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Clancy Brown Biography and Full Filmography - MovieWise

Quick Facts

Born:
1959-01-05

Birthplace:
Urbana, Ohio, USA

Credits:
367 Total Roles

Clancy Brown

Acting

The MovieWise Take

"Clancy Brown is the ultimate cinematic chameleon, anchoring iconic films with a gravel-voiced intensity that makes even his most monstrous roles feel terrifyingly human. Whether he’s embodying sadistic authority or mythic grandeur, his towering legacy proves that he is the indispensable backbone of modern genre storytelling."

Biography

Clarence John "Clancy" Brown III (born January 5, 1959) is an American actor. Prolific in film and television since the 1980s, Brown is often cast in villainous and authoritative roles.

His film roles include Rawhide in The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984), the Kurgan in Highlander (1986), Sheriff Gus Gilbert in Pet Sematary Two (1992), Capt. Byron Hadley in The Shawshank Redemption (1994), Sgt. Charles Zim in Starship Troopers (1997), Surtur in Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Stanley Thomas in Promising Young Woman (2020), and the Harbinger in John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023). On television, he has played Brother Justin Crowe on the HBO series Carnivàle (2003–2005), Waylon "Jock" Jeffcoat on the Showtime series Billions (2018–2019, 2023), Kurt Caldwell on the Showtime series Dexter: New Blood (2021–2022), and Sal Maroni in The Penguin (2024).

In animation, Brown has voiced Lex Luthor in the DC Animated Universe (1996–2006) and Mr. Krabs on SpongeBob SquarePants (1999–present). His other animated roles include Long Feng in Avatar: The Last Airbender (2006) and Savage Opress in Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2011–2013). He has also voiced video game characters such as Doctor Neo Cortex and Uka Uka in the Crash Bandicoot franchise (1997–2003) and Hank Anderson in Detroit: Become Human (2018).

Clarence J. Brown III was born on January 5, 1959, in Urbana, Ohio, and had an older sister, Beth, who died in 1964. Their mother, Joyce Helen (née Eldridge), was a conductor, composer and concert pianist. The siblings' father, Clarence J. "Bud" Brown Jr., was a newspaper publisher who helped manage the Brown Publishing Company, the family-owned newspaper business started by Clancy's grandfather, Congressman Clarence J. Brown. From 1965 to 1983, Bud Brown also served as a congressman, in the same seat as his own father, and later as Chairman of the Board of Brown Publishing. The family continued to operate the business until 2010.

Brown graduated from St. Albans School in Washington, D.C., and Northwestern University. At St. Albans, Brown performed the role of Deputy Governor Thomas Danforth in The Crucible.

Known For

Full Filmography

Year Title Role
2025 The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants MOVIE Mr. Krabs / Pirate / Narrator
2025 Regretting You MOVIE Hank "Gramps" Adams Sr.
2025 SpongeBob and Patrick's Timeline Twist-Up MOVIE Mr. Krabs (voice)
2025 FEEL MOVIE Sitter 4
2025 Audrey's Children MOVIE Dr. C. Everett Koop
2025 Plankton: The Movie MOVIE Mr. Krabs / Pa Plankton (voice)
2025 Good Cop/Bad Cop TV Big Hank Hickman
2024 In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994 MOVIE Self
2024 Spongebob and Sandy’s Country Christmas MOVIE Mr. Krabs
2024 Invincible Fight Girl TV Mega Beefpuncha (voice)

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