James Oliver Cromwell (born January 27, 1940) is an American actor and producer. Some of his more notable films include Babe (1995), Star Trek: First Contact (1996), L.A. Confidential (1997), The Green Mile (1999), Space Cowboys (2000), The Sum of All Fears (2002), I, Robot (2004), and The Artist (2011), as well as the television series Six Feet Under (2003–2005), 24 (2007), American Horror Story: Asylum (2012), and Halt and Catch Fire (2015).

Cromwell has been nominated for one Academy Award (Best Supporting Actor for Babe), four Emmy Awards, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards. He won the 2013 Canadian Screen Award for Best Actor for his role in Still Mine and the 2013 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for his role in American Horror Story: Asylum.

Early life

Cromwell was born in Los Angeles, California, and raised in Manhattan, New York. He is the son of actress Kay Johnson (1904–1975) and actor, director, and producer John Cromwell (1887–1979), who was blacklisted during the McCarthy era. He has English, German, Irish, and Scottish ancestry. He was educated at The Hill School, Middlebury College, and the Carnegie Institute of Technology. Like his parents, he was drawn to the theater, performing in everything from Shakespeare to experimental plays.