Thomas F. Wilson | |
---|---|
![]() Wilson in July 2011 | |
Born | Thomas Francis Wilson Jr. April 15, 1959 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Other names | Tom Wilson |
Occupations | |
Years active | 1979–present |
Spouse | Caroline Thomas (m. 1985) |
Children | 4 |
YouTube information | |
Channel | |
Years active | 2006–present |
Genre | Vlog |
Subscribers | 35 thousand [1] |
Total views | 7.7 million [1] |
Website | www |
Thomas Francis Wilson Jr. (born April 15, 1959) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing Biff Tannen, Griff Tannen, and Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen in the Back to the Future film trilogy (1985–1990). He also played coach Ben Fredricks in the comedy series Freaks and Geeks (1999–2000) and voices various characters, mainly villains, on the Nickelodeon animated series SpongeBob SquarePants (2001–present).
Thomas Francis Wilson Jr. was born in Philadelphia on April 15, 1959, and grew up in nearby Wayne. While attending Radnor High School, he was involved in dramatic arts, [2] served as president of the debate team (where his partner was future New York Times columnist David Brooks), played the tuba in the high school band, and was the drum major of the school marching band. He studied international politics at Arizona State University and attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. In 1979, he got his first significant stage experience as a comedian. [3]
In 1981, Wilson moved to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career. [3] [4] He shared an apartment with fellow aspiring comedians Andrew Dice Clay and Yakov Smirnoff, and later joked that he "taught them both about America". [5] He had a small role in the second season of NBC's Knight Rider in an episode titled "A Knight In Shining Armor".
Wilson's breakthrough role was as the bully Biff Tannen in the 1985 film Back to the Future . He returned in the sequels Back to the Future Part II and Back to the Future Part III to not only reprise his role as Biff, but to also play Biff's grandson Griff Tannen and great-grandfather Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen. In each Back to the Future film, his character ends up in a pile of manure after trying to kill or hurt Michael J. Fox's character Marty McFly. He reprised his role as Biff and voiced various Tannen relatives in the animated series. Wilson did not reprise his role as Biff in the initial versions of Telltale's Back to the Future: The Game released in 2011, being replaced by Kid Beyond. When the game was ported to the PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One in 2015 in commemoration of the original film's 30th anniversary, Wilson returned to provide Biff's voice in these newer versions.
In 1992, he voiced gangster Tony Zucco in Batman: The Animated Series and police detective Matt Bluestone in the animated series Gargoyles .[ citation needed ] He later went to co-star with Mark Hamill in the video game Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger . It was the third chapter in the Wing Commander series, but the first to feature live action and was extremely popular at the time. The character played by Wilson was Major Todd "Maniac" Marshall, a fellow starfighter pilot to Hamill's character. Wilson also starred in the sequels Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom (1995) and Wing Commander: Prophecy (1997) and contributed his voice to the animated series Wing Commander Academy (1996) in the same role. He also guest starred in an episode of Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman in 1997.
Wilson played McKinley High School's Coach Ben Fredricks in the 1999–2000 NBC comedy drama Freaks and Geeks . In 1994, Wilson was briefly reunited with his Back to the Future co-star Christopher Lloyd in the film Camp Nowhere .
Wilson has done voice-over work for the Nickelodeon television series SpongeBob SquarePants . He has voiced many villainous characters that are physically strong and menacing, such as Flats the Flounder in the third-season episode "The Bully", The Tattletale Strangler in "SpongeBob Meets the Strangler", and the non-villainous character Reg the Club Bouncer in "No Weenies Allowed". In 2005, he played Coach Phelps in the TV series Zoey 101 . [6]
In 2009, he released his very first stand-up comedy special and second comedy album, Tom Wilson: Bigger Than You. [7]
He hosted a podcast, Big Pop Fun, on the Nerdist Network from 2011 to 2014. The podcast featured Tom sharing stories of his career, as well as informal chats with show business friends including Samm Levine, Blake Clark, Steve Oedekerk and "Weird Al" Yankovic.
