(1971-)

Who Is Michael C. Hall?

Actor Michael C. Hall forged a successful stage career in New York before starring in the acclaimed HBO series Six Feet Under. He then became the title character in the Showtime series Dexter, which features a forensic investigator/serial killer as a protagonist. Hall has won SAG awards and a Golden Globe, and has earned several Emmy nominations.

Early Life

Michael Carlyle Hall was born on February 1, 1971, in Raleigh, North Carolina. His father passed away from prostate cancer when the future actor was a pre-teen, and young Hall was raised by his mother, who went on to earn her graduate degree. Hall completed undergraduate work at Earlham College before moving to New York City to attend New York University, where he received a Master of Fine Arts degree.

Television Career

'Six Feet Under'

Soon after, Hall landed a starring role in the HBO program Six Feet Under, an uncanny, unusual series that debuted in 2001, running for five seasons and earning many accolades for its writing and performances. Hall played David Fisher, an emotionally shut-down funeral home director who was conflicted about his sexuality and had an interracial romance with a loving policeman, played by actor Matthew St. Patrick. The series also featured Lauren Ambrose, Frances Conroy, Rachel Griffiths and Peter Krause.

Hall was nominated for an Emmy Award for his work on the show and shared two Screen Actors Guild Awards with his co-stars in the ensemble drama category.

'Dexter'

In 2006, Hall continued his cable TV work with the Showtime series Dexter, based on the Doubleday novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter, written by Jeff Lindsay. On the show, Hall portrays Dexter Morgan, a Miami police blood spatter analyst who moonlights as a serial killer, applying a brand of warped vigilantism to other killers who've escaped from the law.

The series has been a smash for Hall, who's won Golden Globe and SAG awards and received several Emmy nominations for the role. While starring in Dexter, Hall has also been featured in the films Gamer, Peep World and The Trouble With Bliss, and has done ad voiceover work for the car company Dodge.

After Dexter aired its final episode in 2013, Hall made his move to the big screen. He appeared in the drama Kill Your Darlings with Daniel Radcliffe and Elizabeth Olsen. Hall is also slated to star in the thriller Cold in July based on the Joe R. Lansdale novel.

Stage Career

Early in his stage career, Hall began establishing a stellar reputation as an off-Broadway thespian via the New York Shakespeare Festival and Joe's Pub, in productions like Cymbaline, Macbeth, Henry V and Timon of Athens. In June 1999, he became more visible to the theater community after taking over the Emcee role from Alan Cumming in the musical revival Cabaret.

During his Six Feet tenure, Hall made a return to the Broadway stage, portraying "all I care about is love" character Billy Flynn in the musical Chicago in 2003.

After taking a lengthy break, Hall returned to Broadway in a big way in 2014, first as John Jones in The Realistic Joneses and later playing the title role for Hedwig and The Angry Inch. Between 2015 and 2016 Hall continued on stage, starring in David Bowie's New York Theatre Workshop play Lazarus, as Thomas Newton and continued his role months later in the London production.

Film Career

In 2003 Hall starred in Paycheck, a film based on a story by Philip K. Dick that co-starred Ben Affleck and Uma Thurman. Other film credits include: the sci-fi flick Gamer (2009), the drama The Trouble with Bliss (2011) and the biographical drama Kill Your Darlings (2013). He is slated to appear as Leonard Swett, Lincoln's adviser, in the documentary drama The Gettysburg Address.

Battle With Cancer

During the fourth season of Dexter, Hall was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. "I think I've been preoccupied since I was 11, and my father died, with the idea of the age 39: 'Would I live that long? What would that be like?'" he said in a September 2010 interview with The New York Times. "To discover that I had the Hodgkin's was alarming, but at the same time I felt kind of bemused, like, 'Wow. Huh. How interesting.'"

Hall initially kept his diagnosis a secret from the show's cast and crew and underwent chemotherapy, with the public becoming aware of his treatment in early 2010. The disease was put in remission.

Band

Hall fronts Princess Goes to the Butterfly Museum, a band he formed with his Hedwig colleagues keyboardist Matt Katz-Bohen and drummer Peter Yanowitz.

Personal Life

After a few years of dating, Hall eloped with his Canadian-born novelist/book reviewer girlfriend Morgan Macgregor at City Hall in New York City on February 29, 2016. It marked the actor's third marriage.

Hall's first marriage was in 2002 to actress Amy Spanger, who also starred in Chicago, but the union ended a few years later. In 2009, he and his Dexter co-star, Jennifer Carpenter, eloped with the relationship ending in 2011.

QUICK FACTS

  • Name: Michael C. Hall
  • Birth Year: 1971
  • Birth date: February 1, 1971
  • Birth State: North Carolina
  • Birth City: Raleigh
  • Birth Country: United States
  • Gender: Male
  • Best Known For: Michael C. Hall is an award-winning stage and television actor known for his starring roles on the series 'Six Feet Under' and 'Dexter.'
  • Industries
    • Television
    • Film
    • Theater and Dance
  • Astrological Sign: Aquarius

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CITATION INFORMATION

  • Article Title: Michael C. Hall Biography
  • Author: Biography.com Editors
  • Website Name: The Biography.com website
  • Url: https://www.biography.com/actors/michael-c-hall
  • Access Date:
  • Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
  • Last Updated: October 20, 2020
  • Original Published Date: April 2, 2014

QUOTES

  • When I first encountered the character, my first question was: Is this a person who could ever be? Really? And I’m still not sure. I think I’m coming closer and closer to believing that he’s real. And I think Dexter’s coming closer and closer to believing that he's real too." (On playing a serial killer, the title character of 'Dexter.')
  • I think I've been preoccupied since I was 11, and my father died, with the idea of the age 39: 'Would I live that long? What would that be like?' To discover that I had the Hodgkin's was alarming, but at the same time I felt kind of bemused, like, 'Wow. Huh. How interesting.'