As of July 2026, Brett Cullen is best known for Criminal Minds and NCIS. Find every show and movie Brett Cullen has starred in — and where to watch them — below.
Brett Cullen

Brett Cullen

Actor Born 1956 Houston, Texas, USA 12 TV Shows 8 Movies

Peter Brett Cullen (born August 26, 1956) is an American actor who has appeared in numerous motion pictures and television programs. Early in 2007, he was cast as the role of an estranged father to one of the American football players, Tim Riggins (played by actor Taylor Kitsch), in the NBC drama series Friday Night Lights.

Cullen was born in Houston, Texas, the son of Lucien Hugh Cullen, an oil industry executive, and Catherine Cullen. He graduated from Madison High School in Houston in 1974. Cullen graduated from the University of Houston, giving great credit to his highly acclaimed acting mentor and University of Houston professor, Cecil Pickett, who also mentored such Houston born actors as Dennis Quaid, Randy Quaid, & Brent Spiner among others. Cullen and Dennis Quaid's close friendship to this day dates back to the 1970s and it is Cullen who introduced Dennis Quaid to his current wife, Kimberly Buffington at a dinner in Austin, Texas.

Cullen played Dan Fixx in the 1980s CBS drama Falcon Crest for two seasons (1986–1988) and Marshal Sam Cain in the ABC western series The Young Riders for one season (1989–1990). In 1980, he appeared as the second Gideon Chisholm in the last nine episodes of the CBS western miniseries The Chisholms. In the four earlier episodes, the Gideon Chisholm role was played by Brian Kerwin. Cullen was the lead actor as Ned Logan in the short-lived Legacy, which lasted for just one season (1998–1999). On the series The West Wing Cullen played Ray Sullivan, a fictional governor of West Virginia and the Republican nominee for Vice President.

His guest appearances on TV include: The Incredible Hulk, Tales from the Crypt, MAS*H, V, Matlock, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Ally McBeal, Walker, Texas Ranger, Once and Again, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The Mountain, Monk, CSI: Miami, NCIS, Desperate Housewives, Pepper Dennis, Lost, Ghost Whisperer, Private Practice, Ugly Betty, and Friday Night Lights. In 2009, he had a recurring role in the ABC Family television series Make It or Break It.

He has played two real-life astronauts, Jack Lousma in Apollo 13 (Brett is the CapCom at the time of the explosion; at that shift Lousma was the CapCom in real life) and David Scott in the HBO mini-series From the Earth to the Moon.

His most recent appearance was in the role of Barton Blaze in the movie Ghost Rider. Other movie credits include Wyatt Earp (with Kevin Costner), Gambler V: Playing for Keeps (with Kenny Rogers and Bruce Boxleitner), Something to Talk About (with Julia Roberts and Dennis Quaid), The Replacements (with Gene Hackman), On Golden Pond (with Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer), Nancy Drew, and Gridiron Gang. He also played Bob Cleary in the 1983 mini-series The Thorn Birds.

Cullen was recently cast in the up-coming femme comedy Monte Carlo alongside Selena Gomez, Andie MacDowell and Leighton Meester and is playing the role of Tom Eckert in the upcoming war film Red Dawn.

On February 8, 2011, Brett was named the official spokesman for Houston Works which helps Houston residents with job training and placement, scholarships, consulting, technical initiatives focusing on science, technology, engineering and mathematics and summer job programs along with Youth Summits.

​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Brett Cullen has built a filmography of 20 credits over a career spanning from 1981 to 2026.

Brett Cullen's most notable role to date came in Joker (2019), where he played Thomas Wayne. He also appeared in The Dark Knight Rises (2012) as Congressman. Most recently appeared in Ghost Rider (2007) as Barton Blaze.

Fans wanting to catch up on Brett Cullen's work can find exactly where his shows and movies are streaming below — and TV Butler Pro makes it effortless to keep track of them all. Just search the title, and Butler finds it instantly, tells you which service has it, and remembers what you've already watched.

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📺 Brett Cullen's TV Shows

Criminal Minds
Preacher Justin Mills
2005
NCIS
Todd Gelfand
2003
The Blacklist
The Stranger
2013
Desperate Housewives
Detective Burnett
2004
The West Wing
Ray Sullivan
1999
Lost
Goodwin Stanhope
2004
Person of Interest
Nathan Ingram
2011
True Detective
Gerald Kindt
2014
Damages
Wayne Sutry
2007
Marshals
Harry Gifford
2026
White Collar
Agent Patterson
2009
Falcon Crest
Dan Fixx
1981

🎬 Brett Cullen's Movies

Kill Code
Sawyer
2026
Joker
Thomas Wayne
2019
The Dark Knight Rises
Congressman
2012
Ghost Rider
Barton Blaze
2007
Apollo 13
CAPCOM 1
1995
The Shallows
Father
2016
The Replacements
Eddie Martel
2000
Safe House
Marshall
2025

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