ACTOR
Donald Sutherland
- Known for
- Fool's Gold (2008), Don't Look Now (1973), Kelly's Heroes (1970), Disclosure (1994)
62 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
Donald Sutherland is an actor best known for Fool's Gold, Don't Look Now and Kelly's Heroes.
All facts (62)
- #001
Because he was very tall, Donald Sutherland had a habit of slouching so he could meet other actors eye to eye.
- #002
Donald Sutherland earned a double major in Engineering and Drama from the University of Toronto. Before trying acting, he had actually planned to become an engineer.
- #003
Donald Sutherland took part in the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver as the narrator telling Canada's history, and was also one of the flag bearers of the Olympic flag.
- #004
Both Donald Sutherland and Alan Alda, who played Hawkeye Pierce in the series M*A*S*H (1972), had polio as children.
- #005
Donald Sutherland was so shocked by his own performance as the sadistic, depraved fascist leader in 1900 (1976) that he could not watch the film for years.
- #006
In 1979, while suffering from meningitis, Donald Sutherland had a near-death experience. Doctors told him he had been dead for a while, and he claimed to have had an out-of-body experience.
- #007
Donald Sutherland had two children with Shirley Douglas: Kiefer Sutherland and Rachel Sutherland.
- #008
Donald Sutherland was a huge fan of the television series 24 (2001), in which his son Kiefer Sutherland played Jack Bauer, and never missed an episode. However, he turned down the offer to play Jack Bauer's estranged father Phillip Bauer in the series' sixth season, and the role went to James Cromwell instead.
- #009
Throughout M*A*S*H (1970), Donald Sutherland appeared with glasses and a fisherman's hat. This look was later mirrored by his son Kiefer Sutherland in Article 99 (1992).
- #010
In the making-of documentary prepared for The Dirty Dozen (1967) Special Edition DVD, Donald Sutherland said he was one of the "last dozen," meaning he would not have many lines. But while preparing to shoot the scene in which Major Reisman (Lee Marvin) has to convince Colonel Breed (Robert Ryan) that there is a general among them, that person was supposed to be Posey (Clint Walker). Walker refused to do the scene, however, and director Robert Aldrich chose Sutherland to do it. After that, Sutherland's role was expanded further. The Dirty Dozen (1967) helped Sutherland draw more attention from filmmakers and thus launched his career. According to Sutherland, Aldrich later asked him to appear in another film, but Sutherland refused. In the documentary, he says that turning Aldrich down was one of his greatest regrets as an actor, and that he felt he owed Aldrich for helping start his career.
- #011
Donald Sutherland appeared in three films with his son Kiefer Sutherland: Max Dugan Returns (1983), Forsaken (2015) and A Time to Kill (1996).
- #012
Between 1958 and 1960, Donald Sutherland went to England and trained in acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA).
- #013
Donald Sutherland and his son Kiefer Sutherland both portrayed the artist Paul Gauguin.
- #014
At the age of 14, Donald Sutherland's first part-time job was as a news reporter at the local radio station CKBW.
- #015
After it was discovered that Richard Harris had taken part in a fundraising event in the United States for the Provisional IRA, Donald Sutherland replaced him as the IRA terrorist Liam Devlin in The Eagle Has Landed (1976).
- #016
Donald Sutherland grew up in the town of Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, and graduated from high school there as well.
- #017
Donald Sutherland was a passionate fan of the Montreal Expos baseball team from the day it was founded. At the start of the 1983 season, when the team finally looked good enough to win the National League championship, he instructed his manager not to accept any offers during the season so that he could follow the team without distraction, even to the point of attending all of their games on their travels. (The Expos failed to meet expectations and finished third.)
- #018
Although various sources incorrectly reported that Donald Sutherland married Francine Racette in 1974, Sutherland stated in a Daily Mail article published in May 2000 that they did not marry until August 1990. They met in 1974 and lived together for 16 years before marrying.
- #019
Donald Sutherland initially wanted to be a sculptor, but decided to become an actor after witnessing someone praise a drawing of his that people thought made Churchill look terrible (he realized he could not make art to please others). He had never attended a theatre performance, and still had not when he landed his first role. So he was behind the proscenium arch before he had ever been in front of it.
- #020
Donald Sutherland achieved cinematic fame in two completely different and opposing war films. One was the cynical, angry, mocking Korean War comedy M*A*S*H (1970), and the other was the bold, action-packed, violent World War II action film The Dirty Dozen (1967).
- #021
In 2000, Donald Sutherland was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto, Ontario.
- #022
Donald Sutherland was considered for the role of Dr. Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991).
- #023
Donald Sutherland and Kiefer Sutherland both won the Emmy Award. Donald won in 1996 for Citizen X (1995), and a decade later Kiefer won for 24 (2001).
- #024
Donald Sutherland twice played a father suffering from the drowning of his young son: first in Ordinary People (1980), and second in Forsaken (2015).
- #025
Donald Sutherland had three sons with Francine Racette: Roeg Sutherland, born in 1974; Rossif Sutherland, born in 1978; and Angus Sutherland, born in 1982.
- #026
Donald Sutherland appeared in three films nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: M*A*S*H (1970), Ordinary People (1980) and JFK (1991). Ordinary People won in the category.
