Miguel Sandoval

A prolific character actor in features and on television for decades, Miguel Sandoval was best known for turns as steely lawmen - or those that broke the law - on "Medium" (NBC/CBS, 2005-2011) and in films like "Do the Right Thing" (1989) and "Clear and Present Danger" (1994). Born in Washington, D.C, Sandoval came to acting in 1975 through the study of pantomime at a school in Albuquerque, New Mexico. While training with the group, he was asked to join a local theater company that performed in parks and schools throughout the state. When the company closed in 1979, Sandoval launched his own theater troupe, which trained inmates at the New Mexico State Penitentiary, while also performing with theater companies in Houston, Texas and Santa Fe, New Mexico; while appearing with the latter troupe, he was cast in a science fiction Western called "Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann" (1982). That film's producer, former Monkee and audio-visual pioneer Michael Nesmith, recommended Sandoval to British director Alex Cox, who was helming his next production, "Repo Man" (1982), in Los Angeles. Sandoval would subsequently appear in and collaborate with Cox on five subsequent projects, including "Sid and Nancy" (1986), "Straight to Hell" (1987) and "Walker" (1987), while also serving as casting director and second unit director on "Walker" and penning songs for "Sid" and "Straight to Hell." During this period, he was also a prolific guest player on television, and forged another rewarding collaboration with director Spike Lee, who cast him as hot-tempered New York police officer Ponte in "Do the Right Thing" and "Jungle Fever" (1991). Sandoval soon settled into regular work in character roles, often playing imposing men of authority on either side of the moral fence - federal agents and judges in "White Sands" (1992) and the Steven Bochco-produced "Civil Wars" (ABC, 1991-1993), drug lords in "Clear and Present Danger" and on Bochco's "Murder One" (ABC, 1995-1997) and an array of lawmen on episodic television. Between these efforts, Sandoval also played an amber mine overseer in "Jurassic Park" (1993), convinced Kramer (Michael Richards) to put his pet rooster in a cock fight on "Seinfeld" (NBC, 1989-1998), and was in near-constant demand for guest roles on series like "ER" (NBC, 1994-2009), "The X-Files" (Fox, 1993-) and "The West Wing" (NBC, 1999-2006). In 2005, Sandoval was cast as sympathetic district attorney Manuel Devalos, who employed Patricia Arquette's psychic abilities to solve crime cases on "Medium." Sandoval remained with the series for its entire network run while also directing five episodes between its third and seventh season. When "Medium" ran its course, Sandoval returned to steady guest work on television and in features, most notably as a tequila manufacturing president on "Entourage" (HBO, 2004-2011) and as a government agent on "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" (BBC America, 2016-17). In 2017, he was cast in two high-profile projects - the limited series crime drama "Sharp Objects" (HBO 2018) with Amy Adams, and a drama about Seattle firefighters spun off from "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC, 2005-) and produced by Shonda Rimes' Shondaland shingle.