David Strathairn
Strathairn was always George Clooney’s first choice to play celebrated newsman Edward R. Murrow. Strathairn has had an impressive career, appearing in films such as Return of the Secaucus 7, The Brother from Another Planet, City of Hope, Eight Men Out, Limbo, The Bourne Ultimatum, The River Wild, Home for the Holidays, Lincoln, Darkest Hour, and Good Night, and Good Luck. For his performance as Murrow, Strathairn was nominated for the Academy Award. He won an Emmy Award for his performance in the TV movie Temple Grandin.
George Cloony
George Clooney is a well-known Hollywood star and the director of Good Night, and Good Luck. His breakout role came in the 1990s on NBC's ER. Before this he made guest and recurring appearances on such television shows as Roseanne, The Golden Girls and Baby Talk. Clooney has gone on to act, direct and produce films (Good Night and Good Luck, Up In The Air, The Descendants, The Ides of March, Michael Clayton). He took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his work in Syriana, and for Best Picture (Argo) as a producer. Clooney is also an avid humanitarian and has supported many philanthropic efforts across the globe.
Frank Langella
Langella plays the head of CBS, William Paley, who faced heavy pressure from outside forces related to McCarthy to stop Murrow. Langella is a film, television and stage veteran. He has won four Tony Awards in his career. His films include Frost/Nixon (for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor), Diary of a Mad Housewife, Dracula, and Robot and Frank.
Ray Wise
Hollenbeck's tragic tale becomes the real heart of the movie courtesy of a profoundly complex performance by Ray Wise. Wise is perhaps best known for his role on David Lynch's cult television hit Twin Peaks. He currently appears on the television show Fresh Off the Boat.
Robert Downey, Jr.
Robert Downey Jr. is a popular American film actor. After getting his start in roles in teen films in the 1980s such as Weird Science and Less Than Zero, he transitioned into pursuing more adult roles. His other films include Chaplin (for which he was nominated for an Academy Award), Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Home for the Holidays, Wonder Boys, A Scanner Darkly, Zodiac, Tropic Thunder (another Academy Award nomination), Sherlock Holmes, and as the Marvel hero Iron Man.
Patricia Clarkson
Clarkson has appeared in many films and television shows, including The Station Agent, The Green Mile, Far from Heaven, Dogville, Easy A, and Pieces of April, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award. She also appeared on Six Feet Under.
Jeff Daniels
Daniels plays the head of CBS News, Sig Mickelson. Interestingly enough, a few years later, the role that brought Daniels an Emmy win was that of a news anchor struggling to bring responsible journalism back to television news without being unduly influenced by the interests of corporate sponsors on Aaron Sorkin's The Newsroom. Other Jeff Daniels films include Ragtime, Terms of Endearment, Pleasantville, The Hours, Infamous, Steve Jobs, The Squid and the Whale, Something Wild, and Dumb and Dumber.
