Julian Sands

Julian Richard Morley Sands (4 January 1958 – ) was an English actor. He had co-starring roles in Oxford Blues and The Killing Fields in 1984. The following year, Sands played George Emerson in A Room with a View; this role became his breakout role. He then went on to appear in Gothic; Warlock (1989); Arachnophobia (1990); Naked Lunch (1991); Leaving Las Vegas (1995); and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011). His television roles included Nick Hardaway in Rose Red (2002), Vladimir Bierko in 24 (2006) and Jor-El in Smallville (2009–2010); he also voiced the character of Valmont in Jackie Chan Adventures (2000–2002).

In January 2023, Sands went missing while hiking in the San Gabriel Mountains. Several unsuccessful searches for him were undertaken. Five months later, his remains were discovered in the area he had been visiting.

Early life Julian Richard Morley Sands was born in Otley on 4 January 1958. He was the son of Conservative Party councillor Brenda (née Leach) and soil analyst William Sands. Brenda Sands was a leading figure in the local amateur dramatic society. Sands was educated at Lord Wandsworth College in Long Sutton, Hampshire and at London's Central School of Speech and Drama.

Career Sands appeared in small roles in Oxford Blues (1984) and The Killing Fields (1984). He also had a cameo as a Greek soldier in the BBC adaptation of The Box of Delights in 1984. Sands appeared in After Darkness in 1985. This role became his breakout role. Following the success of A Room with a View and Ken Russell's Gothic (1986), Sands abandoned the lead role he had signed on to play in Maurice and moved to Hollywood to pursue a career in American films.

Sands played the title role in the horror film Warlock (1989) and its sequel Warlock: The Armageddon (1993), the role of Franz Liszt in Impromptu (1991), and the role of Yves Cloquet in Naked Lunch (1991). He also played prominent roles in Arachnophobia (1990), Boxing Helena (1993), Tale of a Vampire (1992), and Leaving Las Vegas (1995). He played Laurence Olivier in BBC Four's In Praise of Hardcore (2005), a drama about the critic and impresario Kenneth Tynan.

In television work, he voiced Valmont in seasons 1 and 2 of Jackie Chan Adventures, before being replaced by Andrew Ableson and Greg Ellis in the remaining seasons. He played the Doci of the Ori in two episodes of the ninth season of Stargate SG-1 (a role he reprised in the film, Stargate: the Ark of Truth). He played a college professor in a Season One episode of The L Word. In 2002, he starred in Stephen King's Rose Red and the Austrian ambassador Klemens von Metternich in the miniseries Napoléon. In the 2006 season of 24, he played terrorist Vladimir Bierko.

Sands played Jor-El, Superman's father, in the ninth season of Smallville, and reprised the role in the series' final (tenth) season. In 2009, he played Reg Hunt in Bollywood Hero. In 2012, he played Alistair Wesley in the seventh episode of the second season of Person of Interest.

In August 2011, he appeared onstage at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in A Celebration of Harold Pinter, directed by John Malkovich at the Pleasance Courtyard. The play transferred to the Irish Repertory Theatre in New York. His performance in the play was nominated for "Outstanding Solo Performance" for the 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards (2013).

In 2011, Sands appeared in the mystery thriller film The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, an English-language remake of the original version, as the younger Henrik Vanger. In 2012, Sands voiced the character of DeFalco in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. In 2013, Sands appeared as Miles Castner, a wealthy international businessman, during the eighth season of Dexter.

Personal life Sands was married to Sarah Harvey, a British journalist and author, from 1984 until 1987. The couple had one son. On 22 September 1990, Sands married Evgenia Citkowitz – an American playwright, author, and journalist who is the daughter of Polish-American composer Israel Citkowitz and Lady Caroline Blackwood – after being introduced by John Malkovich, a friend of Sands. The couple had two daughters. Sands was fiercely protective of his family and rarely spoke about his wife or children in interviews.

Sands and his family lived in Los Angeles in the United States from 1990 until his death.

Disappearance and death On 13 January 2023, Sands, a dedicated mountaineer, went hiking at Mount San Antonio, California in the San Gabriel Mountains northeast of Los Angeles. He was reported missing later that evening. An initial search for Sands was hampered by severe storms that occurred shortly after he went missing. His car was located on 18 January. The following day, it was reported that Sands's three adult children had joined the ground search for their father. His son Henry, along with an experienced climber, retraced the route his father was believed to have taken. Sands was believed to be traversing the Baldy Bowl Trail, "which climbs over to the highest summit in the San Gabriel Mountains". Reports state there was "evidence of avalanches" in the region. On the 11th day after Sands went missing, the Sands family released a statement praising "the heroic search teams" and their efforts "on the ground and in the air to bring Julian home".

