Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland Bio
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland is a British and Canadian actor and musician known for his starring role as Jack Bauer in the Fox drama series 24. He won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for his performance in the series. He also starred as President Tom Kirkman in the ABC political drama series Designated Survivor. Born to actors Donald Sutherland and Shirley Douglas, he comes from a prominent entertainment family.
Sutherland has appeared in numerous films throughout his career including Stand by Me, The Lost Boys, Young Guns, Flatliners, A Few Good Men, The Three Musketeers, Freeway, A Time to Kill, Dark City, Phone Booth, Melancholia, and Pompeii. He has also provided voice work for video games and has been recognized with stars on both the Hollywood Walk of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame. His versatility has allowed him to succeed across multiple genres in both film and television.
Early Life and Background
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland was born on December 21, 1966, in London, England, to actors Donald Sutherland and Shirley Douglas. His parents were both successful Canadian actors living and working in England at the time of his birth. His parents divorced when he was three years old. He has a twin sister named Rachel Sutherland who works as a post-production film supervisor.
His maternal grandfather was Tommy Douglas, the Scottish-born Canadian politician and former Premier of Saskatchewan who is widely credited for establishing universal health care in Canada. Sutherland is named after American-born writer and director Warren Kiefer, who directed his father Donald Sutherland in his first feature film. The family moved to Corona, California, in 1968, and later Sutherland relocated with his mother to Toronto, Ontario, in 1975.
Sutherland attended several schools during his youth including Crescent Town Elementary School and St. Clair Junior High in East York, and John G. Althouse Middle School in Etobicoke. His high school education included attendance at St. Andrew’s College, Martingrove Collegiate Institute, Harbord Collegiate Institute, Silverthorn Collegiate Institute, Malvern Collegiate Institute, Annex Village Campus, and Regina Mundi Catholic College in London, Ontario. He also took weekend acting lessons at Sir Frederick Banting Secondary School.
Path to Actor
Sutherland made his screen debut in Max Dugan Returns, a film that also starred his father Donald Sutherland. He received critical acclaim for his role as Donald Campbell in the Canadian drama The Bay Boy, which earned him Genie Award nominations. This early success helped establish his reputation in the industry and led to opportunities in American cinema.
Stand by Me was the first film Sutherland made in the United States, directed by Rob Reiner. He played a neighborhood bully in this coming-of-age story. He followed this with a supporting role in At Close Range alongside Sean Penn and Christopher Walken. These early roles showcased his ability to portray complex characters and set the stage for his breakthrough in Hollywood.
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland Career
Early Career (1983-1989)
Sutherland gained widespread recognition for his role as the vampire David in Joel Schumacher’s The Lost Boys. This film became a cult classic and established him as a prominent young actor in Hollywood. He also appeared in Promised Land with Meg Ryan, which was the first film commissioned by the Sundance Film Festival. His performance in The Lost Boys demonstrated his range and ability to captivate audiences in genre films.
In the Western film Young Guns, Sutherland starred alongside Emilio Estevez and Lou Diamond Phillips. The film was a commercial success and further solidified his status as a leading man. He continued his collaboration with Lou Diamond Phillips in the crime-action film Renegades. During this period, Sutherland and his father Donald Sutherland appeared together at the 61st Academy Awards as presenters of the Academy Honorary Award to the National Film Board of Canada.
Breakthrough (1990-2001)
In 1990, Sutherland starred as the lead in Flatliners alongside Julia Roberts and Kevin Bacon. The film explored themes of life and death through a group of medical students conducting dangerous experiments. He also appeared in The Vanishing alongside Jeff Bridges and played Athos in The Three Musketeers. These roles demonstrated his versatility across different genres from psychological thrillers to historical adventures.
Sutherland appeared in A Few Good Men in 1992, playing a junior officer subordinate to Jack Nicholson’s character. The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture and became one of the most acclaimed films of the year. In 1996, he starred in three notable films: Freeway with Reese Witherspoon, Eye for an Eye with Sally Field, and A Time to Kill alongside his father Donald Sutherland. In 1998, he portrayed Daniel P. Schreber in the science fiction film Dark City directed by Alex Proyas.
Notable Works and Milestones
Since 2001, Sutherland has been most widely recognized for his role as Jack Bauer on the critically acclaimed television series 24. After being nominated four times for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, he won the award in 2006 for the show’s fifth season. He also received Golden Globe nominations for his performance. The series ran from 2001 to 2010 and returned for a limited series in 2014. His portrayal of the counter-terrorism agent became iconic and defined a significant portion of his career.
In 2012, Sutherland starred in the Fox television series Touch as the father of an autistic boy who communicates through numbers and mathematics. In 2016, he took on the lead role of President Tom Kirkman in the ABC political drama series Designated Survivor. The show was later renewed by Netflix for a third season. Sutherland also ventured into music, releasing his first album Down in a Hole in 2016 and forming The Kiefer Sutherland Band, which performed at the Grand Ole Opry.
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland Award Nominations
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland has received numerous award nominations throughout his career. He was nominated four times for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his role in 24. He received Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Actor in a Television Series Drama for his performance in the same series. His film work has also garnered recognition, including a nomination for the Danish film prize Bodil for his role in Melancholia.
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland Awards Won
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 2006 for his performance as Jack Bauer in the fifth season of 24. He also won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series Drama for the same role. In addition to these major honors, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Zurich Film Festival and has been inducted into both the Hollywood Walk of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame.
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland Family
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland was born to actors Donald Sutherland and Shirley Douglas. His father Donald Sutherland is a renowned actor with an extensive filmography, while his mother Shirley Douglas was also a successful actress. He has a twin sister named Rachel Sutherland who works as a post-production film supervisor. Through his father, he has two paternal half-brothers, Angus Sutherland and Rossif Sutherland, and a stepmother named Francine Racette.
His maternal grandfather was Tommy Douglas, the former Premier of Saskatchewan who is considered the father of Canada’s universal health care system. This family heritage has influenced Sutherland’s political views and public advocacy. He has one daughter named Sarah Sutherland, born on February 18, 1988, from his first marriage. Through his marriage to Camelia Kath, he also became stepfather to her daughter Michelle Kath.
Personal Life
Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland married Camelia Kath on September 12, 1987. The couple divorced in 1990. He was later engaged to actress Julia Roberts, his co-star in Flatliners, but the couple called off their wedding just days before the planned ceremony in 1991. On June 29, 1996, he married Kelly Winn. The couple separated in 1999 and their divorce was finalized in 2008.
Sutherland began dating model and actress Cindy Vela in 2014. The couple kept their relationship private until making public appearances together in 2017. They became engaged in 2017. Sutherland has owned property in Toluca Lake, Los Angeles, and also owns a property in Kingston, New York. He is a member of the Canadian charity Artists Against Racism and has been involved in various philanthropic efforts throughout his career.