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Brian O'Halloran

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Brian O'Halloran
Brian O'Halloran at GalaxyCon Richmond in 2023
Born
Brian Christopher O'Halloran

(1969-12-20) December 20, 1969 (age 54)
Manhattan, New York, U.S.
Occupation(s)Actor, producer, podcaster
Years active1991–present

Brian Christopher O'Halloran (born December 20, 1969) is an American actor, producer and podcaster best known for playing Dante Hicks in Kevin Smith's debut 1994 film Clerks and its 2006 and 2022 sequels Clerks II and Clerks III. He has also made appearances in most of Smith's View Askewniverse films, either as Dante Hicks or one of Dante's cousins.

Career

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O'Halloran's first role was as main character Dante Hicks in Kevin Smith's film Clerks, in 1994.[1] He has returned many times as Dante or another of the Hicks family in films by Smith.

O'Halloran is the lead actor in the 2000 film Vulgar, about a small town clown who is traumatised after he is attacked during one of his performances. Writer/director Bryan Johnson wrote the lead specifically with O'Halloran in mind.

He has worked on theatre productions since high school. He has said on the subject of doing theatre: "Oh, yeah. It's the best training you can do, as an actor. To be in front of a live audience. There's no 'Stop, wait, oh geez, what was that line again?' It just sharpens your reflexes. It sharpens your interaction. And it definitely sharpens your memory because you have to know an entire show from beginning to end."[2]

Since Clerks (1994), O'Halloran has primarily been a stage actor, working with The Boomerang Theatre Company, The New Jersey Repertory Company and The Tri-State Actors Theatre, among others.[citation needed] In 2020, O'Halloran began presenting his own pop culture podcast, The O'HalloRant, on YouTube.[3]

Personal life

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A first-generation Irish-American, with parents from Galway and Roscommon, O'Halloran was born in Manhattan, New York City, and lived in Old Bridge Township, New Jersey from the age of 13.[4] His father died when O'Halloran was 15 years old.[5] He graduated from Cedar Ridge High School.[6] He has two older brothers.[7]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1994 Clerks Dante Hicks
1995 Mallrats Gill Hicks
1997 Chasing Amy Executive Jim Hicks
1999 Dogma Grant Hicks As Brian Christopher O'Halloran
2000 Clerks: The Animated Series Dante Hicks Voice
Vulgar Will Carlson/Flappy/Vulgar As Brian Christopher O'Halloran
2001 Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back Dante Hicks As Brian Christopher O'Halloran
Drop Dead Roses Shawn As Brian C. O'Halloran
2002 The Flying Car Dante Hicks
2003 Moby Presents: Alien Sex Party Clerk
2006 Clerks II Dante Hicks
2007 Brutal Massacre Jay
The Junior Defenders Mitch Stone Originally titled Groupies; its principal photography occurred in February–March 1997[2]
2008 The Happening Jeep Driver
Hooking Up Dr. Jordan
2011 Pokémon: Zoroark: Master of Illusions Stadium Announcer
2011 Pokémon: Black & White Mr. Garrison Episode: "Gotta Catch a Roggenrola!"
2012 Cry for Revenge TBA
2017 Right Before Your Eyes John McCann
2019 Madness in the Method Self
Jay and Silent Bob Reboot Dante Hicks, Grant Hicks
2021 The Retaliators Obnoxious Guy at XMas Tree Place
2022 Clerks III Dante Hicks Also executive producer
2024 The 4:30 Movie Father Hicks
2025 Delco: The Movie Pastor Joel Powers In-production
TBA Flea Scavenger Post production
Shooting Clerks Elis Heimermann Also associate producer and special thanks

References

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  1. ^ Hoad, Phil (May 7, 2019). "Kevin Smith: how we made Clerks". The Guardian. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Interview with Brian O'Halloran". View Askew. February 2, 1998. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  3. ^ "The OHalloRANT - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
  4. ^ Cahillane, Kevin. "For the Stars of 'Clerks,' It's Take Two" Archived November 6, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. The New York Times. July 16, 2006. Accessed February 15, 2011. "Mr. O'Halloran, a resident of Old Bridge since age 13, has not had to go the McJob route."
  5. ^ Filichia, Peter. "Brian O'Halloran goes from 'Clerks' to 'The Crucible'", The Star-Ledger, July 23, 2010. Accessed March 26, 2011.
  6. ^ O'Donnell, Chuck. "O'Halloran revisits Central Jersey theater roots", Courier News, August 3, 2015. Accessed October 6, 2019. "Playing Dante Hicks in Clerks has made Brian O'Halloran a working-class hero to generations of register jockeys.... Funny thing is, it all almost never happened. The skinny kid with glasses who once played the titular role of Snoopy at Cedar Ridge High School in the late 1980s had given up acting."
  7. ^ Brian O'Halloran [@BrianCOHalloran] (May 13, 2018). "Happy Mother's Day to my mom Evelyn. Putting up with my nonsense and raising me & my two older brothers was not the easiest. Thank you for everything you did and have taught me about being a loving and caring person. I love you❣️ #HappyMothersDay https://t.co/p0DsPSbIX3" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 10, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022 – via Twitter.
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