As one of the most familiar and welcome faces in film for the past 20 years, WILL PATTON (Bill Yoast) has quietly made his way into filmgoers' consciousness as a creative and diverse performer.
His chameleon-like quality allows him to play a wide variety of roles, giving stand-out performances in such films as "Silkwood," "Desperately Seeking Susan," "No Way Out," "A Shock to the System," "The Client," "Inventing the Abbotts," "Copycat," "Romeo is Bleeding," "Fled," "The Postman" and Jerry Bruckheimer's "Armageddon."
He is no stranger to the world of independent film having won the award for Best Actor at the 1998 Newport International Film Festival for his performance in "OK Garage." His other films enjoying success at major film festivals include "In the Soup," "The Paint Job," "Toll Booth" and "The Spitfire Grill." The latter received the Audience Award at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival.
This past summer Patton had three movies in theatres, including Bruckheimer's "Gone in 60 Seconds," starring Nicolas Cage, as well as "Trixie" with Emily Watson and "Jesus' Son" with Billy Crudup. Prior to that he was seen in the hit film "Entrapment" starring Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones. Patton has appeared in over 40 Off-Broadway plays. He won three prestigious Obie Awards, one in 1982 for his role in Sam Shepard's "Fool for Love" at the Circle Repertory, another several years later for his part in "What Did He See?" at the Public Theatre, and an Obie for Best Ensemble as part of the cast in "Tourists and Refugees #2." He has worked with directors the likes of Shepard, Joseph Chaikin, Len Jenkin and Richard Foreman. Other stage performances include "Heaven on Earth ," "Limbo Tales" and "Tourists and Refugees." He also appeared in Shepherd's original production of "Lie of the Mind" in which he later performed at the Royal Court Theatre in London. In 1991, Patton starred in the world premiere of Don DeLillo's play, "Valparaiso," at the ART in Boston.
Patton's unique and intimate voice has made him one of the most sought after readers of audio books, thanks to listeners who request him by name.
Patton began his career in New York after moving there from his native Charleston, South Carolina. He attended the North Carolina School of the Arts and also studied with Lee Strasberg at the Actor's Studio and with Joseph Chaikin at the Open Theatre in New York.
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