The Sarah Siddons Society is pleased to announce that William Petersen is the winner of the 2008-2009 Sarah Siddons Award. The award was presented at the organization's annual Gala, held June 1, 2009.
WILLIAM PETERSEN
Biography
A multi-ranged actor with a unique talent for edgy characters, William Petersen continues to rivet audiences with his performances.
Most recently, Petersen starred for nine seasons on the critically acclaimed CBS drama “C.S.I: Crime Scene Investigation” for which he received an Emmy Award nomination. Petersen remains an Executive Producer on the hit show which garnered a number one rating position in just two seasons and has remained at the top ever since.
Throughout his years on C.S.I. Petersen was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series, a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama, and a nomination for Television Producer of the Year Award in Episodic from the Producers Guild of America.
Petersen first drew attention with his critically acclaimed performances in such feature films as William Friedkin’s stylish thriller “To Live and Die in L.A.” with Willem Dafoe, Michael Mann’s haunting “Manhunter,” and his portrayal of a philandering husband in Joel Schumacher’s “Cousins.”
In 2000, Petersen starred opposite Jeff Bridges, Joan Allen and Gary Oldham in the Dreamworks political thriller, “The Contender” directed by Rod Lurie.
Petersen’s other feature credits include Roger Young’s “Kiss the Sky,” James Foley’s “Fear” with Mark Wahlberg and Reese Witherspoon, Geoff Murphy’s “Young Guns II,” and John Progue’s “The Skulls.” His credits also include “Hard Promises” which he also produced along with his partner Cindy Chvatal for his High Horse productions banner.
On the small screen, Petersen has been no less prolific. In 1998, Petersen starred as John F. Kennedy in HBO’s Emmy nominated miniseries “The Rat Pack.” The impressive cast included Don Cheadle, Ray Liotta and Joe Mantegna.
In 1997, he starred with Jack Lemmon and George C. Scott as “Juror #12” in the Golden Globe winning tele-film, “12 Angry Men” for Showtime which was directed by William Friedkin, this remake of the 1957 classic.
Petersen’s other television credits include the Golden Globe Award winning miniseries “The Kennedys of Massachusetts,” NBC’s highly rated mini-series “The Beast,” which was based on the novel by Peter Benchly, “Return of the Lonesome Dove” with John Voight and Barbara Hershey and “Long Gone” for HBO. Petersen also starred in the Andy Tennant directed TNT telefilm “Keep the Change” which he also produced for his High Horse productions banner.
In 1979, he founded the Remains Theater Ensemble in Chicago with a group of fellow actors. In 1983, Petersen starred as Jack Henry Abbott in “In the Belly of the Beast” which he performed at the Wisdom Bridge Theatre in Chicago, at the Edinburgh Festival and at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. In 1996 Petersen made his Broadway debut in a revival of Tennessee Williams' “The Night of the Iguana.” He has appeared in a number of regional stage productions, including “A Streetcar Named Desire,” “The Time of Your Life,” “Glengarry Glen Ross,” “Fool for Love” and “Speed-the-Plow.”
Most recently he starred in “A Dublin Carol” at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago and will appear this summer at the Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago in David Harrower’s controversial “Blackbird.”
Petersen was born in Evanston, Illinois, and he first discovered acting while pursuing a football scholarship at Idaho State University.
April 2009