Rise to Fame
He got the part in Heathers over Brad Pitt, playing J.D. with the kind of quiet menace that brings on Jack Nicholson comparisons. The film bombed on release and found its audience later. Pump Up the Volume and True Romance followed, stacking cult titles while Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) put him on the A-list. He had a specific register in that era, a low-burn charisma that felt dangerous without announcing itself.
In the Spotlight
The 90s unraveled publicly. A 1994 airport arrest for carrying a gun, a 1997 assault on his girlfriend and a police officer, and a 59-day jail sentence in 1998. He got sober in 2005. A string of cancelled network shows followed. Mr. Robot arrived in 2015 and earned him a Golden Globe in 2016, which reframed the whole story. Dexter: Original Sin in 2024 gave him a new franchise.
Side Notes
His mother, Mary Jo Slater, is a casting executive. His father was also an actor. He modeled for Pierre Cardin at five and had his TV debut at eight on One Life to Live. The Jack Nicholson comparisons that followed him through the 90s weren't accidental. He has talked about studying those mannerisms deliberately. His half-brother Ryan Slater is also an actor, which suggests either exceptional genetics or a family that simply couldn't help themselves.