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Marshall Napier

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Marshall Napier
Born
James Marshall Napier

(1951-10-22)22 October 1951
Lower Hutt, New Zealand
Died14 August 2022(2022-08-14) (aged 70)
Canberra, Australia
Occupation(s)Actor, playwright, graphic artist
Children3, including Jessica
RelativesJames Napier Robertson (nephew)

James Marshall Napier (22 October 1951 – 14 August 2022) was a New Zealand-born character actor, playwright and graphic artist. He is known for a succession of strong supporting roles in Australasian films and television shows. He also had a notable stage career.

Biography

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Napier grew up in the city of Lower Hutt and was educated at Hutt Valley High School. He is the father of James Reuben Napier, actress Jessica Napier, and Rose Napier. He is the uncle of film director James Napier Robertson.[1]

Before becoming an actor, Napier worked variously as a labourer, factory hand, and truck driver. He also spent a year studying graphic design at the Wellington Polytechnic. He landed his first professional acting job in 1975, at Wellington's Downstage Theatre.

In 1988, he moved with his wife and two young children to Australia, hoping to further his acting career. He soon became an established name in film, theatre, and television. His play Freak Winds has been performed in Australia, New Zealand, United States and Canada; other plays have been broadcast on Australia's ABC radio.

His starring role in Bellbird (2019) resulted in the film receiving awards at several international film festivals.[2][3][4]

Death

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Napier died from brain cancer on 14 August 2022 in Canberra at the age of 70.[5]

Theatre

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As performer

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Year Title Role Type
1971 Marat/Sade Jaques Roux Studio Workshop
1972 The Day Flanagan Died Berney Flanagan Studio Workshop
1973 Major Barbara Bill Walker Unity Theatre, Wellington
1975 Bully Pete Downstage Theatre, NZ
1976 Ubu Roi Captain MacNure Downstage Theatre, NZ
1976 Three Sisters Rode Downstage Theatre, NZ
1976 Othello Soldier Downstage Theatre, NZ
1976 Happy Birthday, Wanda June Colonel 'Looseleaf' Harper Downstage Theatre, NZ
1977 The Tooth of Crime Hoss Unity Theatre, Wellington
1978 Twelfth Night Sir Toby Belch Centrepoint Theatre, NZ
1978 The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui Gigi / Dogsborough Circa Theatre, NZ
1978 The One Day of the Year Alf Four Seasons Theatre
1978 Huffers Tour
1979 Stiff Bix Kabaret Various Rock Theatre
1980 Steel Heels Various Unity Theatre, Wellington
1981 The Dumb Waiter Ben Tour
1982 The Duchess of Malfi Ferdinand Circa Theatre, NZ
1983 Tooth and Claw Mime Downstage Theatre, NZ
1984 Insignificance The Senator Circa Theatre, NZ
1985 Country Cops Waddell Circa Theatre, NZ
1986 Loose Connections Rick Thomas Downstage Theatre, NZ
1991 Diving for Pearls Den Belvoir Street Theatre
1994 All Souls Joe Stables Theatre with Griffin Theatre Company
1996 A View from the Bridge Eddie Carbone Belvoir Street Theatre
1996 Simpatico Carter Wharf Theatre with Sydney Theatre Company
1996 Speaking in Tongues Leon / Nick Stables Theatre with Griffin Theatre Company
1997 The Herbal Bed Dr John Hall Wharf Theatre with Sydney Theatre Company
1997 Waiting for Godot Vladimir / Estragon Q Theatre
2000 Alarms and Excursions Actor A Ensemble Theatre
2000 Freak Winds Ernest Old Fitzroy Theatre with Hydra Theatre Company
2002 Angel City Wheeler Old Fitzroy Theatre
2006 Freak Winds Ernest Arclight Theater, New York
2008 Frost/Nixon Nixon Fairfax Studio with Melbourne Theatre Company
2009 The Birthday Party Goldberg Fairfax Studio with Melbourne Theatre Company
2010 The Power of Yes Howard Davies & various Belvoir Street Theatre
2010 The Schelling Point Kubrick Old Fitzroy Theatre
2011 In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play) Mr Daldry Sydney Opera House, Southbank Theatre Melbourne, Riverside Theatres Parramatta with Sydney Theatre Company
2011 Stainless Steel Rat Mark Stephens / Eric J Holder Jnr / Journalist Seymour Centre with Harrison Productions
2012 The Gift Ed Auckland Theatre Company
2013 Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Big Daddy Belvoir Street Theatre, Theatre Royal, Sydney
2013 All My Sons Joe Keller Eternity Playhouse, Sydney Darlinghurst Theatre
2015–17 The Present Ivan Chekhov's Platonov adapted by Andrew Upton with Sydney Theatre Company & Broadway tour[6]

