Why James From Missing Looks So Familiar
2023's "Missing" keeps viewers on the edge of our seats, while also keeping us in the loop as to all the means and digital tools that June (Storm Reid) is accessing in her quest to find her missing mother, Grace (Nia Long). From FaceTime and Whatsapp calls to searching for passwords and location info, we're literally with June every step of the way as she finds new clues and tips.
When the film begins, we think we're seeing the final family trip of a happy, loving family. When we see dad James with a bloody nose, and then images of files concerning different kinds of brain cancers and a "how to help your child cope with grief" link, we assume James met a tragic death that has left his family grieving. It's only when we get to the ending of "Missing" that we realize James is far from the idyllic, doting husband and father that he appeared to be.
James is played by Tim Griffin, the versatile actor with a dizzying array of film and television roles. While James is definitely one of his darker, bad-guy characters, it's almost impossible to find a genre that he hasn't had a role in. Here's why James from "Missing" looks so familiar.
His first role was in a John Singleton film
After appearing in a small role as Matthew Robinson in "ABC Afterschool Specials" in 1989, Tim Griffin began showing up seemingly everywhere on TV. "In the Heat of the Night," "Who's the Boss?" and "Saved by the Bell: The College Years" were just a few of the series in which Griffin appeared.
In 1995, he got his first film role, playing Orientation Advisor in John Singleton's third film, "Higher Learning." "When I met him I was a kid and at the time I had done a lot of TV, he gave me my breakthrough into film," Griffin told Matt J. Horn about his John Singleton.
The film was very ambitious and was considered ahead of its time. One of the themes involves people separating into different groups as they try to figure out where they belong. One character in particular, Remy (Michael Rapaport), gets persuaded by white supremacists to join with them, and is eventually coerced into taking a gun onto the college campus. Four years later, the Columbine School Shooting occurred, something that Singleton didn't foresee when he wrote the scene. "I was just writing what was on my mind and on my heart in my early twenties," he told Black Girl Nerds. "I was writing about what I was concerned with and other people were concerned with."
He was a CIA agent in The Bourne Supremacy
In 2004, Tim Griffin got a meatier role in "The Bourne Supremacy" as an Italian CIA field officer. After Marie (Franka Potente) was killed in the opening scenes, Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) used his passport to go to Naples, alerting the CIA to his presence. He ends up being questioned by CIA agent Nevins (Griffin), who has no idea who he's dealing with, but knows it's something serious when he gets a call from the D.C. office telling him to detain Bourne.
Unfortunately, Bourne senses something is up, and no sooner does Nevins disconnect the call than Bourne knocks him out and steals his gun. He comes to as CIA deputy director and task force chief Pamela Landy (Joan Allen) calls to ask if Bourne is still there, and Nevins could only meekly respond that he got away.
While Griffin believes in knowing his lines and reading his scripts, he's also a fan of improvisation. Luckily, those improvisation skills came in handy when shooting "The Bourne Supremacy." "In 'Bourne Supremacy' with Matt Damon, we made some choices the day we were filming that were not on script but turned out fantastic," Griffin told Beverly Hills Magazine.
He appeared in his second film with George Clooney
In 2008, Tim Griffin was cast as a Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC) Analyst in "Iron Man," and as Ralph in George Clooney's "Leatherheads." A year later, he took on the brief role of USS Kelvin Engineer in JJ Abrams' rebooted "Star Trek," and then reunited with Clooney in "The Men Who Stare at Goats." "Both George and J.J. live up to the hype that surrounds them," Griffin told Shock Ya! "Both possess enormous talent. Both are down to Earth. Just great, great guys. When you're working with them, you know you are a part of something special."
As Tim Kootz, Griffin plays a soldier that is working under Lieutenant Bill Django (Jeff Bridges), training in his New Earth Army alongside Lyn Cassady (Clooney) to become a psychic weapon. Alongside Cassady, Scotty Mercer (Nick Offerman), and others, they take drugs and use New Age techniques to intensify their cognitive and psychic abilities — which Django refers to in the film as "Jedi powers." And for Griffin's Kootz, one of those techniques involved a walk over hot coals.
He co-starred in the American drama Prime Suspect
In 2011, Tim Griffin got the co-starring role of Detective Augie Blando in the police procedural "Prime Suspect," starring alongside Maria Bello. "Augie [is] definitely comic relief, which I was so thrilled, because I've done a lot of comedy, I've done a lot of drama, but rarely have I seen the two sort of meshed so perfectly as they are here, and it's a dream come true to play, because I'm naturally somebody that loves to laugh and loves to enjoy life," Griffin told The Oklahoman.
While "Prime Suspect" is based on the Helen Mirren-led British drama of the same name, there are plenty of humorous and sarcastic lines to help break up the serious subject. The always-hungry Blando has the most optimistic attitude of all the detectives, even though he doesn't want to break ranks with the other detectives that are trying to shut Detective Jane Timoney (Bello) out. Detective Reg Duffy (Brían F. O'Byrne) tries hard to get all the others, including Blando, to give Timoney the cold shoulder, but eventually, they all give her the respect she's due.
He played a CIA agent in Central Intelligence
In 2016, landed a role in an action-comedy film, "Central Intelligence." Tim Griffin plays CIA agent Stan Mitchell, who is assisting Agents Pamela Harris (Amy Ryan) and Nick Cooper (Timothy John Smith) in their attempt to detain Agent Bob Stone (Dwayne Johnson). The agents believe Stone killed his former partner, Phil Stanton (Aaron Paul), and is trying to sell satellite codes. As Stone drags his new buddy Calvin Joyner (Kevin Hart) further into his plans to find the real culprit and clear his name, Mitchell works alongside Harris to try to track Stone down by whatever means possible.
Griffin was impressed with Johnson and Hart's comedic and improvisational skills, telling Enstarz that "Central Intelligence" is not just a great action film, but is also a solid comedy flick. "I think that has a lot to do with [Johnson] and Hart because they're both innately funny," Griffin said. "So this was the perfect opportunity for me. You got to really believe this is the real government operative search coming after you. It was amazing what they let us do."