Griffin Dunne makes alarming situations feel uncomfortably familiar. We value the conversational ease that lets him play alongside horror without softening it, most clearly in An American Werewolf in London.
Fi1m perspective
Jack Goodman talks to David Kessler in An American Werewolf in London (1981) with the ease of someone who knows his travelling companion well. Dunne brings that conversational ease to the supernatural business, making it harder to keep at a comfortable distance. We were unsettled by the familiarity, because Jack still sounds like someone David might comfortably pass the time with. John Landis's screenplay gives Dunne and David Naughton a friendship to work with, and the humour comes from their continuing to talk as companions. That makes him useful to Landis in two ways: he can sustain the humour between the friends while keeping the supernatural threat uncomfortably close.
We would not confuse the success of Jack with a faultless film: the romance gets less attention than the monster. The ease between Dunne and Naughton is precisely what that side of the film could have used. The other early reference point is Scorsese's After Hours (1985), which gives him the lead as Paul Hackett. It is the place to go next for a sustained look at him carrying a nightmarish journey, rather than contributing to someone else's.
Those two early roles remain the clearest starting points, but much of the later career has been spent in supporting and character parts. He is often cast as ordinary men or professionals, where an actor has to establish a recognisable person without having the whole film to do it. Dallas Buyers Club (2013), in which he plays Dr Vass, belongs to that longer stretch of ensemble work. Directing has taken up part of his working life too, with Addicted to Love (1997) and Practical Magic (1998) among his features.
Caught Stealing (2025) is a reminder not to recommend every film in an actor's credits on the same terms. Dunne appears as Paul, but our qualified liking for Aronofsky's chase rests on its lived-in New York setting, its pace and Austin Butler's likeable punchbag. It is good company and does not linger much afterwards. For Dunne, start with An American Werewolf in London, and listen to how little he needs to insist that a strange conversation is strange.
Biography
Griffin Dunne is an American actor, director and producer. Born Thomas Griffin Dunne on 8 June 1955 in New York City, he trained at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre. He made his film debut in The Other Side of the Mountain (1975).
Dunne is known for his performances as Jack Goodman in An American Werewolf in London (1981) and Paul Hackett in After Hours (1985), the latter earning a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Other film roles include appearances in My Girl (1991), Dallas Buyers Club (2013), Ocean's Eight (2018), The French Dispatch (2021) and Caught Stealing (2025). He has also acted in television series including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Only Murders in the Building and The Simpsons.
As a director, Dunne's credits include the short film Duke of Groove (1995), nominated for an Academy Award, and feature films such as Practical Magic (1998). He has received nominations for an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.
