Grant Bowler

Birthday: 18 July 1968, Auckland, New Zealand

Height: 183 cm

Grant Bowler can be seen as the male lead, 'Nolan', in Syfy's Defiance, which returned for its second season, June 2014. Bowler in his recent hiatus shot four movies back-to-back including the psychological action film, "Swelter", alongside Jean Claude Van Damme & Alfred Molina, Sci-Fi thriller "400 Days" with Brandon Routh and Dane Cook, "Lucky Dog" with Amy Smart and the family movie, "Zooey to the Max".Bowler was last seen on the small screen as 'Richard Burton' in Lifetime's television movie Liz & Dick, and had a widely popular turn as 'Cooter' in the award winning vampire franchise True Blood on HBO. He is perhaps best known for his work as recurring character 'Connor Owens' on Ugly Betty and as 'Captain Gault' in TV blockbuster Lost.Born in New Zealand and raised in Australia, he is a graduate of the esteemed Australian drama school NIDA, alongside other notable graduates including Mel Gibson, Cate Blanchett and Sam Worthington.Prior to basing himself in Los Angeles, Grant carried many successful Australian TV roles including dramas Blue Heelers, Pacific Drive, All Saints, Something In The Air, as well as starring in the mini-series Through My Eyes about the disappearance of Azaria Chamberlin, Lindy Chamberlin's baby and the Australian TV movie The Great Mint Swindle. He's also been seen in the widely viewed NZ crime drama Outrageous Fortune, where he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 2010 Qantas Film and Television Awards. 2012 saw Bowler add an International Emmy win to his list of career accomplishments. Show less «

I never talk about a job before the contract is signed and I've shot the first three days.

Money is tighter now, with the advertising dollar spread a lot more thinly across a whole range of m...Show more »

Money is tighter now, with the advertising dollar spread a lot more thinly across a whole range of media because of the Internet. It means the television networks have less power to produce shows, and TV is where most Australian actors make their money. Show less «

A character, their ability or inability to laugh at themselves should always be a very, very conscio...Show more »

A character, their ability or inability to laugh at themselves should always be a very, very conscious choice. It's a very big key to the nature of a human being. Show less «

A long-running TV series is a beast in that it demands you stick to one character over a long haul.

I was born in New Zealand, so I have a lot of family there.

I'm a huge fan of classic sci-fi.

I grew up in Queensland, and my dad was a tradesman and my mum an insurance agent, both self-employe...Show more »

I grew up in Queensland, and my dad was a tradesman and my mum an insurance agent, both self-employed. Show less «

[on encountering fans] I can tell where people know me from by how they behave when they recognize m...Show more »

[on encountering fans] I can tell where people know me from by how they behave when they recognize me. If they recognize me from 'Ugly Betty' they usually come up and say hello. If they recognize me from 'True Blood' or 'Defiance' they usually keep their distance and wave. It's really funny. I'm not going to bite you or shoot you. It's all good. Show less «

For my money, if I'm playing anything then it has to have some sharp angles on it. It's got to have ...Show more »

For my money, if I'm playing anything then it has to have some sharp angles on it. It's got to have some edges that you can cut yourself on, otherwise it's boring. Show less «

I love playing bad guys; they're always much more fun than the good guy.

I seem to be incapable of playing that guy that always does the right thing, who always responds wel...Show more »

I seem to be incapable of playing that guy that always does the right thing, who always responds well in any circumstance. Show less «

I've actually usually been wary of taking on science fiction as an actor because it's really tough t...Show more »

I've actually usually been wary of taking on science fiction as an actor because it's really tough to do. It's really difficult to execute. There's often lots of prosthetics, green screen and special effects, and it can get very technical. Show less «

Comedy has to be so much cleaner than drama. You can't layer it in the way you can a dramatic perfor...Show more »

Comedy has to be so much cleaner than drama. You can't layer it in the way you can a dramatic performance. Which is why it's more difficult than drama - you don't have so many tricks. Show less «

Making a movie with Lindsay Lohan is not for the faint of heart.

I think that the way of bringing realism into fantasy is to treat it as the commonplace.

I don't watch the beginnings of many series; I don't know why - maybe because I'm normally working.

I love working in New Zealand. It's just the most beautiful country I've ever been to.

Grant Bowler

Grant Bowler's FILMOGRAPHY

Grant Bowler'S roles

Feedback about this page?