)
2019Uncle Vanya as Vanya
2019DC Noir as Sgt. Peters
2019Saving the Dead Sea
2019Secrets of the Dead: The Nero Files as Narrator (voice)
2019The Violin Alone as Narrator (voice)
2018Broken Places as Narrator (voice)
2018NOVA: Prediction by the Numbers as Narrator (voice)
2018NOVA: First Face of America as Narrator (voice)
2018Vice as Governor
2017Ghosts of Stonehenge as Narrator (voice)
2017Manhunt as Jack Bryant
2017NOVA: Holocaust Escape Tunnel as Narrator (voice)
2017The Gabriels: Election Year in the Life of One Family, Play Three: Women of a Certain Age as George Gabriel
2017The Gabriels: Election Year in the Life of One Family, Play Two: What Did You Expect? as George Gabriel
2017The Gabriels: Election Year in the Life of One Family, Play One: Hungry as George Gabriel
2017NOVA: Why Trains Crash as Narrator (voice)
2017NOVA: Secrets of the Sky Tombs as Narrator (voice)
2016Secrets of the Dead: Graveyard of the Giant Beasts as Narrator (voice)
2016Catfight as Angry Guy
2016NOVA: Iceman Reborn as Narrator (voice)
2016NOVA: Mystery Beneath the Ice as Narrator (voice)
2016NOVA: Life's Rocky Start as Narrator (voice)
2016NOVA: Secret Tunnel Warfare as Narrator (voice)
2015Inside Einstein's Mind: The Enigma of Space and Time as Narrator (voice)
2015Chicago Med as Cray
2015Secrets of the Dead: The Real Trojan Horse as Narrator (voice)
2015NOVA: Secrets of Noah's Ark as Narrator (voice)
2015Blindspot as Bill Weller
2015Dawn of Humanity as Narrator (voice)
2015Sneaky Pete as Sam
2015NOVA: The Great Math Mystery as Narrator (voice)
2015Northern Borders as Agent Sanders
2014The Mystery of Mona Lisa as Narrator (voice)
2014The Gathering Swarms as Narrator (voice)
2014True Detective as Billy Lee Tuttle
2013NOVA: Cold Case JFK as Narrator (voice)
2013NOVA: Ground Zero Supertower as Self - Narrator (voice)
2013The River as Phil
2013NOVA: Who Killed Lindbergh's Baby? as Narrator (voice)
2012The Man Who Saved the World as Narrator (voice)
2012NOVA: Secrets of the Viking Sword as Narrator (voice)
2012Earth from Space as Narrator (voice)
2011A Novel Romance as Walter Evans
2011Pan Am as Douglas Vanderway
2011Person of Interest as Special Counsel
2011Unforgettable as Jonathan Hedstrom
2011I'm Coming Over as Walter
2011Green Lantern as Carl Ferris
2011Adventures in Plymptoons! as Self
2011Body of Proof as Harvey Brady
2011The Jewel as Mr. Rothman
2010Blue Bloods as Jimmy Reagan
2010Edge of Darkness as Whitehouse
2010Riddles of the Sphinx as Narrator (voice)
2010Secrets of Stonehenge as Narrator (voice)
2009The Good Wife as Judge Hal Ferris
2009I Hate Valentine's Day as Tim the Delivery Guy
2009The Undying as Dr. Russell Lassiter
2008Revolutionary Road as Bart Pollock
2008Cadillac Records as Mr. Feder
2008NOVA: Arctic Dinosaurs as Narrator (voice)
2008The Dissection of Thanksgiving as Cliff
2008Kill the Day as Dr. Susskind
2007NOVA: Judgement Day - Intelligent Design on Trial as Narrator (voice)
2007Greetings from the Shore as Commodore Callaghan
2007Damages as Calder Security Executive
2007Happenstance as Bob
2007The Valley of Light as Howard
2006Wedding Daze as Sheriff
2006Half Nelson as Russ Dunne
2004The Day After Tomorrow as Frank Harris
2004Hair High as Football Announcer (voice)
2003Abby Singer as Kevin's Father
2003D.C. Sniper: 23 Days of Fear as Douglas Duncan
2002Salem Witch Trials as Thomas Putnam
2002Widows as Detective John Maynard
2001Dead Dog as Frank Edmonds
2001Law & Order: Criminal Intent as Harry Rowan, Sr.