- #027
Donald Sutherland appeared in The Saint (1962) as two guest players, portraying two different characters.
- #028
On 26 January 2011, Donald Sutherland was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7024 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
- #029
In The Shuttered Room (1967), Donald Sutherland provided the voice for the role played by British actor William Devlin (uncredited in the titles).
- #030
In a poll conducted by the American Film Institute, Donald Sutherland chose Great Expectations (1946) as his favourite film.
- #031
For his services to drama, Donald Sutherland was appointed an OC (Officer of the Order of Canada) by the Governor General of Canada on 18 December 1978, and was named a Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters of the French Republic by the President of France (unknown date, 2012).
- #032
Donald Sutherland was of English, German and Scottish descent.
- #033
Donald Sutherland was from Clan Sutherland.
- #034
Donald Sutherland's great-great-grandmother (on the male line) was a third cousin of President Rutherford Birchard Hayes.
- #035
Donald Sutherland was offered the role of Wyatt Earp in Doctor Who (1963: The Gunfighters), but as the offer did not suit him, John Alderson took the role.
- #036
In addition to his small on-screen role as a computer scientist in Billion Dollar Brain (1967), Donald Sutherland also provided the mechanical voice named "brain".
- #037
Donald Sutherland attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
- #038
Donald Sutherland shared two roles with Alan Alda. Sutherland played Flan in the film Six Degrees of Separation (1993), in which Alda appeared in an audiobook release. Sutherland also took on the role of Hawkeye Pierce in the film M*A*S*H (1970), a role Alda played in the series M*A*S*H (1972).
- #039
He was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 by the Governor General of Canada. He lived in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
- #040
He was a member of the comedy group "UC Follies" in Toronto, Ontario.
- #041
His son Kiefer Sutherland appeared in Stand by Me (1986), adapted from a Stephen King short story. Donald later appeared in Salem's Lot (2004). Donald also appeared in two Michael Crichton adaptations, The Great Train Robbery (1978) and Disclosure (1994), while his other son, Rossif Sutherland, appeared in Timeline (2003).
- #042
He dated Jane Fonda from 1970 to 1972.
- #043
He was the grandfather of Sarah Sutherland, the daughter of Kiefer Sutherland and Camelia Lynne.
- #044
He turned down the lead role in The Sweet Hereafter (1997) because the salary was too low. The role ultimately went to Ian Holm.
- #045
He was initially cast as Franklyn Madson in Dead Again (1991), but was ultimately replaced by Derek Jacobi.
- #046
In 2016 he was a member of the Official Competition jury at the 69th Cannes International Film Festival.
- #047
He attended and graduated from Bridgewater High School in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia.
- #048
He lived in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California.
- #049
He is pictured on a Canadian permanent-rate commemorative postage stamp issued on October 19, 2023. It is sold in a booklet of 10 stamps. At the time of issue, a single stamp cost 92 ¢.
- #050
He and Alan Alda both played Republicans with dreams of the presidency on television. Alda appeared in The West Wing (1999), while Sutherland appeared in Commander in Chief (2005). Despite playing Republicans, both actors were left-wing in real life.
- #051
He worked with eight directors who won the Best Director Oscar: John Schlesinger, Bernardo Bertolucci, Robert Redford, Ron Howard, Oliver Stone, Barry Levinson, Clint Eastwood and Anthony Minghella.
- #052
In 2002 he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal by the Governor General of Canada. He lived in Los Angeles, California, United States.
- #053
In his two 2003 films, Cold Mountain (2003) and The Italian Job (2003), he played a character who is the father of a young woman who dies, and both of his daughters were played by consecutive Best Actress Oscar winners. In Cold Mountain (2003), his daughter was played by Nicole Kidman, who won in 2003 for The Hours (2002), and in The Italian Job (2003), his daughter was played by Charlize Theron, who won in 2004 for her performance in Monster (2003).
- #054
He was the former son-in-law of Tommy Douglas.
- #055
He appeared in the computer game "Conspiracy" (digitized video and audio).
- #056
Disneyland in California opened on his 20th birthday. He also shared his birthday anniversary with Mike Johansen's grandmother.
- #057
Donald Sutherland played a grieving father in both Don't Look Now (1973) and Ordinary People (1980).
- #058
In 2012, Donald Sutherland was awarded the French Order of Arts and Letters by the President of France for his services to drama.
- #059
Donald Sutherland was a distant relative of former Vermont Governor Howard Dean.
- #060
At the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010: XXI Winter Olympic Games, Donald Sutherland quoted from Chief Dan George's poem "My Heart Soars."
- #061
Donald Sutherland was born at 11:30 (ADT).
- #062
Donald Sutherland is allergic to cigarette smoke.
Continue through the archive
Don't Look Nowas John Baxter- Buffy the Vampire Slayeras Merrick
- Fool's Goldas Nigel Honeycutt
- Disclosureas Bob Garvin
- Kelly's Heroesas Oddball
- Mr. Harrigan's Phoneas Mr. Harrigan
- Johnny Got His Gunas Christ
- Lock Upas Warden Drumgoole
- The Eagle Has Landedas Liam Devlin
- Il Casanova di Federico Fellinias Giacomo Casanova
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