James Spader Bio, Wiki
James Spader born James Todd Spader is an American Actor best known for his unique and morally vague character in films and TV series. He has appeared in various television series and films including The Blacklist where he played the role of Raymond “Red” Reddington.
James Spader Age
Spader was born in Boston, Massachusetts, United States on 7th February 1960. He is 63 years old as of 2023 and he celebrates his birthday on 7th February every year.
James Spader Height/Measurements
Spader stands at an approximate height of 5 feet 10 inches.
James Spader Education
Spader attended The Pike School located in Andover where her mother taught arts and he also went to the Brooks School located in North Andover where his dad was a teacher. After that, he transferred to Phillips Academy where he studied together with John F. Kennedy Jr., who is John F. Kennedy’s son, and went ahead and befriended him. He later dropped out at the age of 17 and went to New York to pursue his acting career. As he was studying to become a full-time actor, he did jobs such as teaching yoga, loading railroad cars, driving a meat truck, being a stable boy, and bartending.
James Spader Career
In 1981, Spader had his first major role in the film Endless Love and he did his first starring role in Tuff Turf in 1985. He gained popularity in the year 1986 when he appeared in Pretty in Pink playing the role of the rich, arrogant playboy Steff. In 1987, he co-starred in Less than Zero where he took the role of Rip, a drug dealer, and also in Mannequin. In the same year, he appeared in the film, Baby Boom in which he played until his rise, in Sex, Lies, and Videotape, playing the role of a sexual voyeur, which aired in 1989. Spader received the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance in the film.
In the early 1990s, Spader appeared in several films including White Palace in 1990, Bad Influence in 1990, True Colors in 1991, and The Music of Chance in 1993. He starred in the sci-fi film Stargate playing the role of Egyptologist Daniel Jackson. In 1996, he appeared in Crash, a Canadian film as James Ballard, and in 1997 he guest starred in the episode The Apology of the film Seinfield. Spader appeared in The Watcher in 2000 where he played as a drug-addicted detective. He starred in Secretary, as the sadomasochistic boss in 2002.
Spader also starred in Boston Legal in the role of Alan Shore from 2004 to 2008, reprising the role from the 2002 series The Practice. His outstanding character in The Practice earned him an Emmy Award in 2004 and he won the award again for Boston Legal in 2005 and 2007. In episode one of Discovery Atlas, a Discovery Channel documentary series, he narrated China Revealed in October 2006. He also starred in the play, Race which opened on 6th December 2009 and closed on 21st August 2010.
On 23rd September 2013, the TV series The Blacklist premiered on NBC where Spader starred as Raymond Reddington. In 2015, he appeared in Avengers: Age of Ultron playing the villainous robot Ultron.
James Spader Net Worth
Throughout his career as an actor, Spader has been able to accumulate an estimated net worth of around $20 Million.
James Spader Salary
In the series The Blacklist, Spader earned $ 300,000 per episode according to records.
James Spader Parents and Siblings
Spader was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts alongside two elder sisters, Annie Spader and Libby Spader. His parents were Jean Fraser Spader born on 16th September 1923 and Stoddard Greenwood Spader born 17th May 1916 and were both teachers.
James Spader Wife
Spader is married to Leslie Stefanson, the co-star in Alien Hunter, in 2002 and together they have one son. Before that, he was married to decorator Victoria Kheel, whom he met while working at a yoga studio, and together they had two sons. They later separated in 2001 and in 2004, Spader filed for divorce.
James Spader Kids
Spader has three sons; Sebastian Spader born in 1989, Elijah Spader born in 1992, and Nathanael Spader born in 2008. Sebastian works as a real estate agent for The Agency, and Elijah works in the entertainment industry behind the scenes.
James Spader The Blacklist
Spader starred in the television series The Blacklist, which aired from 2013 to 2023 and has 10 seasons, as Raymond Reddington. Raymond is a mystery and is always 3 steps ahead of everyone. In addition to that, he always says he is a criminal, that criminals are notorious liars, and that everything about him is a lie. Raymond is very caring and protective of Elizabeth Keen (Megan Boone) as he goes to extra heights to ensure she is safe. He also cares for people he has known for a long time. On the other hand, he is a ruthless person with no regrets about killing people and sometimes chuckles at the death of victims. Raymond does not kill for pleasure, but instead takes it as a way to get information, eventually leading to the deaths of blacklisters.
James Spader Pretty in Pink
In 1986, Spader gained popularity in the romance comedy Pretty in Pink where he played Steff Mackee. Steff is a rich, arrogant, and popular kid in high school who has a girlfriend Benny Hanson. However, he finds Andie attractive and he really feels bad about being rejected by her.
James Spader Crash
Spader appeared in the Canadian film, Crash in 1996, playing the role of James Ballard. Ballard is married to Catherine and they are in an open marriage. He gets into a car accident one night, that then ends up killing a passenger.
James Spader Secretary
Spader starred in the film Secretary as the sadomasochistic boss, Mr Grey in 2002. Grey is a demanding attorney who hires a secretary, Lee after she learns to type and applies for the job. Lee then agrees to work there under certain conditions.
James Spader Films and TV Shows
- Endless Love
- A Killer in the Family
- The New Kids
- Baby Boom
- Pretty in Pink
- Crash
- Driftwood
- The Watcher
- Secretary
- Shadow of Fear
- The Family Tree
- Family Secrets
- The Practice
- The Office
- The Blacklist
James Spader Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram
He is vocal on his social media accounts where he posts frequently. On his Twitter account, he has about 1.2K followers, around 5.9K followers on his Facebook page, and about 73.5K followers on his Instagram account.