Peter Weller facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Peter Weller
Weller at Paradise City Comic Con in 2016
Born	Peter Francis Weller (1947-06-24) June 24, 1947 (age 78) Stevens Point, Wisconsin, U.S.
Education	University of North Texas (BA) Syracuse University (MA) UCLA (PhD)
Occupation	Actor television director
Years active	1973–present
Spouse(s)	Shari Stowe ​ (m. 2006)​
Children	1
Scientific career
Thesis	Alberti Before Florence: Early Sources Informing Leon Battista Alberti's De Pictura  (2014)
Doctoral advisor	Charlene Villaseñor Black

Peter Francis Weller (born June 24, 1947) is an American actor and television director. He is famous for playing the main character in the movies RoboCop (1987) and RoboCop 2 (1990).

Weller has acted in over 70 movies and TV shows. Some of his well-known films include The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). He also appeared in movies like Mighty Aphrodite (1995) and ... Lunch (1991).

On television, he hosted the show Engineering an Empire on the History Channel. He also had important roles in popular series like 24, Dexter, and Sons of Anarchy. He has also worked as a director for many TV shows. In recent years, he has provided the voice for RoboCop in video games like Mortal Kombat 11 and RoboCop: Rogue City.

Besides acting, Weller is also a scholar. He earned a PhD in Italian Renaissance Art History from UCLA.

Early Life and Education

Peter Weller was born on June 24, 1947, in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. His mother, Dorothy, was a homemaker, and his father, Frederick, was a lawyer, a judge, and a helicopter pilot for the United States Army.

Because of his father's army career, Weller's family moved around a lot. They lived in West Germany for several years before settling in Texas. He went to Alamo Heights High School in San Antonio and graduated in 1965.

Weller attended the University of North Texas, where he played the trumpet in a band. He graduated in 1970 with a degree in theatre. After college, he studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts to further his acting skills.

Later in life, Weller went back to school. He earned a Master's degree in Roman and Renaissance Art from Syracuse University in 2004. In 2014, he earned his PhD from UCLA in Italian Renaissance Art History.

Acting and Directing Career

Stage and Early Films

Weller began his career on stage in the 1970s. He performed in Broadway plays like Full Circle and Summer Brave. He also became a member of the famous Actors Studio, a group for professional actors.

His early film roles included The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984). He became very famous after starring as the cyborg police officer in the hit movie RoboCop in 1987. He returned for the sequel, RoboCop 2, in 1990.

Major Film and TV Roles

Weller at the Texas Theater in Dallas, Texas, in 2012

Throughout his career, Weller has played many different characters. In 2013, he played Admiral Alexander Marcus in the science-fiction movie Star Trek Into Darkness. He also appeared in critically praised films like ... Lunch (1991) and Mighty Aphrodite (1995).

Weller has also been very active in television. From 2005 to 2007, he hosted the History Channel series Engineering an Empire, where he explained how great civilizations built amazing structures.

He has had memorable roles in several popular TV shows.

• In Star Trek: Enterprise, he played a villain named John Frederick Paxton.
• In the fifth season of 24, he played the character Christopher Henderson.
• In the fifth season of Dexter, he played Stan Liddy.
• In Sons of Anarchy, he played the recurring character Charles Barosky.
• From 2012 to 2017, he acted in and directed episodes of the series Longmire.
• In 2017, he appeared on The Last Ship as Dr. Paul Vellek.

Directing Career

Weller is also a talented director. He has directed episodes for many television series. Some of the shows he has directed include Homicide: Life on the Street, Monk, Sons of Anarchy, and Hawaii Five-0. He has also directed episodes for newer shows like MacGyver and Magnum P.I..

In 1993, he directed a short film called Partners, which he also wrote and acted in. The film was nominated for an Academy Award.

Voice Acting

Weller has used his voice for animated characters and video games. He was the voice of Batman in the animated movie Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.

He returned to his most famous role by voicing RoboCop for commercials and video games. He voiced the character in Mortal Kombat 11 (2020) and RoboCop: Rogue City (2023).

Personal Life

On June 24, 2006, which was his 59th birthday, Weller married actress Shari Stowe. The wedding took place in Positano, Italy. They have one son.

Awards and Nominations

• 1988: Nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Actor for RoboCop.
• 1992: Nominated for a Genie Award for Best Actor for ... Lunch.
• 1994: Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for Partners.
• 2002: Nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for Ivans XTC.

Filmography

Feature film

Television

See also

In Spanish: Peter Weller para niños