Kevin Bernhardt is an American screenwriter, film actor, television actor, and producer. Bernhardt started as an actor in TV, with contract roles on Dynasty in 1989 and General Hospital (1985–1986). Following that, he had a dozen lead film roles until the mid-1990s - when he began seeing his screenplays produced - and decided to focus on writing. He has had over 30 screenplays produced with name actors.
Kevin Bernhardt | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Spouse | Apollonia Kotero (1987–1997) |
Early life and education
Bernhardt was born in Daytona Beach, Florida, where he was adopted by Navy Damage Control Officer 'Red' and wife Beverly.[1] Years there were spent at an African-American elementary school (Turie T. Small), as part of the integration which continued in the late 1960s.
Bernhardt attended college at Binghamton University on a National Merit Scholarship sponsored by the Eureka tent factory, where his mother worked.
Career
After completing bachelor's degrees in Economics and Drama he traveled to Los Angeles in January 1984,[2][1] where he passed the Series 7 exam and was hired by a securities company. But his true passion was the theater.
He landed a coveted contract role on General Hospital, and his storyline led the ratings for two years. Bernhardt took acting seriously enough to study in the small master class taught by Stella Adler, and he continued to work steadily as an actor for several years; in TV with another contract role as a priest on Dynasty, as well as several mostly 'bad-guy' leads in films such as Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth.[3] But once he saw his first screenplay produced – he devoted his undivided attention to writing.
Since then his writing has attracted a diverse array of well-known actors, including Kevin Bacon, Ben Foster, Michael Caine, Michael Shannon, Chris Rock, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Plummer, Til Schweiger, Donald Sutherland, Matthew Goode, Roy Scheider, Djimon Hounsou, Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, Charlie Sheen, Dolph Lundgren, John Lithgow, Tom Berenger, Peter Weller, Sylvester Stallone and Nick Nolte.
He has also worked with many notable directors including Shekhar Kapur (Elizabeth), Andrew Davis (Holes, The Fugitive), Abel Ferrara (King of NY), John Hillcoat (Lawless), William Friedkin (The French Connection), Mimi Leder (Deep Impact), Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2, The Misfits), Sylvester Stallone (Rocky, Rambo), Frederic Forestier (Asterix...), Renny Harlin, Wayne Cramer (The Cooler), and Brad Anderson (The Call). His screenplays were largely used to create the first breakthrough films - for independent companies such as Elie Samaha's Franchise Pictures, and the predominant independent company in the world, Avi Lerner's Nu Image.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Functioned as | Role | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Actor | Writer | Producer | |||
| 1984 | General Hospital | Yes | No | No | 15 episodes as Frisco Jones[3][4] |
| 1985 | Le feu sous la peau | Yes | No | No | Feature film; starring as Raphael[3] |
| General Hospital | Yes | No | No | Series regular; 310 episodes as Kevin O'Connor[3] | |
| 1987 | Kick or Die | Yes | No | No | Film; starring as Don Potter[5][3][6][7] |
| 1988 | Counterforce | Yes | No | No | Feature film; starring as Sutherland[3] |
| 1989 | Dynasty | Yes | No | No | Guest Star; starring as Father Tanner McBride[3] |
| Midnight Warrior | Yes | No | No | Feature film; starring as Nick Branca[6] | |
| Superboy | Yes | No | No | Guest Star; starring as Dr. Byron Shelley[3] | |
| 1992 | Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth | Yes | No | No | Feature film; starring as J.P Monroe[5][3][6] |
| 1993 | Beauty School | Yes | No | No | Feature film; starring as Colt[5] |
| Treacherous | Yes | No | No | Feature film; starring as Damon Vasquez[6] | |
| 1995 | The Immortals | Yes | Yes | Yes | Feature film; starring as Billy Knox[8] |
| 1996 | Hollow Point | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film; starring as Billy Knox[8] |
| 1997 | Top of the World | Yes | Uncredited | Yes | Feature film; starring as Dean |
| The Peacekeeper | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film | |
| Natural Enemy | No | Yes | No | Feature film | |
| 1998 | Sweepers | No | Story | No | Feature film; |
| 1999 | Five Aces | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film |
| Diplomatic Siege | No | Yes | No | Feature film | |
| Turbulence 2: Fear of Flying | No | Yes | No | Feature film; sequel to Turbulence | |
| Jill Rips | No | Yes | No | Feature film | |
| 2000 | The Art of War | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film |
| Agent Red | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film | |
| Amazing Grace | No | No | Yes | Feature film | |
| 2001 | Without a Word | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film |
| 3000 Miles to Graceland | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film | |
| 2003 | One Last Dance | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film |
| 2005 | Virginia | No | Yes | No | Feature film |
| Valiant | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film | |
| 2006 | Peaceful Warrior | No | Yes | No | Feature film[9] |
| 2008 | John Rambo | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film |
| 2009 | The Art of War | No | Uncredited | No | Feature film |
| 2010 | Elephant White | No | Yes | No | Feature film |
| 2015 | Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman | No | No | Executive | Feature film |
| Ghoul | No | No | Executive | Feature film | |
| 2017 | The Shanghai Job | No | Yes | No | Feature film |
| Hate Crime | Yes | No | No | Feature film; starring as Tom Brown | |
| 2018 | Shiner | Yes | Yes | No | Feature film; starring as Happy McBride |
| 2019 | Cliffs of Freedom | No | Yes | No | Feature film |
| 2020 | Echo Boomers | No | Yes | Executive | Feature film |
| 2021 | Best Sellers | No | No | Executive | Feature film |
| 2022 | Medieval | Yes | Consultant | Executive | Feature film; starring as Captain Martin |