Paul Raci

Not to be confused with Paul Racey.

Paul Raci (/ˈreɪsi/;^[1] born April 7, 1948) is an American character actor. A veteran of stage, film and television, he has appeared in a variety of projects, including small roles in Baskets and Parks and Recreation.^[2] In 2021, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Sound of Metal (2019). In 2021 he was selected by BJ Sam the Nigerian international singer and producer to represent the United States on the first universal Christmas music project with other global music icons including Bollywood playback singer Jaspinder Narula, Swiss actress Christina Zurbrügg, Ghanaian singer Diana Hopeson.^[3]

Paul Raci
Born	(1948-04-07) April 7, 1948 (age 76) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1987–present
Known for	Sound of Metal

Life and career

Raci was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Laurel and Mitchell Raci.^[4] His family is of Polish descent, originally surnamed Racibożyński.^[5] He was raised as the hearing son of deaf parents, and is fluent in American Sign Language.^[6] Raci was a Hospital Corpsman in the United States Navy, attaining the rank of Petty Officer Second Class (HM2). He served aboard the aircraft carrier, the USS Coral Sea (CVA-43) from 1969 to 1973, serving two tours in Vietnam.^[7][8]

Raci received critical acclaim for his performance as Joe, the deaf mentor to the main character in Sound of Metal, released in 2020.^[9] For this role, he received the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor and other accolades, including an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male, and nominations for both the BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. According to director Darius Marder, several high-profile actors were approached for the role, but for the sake of authenticity, Raci was selected because of his upbringing.

In 2021, he was selected by BJ Sam, the Nigerian international singer and producer, to represent the United States in the first universal Christmas music project with other global music icons including Bollywood playback singer Jaspinder Narula, Ghanaian singer Diana Hopeson, and Swiss actress Christina Zurbrügg.^[10][11]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1987	Rent-a-Cop	Waiter
1990	Smoothtalker	Perry
1993	Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story	Bad Guy
1996	The Glimmer Man	Internal Affairs Agent #1
2004	Fighting Tommy Riley	Bob Silver
2012	She Wants Me	Paparazzi
2013	No Ordinary Hero: The SuperDeafy Movie	Rudy Gold
2019	Sound of Metal	Joe
2022	Butcher's Crossing	McDonald
2023	The Mother	Jons
	The Secret Art of Human Flight	Mealworm
	Sing Sing	Brent Buell
2024	This Is Me... Now: A Love Story	Group Leader

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1992	Baywatch	Dan	Episode: "Big Monday"
	L.A. Law	INS Agent Gruber	Episode: "P.S. Your Shrink Is Dead"
1995	Æon Flux	Tweeka / Onan	2 episodes; voice role
	The Marshal	Photographer	Episode: "These Foolish Things"
1997–1999	Todd McFarlane's Spawn	Additional Voices	6 episodes
1998	The Visitor	Dark Grey Suit	Episode: "The Trial"
2000	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Lie Detector Operator	Episode: "Blood Drops"
2002	ER	Mr. Spencer	Episode: "It's All in Your Head"
2003	The Handler	Nicky	Episode: "Under Color of Law"
	10-8: Officers on Duty	Manager	Episode: "The Wild Bunch"
2004	The Practice	Ralph 'Spinny' Spinaci	Episode: "New Hoods on the Block"
2006	Scrubs	Drunk Guy	Episode: "My Jiggly Ball"
	Las Vegas	Kenny Roman	Episode: "And Here's Mike with the Weather"
	Lucky Louie	Cal	Episode: "Drinking"
	Heroes	Ernie the Weasel	Episode: "Chapter Six 'Better Halves'"
2008	Life	Scruffy Man	Episode: "Jackpot"
2009	Free Radio	Homeless Man	Episode: "KDOG"
2010	Parks and Recreation	Eugene	Episode: "The Possum"
	Persons Unknown	Sherman Golightly	Episode: "And Then There Was One"
2011	Switched at Birth	Interpreter	2 episodes
2012	Rizzoli & Isles	Apartment Manager	Episode: "Welcome to the Dollhouse"
2018	Goliath	Dwight	Episode: "Diablo Verde"
2019	Baskets	Bart / Peter Gabriel's Drummer	Episode: "Homemakers"
2023	Perry Mason	Lydell McCutcheon	Recurring; 8 episodes

