Michael Rooker (born April 6, 1955)^[1] is an American actor who mainly plays roles of antagonists. He first rose to prominence for portraying Henry in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986), and is best known for starring as Merle Dixon in the AMC series The Walking Dead (2010–2013) and as Yondu Udonta in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), followed by its sequels Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023). He is a recurring collaborator of Guardians of the Galaxy director and co-CEO of DC studios James Gunn, appearing in his films Slither (2006), Super (2010) and The Suicide Squad (2021).

Other notable roles include Chick Gandil in Eight Men Out (1988), Frank Bailey in Mississippi Burning (1988), Terry Cruger in Sea of Love (1989), Rowdy Burns in Days of Thunder (1990), Bill Broussard in JFK (1991), Hal Tucker in Cliffhanger (1993), Sherman McMaster in Tombstone (1993), Jared Svenning in Mallrats (1995), Detective Edward Kennesaw in Deceiver (1997), Detective Howard Cheney in The Bone Collector (1999), Detective Jake Riley in Replicant (2001), and Buddy in F9 (2021).

Rooker was born in Jasper, Alabama. He has nine brothers and sisters. His parents divorced when he was 13, and he moved with his mother and siblings to Chicago, where he attended Wells Community Academy High School and studied at the Goodman School of Drama at DePaul University.^[2][3][4]

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Rooker made his film debut in 1986, playing the title role in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, based on the confessions of serial killer Henry Lee Lucas.^[5] He was acting in a play when the play's director, who was going to do the prosthetics for Henry, told him about the role. Rooker did not care if the script was good or bad; he just wanted to act in a film as it would "challenge" him.^[6] Henry was a critical success and Rooker received more film roles.

He was given more dramatic roles in films such as Eight Men Out, Mississippi Burning, and JFK, but he became widely known for his roles in action and thriller films such as Sea of Love, Days of Thunder, Cliffhanger,^[7] and Tombstone.^[8] He also starred in Mallrats, Rosewood, The 6th Day, Slither, Jumper, Super^[9] and Hypothermia.^[10][11]

In June 2010, Rooker revealed via Twitter that he was to appear in the AMC television series The Walking Dead as Merle Dixon, one of the survivors of a zombie apocalypse. He guest-starred in two episodes of the first season and one of the second season before becoming a series regular for the third season.^[12][13]

Rooker is also known for his roles in video games such as Call of Duty: Black Ops (where he played himself), Mike Harper in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 in November 2012, and as Merle in The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, the video game based on the television series.

He played Yondu Udonta in the Marvel Studios film Guardians of the Galaxy, directed by James Gunn,^[14] and reprised the role in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)^[15] as well as The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (2022). In 2021 he appeared in the action film F9, directed by Justin Lin.^[16]

Rooker lives in California with his wife Margot. They married in 1979 and have two daughters. He practices Kyokushin style of karate.^[1][17]