The Full Metal Jacket cast includes lots of famous faces, but where else do you recognize the actors? Stanley Kubrick’s Vietnam war epic Full Metal Jacket is based on American writer and veteran Gustav Hasford’s semi-autobiographical novel The Short-Timers and was released in 1987. The script – co-penned by Kubrick, Hasford and Vietnam war correspondent Michael Herr – earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay and despite some initial lukewarm reviews Full Metal Jacket is today hailed as one of cinema’s best war films.
Full Metal Jacket is split into two parts, with the first half following a platoon of newly recruited U.S. Marines as they go through a brutal boot camp at the infamous Parris Island training base in South Carolina. The second half is set in Vietnam during the Tet Offensive and focuses on members of the same platoon as they engage in bloody battle in the streets of Huế. Both halves succeed in showing the hellish brutality of war and the dehumanizing effect it has on those fighting it.
The movie provided early roles for a lot of now recognizable faces too. Here’s where else viewers might have seen Full Metal Jacket’s cast.
Matthew Modine – Private J.T. “Joker” Davis
Wise-cracking recruit J.T “Joker” Davis is played by Matthew Modine. Prior to Full Metal Jacket he had roles in movies like Birdy and Vision Quest and has since appeared in films including Transporter 2 and The Dark Knight Rises. Modine is a prolific TV actor too with roles on shows like Stranger Things.
R. Lee Ermey – Gunnery Sergeant Hartman
The late R. Lee Ermey played Gunnery Sergeant Hartman, a ruthless drill instructor responsible for some of the film’s most memorable quotes. As a former drill sergeant himself, Ermey brought a lot of authenticity to the Full Metal Jacket cast and later played many more military characters in movies like Body Snatchers and the Toy Story franchise.
Vincent D’Onofrio – Private Leonard “Gomer Pyle” Lawrence
Vincent D’Onofrio plays Private Pyle, an under-performing recruit who becomes the focus of Hartman’s abuse. Since Full Metal Jacket, D’Onofrio has appeared in many movies including Men In Black and Jurassic World. His best-known TV roles include playing detective Robert Goren in Law And Order: Criminal Intent and Wilson Fisk in Daredevil.
Kevyn Major Howard – Rafterman
Combat photographer Rafterman is played by Canadian actor Kevyn Major Howard. Howard was actively acting between 1980 and 1999 and had roles in Death Wish II, Alien Nation and Miami Vice.
Arliss Howard – Sergeant Cowboy Evans
Arliss Howard plays Cowboy Evans, a fellow boot camp survivor Joker reunites with in Vietnam. Beyond Full Metal Jacket, Howard has starred in films including Jurassic Park: The Lost World and The Time Traveler’s Wife. He’s also had TV roles in True Blood and Manhunt.
Adam Baldwin – Animal Mother
Trigger-happy machine gunner Animal Mother is portrayed by Adam Baldwin who is best known for playing Jayne Cobb in Firefly and its follow-up film. Baldwin’s other films include Predator 2 and he’s also starred in TV shows like Chuck and The Last Ship.
Dorian Harewood – Eightball
Eightball is Joker’s fellow platoon member and Animal Mother’s closest pal. He’s played by Dorian Harewood, a prolific voice actor who has had roles in animated series like Biker Mice From Mars and The Spectacular Spider-Man. Harewood has also appeared in shows including 7th Heaven and Boomtown.
Tim Colceri – Doorgunner
Rounding out the main Full Metal Jacket cast is Tim Colceri as helicopter gunman Doorgunner. Colceri is a former marine who went on to roles in TV shows such as Hypernauts, The Secret World Of Alex Mack and Weeds.