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
1985	Jeff Award	Actor in a Principal Role – Play	Children of a Lesser God	Nominated	[12]
2020	Boston Society of Film Critics	Best Supporting Actor	Sound of Metal	Won	[13]
	Chicago Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Florida Film Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Los Angeles Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Runner-up	[14]
2021	Academy Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated
	Austin Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated	[15][16]
	BAFTA Awards	Best Actor in a Supporting Role		Nominated	[17]
	Critics' Choice Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated	[18]
	Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Runner-up	[19]
	Detroit Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated	[20]
	Dorian Awards			Nominated	[21]
	Georgia Film Critics Association			Won	[22]
	Hollywood Critics Association			Won	[23]
	Houston Film Critics Society Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated
	Independent Spirit Awards	Best Supporting Male		Won
	National Board of Review	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	National Society of Film Critics Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Online Film Critics Society Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated
	San Diego Film Critics Society Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Seattle Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated	[24][25]
	St. Louis Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor		Won
	Toronto Film Critics Association Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Runner-up	[26]
	Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Nominated

References

1. "Sound Of Metal Supporting Actor Paul Raci Gets His Big Break After 40 Years". The Eddie Mata Show. January 25, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
2. "Paul Raci". IMDb.
3. "International star, BJ Sam, brings the groove back home". guardian.ng. 12 May 2008.
4. "Paul Raci on Instagram: "My Deaf parents Mitchell and Laurel Raci"".
5. "Wyborcza.pl".
6. Lopez, Kristen (December 8, 2020). "'Sound of Metal' Star Paul Raci Challenges Hollywood: Deaf People Are Sick of Saintly Portrayals".
7. ‘Sound of Metal’ Star Paul Raci Challenges Hollywood: Deaf People Are Sick of Saintly Portrayals. IndieWire. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
8. 207: Actor Paul Raci 'Sound of Metal'. Archived 2021-04-29 at the Wayback Machine Pop Culture Confidential. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
9. "Paul Raci Is The Guidance Of Deaf Souls In Sound Of Metal [Exclusive]". LRM. November 20, 2020.
10. "With Merry Christmas, BJ Sam sets global record". The Sun (Nigeria). December 6, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
11. "BJ Sam sets global record with Merry Christmas". Vanguard (Nigeria). December 6, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
12. "First Wave of Honorees Announced for the 4th Annual Hollywood Critics Association Awards". Daily Dead. 2020-12-21. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
13. Davis, Clayton (December 13, 2020). "'Nomadland' Named Best Picture at Boston Society of Film Critics Awards, Paul Raci and Yuh-jung Youn Among Winners". Variety. Archived from the original on December 16, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
14. "L.A. Film Critics Association Names 'Small Axe' As Best Picture Of 2020; Carey Mulligan, Chadwick Boseman Honored With Acting AwardsList". Deadline Hollywood. December 20, 2020. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
15. Partridge, Jon (March 13, 2021). "2020 Austin Film Critics Association Award Nominations". Austin Film Critics Association. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
16. Partridge, Jon (March 19, 2021). "2020 Austin Film Critics Association Award Winners". Austin Film Critics Association. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
17. "BAFTA Nominations 2021: 'Nomadland' & 'Rocks' Lead Highly Diverse Field". Deadline Hollywood. March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
18. "Critics Choice Awards: 'Mank' Leads With 12 Nominations, Netflix Makes History With Four Best Picture Nominees". Variety. February 8, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
19. "DFW FILM CRITICS NAME "NOMADLAND" BEST PICTURE OF 2020". Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association. February 10, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
20. "The 2020 Detroit Film Critics Society (DFCS) Nominations". March 4, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
21. "Dorian Film Awards: 'Minari' Tops Nominations From LGBTQ Entertainment Critics". The Hollywood Reporter. February 11, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
22. "Georgia Film Critics Association: 2020 Awards". Retrieved March 7, 2021.
23. "Hollywood Critics Association 2021 Award Nominations". ThatsItLA. February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
24. ""Minari" Leads the 2020 Seattle Film Critics Society Nominations". Seattle Film Critics Society. February 8, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
25. ""Nomadland" Named Best Picture of 2020 by Seattle Film Critics Society". Seattle Film Critics Society. February 15, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
26. "'Nomadland' Takes Top Prizes at Toronto Critics' Awards, Riz Ahmed Wins Best Actor". Variety. 8 February 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.

External links

• Paul Raci at IMDb
• Paul Raci at Rotten Tomatoes