Sean Maher

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Sean Maher
Maher at the 2017 WonderCon
Born (1975-04-16) April 16, 1975 (age 48)
Alma materNew York University
OccupationActor
Years active1999–present
Spouse
Paul
(m. 2016)
[1]
Children2

Sean Maher (/ˈmɑːr/;[2] born April 16, 1975) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Simon Tam in the science fiction television series Firefly and follow-up movie Serenity.

Early life[edit]

Maher was born in Pleasantville, New York to Joseph and Margaret Maher.[3] After graduating from Byram Hills High School, Maher trained at New York University where he earned his drama degree in 1997.[4] He acted on stage in several productions, including Yerma and Into the Woods.[5]

Career[edit]

Maher starred as the title character, a rookie police officer, on the short-lived TV series Ryan Caulfield: Year One. In 2000 he played one of the main characters on the short-lived (dropped after seven episodes) Fox series The $treet, and he has also appeared on the television series Party of Five (as Adam Matthews) and on CSI: Miami.

He reprised his role from Firefly in the film Serenity (2005). Maher was also cast as a chief resident in a hospital on the new series Halley's Comet. He appeared in the 2005 Lifetime network movie The Dive From Clausen's Pier as Michelle Trachtenberg's new love interest. He also appeared as Brian Piccolo in the 2001 remake of Brian's Song.

In 2006, he appeared in the television movie Wedding Wars. After taking a brief break from acting, Maher came back to TV in 2009 as a guest star in Lifetime Television's pilot episode of Drop Dead Diva, followed by 2010 guest appearances in the second season of The Mentalist (CBS), the first season of Human Target (FOX) and the second season of Warehouse 13 (on Syfy).

In 2011 Maher landed a role in the television series The Playboy Club. He played Sean, a closeted gay man who is in a sham marriage with a closeted lesbian Playboy Bunny. He appeared in eight episodes, in 2011 and 2012, in another series, Make It or Break It, as the character Marcus. He played the villainous Don John in Joss Whedon's 2012 adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing.

In 2014, Maher voiced Dick Grayson/Nightwing in Son of Batman, a direct-to-video animated film. It is part of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies. This was followed by the same role in Justice League vs. Teen Titans and Batman: Bad Blood in 2016 and Teen Titans: The Judas Contract in 2017.[6]

Personal life[edit]

Maher publicly came out as gay in 2011, using his role as a closeted gay man on The Playboy Club as a platform.[7] He and his husband Paul have two adopted children: a daughter, Sophia, and a son, Liam.[7] Following the birth of their daughter in 2007, Maher took two years off from acting to be a stay-at-home dad.[7]

Filmography[edit]

Film[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
2005 Serenity Dr. Simon Tam
Living 'til the End Jack Whilton
2012 Much Ado About Nothing Don John
Best Friends Forever Sean
2014 BFFs J.K. a.k.a. Heads We Do
Son of Batman Dick Grayson / Nightwing Voice
2015 Batman vs. Robin Dick Grayson / Nightwing Voice
People You May Know Joe
2016 Batman: Bad Blood Dick Grayson / Nightwing / Batman Voice
Justice League vs. Teen Titans Dick Grayson / Nightwing Voice
2017 Teen Titans: The Judas Contract Dick Grayson / Nightwing Voice
Beyond the Edge Dr. Abe Anderson formerly known as ISRA-88
2019 Batman: Hush Dick Grayson / Nightwing[8] Voice
2019 Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans Dick Grayson / Nightwing[9] Voice

Television[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
1999 Ryan Caulfield: Year One Ryan Caulfield Title role, (7 episodes)
2000 Party of Five Adam Matthews Recurring (7 episodes)
2000–2001 The $treet Chris McConnell Regular (12 episodes)
2001 Hostage Rescue Team TV film
Brian's Song Brian Piccolo TV film
2002–2003 Firefly Dr. Simon Tam Main (14 episodes)
2003 CSI: Miami Carson Mackie Episode: "Spring Break"
2005 Halley's Comet Bret Fennow TV film
The Dive from Clausen's Pier Kilroy TV film
Ghost Whisperer Conor Donovan Episode: "Mended Hearts"
2006 Wedding Wars Ted Moore TV film
2009 Drop Dead Diva Marcus Newsome Episode: "Pilot"
2010 The Mentalist Jasper / Wilson Episode: "Bleeding Heart"
Human Target Aaron Cooper Episode: "Embassy Row"
Warehouse 13 Sheldon Episode: "Mild Mannered"
2011 The Playboy Club Sean Beasley Guest role (7 episodes)
2011–2012 Make It or Break It Marcus Recurring (8 episodes)
2013–2014 Arrow Mark Scheffer / Shrapnel 2 episodes: "Blast Radius", "Suicide Squad"
2015 Looking Jake Episode: "Looking for Home"
2018 9-1-1 Paul Episode: "Full Moon (Creepy A.F.)"
2019 The Rookie Caleb Jost Episode: "Manhunt"

Other media[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
2004 CSI: Miami Carson Video game
2013 EastSiders Paul Web-series (3 episodes)
2014 New Year Narrator Animated exhibition by Adam Shecter[10]
2015 Con Man Himself Web-series[11]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Greg Hernandez (7 April 2016). "Openly gay actor Sean Maher of Firefly fame is now married man". Gay Star News.
  2. ^ "Sean Maher On Voicing Nightwing". YouTube. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  3. ^ "Sean Maher biography". SeanMaher.info. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  4. ^ "Sean Maher Firefly profile". (August 29, 2007). BuddyTV. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  5. ^ "Sean Maher biography". SeanMaher.info. Retrieved September 26, 2011.
  6. ^ "Teen Titans: The Judas Contract". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
  7. ^ a b c Stransky, Tanner (September 26, 2011). "'Playboy Club' star Sean Maher opens up about his sexuality: 'This is my coming out ball'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  8. ^ Vejvoda, Jim (2019-03-27). "Batman". IGN. Hush Movie - Exclusive first look, Photo and voice cast news. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  9. ^ Workman, Robert (26 June 2019). "Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans first trailer divides & conquers". Superhero Hype. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  10. ^ "Adam Shecter New Year". Past Exhibitions. narrator Sean Maher. New York, NY: Eleven Rivington Gallery. 2014 [2 September – 5 October 2014]. Retrieved 26 May 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  11. ^ Fowler, Matt (11 March 2015). "Alan Tudyk and Nathan Fillion launch Indiegogo campaign for Con Man". IGN. Retrieved March 13, 2015.

External links[edit]