2001Law & Order: Criminal Intent as Joseph Hannah
2001The Last Brickmaker in America as Mike Potter
2001Boss of Bosses as Joseph O'Brien
2001Along Came a Spider as Kyle Craig
2001My Husband's Double Life as Patrick Hennessy Welsh
2001My Husband's Double Life as Timothy Michael Kingsbury
2000Secrets of the Dead as Narrator (voice)
2000Picnic as Howard Bevens
2000Wonderland as Ed Butowski
2000Wild Costa Rica as Narrator
1999Earthly Possessions as Zack Emery
1999Tumbleweeds as Dan Miller
1999Music of the Heart as Dan Paxton
1999ATF as Sam Sinclair
1999The Secret Life of Girls
1999The Jack Bull as Atty. Gen. Metcalfe
1999The Confession as Jack Renoble
1998The Odd Couple II as Leroy
1998Wrestling with Alligators as Rick
1997For Richer or Poorer as Samuel Yoder
1997The Matchmaker as Senator John McGlory
1997Kiss the Girls as FBI Agent Kyle Craig
1996Daylight as Steven Crighton
1996The Prosecutors as DA Alan Baker
1995Silver Strand as Lucas Hughes
1995Three Wishes as Coach Schramka
1995Down Came a Blackbird as Jan Talbeck
1995The Big Green as Jay Huffer
1995Lonesome Dove: The Outlaw Years as Xander
1995Kiss of Death as Federal Agent
1995The Outer Limits as Ed Barkley
1994New York Undercover as Howard
1994Angels in the Outfield as Ranch Wilder
1994Nobody's Children as Joe Stevens
1994State of Emergency as Dr. Jeffrey Forrest
1993Rio Shannon as John Cleary
1993My Boyfriend's Back as Sheriff McCloud
1992Hostages as Terry Anderson
1991JFK as Lou Ivon
1991Meeting Venus as Stephen Taylor
1991Defenseless as Bull Dozer
1991V.I. Warshawski as Murray Ryerson
1990Mr. Destiny as Jackie Earle
1990Law & Order as Nick Taska / Bill Fallon
1990Law & Order as Defense Attorney Alan Fenwick
1990Northern Exposure as Dr. John Summer
1990Revealing Evidence - Stalking the Honolulu Strangler as Tom Marshall
1989Glory as Gen. George Crockett Strong
1989Cold Sassy Tree as Clayton McAllister
1989Just Like in the Movies as Ryan Legrand
1989Booker as Gordon Rudd
1988Roseanne as Ziggy
1988The Prince of Pennsylvania as Trooper Joe
1988Tucker: The Man and His Dream as Kirby
1987The Misfit Brigade as Tiny
1986Crime Story as Steve Kordo
1986L.A. Law as Detective Michael Phillips
1985Spenser: For Hire as Father Crawford
1984Miami Vice as Det. Tim Duryea
1984A Doctor's Story as Dr. Curtis
1984Kate & Allie as Tim Merr
1983Cross Creek as Charles Rawlings
1983Eddie Macon's Run as Rudy Potts
1983Living Proof: The Hank Williams Jr. Story as Dick Willey
1982Nature as Narrator (voice)
1982Hanky Panky as Katz
1981Starstruck as Mr. Miller
1980Texas as Seth
1980The Day Christ Died as Peter
1979Starting Over as Larry
1979The Scarlet Letter as Robert Salter
1974NOVA as Self - Narrator (voice)
1972ABC Afterschool Special as Mr. Miller
1951Hallmark Hall of Fame as Howard







