Biography
William Sadler's claim to fame was his roles in films like "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey" (1991), "The Shawshank Redemption" (1994), and "Iron Man 3" (2013), in which he played the role of President Matthew Ellis. Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, Sadler always had a knack for performing. He took up the banjo as a young boy and first entertained audiences while performing a comedy/music act he dubbed "Banjo Bill Sadler." From there on, Sadler was determined to make it as a performer. He earned his B.A. from State University of New York, Geneseo, and then went on to Cornell where he earned his Master's degree in acting. After college Sadler spent some time in Boston working on a lobster boat by day while he pursued acting at night. Realizing his odds for acting success would increase if he moved to New York, Sadler eventually packed his bags and headed east. Upon arriving in the Big Apple, Sadler quickly found work on the New York stage. Over the next 12 years he appeared in dozens of productions, both on Broadway and Off, most notably originating the part of Sgt. Toomey opposite Matthew Broadrick in the initial Broadway run of Neil Simon's "Biloxi Blues" (1985). By the 1980s Sadler also began adding film and TV work to his slate of acting roles. He appeared in the films "Off Beat" (1986) and "Project X" (1987), and played the Grim Reaper in the comedy "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey." In 1994 Sadler was cast in the memorable role as Heywood in the Academy Award-nominated film "The Shawshank Redemption," and from there went on to appear in the Oscar-nominated films "The Green Mile" (1999) and "Kinsey" (2004). Sadler continued appearing regularly in both films and on television through the 2000s and into the 2010s. Then in 2013 he nabbed a role as President Matthew Ellis in the superhero blockbuster "Iron Man 3." The film was one of many set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so Sadler was able to reprise his role as President Ellis on the TV shows "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." (ABC, 2013- ), as well as on Marvel Cinematic Universe web series "WHIH News Front" (2015-16). In 2019 it was announced that Sadler would reprise his role as the Grim Reaper in "Bill and Ted Face the Music" (2020). The film was the first to be released in the "Bill and Ted" series in nearly 30 series.