Wilson currently maintains a YouTube channel, where he regularly vlogs. As of March 2023, his channel has over 36,100 subscribers. [8]
Wilson married Caroline Thomas on July 6, 1985. [9] They have four children, and live in Los Angeles, California. [9]
Wilson is a devout Catholic and released a contemporary Christian album in 2000 called In the Name of the Father. [10] He is also a painter in his spare time, [11] and many of his paintings focus on classic children's toys. In 2006, he was selected to join the California Featured Artist Series at Disneyland. [12]
With the rise in popularity of the Back to the Future series, many people began to ask Wilson questions about his experiences making the films. He found the repetitive nature of the questions to be both hilarious and frustrating, and wrote a song about them titled "Biff's Question Song" which he includes in his stand-up routine. [13]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1985 | Ninja Turf | Member of Spike's Gang | |
Back to the Future | Biff Tannen | ||
1986 | April Fool's Day | Arch Cummings | |
Let's Get Harry | Bob Pachowski | ||
1987 | Smart Alex | Lieutenant Stevenson | |
1988 | Action Jackson | Officer Kornblau | |
1989 | Back to the Future Part II | Biff Tannen, Griff Tannen, Gertrude Tannen | |
1990 | Back to the Future Part III | Buford "Mad-Dog" Tannen, Biff Tannen | Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor |
1991 | High Strung | Al Dalby | |
1993 | Blood In Blood Out | Det. Rollie McCann | |
1994 | Caroline at Midnight | Officer Keaton | |
Mr. Write | Billy | ||
Camp Nowhere | Lt. Eliot Hendricks | ||
1995 | Born to Be Wild | Det. Lou Greenburg | |
1997 | That Darn Cat | Officer Melvin | |
1998 | Girl | The Ticket Seller | |
2003 | Atlantis: Milo's Return | Ashtin Carnaby | Voice, direct-to-video [14] |
2004 | The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie | Victor, Fish #3, Tough Fish #1 | Voice [14] |
2006 | Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector | Bart Tatlock | |
Zoom | Dylan's Teacher | ||
2009 | The Informant! | Mark Cheviron | |
House Broken | Fire Chief Henry Decker | ||
2010 | Yohan: The Child Wanderer | Kevin | |
2011 | Rio | Trapped Bird, Screaming Hang Glider | Voice [14] |
2012 | Atlas Shrugged: Part II | Robert Collins | |
2013 | Epic | Finn | Voice [14] |
The Heat | Captain Frank Woods | ||
Tom and Jerry's Giant Adventure | Mr. Bigley, Ginormous | Voice, direct-to-video [14] | |
2015 | The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water | Angry Customer #1 | Voice |
2021 | Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans | Coach Lawrence | Voice |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1984 | Knight Rider | Chip | Episode: "A Knight in Shining Armor" |
The Facts of Life | Moose | Episode: "All or Nothing" | |
1990 | Turner & Hooch | Det. Scott Turner | Pilot |
1991–1992 | Back to the Future | Biff Tannen, additional voices | Voice, 26 episodes |
1992 | Batman: The Animated Series | Tony Zucco, John Grayson | Voice, episode: "Robin's Reckoning" [14] |
1995–1996 | Gargoyles | Matt Bluestone | Voice, 14 episodes |
1996 | Superman: The Animated Series | Joey | Voice, episode: "A Little Piece of Home" [14] |
Wing Commander Academy | Todd 'Maniac' Marshall | Voice, 13 episodes | |
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | Simon | Episode: "Dream Date" | |
Andersonville | Thomas Sweet | Television film | |
1997 | Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman | Carter Landry | Episode: "Lethal Weapon" |
Duckman | Park Ranger Smith | Voice, episode: "Short, Plush and Deadly" | |
Aaahh!!! Real Monsters | Marty | Voice, 2 episodes [14] | |
steve.oedekerk.com | Costumer, Talk Show Host | Television special | |
1997–1998 | Fired Up | Steve Summer | 5 episodes |
1998 | Pinky and the Brain | Larry Bruhn | Voice, episode: "Dangerous Brains" |
Men in White | Ed Klingbottom | Television film | |
The New Batman Adventures | Howlin' Jake, Gotham Angels Biker | Voice, episode: "Torch Song" [14] | |
Zoomates | Mark the Polar Bear | Voice, television short | |
Maggie | Hank | 2 episodes | |
The Angry Beavers | Otis Otto, Bowling Patron | Voice, episode: "Alley Oops!" | |
1999 | The Hughleys | Stan | Episode: "Why Can't We Be Friends?" |
Pepper Ann | Coach Bronson | Voice, episode: "Beyond Good and Evel/One of the Guys" | |
