William Fichtner

William Edward Fichtner (born November 27, 1956) is an American actor. Fichtner has appeared in a number of films, TV series and video games. He is known for his television roles as Sheriff Tom Underlay on Invasion, Alexander Mahone on Prison Break, and Adam Janikowski on Mom. His film appearances include Heat, Contact, Armageddon, The Perfect Storm, Go, Drowning Mona, Crash, Blades of Glory, Black Hawk Down, and The Longest Yard.

= Early life = Fichtner was born on Mitchel Air Force Base on Long Island, and was raised in Cheektowaga, New York, a suburb of Buffalo. He is the son of Patricia A. (née Steitz) and William Frederick Fichtner. He has German ancestry.

Fichtner graduated from Maryvale High School (Cheektowaga) in 1974. After graduating from Farmingdale State College in 1976 with an associate degree in criminal justice, he attended SUNY Brockport and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminal justice in 1978. He then studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. He also credits his Farmingdale State College admissions counselor Don Harvey with his decision to study acting. Harvey, who became a lifelong friend, took Fichtner to his first Broadway show. On May 18, 2008, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters by Farmingdale State College.

= Career = Fichtner began his acting career as Josh Snyder in As the World Turns in 1987. He has since appeared in the films Contact, Heat, Armageddon, Go, Equilibrium, Black Hawk Down, The Perfect Storm, The Longest Yard, Crash, Ultraviolet, Drive Angry and The Dark Knight. Mainly a character actor, one of his few leading roles is in Passion of Mind, also starring Demi Moore and Stellan Skarsgård. His role in Crash won him a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture award and a Best Acting Ensemble award from Broadcast Film Critics Choice. He appeared in the CBS sitcom Mom from 2013 to 2021. Credited as Bill Fichtner, he voiced Ken Rosenberg in the video games Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Between 2005 and 2006, he also starred in the sci-fi TV series Invasion as Sheriff Tom Underlay. After Invasion was canceled, he played ruthless FBI Agent Alexander Mahone in three seasons of Prison Break (2006–2009). In 2009, he co-presented the Vezina Trophy (for goal tending) at the National Hockey League awards show. He later guest starred as judge Christopher Mulready in The West Wing episode "The Supremes." He also had a role as the Gotham National Bank manager in the feature film The Dark Knight and as Jurgen in Equilibrium.

In June 2009, Fichtner had a recurring role as TV producer Phil Yagoda on Entourage. He also voiced Master Sergeant Sandman in the 2011 video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

Fichtner played Eric Sacks in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014).

Personal life
Fichtner is a fan of the NFL (National Football League) team the Buffalo Bills, appearing in a commercial for the team before the 2014 season. He has narrated the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary titled Four Falls of Buffalo, chronicling the Buffalo Bills' four consecutive Super Bowl appearances from 1990–93.