Cast & creator
John Cameron Mitchell
Best known for Late Night with Seth Meyers, Law & Order, MacGyver
American writer, director, actor. Mitchell, the son of a U.S. Army general and a Scottish mother, grew up on various army bases, including Berlin; later the family lived in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he attended a Catholic school. Since the mid-1980s, he has worked as a theatre actor and director in New York City and played small roles in television and film productions. Among other things, he directed a play by Tennessee Williams. From 1991, he appeared in the original Broadway production of Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon's musical adaptation of The Secret Garden, which won several Tony Awards. In the early 1990s, together with musician Stephen Trask, he developed the character of Hedwig, a transgender rock musician who grew up in East Berlin, for performances in the New York drag bar Squeezebox. This led to the successful Off-Broadway musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch in 1998, which won two Obie Awards, and three years later to the film version of the musical, again with himself in the title role. The film premiered at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Director's and Audience Awards, and the play won the 2001 Lambda Literary Award. At the 2002 Chlotrudis Awards, he won the prize for best leading actor. At the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) in 2001, the film was shown in the ‘PANORAMA’ section and won the Teddy Award. In 2003, he produced the film Tarnation by Jonathan Caouette, which was honoured as best documentary film by the US National Society of Film Critics, among others. In 2004, Mitchell shot the music video for the Scissor Sisters' single Filthy/Gorgeous with stars from the New York drag scene. The clip was not shown on American MTV due to its explicit sexual depictions.
Also known as: John Mitchell
66
film credits
25
television credits
67
1982–2026 · acting roles
6.4
average across scored titles
Signature credits
Known for
Across film & television
Filmography (91)
Showing 91 of 91 credits
Late Night with Seth Meyers
Self - Guest
2014
Law & Order
Eddie
1990
MacGyver
Aaron
1985
American Playhouse
Calvin Fitch
1982American Playhouse
1st Android (segment 'Teach 109')
1982American Playhouse
Jacek Nowak
1982
The Good Fight
Felix Staples
2017
The Twilight Zone
Tom (segment "The Last Defender of Camelot")
1985
Nurse Jackie
Director
2009
The Equalizer
Ed Donahue
1985
The Sandman
Hal Carter
2022
Yellowjackets
Caligula
2021
Girls
David Pressler-Goings
2012
GLOW
Director
2017
Mozart in the Jungle
Egon
2014
Freddy's Nightmares
Bryan Ross
1988
Vinyl
Andy Warhol
2016
City on Fire
Amory
2023
Shrill
Gabe
2019
Shortbus
Sextra (one of the participants in the orgy sequence)
2006Shortbus
Director
2006Shortbus
Screenplay
2006Shortbus
Producer
2006
Indie Sex
Self
2007
Joe vs Carole
Joe 'Exotic' Schreibvogel
2022
Rabbit Hole
Director
2010
Time Warp: The Greatest Cult Films of All Time
Self
2020
How to Talk to Girls at Parties
Punk (uncredited)
2017How to Talk to Girls at Parties
Director
2017How to Talk to Girls at Parties
Screenplay
2017How to Talk to Girls at Parties
Producer
2017How to Talk to Girls at Parties
Songs
2017
Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies
Self
2020
The House of Venus Show
Self
2005
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Hedwig
2001Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Director
2001Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Musical
2001Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Writer
2001
Band of the Hand
J.L.
1986
Dr. Jackie
John Cameron Mitchell
2022
Broadway: The Next Generation
Self
Party Girl
Derrick
1996
Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema
Self
2006
Nicole Kidman: Eyes Wide Open
Self (interview)
2023
Time Warp Vol. 3: Comedy and Camp
Self
2020
Sigur Rós: Valtari Film Experiment
Director
2013
Lisbon
2025
Everybody Wants to Be Gen X
Self
2025
Girl 6
Rob
1996
It's a Miserable Life
Byran Ross
2013
One More Saturday Night
Teenager #2
1986
My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea
Brent Daniels (voice)
2016
The Dreamer of Oz
Albert
1990
Book of Love
Floyd
1990
Paying for It
Executive Producer
2025
John Cameron Mitchell & Stephen Trask: Nation of One
John Cameron Mitchell
2021John Cameron Mitchell & Stephen Trask: Nation of One
Writer
2021John Cameron Mitchell & Stephen Trask: Nation of One
Musician
2021John Cameron Mitchell & Stephen Trask: Nation of One
Vocals
2021
Daybreak
Lennie
1993
Larry Kramer In Love & Anger
Himself
2015
Whether You Like It or Not: The Story of Hedwig
Self
2003Seraph
Writer
2013Seraph
Producer
2013
AngelHeaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex
Self
2023
Apparition of the Eternal Church
Self
2006
The Stepford Children
Kenny
1987
A Friendship in Vienna
Tommi Lowberg
1988
Tarnation
Executive Producer
2003
Reclaim the Flag
Self
2025
I Remember
Joe
1999
Cockroach
James
2026
Follow My Voice: With the Music of Hedwig
Self
2006
Gifted and Challenged: The Making of 'Shortbus'
Himself
2007
Ron Forever
Ron
Untitled Candy Darling Biopic
Executive Producer
Interior. Leather Bar.
Story Consultant
2013
Totally Gay!
Self
2003
The Spark: The Origins of Pride
Self
2019
I Am More
2022
The Hooping Life
Himself
2014
Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer
Himself
2007
David Searching
Man with Fruit
1997
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Hedwig Robinson/Tommy Gnosis
1998
Lance Loud!: A Death in An American Family
Self (uncredited)
2003
Danny Says
Self
2015
I Love You, AllWays
Executive Music Producer
2024Misplaced
Jacek
1989
The Roommate
Calvin Fitch
1984
Heaven Above Rowen
Promise (voice)
2026