Andrew Thomas McCarthy (born November 29, 1962) is an American actor, travel writer, television director, and author. He is most known as a member of the Brat Pack, with roles in 1980s films such as St. Elmo's Fire (1985), Pretty in Pink (1986), Mannequin (1987), and Weekend at Bernie's (1989). He is ranked No. 40 on VH1's 100 Greatest Teen Stars of all time list. As a director, he is known for his work on Orange Is the New Black.
Early life and education McCarthy was born in Westfield, New Jersey, the third of four boys. His mother worked for a newspaper, and his father was involved in investments and stocks. McCarthy moved to Bernardsville, New Jersey, as a teenager and attended Bernards High School and the Pingry School, a preparatory academy.Schwartz, Lexi. , Albany Daily News. Accessed September 5, 2019. "Enjoying a rather ordinary childhood and attending the Pingry School and Bernards High School, McCarthy set his sights on acting after high school graduation and landed his first starring role at 19 years old in the 1983 feature film, Class." At Pingry, he played the Artful Dodger in Oliver!, his first acting role. After graduating from high school, he enrolled at NYU for acting, but was expelled after two years.
Career McCarthy's first major role was in the 1983 comedy Class opposite Jacqueline Bisset. He was a member of the 1980s Hollywood group of young actors dubbed by the media as the "Brat Pack". The group starred in a few films, among them St. Elmo's Fire and Pretty in Pink. McCarthy appeared in the 1987 films Mannequin and Less than Zero, a cinematic adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's novel. In 1985, McCarthy starred with Donald Sutherland and Kevin Dillon in Heaven Help Us (also known as Catholic Boys) as Michael Dunn. McCarthy made his Broadway debut in The Boys of Winter. He quickly returned to Hollywood in 1988 to star in several films, such as Fresh Horses and Kansas. He had another hit with the 1989 comedy film Weekend at Bernie's.
He returned to Broadway to star in Side Man, and the production won the 1999 Tony Award for Best Play. In 2003, McCarthy was set to guest star in two episodes of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Due to bad relations with actor Vincent D'Onofrio, series creator Dick Wolf decided against it. Wolf later stated, "Mr. McCarthy engaged in fractious behavior from the moment he walked on the set." McCarthy fired back in a statement of his own saying, "I was fired because I refused to allow a fellow actor to threaten me with physical violence, bully me and try to direct me." Despite this incident, he later guest starred in a 2007 episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent (with Chris Noth, not D'Onofrio). In 2004, he played Dr. Hook in Kingdom Hospital. He appeared in five episodes of the 2005 NBC television series E-Ring. In 2008, he starred in the NBC television series Lipstick Jungle as billionaire Joe Bennett and had a minor role in The Spiderwick Chronicles.
McCarthy directed several episodes of the hit CW television series Gossip Girl, including "Touch of Eva" in the fourth season. In 2010 and 2011, he appeared in the hit USA show White Collar. He returned to the series in the next season to direct the episode "Neighborhood Watch". In 2015, he directed three episodes in Season 2 of the NBC hit television show The Blacklist starring James Spader and Megan Boone. In 2016, he starred in the short-lived ABC drama The Family. From 2020 to 2021, he had a recurring role in NBC's TV series Good Girls. In 2022, McCarthy joined the cast of The Resident as Ian Sullivan, a renowned pediatric surgeon and Cade's estranged father.
Writing McCarthy began travel writing and served as an Editor at Large at National Geographic Traveler magazine. In 2010, McCarthy was escorted out of an underground church in Lalibela, Ethiopia, for entering the site without documentation. He had been in the church on assignment for the travel magazine Afar. McCarthy's book The Longest Way Home: One Man's Quest for the Courage to Settle Down was published in 2012.
In February 2015, National Geographic published McCarthy's account, titled "A Song for Ireland", of his return to the house in the townland of Lacka West in the parish of Duagh in County Kerry in Ireland from which his great-grandfather John McCarthy had emigrated in the late 1800s.
McCarthy has received several awards from SATW (Society of American Travel Writers), including Travel Journalist of the Year in 2010.
In 2017, Algonquin Books published McCarthy's YA novel, Just Fly Away. The novel became a New York Times bestseller.
McCarthy's memoir about his life and career in the 1980s, titled Brat: An '80s Story, was released in May 2021 by Grand Central Publishing.
In 2023, Grand Central Publishing released Walking with Sam: A Father, a Son, and Five Hundred Miles Across Spain, McCarthy's memoir about walking the Camino de Santiago with his son Sam in the summer of 2021.
In March 2026, McCarthy published Who Needs Friends? An Unscientific Examination of Male Friendship across America, which he presents as an effective antidote to toxic masculinity and the manosphere.
Personal life
In 2004, McCarthy announced that he once had a serious alcohol problem, which began at age 12. He entered a detoxification program in 1992, and has been sober since that time.
McCarthy was married to actree Carole Schneider from 1999 to 2005. Their son Sam McCarthy is also an actor.
