Check out these popular movies and TV shows that have a connection to Union College.
MOVIES (in order of release date):
- The Way We Were (1973) - Scenes from this Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand classic were filmed on campus
- Rocky (1976) - All of the installments of the chronicles of Rocky Balboa were produced by Robert Chartoff ‘55
- Raging Bull (1980) - The Martin Scorsese/Robert De Niro classic was produced by Robert Chartoff ‘55
- Back to the Future (1985) - Alum George DiCenzo ‘62 plays Sam Baines, the maternal grandfather of Marty McFly.
- Mystic Pizza (1988) - Adam Storke ‘84 plays the preppy kid who gets, then loses, the girl, played by Julia Roberts.
- Field of Dreams (1989) - This Kevin Costner baseball classic is written by Phil Alden Robinson ‘71
- Scent of a Woman (1992) - Tom Riis Farrell '81 played Garry in the film starring Al Pacino and Chris O'Donnell
- Sneakers (1992) - Starring Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier and Dan Akroyd, this movie was written and directed by Phil Alden Robinson ‘71
- Sleepless in Seattle (1993) - Tom Riis Farrell '81 played Rob in the classic movie starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks.
- The Green Mile (1999) - Jeffrey DeMunn ‘69 plays prison guard Harry Terwilliger in this Tom Hanks movie
- The Sum of All Fears (2002) - This Ben Affleck and Morgan Freeman “Jack Ryan” thriller is directed by Phil Alden Robinson ‘71
- Dodgeball (2004) - “If you can dodge a wrench, then you can dodge a ball.” This Ben Stiller/Vince Vaughn classic was written and directed by Rawson Thurber ‘97.
- Lincoln (2012) - Lincoln’s secretary of state - William Seward, Class of 1820 - is featured prominently and played by David Strathairn
- The Place Beyond the Pines (2012) - While Union doesn’t appear in the movie, Schenectady is featured heavily in this drama starring Ryan Gosling, Eva Mendes and Bradley Cooper.
- Silver Linings Playbook (2012) - Phillip Chorba ‘05 plays Jordie in the film starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence.
- We’re the Millers (2013) - Rawson Thurber ‘97 directed this comedy starring Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis.
- About Alex (2014) - Scenes from this remake of “The Big Chill” starring Aubrey Plaza, Max Greenfield and Jason Ritter were filmed on Union’s campus.
- Neighbors (2014) - James Weaver '02 produced the movie and its sequel starring Seth Rogen and Zac Efron
- Central Intelligence (2016) - Rawson Thurber ‘97 wrote and directed the action comedy starring Kevin Hart and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
- The Disaster Artist (2017) - James Weaver '02 produced the film starring James and Dave Franco.
- The Pretenders (2018) - Many scenes from this film directed by and starring James Franco were shot on campus.
- Skyscraper (2018) - Rawson Thurber ‘97 wrote, directed and produced this thriller starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Neve Campbell.
- The Long Shot (2019) - James Weaver '02 produced the comedy starring Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen.
- Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) - Ben Schwartz ‘03 voices the title character based off the classic Sega Genesis game.
- Alan Horn '64 has had a prolific career as an executive at Warner Bros. and most recently as the co-chairman and chief creative officer of Walt Disney Studios. He has overseen the production of countless blockbusters alongside Disney, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Disneynature, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, Twentieth Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures, and Blue Sky Studios. Learn more about him here.
TV:
- Law and Order (1993) - Jeffrey DeMunn ‘69 held a recurring role as defense attorney Norman Rothenberg, a regular adversary to the New York District Attorney’s office
- Family Guy (1999) - Chris Sheridan ‘89 served as a producer, actor and writer for the popular animated show
- The Sopranos (1999) - This HBO classic series was executive produced by Ilene Landress ‘83. Ed Vassallo '90 also had a recurring role on the show as Tom Giglione.
- Scrubs (2004) - Amy Rilling ‘98 has played Nurse Amy and other nurse roles on this medical dramedy
- Parks and Rec (2010) - Ben Schwartz ‘03 co-stars as the lovable yet out-of-touch Jean-Ralphio Saperstein
- The Walking Dead (2010) - Jeffrey DeMunn ‘69 played recurring character Dale Horvath
- Girls (2012) - The HBO series starring Lena Dunham was executive produced by Ilene Landress ‘83
- House of Lies (2012) - Ben Schwartz ‘03 plays Clyde Oberholt in the Showtime series also starring Kristen Bell and Don Cheadle.
- The Daily Show (2014-present) - Dan Amira ‘07 is head writer for the Emmy Award-winning show starring Trevor Noah.
- Saturday Night Live (2015-16) - Chris Belair ‘06 worked on the writing staff of the longtime comedy show
- Mr. Robot (2015) - Tom Riis Farrell '81 played Bill Harper on several episodes in the series.
- Billions (2016) - Jeffrey DeMunn ‘69 played Chuck Rhoades, Sr. in the Showtime series
- The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon (2016-18) - Chris Belair ‘06 was a writer on the late night show
- Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television (2017) - Rawson Thurber ‘97 and Ben Schwartz ‘03 teamed up for an episode of the YouTube premium series
- The Bold Type (2017) - Evan O'Connor '16 serves as the post production coordinator on the Freeform production
- Camping (2018) - The HBO series starring Jennifer Garner and Juliette Lewis was executive produced by Ilene Landress ‘83.
- An early visionary in the premium channel industry, Michael Fuchs '67 served as the chairman of HBO starting in October 1984 when the channel launched its first original programming, including "The Larry Sanders Show" and "Oz." He also pioneered the addition of original comedy specials and sports programming to bolster the channel's theatrical films.
- Scott Siegler '69 served as a TV and film producer and studio executive, rising to the top as president of both TriStar TV and Columbia Pictures TV. He was responsible for shows such as "Night Court," "Growing Pains," "Magnum, P.I." and much more.