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IMDbPro

William Ragsdale

  • Actor
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
William Ragsdale
Watch Alex Strangelove - Official Trailer
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A native of south Arkansas, William began acting in community theater at age eleven. He was honored by the International Thespian Society during his high school years and, in his senior year, won National Society of Arts and Letters Drama competition at the state level, becoming the youngest participant ever to compete at the National Competition. After graduating from Hendrix College in Arkansas, he attended the Drama Studio London's American school in Berkeley, CA. While still in school he was asked by prominent casting director Jackie Burch to audition for the role of Rocky in the feature film Mask, directed by Peter Bogdanovich. He didn't get the role, but shortly thereafter was cast as Laura Dern's love interest in her very first film, Smooth Talk. Meanwhile, Burch remembered him for her next project, the Columbia Pictures horror classic Fright Night. Shortly after its premiere, he made his Broadway debut in Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues, replacing Matthew Broderick in the lead role of Eugene Jerome. He subsequently reprised his roles as Charlie Brewster in the sequel to Fright Night and Eugene for the national tour of Simon's Broadway Bound, with Nathan Lane. He began starring in television projects also around this time. After a few non-picked up pilots, he landed the role of Herman Brooks on the Fox Network's Herman's Head, which ran for three years, anchoring the networks Sunday night line up with The Simpsons, In Living Color, and Married With Children. His subsequent television credits, both as a series regular and guest work, are extensive.
BornJanuary 19
  • More at IMDbPro
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    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornJanuary 19
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Photos133

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    Known for

    Fright Night (1985)
    Fright Night
    7.0
    • Charley Brewster
    • 1985
    Ken Hudson Campbell, Molly Hagan, Rick Lawless, Peter Mackenzie, and William Ragsdale in Herman's Head (1991)
    Herman's Head
    7.2
    TV Series
    • Herman Brooks
    Timothy Olyphant in Justified (2010)
    Justified
    8.6
    TV Series
    • Gary Hawkins
    Search Party (2016)
    Search Party
    7.6
    TV Series
    • Chuck

    Credits

    Edit
    IMDbPro

    Actor



    • Heavy Hitters
      • Dylan Burke
      • Pre-production
      • TV Series
    • Love in Storytown
      • Mayor Jeff
      • Completed
      • TV Movie
    • Re-Election
      • Noa's Father
      • In Production



    • Parker Posey, Leslie Bibb, Jason Isaacs, Walton Goggins, Aimee Lou Wood, Michelle Monaghan, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Carrie Coon, Natasha Rothwell, Tayme Thapthimthong, Sam Nivola, Sarah Catherine Hook, and Lalisa Manobal in The White Lotus (2021)
      The White Lotus
      8.0
      TV Series
      • Bart Nixon (uncredited)
      • 2025
    • Table Read Podcast (2023)
      Table Read Podcast
      6.6
      Podcast Series
      • Charley Brewster (voice)
      • 2024
    • Nicolas Cage and Nicholas Hoult in Renfield (2023)
      Renfield
      6.4
      • Older Priest
      • 2023
    • Queen Latifah and Florin Penișoară in The Equalizer (2021)
      The Equalizer
      5.6
      TV Series
      • Kent
      • 2023
    • Nikki Amuka-Bird, Rupert Grint, Dave Bautista, and Abby Quinn in Knock at the Cabin (2023)
      Knock at the Cabin
      6.1
      • Eric's Father (uncredited)
      • 2023
    • Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway in WeCrashed (2022)
      WeCrashed
      7.3
      TV Mini Series
      • Chris
      • 2022
    • Younger (2015)
      Younger
      7.8
      TV Series
      • Jeffrey Jacobs
      • Jeffrey
      • 2019–2021
    • The Blacklist (2013)
      The Blacklist
      7.9
      TV Series
      • Carl Conway
      • 2021
    • Laurence Fishburne, Anthony Anderson, Jenifer Lewis, Tracee Ellis Ross, Yara Shahidi, Marcus Scribner, Miles Brown, and Marsai Martin in Black-ish (2014)
      Black-ish
      7.3
      TV Series
      • Dr. Chubb
      • 2020
    • Tom Selleck, Bridget Moynahan, Donnie Wahlberg, and Will Estes in Blue Bloods (2010)
      Blue Bloods
      7.7
      TV Series
      • Lt. Dean Stafford
      • 2020
    • Eric Roberts, William Ragsdale, Catherine Mary Stewart, and Theresa Moriarty in The Elevator Game (2019)
      The Elevator Game
      5.7
      • Tom Walton
      • 2019
    • James Franco, Lawrence Gilliard Jr., and Maggie Gyllenhaal in The Deuce (2017)
      The Deuce
      8.1
      TV Series
      • Hoffman
      • 2019
    • Alan Cumming and Bojana Novakovic in Instinct (2018)
      Instinct
      6.7
      TV Series
      • Lockhart
      • 2019
    • Ashleigh Cummings in NOS4A2 (2019)
      NOS4A2
      6.7
      TV Series
      • Auctioneer
      • 2019
    • Christine Baranski and Audra McDonald in The Good Fight (2017)
      The Good Fight
      8.3
      TV Series
      • Rodney Pebbler
      • 2018

    • In-development projects at IMDbPro

    Videos7

    William Ragsdale Demo Reel
    Demo Reel 6:46
    William Ragsdale Demo Reel
    Trailer
    Trailer 2:22
    Trailer
    Trailer
    Trailer 2:22
    Trailer
    Alex Strangelove - Official Trailer
    Trailer 1:44
    Alex Strangelove - Official Trailer
    Fright Night
    Trailer 1:42
    Fright Night
    Thunderstruck
    Trailer 2:32
    Thunderstruck
    Fright Night 2
    Trailer 0:31
    Fright Night 2

    Personal details

    Edit
    • Alternative names
      • Billy Ragsdale
    • Height
      • 5′ 10½″ (1.79 m)
    • Born
      • January 19
      • El Dorado, Arkansas, USA
    • Spouse
      • Andrea RagsdaleAugust 25, 1999 - present (3 children)
    • Other works
      Active on Broadway in the following productions:

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Lost out to Matthew Broderick in lead film roles of Biloxi Blues (1988) and Project X (1987).

    FAQ

    Powered by Alexa
    • Where was William Ragsdale born?
      El Dorado, Arkansas, USA
    • What is William Ragsdale's birth name?
      Robert William Ragsdale
    • How tall is William Ragsdale?
      5 feet 11 inches, or 1.79 meters
    • What is William Ragsdale known for?
      Fright Night, Herman's Head, Justified, and Search Party
    • Is William Ragsdale married?
      Yes, to Andrea Ragsdale since August 25, 1999

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