1999–2000 | Freaks and Geeks | Coach Ben Fredricks | 6 episodes |
2000–2001 | Max Steel | Pete Costas | Voice, 20 episodes |
2000 | Buzz Lightyear of Star Command | Buster | Voice, episode: "Root of Evil" [14] |
2001 | Nash Bridges | Jack Noon | Episode: "Bear Trap" |
The Zeta Project | Burly Boyfriend | Voice, episode: "West Bound" [14] | |
Titus | Joe | Episode: "Amy's Birthday" | |
2001–present | SpongeBob SquarePants | Flats the Flounder, Tattletale Strangler, Marty, Herb Star, Regg, additional voices | Voice, recurring role [14] |
2002 | She Spies | Roger 'Rush' Gibson | Episode: "Fondles" |
2002–2003 | Do Over | Coach Dorsey | 4 episodes |
2003 | Ed | Sean Nowell | 4 episodes |
The Pitts | Guard | Voice, episode: "Ticket to Riot" | |
Boston Public | Paul Stanton | Episode: "Chapter Sixty-Six" | |
Stripperella | Tom Green, Zumo, Painted Patron, Director | Voice, 2 episodes [14] | |
Two and a Half Men | Mike | Episode: "Pilot" | |
2004 | The Mullets | Lyle Turner | Episode: "Losin' It" |
Rock Me Baby | Buffalo Buck | Episode: "Go, Otis! It's Your Birthday!" | |
Johnny Bravo | Trent | Voice, episode: "The Time of My Life/Run Johnny Run" [14] | |
2005 | Rodney | Bill | Episode: "Sorry Charlie" |
Zoey 101 | Coach Phelps | Episode: "Disc Golf" | |
Higglytown Heroes | Truck Driver | Voice, episode: "Kip's Dad Gets a Strike" | |
Reba | Ted | Episode: "Reba and the One" | |
George Lopez | Sonny | Episode: "George Drives the Batmobile" | |
2006 | Help Me Help You | Kenny | 4 episodes |
Still Standing | Coach Kirk Stone | Episode: "Still Flunking" | |
Cold Case | Arnold Brown | Episode: "Superstar" | |
2006–2008 | Ghost Whisperer | Tim Flaherty | 6 episodes |
2007 | American Body Shop | Juicy Lou | 2 episodes |
House | Lou | Episode: "Whatever It Takes" | |
Boston Legal | Jeffrey Bass | Episode: "Attack of the Xenophobes" | |
2008 | The Spectacular Spider-Man | Stan Carter | Voice, 6 episodes [14] |
Bones | Chip Barnett | Episode: "The Baby in the Bough" | |
Back at the Barnyard | Krebs | Voice, episode: "Brave Udders" [14] | |
2008–2009 | Batman: The Brave and the Bold | Sportsmaster, Catman | Voice, 12 episodes [14] |
2009 | Psych | Butch | Episode: "Let's Get Hairy" |
Family Guy | First Step | Voice, episode: "Quagmire's Baby" | |
Tom Wilson: Bigger Than You | Himself | Stand-up special Also executive producer | |
2010 | Adventure Time | Head Marauder, Cat Man, Coal Guy | Voice, 2 episodes [14] |
True Jackson, VP | Ben Franklin | Episode: "Field Trip" | |
2010–2011 | Big Love | Ricky Jax | 3 episodes |
2011 | Harry's Law | Allan Meade | Episode: "Bangers in the House" |
Billion Dollar Freshmen | Principal Preston | Pilot | |
Planet Sheen | Narrator, Blurg #1 | Voice, 2 episodes [14] | |
Melissa & Joey | Councilman Herbert Hancock | Episode: "Play Ball" | |
2011–2012 | Franklin & Bash | Spiritual Advisor | 2 episodes |
2012–2016 | Dragons: Riders of Berk | Bucket | Voice, 19 episodes [14] |
2013 | Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous | Andrew "Drew" Stone | 12 episodes |
Mad | Additional voices | Episode: "S Cape from Planet Earth/The X-Mentalist" | |
2014 | See Dad Run | Principal Templeman | 2 episodes |
2015–2018 | Pig Goat Banana Cricket | Banana | Voice, main role |
2016 | The Ranch | Coach Fitzgerald | Episode: "The Boys of Fall" |
K.C. Undercover | Agent Whitman | Episode: "The Legend of Bad, Bad Cleo Brown" | |
School of Rock | Mr. Finn's Dad | Episode: "A Band with No Name" | |
2016–2018 | Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia | Coach Lawrence | Voice, 21 episodes [14] |
2017 | Workaholics | Barnes | Episode: "The Most Dangerless Game" |
Training Day | Gary Milestone | Episode: "Quid Pro Quo" | |
Doubt | Anthony Kellem | Episode: "Running Out of Time" | |
Will vs. The Future | Principal Rhodes | Pilot | |
The Mayor | Governor Fillucci | Episode: "Here Comes the Governor" | |
2017–2018 | Mosaic | Cliff Jones | 3 episodes |
2018–2019 | 3Below: Tales of Arcadia | Coach Lawrence | Voice, 9 episodes [14] |
Legends of Tomorrow | Henry "Hank" Heywood | 9 episodes | |
2019 | SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout | Dog walker | Television special |
The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants | Major Messy/Camoflush | Voice, episode: "Captain Underpants and the Cunning Combat of the Covert Camoflush" | |