As crew

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Year Title Role Type
2006 Freak Winds Director / Playwright Arclight Theater, New York

[7][8]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2022 Northspur Summers
2020 Earl's Town Earl Short film
2019 Bellbird Ross Feature film
Little Monsters Army General Feature film
2016 The Light Between Oceans Mr Couglan Feature film
Down Under Graham Sheather Feature film
2013 Inside The Visiting Doctor Short film
2012 Jack Irish: Bad Debts Father Gorman TV movie
2011 Underbelly Files: Tell Them Lucifer was Here Chief Commissioner Neil Comrie TV movie
Panic at Rock Island Paul Thorpe TV movie
2010 Griff the Invisible Benson Feature film
The Clinic Officer Marvin Underwood Feature film
I Love You Too Mechanic Feature film
2009 I'm Not Harry Jenson Tom Feature film
2007 The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep Sgt Strunk Feature film
2004 Sold Out J. Edgar Crippen Short film
Get Rich Quick Turf O'Keefe
2003 Travelling Light Don Ferris Feature film
Bad Eggs Doug Gillespie Feature film
2002 Stuffed Bunny Priest Short film
Black and White Prison Warden Feature film
New Skin Captain Jip
2001 My Husband, My Killer John Radij TV movie
Jet Set Mr Birkin
2000 The Shirt Mike Hughes
Muggers Charles Lawrence Feature film
1999 Airtight Norscrum TV movie
In a Savage Land Geoffrey Hallerton Feature film
Strange Planet Robert Feature film
1998 13 Gantry Row Blake TV movie
The Sugar Factory Mr Berne Feature film
Meteorites Cass Cassidy TV movie
1997 Diana & Me Bank Manager Feature film
1996 Dead Heart Sgt. Oakes Feature film
Children of the Revolution Brendan Shaw Feature film
Race the Sun Mr Cronin Feature film
1995 Swimming Lessons Jim TV movie
Babe Chairman of Judges Feature film
1994 Spider and Rose Henderson Feature film
Paperback Romance (aka Lucky Break) George LePine Feature film
1993 Shotgun Wedding Dave Green Feature film
1991 Flirting Mr. Rupert Elliott Feature film
1990 The Big Steal Desmond Clark Feature film
1988 The Grasscutter Det. Inspector Cross TV movie
The Navigator Searle Feature film
Georgia Frank Le Mat Feature film
The Clean Machine Keith Reid Feature film
1985 Came a Hot Friday Sel Bishop Feature film
1984 Pallet on the Floor Joe Voot Feature film
1983 Wild Horses Andy Feature film
1982 Carry Me Back Airforce Guard
Battletruck Poole Feature film
1981 Inside Every Thin Girl TV movie
Bad Blood Trev Bond Feature film
1980 Beyond Reasonable Doubt Wyllie Feature film
Goodbye Pork Pie Police Driver Feature film