The SBSD stated on 19 June that two days earlier, more than 80 search and rescue volunteers had descended into remote areas across Mount Baldy to search for Sands. The SBSD added that since January, there had been eight official search missions to find Sands; more than 500 volunteer search hours were spent on those search missions. On 23 June, the Sands family released a statement saying, "We continue to hold Julian in our hearts with bright memories of him as a wonderful father, husband, explorer, lover of the natural world and the arts and as an original and collaborative performer."

Sands' body was found by hikers on 24 June. On 24 July, the cause of death was listed as "undetermined" due to "the condition of the body ... [which is] common when dealing with cases of this type."

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1983 Privates on Parade Sailor 1984 Oxford Blues Colin Gilchrist Fisher Jon Swain 1985 After Darkness Laurence Hunninger The Doctor and the Devils Dr. Murray A Room with a View George Emerson 1986 Gothic Percy Bysshe Shelley 1987 Siesta Kit 1988 Vibes Dr. Harrison Steele Julian Castor 1989 Warlock Warlock Tennessee Nights Wolfgang Leighton Manika, une vie plus tard Daniel Mahoney 1990 Arachnophobia Dr. James Atherton The Sun Also Shines at Night Sergio Giuramondo 1991 Impromptu Franz Liszt The Wicked Gustav Grand Isle Alcee Arobin Husband and Lovers Stefan Naked Lunch Yves Cloquet 1992 Tale of a Vampire Alex The Turn of the Screw Mr. Cooper 1993 Boxing Helena Dr. Nick Cavanaugh Warlock: The Armageddon Warlock Mario and the Magician Professor Fuhrmann America 1996 Never Ever Roderick 1997 One Night Stand Nurse Chris 2000 Mercy Dr. Dominick Broussard Vatel Louis XIV The Million Dollar Hotel Terence Scopey Love Me The sailor 2001 Hotel Tour Guide 2002 The Scoundrel's Wife Dr. Lenz 2003 The Medallion AJ "Snakehead" Staul Easy Six Packard Schmidt 2007 Ocean's Thirteen Greco Montgomery Cat City Nick Compton 2009 Blood and Bone Franklin McVeigh 2010 Golf in the Kingdom Peter McNaughton Assisting Venus Dominic 2011 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Young Henrik Vanger Il turno di notte lo fanno le stelle Mark Short 2013All Things to All Men Cutter 2014 Cesar Chavez Victore Representative Jetty Himself Short Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks Winslow Cunard GHB: To Be or Not to Be Le client Me Sam Citkowitz 2015 Extraordinary Tales Narrator Voice, segment: "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar" A Postcard from Istanbul Julian Short Sariel God Short 2016The Persian ConnectionEvgeny Honey Flood CD McKee Short Surfing Advertiser Voice, short 2017 Crooked House Philip Leonides The Escape Lambert Short Borley Rectory Narrator 2018 Walk Like a Panther Tony 'Sweet Cheeks' Smith Toy Gun Detective Antony Jonta 2019 The Garden of Evening Mists Older Frederik Gemmell 2020 Yeh Ballet Saul Aaron Death Rider in the House of Vampires Count Holiday 2021 Benediction Chief Medical Officer The Survivalist Heath Grant Direct-to-video The Ghosts of Borley Rectory Lionel Foyster 2022 The Ghosts of Monday Bruce 2023 Seneca – On the Creation of Earthquakes Rufus Posthumous release Double Soul Orlandi The Piper Gustafson Body Odyssey Kurt 2024 The Last Breath LeviPosthumous release; final film role

Television Year Title Role Notes 1982 Play for Today Groom Episode: "Soft Targets" 1983 A Married Man Guy Lough 3 episodes The Sun Also Rises Gerald Episode #1.3 1986 Harem Charles Forest 1987 Basements Mr. Sands Segment: "The Room" 2006Law & Order: Criminal Intent Philip Reinhardt Episode: "Dramma Giocoso" 2015 Gotham Dr. Gerald Crane 2 episodes We're Doomed! The Dad's Army Story John Le Mesurier Television film 2017 Man in an Orange Shirt Caspar Nicholson Episode #1.2 The Blacklist Sutton Ross 2 episodes Into the Dark Steven Episode: "A Nasty Piece of Work"