2020 | Sydney to the Max | Grandpa Doug | 3 episodes |
2020 | Wizards: Tales of Arcadia | Coach Laurence | Voice, episode: "Wizard Underground" |
2020 | NCIS | Angus DeMint | Episode: "Blood and Treasure" |
2021–present | The Patrick Star Show | Cecil Star | Voice, main role |
2022–present | Spidey and His Amazing Friends | Sandman | Voice, [15] 4 episodes |
2022 | Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years | Cecil Star | Voice, episode: "Help Not Wanted" |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1990 | Back to the Future... The Pinball | Biff Tannen | uncredited |
1994 | Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger | Maj. Todd "Maniac" Marshall | Credited as Tom Wilson |
1996 | Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom | ||
1997 | Wing Commander: Prophecy | ||
2000 | Star Trek: Voyager – Elite Force | Crewman Rick Biessman | |
2001 | Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex | Rok-Ko | Credited as Tom Wilson [14] |
2002 | Run Like Hell: Hunt or Be Hunted | Craig | [14] |
2010 | Batman: The Brave and the Bold – The Videogame | Catman | |
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions | Electro | [14] | |
2011 | Star Wars: The Old Republic | Additional voices | |
2013 | Back to the Future: Back in Time Video Slots | Biff Tannen | [14] |
2015 | Back to the Future: The Game 30th Anniversary Edition | Credited as Tom Wilson [14] |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1991 | Back to the Future: The Ride | Biff Tannen |
Year | Title | Position | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1989 | The Last Ride | Writer | Short film |
1996 | Get Serious: Seven Deadly Subs | Writer, producer | 6 episodes |
Jason Christopher Marsden is an American actor and filmmaker, who has done numerous voice roles in animated films, as well as various television series and video games. He has been the official voice of Max Goof since 1995.
Back to the Future Part II is a 1989 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis from a screenplay by Bob Gale; both wrote the story. It is the sequel to the 1985 film Back to the Future and the second installment in the Back to the Future franchise. The film stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, and Thomas F. Wilson with Elisabeth Shue, and Jeffrey Weissman in supporting roles. It follows Marty McFly (Fox) and his friend Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown (Lloyd) as they travel from 1985 to 2015 to prevent Marty's son from sabotaging the McFly family's future. When their arch-nemesis Biff Tannen (Wilson) steals Doc's DeLorean time machine and uses it to alter history for his benefit, the duo must return to 1955 to restore the timeline.
Back to the Future Part III is a 1990 American science fiction Western film and the final installment of the Back to the Future trilogy. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, and stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Mary Steenburgen, Thomas F. Wilson, and Lea Thompson. The film continues immediately following Back to the Future Part II (1989); while stranded in 1955 during his time travel adventures, Marty McFly (Fox) discovers that his friend Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown (Lloyd), trapped in 1885, was killed by Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen (Wilson), Biff's great-grandfather. Marty travels to 1885 to rescue Doc and return once again to 1985, but matters are complicated when Doc falls in love with Clara Clayton (Steenburgen).
Thomas James Kenny is an American actor and comedian. He is known for voicing the titular character in SpongeBob SquarePants and associated media. Kenny has voiced many other characters, including Heffer Wolfe in Rocko's Modern Life, the Ice King in Adventure Time, the Narrator and Mayor in The Powerpuff Girls, Carl Chryniszzswics in Johnny Bravo, Dog in CatDog, Hank and Jeremy in Talking Tom and Friends, and Spyro from the Spyro video game series. His live-action work includes the comedy variety shows The Edge and Mr. Show. Kenny has won two Daytime Emmy Awards and two Annie Awards for his voice work as SpongeBob SquarePants and the Ice King. He often collaborates with his wife and fellow voice artist Jill Talley, who plays Karen on SpongeBob SquarePants.
