Brian Markinson

Brian Markinson
PerformerCapricaBlood & Chrome
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Portrays:	Jordan Duram (Caprica) Silas Nash (Blood and Chrome)
Date of Birth:	September 01, 1961
Date of Death:	Missing required parameter 1=month!
Age:	64
Nationality:	USA
Related Media
		@ BW Media
[{{{site}}} Official Site]
IMDb profile

Brian Markinson (born September 1, 1961) is an American actor of film and television who portrayed Jordan Duram on Caprica and Silas Nash on Blood and Chrome. Born into a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York, Markinson trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London and subsequently graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in 1983, where his classmates included Elias Koteas and Illeana Douglas. He is married to Canadian Nancy Kerr, and their sons Isaac and Evan were born in Los Angeles in the late 1990s. In 1999, the family relocated to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, where they have resided since.

Battlestar Galactica Work

The producers praised Markinson's performance in the Caprica pilot, noting that he "carries a lot of weight" as an actor and brought a "great seriousness of purpose" to the role of Jordan Duram, elevating the character beyond a simple antagonist. According to Caprica executive producer Tom Lieber, Markinson is a prolific actor in the Vancouver area, having appeared in nearly every major science fiction series filmed there, including The X-Files and Supernatural. Lieber affectionately refers to him as the "Old Yeller of Vancouver" for his reliability and consistent presence in local productions.

In Blood and Chrome, Markinson returned to the Battlestar Galactica universe in an unrelated role as Commander Silas Nash. This casting reunited him with several Caprica colleagues, including Zak Santiago, Carmen Moore, and John Pyper-Ferguson, all of whom portrayed different characters in the new production.

Career

Theater

Markinson began his professional career in the New York theater scene. On Broadway, he appeared in Neil Simon's Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Lost in Yonkers, where he replaced Kevin Spacey. Off-Broadway, he performed in Jules Feiffer's Elliot Loves, which was directed by Mike Nichols. This collaboration marked the beginning of an extensive professional relationship with Nichols that would span multiple decades.

In 2016, Markinson led the revival of Tony Kushner's Angels in America at the Arts Club Theatre Company in Vancouver, demonstrating his continued commitment to theater work alongside his screen career. He has also performed in regional theaters across Canada throughout his career.

Film

Markinson has appeared in a wide variety of feature films, frequently portraying authority figures or calculating villains. His notable film roles include a U.S. Attorney General in Shooter (2007), an unscrupulous industrialist in Godzilla (1998), and supporting roles in Enemy of the State (1998).

Markinson became a favorite collaborator of director Mike Nichols, appearing in more than six of the late director's projects. These films included Wolf (1994), Primary Colors (1998), the Emmy Award-winning miniseries Angels in America (2003), and Charlie Wilson's War (2007).

Between 1999 and 2001, Markinson appeared in three consecutive Woody Allen films in supporting character roles: Sweet and Lowdown (1999), Small Time Crooks (2000), and The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001).

Television

Canadian Television

After relocating to Vancouver in 1999, Markinson established himself as a prominent figure in Canadian television. One of his most significant roles was as Police Chief Bill Jacobs on the CBC procedural drama Da Vinci's Inquest (2002–2005) and its spinoff Da Vinci's City Hall (2005–2006).

In the science fiction series Continuum (2012–2015), Markinson portrayed Vancouver Police Inspector Jack Dillon, a pragmatic leader grappling with time-travel conspiracies.

From 2020 to 2022, Markinson starred as Chuck "Buke" Bukansky in the APTN crime drama Tribal, which addressed Indigenous justice issues in Canada.

American Television

Markinson's early American television career consisted mainly of guest-starring roles on series such as Murphy Brown, L.A. Law, and the short-lived revival of Columbo. He continued to work in American television with recurring roles on The L Word (Showtime, 2004–2009) and The Killing (AMC, 2011–2013; Netflix, 2014).

In the sixth season of the critically acclaimed drama Mad Men (2013), Markinson played Dr. Arnold Rosen, a neighbor and friend of Don Draper (Jon Hamm) who remained unaware of Draper's relationship with Rosen's wife Sylvia (Linda Cardellini).

More recently, Markinson appeared in the Netflix limited series Painkiller (2023), depicting pharmaceutical executive Howard Udell in a dramatization of the opioid crisis.

Science Fiction Television

Beyond his work in the Battlestar Galactica universe, Markinson has made significant contributions to science fiction television. He is particularly notable in the Star Trek franchise, having appeared in three of the four spinoff series. In Star Trek: The Next Generation, he portrayed Vorin in the seventh season episode "Homeward". In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, he played Elias Giger in the fifth season episode "In the Cards".

His most notable Star Trek appearance came in Star Trek: Voyager, where he holds the unique distinction of being one of only two actors (along with Jeffrey Combs) to play two different, completely unrelated characters in a single episode of a Star Trek series. In the first season episode "Faces", Markinson portrayed both Lieutenant Peter Durst and the Vidiian scientist Sulan. The character of Durst was first introduced in the preceding episode "Cathexis" so that he would be a familiar face to viewers when Sulan grafted Durst's face onto his own in "Faces".

Markinson's other genre television appearances include The X-Files, Dark Angel, Millennium, and Stargate SG-1.

Awards and Recognition

In 2008, Markinson received a Gemini Award nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program for his portrayal of James Roszko in the CTV television film Mayerthorpe. The film, which depicted the tragic 2005 shooting of four Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers, attracted 1.3 million viewers and became the most-watched original Canadian drama of 2008.

Markinson was also nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for his work in The Romeo Section. He has received multiple Leo Award nominations throughout his career for his work in British Columbia productions.

Personal Life

Markinson is married to Nancy Kerr (full name Nancy Lynn Kerr), a Canadian. The couple has two sons, Isaac and Evan, who were both born in Los Angeles in the late 1990s. In 1999, the family moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, where they have lived since, allowing Markinson to maintain an active presence in both the Canadian and American film and television industries.

Beyond his screen work, Markinson is an acting instructor at Railtown Actors Studio in Vancouver, where he teaches scene study classes. Students have praised his "wealth of knowledge, experience, passion, and heart" as an instructor, noting his ability to bring "presence to the moment" and his connection to breath and body work in character development.

In 2016, Markinson directed Haberdashery Theatre Company's production of The Motherfucker with the Hat at The Firehall Arts Centre in Vancouver, demonstrating his continued engagement with theater beyond acting.

References

External links

• Brian Markinson article at Memory Alpha, the Star Trek wiki.