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Rise to Fame
He got here through a theater shortcut. While understudying John Turturro in a 1984 off-Broadway play, a casting scout noticed him and connected him to Oliver Stone, who cast him in Platoon. Stone kept calling him back (Wall Street, Talk Radio), and the '90s filled out his resume with Point Break, Seven, and The Rock. The public recognition came later. Scrubs ran nine seasons, and Perry Cox's serrated sarcasm is the character most people have in mind when they hear his name.
In the Spotlight
Scrubs reruns have kept Cox in rotation for a generation of viewers who weren't watching first-run. McGinley's profile now runs mostly through his advocacy work. His son Max was born with Down syndrome, a diagnosis that pushed him toward the Global Down Syndrome Foundation board and an ambassador role for the National Down Syndrome Society. Max works at Starbucks and plays in a band. McGinley talks about him with the specificity that makes it clear this isn't a publicist-arranged cause.
Side Notes
The Oliver Stone working relationship came with its own fine print. A Paramount contract kept him from the main role in Born on the Fourth of July, which reportedly annoyed Stone enough to sideline him for a few projects. He got back in eventually. His 1990s resume is a reliable index of mainstream Hollywood fare (Seven, The Rock, Office Space), playing characters memorable for their competence or menace rather than their names. Bob Slydell in Office Space, one of the consultants brought in to quietly eliminate jobs, might be his most-watched film performance.