I'm pretty sure I was introduced to Lance Henriksen's work by the original entry in The Terminator series of films. As legend has it, Henriksen was director James Cameron's first choice to portray the metallic killling machine from the future. However the studio desired an actor with greater name recognition and the part went to Arnold Schwarzenegger. Henriksen portrayed one of the frustrated cops dealing with the terminator's killing spree and had little luck in fending off the inhuman murderer's assault on his police precinct.
With his distinctive looks and sombre voice, Henriksen is an actor hard to get out of your mind once you've seen him. His career is full of diverse roles, from hero to villain and from blockbuster studio faire to independent outings of interest. He's been the lead in westerns, like Gunfighter's Moon and horror films like The Pit and the Pendulum. Perhaps his most famous film role is that of the android part he did score - Bishop in Aliens, also from director Cameron.
He has had memorable TV appearences including a turn in Tales From the Crypt in which he portrayed a gambler literally willing to put his life and limbs on the line for his obsessive wagers.
In the late 90's Henriksen took on the role of Frank Black. The TV series was from creator Chris Carter, quite hot in Hollywood at the time as his series The X Files was doing amazing for Fox. Millenium starred Henriksen as a retired FBI profiler whose services were still used by a mysterious group called Millenium. They were bracing themselves for an oncoming onslaught against society by crime and other dangers at the turn of the millenium.
I've been lucky enough to meet Henriksen twice at horror conventions. He's very nice to fans, eager to hear their reaction to his work. He can really reach fans on a common level as he seems very direct in speaking his mind. Fans are lucky that he has his autobiography out, Not Bad For A Human.
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