Here’s Why ‘The Diplomat’ Star Bradley Whitford Looks *So* Familiar

I’ve loved him since ‘The West Wing’

It’s hard to believe that the Keri Russell-led political thriller The Diplomat is already on its fourth season. The show has been a runaway hit for <a href="https://comicvibe.com/10-<a href="https://comicvibe.com/mgms-from-will-debut-on-netflix-ahead-of-halloween-how-to-watch/” title=”MGM+'s 'From' will debut on Netflix ahead of Halloween. How to watch”>netflix-shows-that-are-better-on-a-rewatch/” title=”10 Netflix Shows That Are Better On A Rewatch”>Netflix, and it’s even earned a slew of Emmy nominations and an Emmy win for Allison Janney. So naturally, when the latest season hit streaming this week, my binge-watch began immediately.

The show, which follows a U.S. diplomat (Russell) as she confronts government conspiracies (and marriage troubles), features a number of familiar faces. Rufus Sewell plays Russell’s onscreen husband. Janney plays the new president. And Bradley Whitford plays the president’s husband, Todd Penn.

And if you’re asking yourself why Whitford looks so familiar, it could be for a number of reasons. The man has a resume a mile long, from The West Wing to Billy Madison (yes, really). Here, Whitford’s most memorable roles.

Whitford is probably best known for playing Josh Lyman in another political show that also starred Janney, The West Wing. The long-running series from Aaron Sorkin followed the inner workings of the President Bartlet (Martin Sheen) administration. Whitford’s character is the Deputy Chief of Staff and later Chief of Staff.

Whitford also played Danny Tripp in the gone-too-soon Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, opposite Amanda Peet, Matthew Perry and Sarah Paulson.

It’s equally possible you recognize Whitford for his villanous roles in Get Out or The Cabin in the Woods(his demise in the latter is particularly incredible). He also had large, memorable roles in The Handmaid’s Tale, Transparent and the short-lived Perfect Harmony.

But his work goes back wayyyyy further than that…

Whitford’s acting credits on IMDb date back to 1980. Early on in his career, he appeared in huge films like Presumed Innocent, Awakenings, Scent of a Woman and Philadelphia.

He even made an uncredited 1999 appearance on the hit show Felicity which, if you’ll recall, also starred The Diplomat‘s Russell.

My personal first memory of seeing Whitford on screen? That has to be in the ridiculous Adam Sandler comedy Billy Madison. Sandler played a rich kid forced to go back to elementary school in order to inherit his father’s fortunes. Whitford played his nemesis, who tried to stop Billy from succeeding at all costs.

While these examples are only the tip of the iceberg, it should be clear by now that there’s a very good reason Whitford looks so familiar. It’s because he’s been in nearly everything. And at the age of 67, it seems that his career likely still has a long way to go.