Miguel José Ferrer was an American actor and voice actor mostly known for villainous roles, notably Bob Morton, the designer of the title character in RoboCop. He also voiced the antagonistic Hun leader Shan Yu in Mulan (1998) and Big Boss in Rio 2. Ferrer's other notable roles include Dr. Garret Macy on Crossing Jordan, NCIS Assistant Director Owen Granger on NCIS: Los Angeles, Vice President Rodriguez in Iron Man 3, and FBI forensic pathologist Albert Rosenfield in Twin Peaks.

Ferrer was born in Santa Monica, California, the oldest of five children of Academy Award–winner José Ferrer and singer Rosemary Clooney.

His father was Puerto Rican, and his mother had Irish, English and German ancestry. Ferrer's siblings are sisters Maria and Monsita and brothers Gabriel (nicknamed "Gabri" and husband of singer Debby Boone) and Rafael, also an actor. His first cousin is actor George Clooney. Ferrer was reared in Hollywood; and, as a teenager, his interests shifted toward music. He played the drums on Keith Moon's Two Sides of the Moon. Ferrer's friend, Bill Mumy, who played Will Robinson on the television classic Lost in Space, cast him as a drummer in the series Sunshine, his first television role.

Career

Ferrer began his career in the early 1980s making guest appearances on episodic television. He played the younger self of his father's character on Magnum P.I in 1981. In 1983, he was given a small part as a waiter in The Man Who Wasn't There. He also had a small part in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984) as the Excelsior helm officer. He had a major role in the 1987 action movie RoboCop as aspiring, cocaine-snorting corporate executive Bob Morton. Since appearing as Morton, Ferrer has usually acted out flamboyant villains with senses of humor. Ferrer's notable roles include a sinister biker in Valentino Returns, an overzealous engineer in DeepStar Six, a resourceful vigilante in Revenge, Commander Arvid Harbinger in the comedy Hot Shots! Part Deux, Lloyd Henreid in the Stephen King miniseries The Stand, and a drug informant in Traffic. He has occasionally taken on lead parts, as well, such as The Harvest and The Night Flier.

In the early 1990s, Ferrer appeared on three primetime TV series simultaneously: as D.A. Todd Spurrier in Shannon's Deal (1989–1991), as Cajun cop Beau Jack Bowman in Broken Badges (1990–1991), and as cynical, wittily abrasive FBI forensics specialist Albert Rosenfield in Twin Peaks (1990–91). Ferrer reprised the role of Albert in the movie Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992). He played another medical examiner on the small screen, Dr. Garret Macy, in the television crime/drama series Crossing Jordan (2001–07).[1] Ferrer performed as the voice of the Heretic leader in the video game Halo 2. In 1999, at the 41st Grammy Awards, he was nominated for "Best Spoken Word Album for Children" in Disney's The Lion King II, "Simba's Pride Read-Along". In 2003, Ferrer made his New York stage debut in the off-Broadway production of The Exonerated.

Ferrer played a super-villain called "The Weatherman" in the failed 1997 TV pilot, Justice League of America. Later in the year, Ferrer provided the voice for a similar character, the Weather Wizard, in the Superman: The Animated Series episode "Speed Demons". Ferrer also voiced Aquaman in another Superman: Animated episode, "A Fish Story". Ferrer has also provided voice-over roles in the TV series Robot Chicken (2006) and American Dad! (2007).

Ferrer played Jonas Bledsoe on NBC's short-lived update of the Bionic Woman series. Ferrer also starred in another short-lived NBC series, Kings, in 2009 as a military commander of Gath. He played Los Angeles Police Lieutenant Felix Valdez in the 2011 Lifetime police procedural drama, The Protector. Also in 2011, he started a multiple-episode guest role on the final season of Desperate Housewives.

Signed to a recurring role in NCIS: Los Angeles as Naval Criminal Investigative Service Assistant Director Owen Granger, Ferrer was promoted to a series regular for the fifth season on February 6, 2013. He also appeared in the 2013 film Iron Man 3 as the Vice President.

Ferrer reprised his role of Albert Rosenfield in the 2017 revival of Twin Peaks.

Death

Ferrer died on January 19, 2017, from throat cancer at age 61. He is survived by his wife Lori and their two sons.