Hill Valley is a fictional town in California that serves as the setting of the Back to the Future trilogy and its animated spin-off series. In the trilogy, Hill Valley is seen in four different time periods – 1885, 1955, 1985, and 2015 – as well as in a dystopian alternate 1985. The films contain many sight gags, verbal innuendos and detailed set design elements, from which a detailed and consistent history of the area can be derived.
Martin Seamus "Marty" McFly is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Back to the Future franchise. He is portrayed by Canadian actor Michael J. Fox in all three films. McFly also appears in the animated series, where he was voiced by David Kaufman. In the video game developed and published by Telltale Games, he is voiced by A. J. Locascio; in addition, Fox voiced McFly's future counterparts at the end of the game. In the stage musical adaptation, he was played by Olly Dobson in the original West End production and will be played by Casey Likes in the upcoming Broadway production. In 2019, McFly was selected by Empire magazine as the 12th Greatest Movie Character of All Time.
Biff Howard Tannen is a fictional character and a major antagonist in the Back to the Future trilogy. Thomas F. Wilson plays Biff in all three films as well as the Universal Studios ride, and voiced the character in the animated series. Biff is the main antagonist of the first and second films. Biff's great-grandfather, Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen, is the main antagonist of the third.
Clarence John "Clancy" Brown III is an American actor. Prolific in film and television since the 1980s, Brown is often cast in villainous and authoritative roles.
Back to the Future is an American science fiction comedy franchise created by Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale. The franchise follows the adventures of a high school student, Marty McFly, and an eccentric scientist, Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown, as they use a DeLorean time machine to time travel to different periods in the history of the fictional town of Hill Valley, California.
Back to the Future is an animated science-fiction comedy adventure television series for television based on the live-action Back to the Future film trilogy. The show lasted two seasons, each featuring 13 episodes, and ran on CBS from September 14, 1991 to December 26, 1992 with reruns until August 14, 1993. The network chose not to renew the show for a third season. It was later rerun on Fox, as a part of the FoxBox block, from March 22 to August 30, 2003.
Emmett Lathrop Brown, Ph.D., commonly referred to as Doc Brown, is a fictional scientist character in the Back to the Future franchise. In the world of the franchise, he is the inventor of the world's first and second time machines, the first constructed using a 1981 DeLorean sports car, and the second constructed using a steam engine locomotive.
Back to the Future: The Ride was a simulator ride located at several Universal Destinations & Experiences locations. The first installation opened on May 2, 1991, at the World Expo area of Universal Studios Florida in Orlando, Florida. A second installation opened on June 12, 1993, in the Lower Lot area of Universal Studios Hollywood in Universal City, California. A third installation opened on March 31, 2001, in the San Francisco area of Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, Japan. Based on the Back to the Future franchise, the ride is a first person adventure that takes place after the events depicted in Back to the Future Part III. Riders engage in a race through time in pursuit of Biff Tannen, who has stolen the DeLorean time machine.
The Marvel superhero character of Spider-Man has appeared in multiple forms of media besides the comics, including on television numerous times, in both live action and animated television programs.
Spider-Man is a fictional superhero from Marvel who has been adapted and appeared in various media including television shows, films, toys, stage shows, books, and video games.
Mark Richard Hamill is an American actor and writer. He is known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars film series, beginning with the original 1977 film and subsequently winning three Saturn Awards for his performances in The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Return of the Jedi (1983), and The Last Jedi (2017). His other film appearances include Corvette Summer (1978) and The Big Red One (1980). Hamill has also appeared on stage in several theater productions, primarily during the 1980s.
Since the 1960s, The Marvel Comics superhero, Thor has appeared in a wide variety of media outside of comic books including films, television programs and video games.
Back to the Future: The Game is an episodic graphic adventure video game based on the Back to the Future film franchise. The game was developed and published by Telltale Games as part of a licensing deal with Universal Pictures. Bob Gale, the co-creator, co-writer, and co-producer of the film trilogy, assisted Telltale in writing the game's story. Original actors Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd allowed the developers to use their likenesses in the game for the lead characters Marty McFly and Doc Brown, respectively. Although Lloyd reprises his role as Doc, A.J. Locascio plays the role of Marty, while Fox later appeared to voice two cameo roles in the final episode, reprising his role as future versions of Marty McFly in addition to playing his forefather William.