The “Dead Poets Society” and “School Ties” star also appeared in several acclaimed Broadway shows like “Company,” “Cabaret,” and “Six Degrees of Separation.”

John Cunningham, actor who played Ethan Hawke and Matt Damon’s onscreen dad, dies at 93

The "Dead Poets Society" and "School Ties" star also appeared in several acclaimed Broadway shows like "Company," "Cabaret," and "Six Degrees of Separation."

By Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel is a news writer at **. He began writing for EW in 2022.

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January 9, 2026 3:05 p.m. ET

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John Cunningham on 'Loving'. Credit:

ABC Photo Archives/Getty

John Cunningham, the veteran Broadway actor who appeared in films like *Dead Poets Society* and *Mystic Pizza*, has died. He was 93.

A death notice announced that the actor died at his home in Rye, N.Y., on Tuesday. A cause of death was not immediately available.

Born in Auburn, N.Y., in 1932, Cunningham graduated from Dartmouth College and joined the Army, where he first worked in battlefield communications before performing in plays for troops stationed in France and West Germany. He subsequently received his master's degree from Yale Drama School, where he studied alongside his lifelong friend Dick Cavett.

John Cunningham in New York City on Oct. 18, 2010.

Bennett Raglin/Getty

After moving to New York, Cunningham made his big break on stage in 1960 in *My Fair Lady*, in which he played Zoltan and served as the understudy for Henry Higgins in the show's national and international companies. Over the next two decades, he appeared in numerous prominent Broadway shows, including *Cabaret*, *1776*, *Company*, *California Suite*, and *Zorba*.

The actor made his screen debut on a 1963 episode of *The Doctors*. He also appeared on shows like *Another World*, *The Secret Storm*, *The American Parade*, and *Search for Tomorrow*. On the big screen, Cunningham played small roles in films like *The Big Fix *starring Richard Dreyfuss and *Lost and Found* starring George Segal and Glenda Jackson.

Stockard Channing and John Cunningham in 'Six Degrees of Separation'.

Brigitte LaCombe/Getty

Cunningham's most memorable screen work came in the late '80s and 1990s. He portrayed the grandfather of Matt Damon and Adam Storke (who played Julia Roberts' love interest) in 1988's *Mystic Pizza*, and also portrayed Ethan Hawke's father in 1989's *Dead Poets Society*. He reteamed with Damon for 1992's *School Ties*, this time playing the future *Good Will Hunting *star's father.

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Around that same time, Cunningham delivered some of his most memorable work on stage. He played Flan in the original production of *Six Degrees of Separation* opposite Stockard Channing, Courtney B. Vance, and Kelly Bishop beginning in 1990 (and later played the supporting role of John in the 1993 film adaptation of the play). Over the next 15 years, he also appeared in new productions of *Company*, *Anna Karenina*, *Titanic*, *The Sisters Rosensweig*, *Design for Living*, *Anything Goes*, and *Amour*.

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Cunningham provided two memorable voiceover roles in prominent '90s films: the "Be a Man" tape instructor in *In & Out* and the Fed Net Announcer in *Starship Troopers*. His other screen credits included *Two Weeks Notice*, *The Jackal*, *Shaft*, and episodes of *Law & Order*, *30 Rock*, *One Life to Live*, and *The Good Wife*.

The actor's last performance on the New York stage came in an Off Broadway production of *Painting Churches* in 2012, and his final screen performance came on a 2013 episode of *Blue Bloods.***

Cunningham is survived by his wife, Carolyn; his three children, Christopher, Catherine, and Laura, his six grandchildren; and his two great-grandchildren.

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