Bio
John Carroll Lynch is an American actor best known for his role as Drew Carey's cross-dressing brother on The Drew Carey Show (1997-2004), and for his role as Norm, the unassuming husband of Margie Gunderson (Frances McDormand) in the 1996 feature film Fargo.
He also starred as Bud Morris on the medical drama television series Body of Proof, from 2011-2012.
Born in Boulder, Colorado, Lynch spent the first eight years of his professional career as a member of Minneapolis's Guthrie Theater Company with roles in over 30 productions.
His talent and his midwestern sensibility helped him land his first major film role as Norm, Francis McDormand's duck-obsessed husband in the Coen brothers' Academy Award-winning Fargo.
Since then Lynch has worked steadily in film, television and theatre, playing characters ranging from small town sheriffs - both lovable and evil - doctors, killers, perplexed fathers, aggravated brothers, frustrated husbands, a big city banker, wealthy suburban real estate developer, southerners, northerners, westerners and easterners.
He's even played an old-fashioned, conservative, small-town, heterosexual cross-dresser from Cleveland who, by the way, got the girl.
If there's one thing consistent about Lynch's career, it's the extreme diversity of the characters he plays and wide range he covers — from dry wit to broad comedy, and from thriller and mystery to melodrama.
On the small screen Lynch has appeared in many series regular, recurring and miniseries roles, including Carnivale, K-Ville, Big Love, How to Make it in America, From the Earth to the Moon and David E. Kelley's Brotherhood of Poland, NH.
For six seasons he played Drew's cross-dressing brother on ABC's The Drew Carey Show.
But Lynch's first love remains the theatre. He returned to the Guthrie Theater, where he had the lead role of Eddie Carbone in Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge.
Other stage appearances include the original production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Dinner with Friends at South Coast Rep, Under the Blue Sky at the Geffen, and Beth Henley's world premiere Ridiculous Fraud at New Jersey's McCarter Theater.
With over 40 film credits, Lynch has been directed by Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese, David Fincher, Miguel Arteta, Mick Jackson and Albert Brooks, among others.
He was seen in theatres in 2011 in the alien spoof Paul, opposite Simon Pegg, Kristin Wiig and Seth Rogen and later in the summer in Crazy Stupid Love with Steve Carell, Julianne Moore and Ryan Gosling.
Lynch also appeared in Stephen Frear's film, Lay the Favorite, with Bruce Willis and Rebecca Hall.
Lynch lives in New York and Los Angeles with his wife, actress Brenda Wehle. He is not to be confused with Irish actor John Lynch (Bleak House, Sliding Doors).