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2021 Doctor Doctor Bill TV series, 1 episode
2020 Grey Nomads Don Boyce TV series, 6 episodes
2016 Janet King Magistrate Schaeffer TV series, 1 episode
2014–15 Love Child Greg Matheson TV series, season 2, 8 episodes
2014 The Moodys[9] Howard Benson TV series, 3 episodes
Auckland Daze Arnold TV series, 1 episode
2012 Rake Prosecution TV series, 1 episode
2009 Chandon Pictures Basil TV series, 1 episode
2006–10 City Homicide Detective Senior Sergeant Wilton Sparkes TV series, seasons 1-2 & 4, 11 episodes
2006–01 McLeod's Daughters[10] Harry Ryan TV series, 87 episodes
2001 Stingers Eddie Thomas TV series, 1 episode
Head Start John Allott TV series, 4 episodes
Farscape General Grynes TV series, 1 episode
2001 The Farm Peter Collins TV series, 3 episodes
2000 The Lost World Drakul TV series, 1 episode
1999–01 All Saints Ian Hanrahan / Mick Mason TV series, 3 episodes
1999–96 Water Rats[11] Joe da Silva TV series, 5 episodes
1997–99 Blue Heelers John Scanlan / Jim Jamieson TV series, 2 episodes
1996 Twisted Tales Ray TV series, 1 episode
1996 The Beast Commander Wallingford TV miniseries, 2 episodes
1995 Blue Murder Tony Eustace TV miniseries, 2 episodes
Snowy River: The Mcgregor Saga Charlie Dunn TV series, 1 episode
Halifax f.p. Dale TV series, 1 episode
1994–93 Secrets Gary O'Leary TV series, 13 episodes
1993 Stark Private Detective TV series, 2 episodes
Seven Deadly Sins Tom TV miniseries, 1 episode: "Greed"
Time Trax Oscar TV series, 1 episode
1992 South Pacific Adventures Captain Johnson
1989–92 Police Rescue Fred 'Frog' Catteau TV series, 19 episodes
1991–92 G.P. Stan Brodie TV series, 2 episodes
1992 The Girl from Tomorrow Daco TV series, 12 episodes
1989 Rafferty's Rules Alex Reed TV series, 1 episode
Mission Impossible Talbot TV series, 1 episode
E Street Bernie TV series, 1 episode
1988 Always Afternoon Bill Kennon TV series, 4 episodes
1987 Starlight Hotel Det. Wallace Feature film
1986 Dangerous Orphans Hobbes Feature film
Adventurer Mason TV series, 12 episodes
Seekers Wright TV series, 1 episode
Footrot Flats Hunk Murphy Animated feature film
1985 Roche Snatch TV series, 2 episodes
Lie of the Land Huddy
Heart of the High Country Hary TV series, 1 episode
1984 Inside Straight TV series, 1 episode
Mortimer's Patch Lance Harris TV series, 1 episode
1979 The Neville Purvis Family Show Larry Lucas TV series, 6 episodes
1977 The Governor Richard Seddon TV series, 1 episode

Activism

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In 2002, he and his daughter, Jessica Napier, won $64,000 in the Australian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? for a South Australian animal rights group. Both are animal rights supporters and vegetarians.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^ "Marshall Napier". Smurcher's Guide. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  2. ^ "Bellbird: Film Review". Hollywood Reporter. 6 January 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  3. ^ "MACAO 2019 Awards Kirill Mikhanovsky's Give Me Liberty wins the fourth International Film Festival & Awards‧Macao". Cineuropa.org. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  4. ^ "2021 Palmares". Rencontres Internationales du Cinéma des Antipodes. 25 May 2022. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  5. ^ Cartwright, Lexie (15 August 2022). "McLeod's Daughters actor Marshall Napier dies aged 70". Herald Sun. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  6. ^ "The Present, Starring Cate Blanchett, Ends Broadway Run March 19". Playbill. 19 March 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  7. ^ "AusStage".
  8. ^ https://johnsonlaird.com/assets/documents/1659/1659_actor_biography.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  9. ^ "Australian Television: The Moodys: Cast".
  10. ^ "Australian Television: McLeod's Daughters".
  11. ^ "Australian Television: Water Rats: Episode guide: Series 2".
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