On August 28, 2011, McCarthy married Irish writer and director Dolores Rice. They have two children, Willow and Rowan.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes 1983 Class Jonathan Ogner 1984 The Beniker Gang Arthur Beniker1985 Heaven Help Us Michael Dunn a.k.a. Catholic Boys St. Elmo's Fire Kevin Dolenz 1986 Pretty in Pink Blane McDonnagh1987 Mannequin Jonathan Switcher Waiting for the Moon Henry Hopper Less than Zero Clay Easton1988 Kansas Wade Corey Fresh Horses Matt Larkin 1989 Weekend at Bernie's Larry Wilson1990 Quiet Days in Clichy Henry Miller a.k.a. Jours tranquilles à Clichy Dr. M The Assassin 1991 Year of the Gun David Raybourne 1992 Only You Clifford Godfrey1993 Weekend at Bernie's II Larry Wilson Ted Jordan1994 Getting In Rupert Grimm a.k.a. Student Body Dead Funny Reggie Barker Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle Eddie Parker1995 Night of the Running Man Jerry LoganDirect-to-video release Dream Man David Mander1996 Mulholland Falls Jimmy Fields Everything Relative Howard Things I Never Told You Don Henderson a.k.a. Cosas que nunca te dije 1997 Stag Peter Weber1998 Bela Donna Frank I Woke Up Early the Day I Died Cemetery Cop I'm Losing You Bertie Krohn1999 Henry Smith New World Disorder Kurt Bishop New Waterford Girl Cecil Sweeney 2000 Nowhere in Sight Eric Shelton 2001 Heaven Must Wait Raymond Cane 2002 Anything But Love Elliot Shephard a.k.a. Standard Time2004 2BPerfectlyHonest Josh News for the Church Director, writer; short film 2005 Charles King 2008 Richard Grace2009 Cash Camp Hell Michael Leary 2010 Main Street Howard Mercer2011 The Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best Brian Snatched Frank Baum 2019 Finding Julia Mike Chamonix 2024 Brats Director; documentary
Television Year Title Role Notes 1986 Amazing Stories Edwin Episode: "Grandpa's Ghost" 1991 Tales from the Crypt Edward Foster Episode: "Loved to Death" 1992 Screen Two Martin Musgrove Episode: "Common Pursuit" 1995 Jonathan HoffmanTelevision film1996 Escape Clause Richard Ramsay Hostile Force Rabbit (Mike) Richard Reilly1998 Keith Lussier Television film (a.k.a. A Change of Heart) Perfect Assassins Ben CarrowayTelevision film2000 A Storm in Summer Stanley Banner Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Randolph Morrow Episode: "Slaves" The Sight Michael LewisTelevision film Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis Robert F. Kennedy2002 Georgetown Television pilot Mike HarperTelevision film2003 Straight from the Heart Tyler Ross Law & Order Attorney Finnerty Episode: "Absentia" The Twilight Zone Will Marshall Episode: "The Monsters Are on Maple Street" Monk Derek Philby Episode: "Mr. Monk Goes Back to School"2004 Kingdom Hospital Dr. Hook Miniseries Kit FreersTelevision film2005 Crusader Hank Robinson E-Ring Aaron Gerrity 5 episodes 2006 Henry Warden Television pilot 2007 Law & Order: Criminal Intent A.D.A. Gene Hoyle Episode: "Offense" 2008–2009 Lipstick Jungle Joe Bennett; Director 20 episodes2009 Gossip Girl Rick Rhodes Episode: "Valley Girls" Royal Pains Marshall David Bryant IV 2 episodes The National Tree Corey Burdoc Television film 2010–2012 Gossip Girl Director 6 episodes 2011 White Collar Vincent Adler 2 episodes 2012 A Christmas Dance Jack Television film (a.k.a. Come Dance with Me) 2013–2019 Orange Is the New Black Director 15 episodes 2013–2014 Alpha House 4 episodes 2015–2017 Turn: Washington's Spies 3 episodes 2015–2022 The Blacklist 22 episodes 2016 The Family Hank Asher 12 episodes 2017 The Blacklist: RedemptionDirector Episode: "Hostages" 2018 Nightflyers 2 episodes New Amsterdam Episode: "As Long as it Takes" 2018–2020 Condor 5 episodes 2019 The Enemy Within Episode: "Sequestered" 2019–2020Good Girls Episode: "Jeff"/"Au Jus"/"Vegas Baby" 2020–2021 Mr. Fitzpatrick 5 Episodes2020 The Sinner Director 2 episodes 13 Reasons Why Mr. St. George Episode: Prom 2022–2023 The Resident Ian Sullivan Guest (season 5)Main cast (season 6) 2023 The Blacklist Edward Episode: Arthur Hudson
Awards and nominations Fantafestival 1987: Won, "Best Actor" – Mannequin
Rhode Island International Film Festival 2004: Won, Grand Prize for "Best Short Film" – News for the Church – qualifying it as an Official Entry with the Academy Awards for Best Live Action Short Film Full Info Including Original Motion Picture Soundtrack CD produced by Al Gomes and A. Michelle of Big Noise
Sedona International Film Festival 2005: Won, "Best Short Film" – News for the Church
References
External links
Official website