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Don Swayze has built a long career as a character actor in films, television dramas, crime procedurals, westerns, horror productions, soap operas, and television movies. His best-known credits include Shy People, Carnivàle, True Blood, The Young and the Restless, Criminal Minds, NCIS, Deadwood: The Movie, and the recent films On Swift Horses and Honey Don’t!.
Born Donald Carl Swayze in Houston, Texas, on August 10, 1958, he is Patrick Swayze’s younger brother, but the filmography below is Don Swayze’s own. TV Guide’s credit index lists 105 acting credits, in addition to separate stunt and stunt-player credits. Because databases differ over shorts, television movies, alternate titles, and minor appearances, this is a researched chronological list of his principal screen work rather than a claim that every database entry has been independently verified against production paperwork.
Quick answer: Don Swayze’s screen career began with 1980s television appearances and early film work such as Urban Cowboy and Shy People. He became a familiar guest performer on series including Murder, She Wrote, NYPD Blue, Walker, Texas Ranger, The X-Files, NCIS, CSI, and Criminal Minds. His most substantial recurring television parts include Movie Stars, The Division, Carnivàle, True Blood, and The Young and the Restless.
Don Swayze movies
The feature-film list is arranged chronologically. A few early, independent, video, short, or IMAX-format productions are catalogued differently from one source to another. Where the supplied records do not give a year or character name, that uncertainty is identified rather than filled in speculatively.
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1980s
| Year | Film | Role or credit note |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Urban Cowboy | Dancer; an early screen credit that is not consistently included in every database’s main acting list |
| 1987 | Shy People | Mark; frequently identified as his first feature-film role |
| 1980s | Death Blow: A Cry for Justice | Andy |
| 1988 | Alamo: The Price of Freedom | James Bonham; listed as a short or IMAX-format production in some databases |
| 1989 | Driving Force | Nelson |
| 1989 | Trapper County War | Walt Luddigger |
1990s
| Year | Film | Role or credit note |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Payback | Jeremy |
| 1991 | Edge of Honor | Ritchie, a violent lumberjack character |
| 1992 | Death Ring | John Blackwell; released as a video title |
| 1993 | Body of Influence | Biker |
| 1993 | Eye of the Stranger | Rudy |
| 1993 | Beach Babes from Beyond | Gork |
| 1993 | Broken Trust | Sgt. Barnes |
| 1993 | Sexual Malice | Credited in film databases; the supplied record does not specify the role |
| 1994 | The Other Man | Curran |
| 1994 | Forced to Kill | Dwayne |
| 1994 | Pontiac Moon | Local |
| 1994 | Money to Burn | Credited in film databases; role detail varies or is not supplied |
| 1995 | Digital Man | Billy |
| 1996 | Squanderers | Scott |
| 1998 | Evasive Action | Ian Kellen |
2000s
| Year | Film | Role or credit note |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | The Prophet’s Game | Joseph Highsmith |
| 2003 | Lady Jayne: Killer | Fred |
| 2004 | Knuckle Sandwich | Larry |
| 2005 | Waterborne | Otis |
| 2006 | The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold | Obnoxious Guy; a brief cameo in a video release |
| 2006 | The Visitation | Abe |
| 2007 | The Colony | State Department Official #1; short |
| 2008 | Prairie Fever | James; video title |
| 2009 | Powder Blue | Bouncer |
2010–2019
| Year | Film | Role or credit note |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Quit | Ward |
| 2011 | Miss Feet | Jesus; short |
| 2012 | Lizzie | Daniel Allen |
| 2012 | Heathens and Thieves | Sherman Rutherford; one of his more prominent film roles and a western-noir production |
| 2012 | Ambush at Dark Canyon | Chale Lord |
| 2014 | Iniquitios | John Duncan; short |
| 2014 | The Appearing | Sheriff Hendricks |
| 2014 | Nellie Nellie | Mr. Townsend; short |
| 2015 | The Night Crew | Big Willy |
| 2019 | Beneath the Leaves | Whitley Senior |
Rotten Tomatoes’ Don Swayze listing associates Shy People with some of the stronger aggregate reception among the films connected with his credits and places Beneath the Leaves among the lower-rated titles. Those scores describe the films’ aggregate critical or audience reception, not the quality or size of Swayze’s individual performance.
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Recent Don Swayze movies and current film records
The newest entries require more qualification than the older titles because production year, release year, distribution status, and alternate-title records do not always match.
| Title | Year or status | Don Swayze’s role | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| On Swift Horses | 2024 production; 2025 release cycle | Terence, a casino manager | Production databases commonly label it 2024, while distributor and consumer listings commonly use 2025. Netflix’s listing includes Swayze in the cast. |
| Honey Don’t! | 2025 | Gary, a piano-bar character | Released theatrically in 2025 and subsequently made available digitally; DVD and Blu-ray releases are documented. |
| Where the Wind Blows | 2025 | Mr. Hobbs | IMDb records a United States release date of October 24, 2025. |
| All Saints Day | Often listed as 2025; distribution details vary | Kier Connolly | The official production cast page confirms both Swayze’s participation and character. The available record does not support calling it a major theatrical release. |
| Don’t Trust the Quiet Ones | 2026 television movie; U.S. date listed as January 16, 2026 | Role not consistently displayed in the strongest accessible cast records | Some records associate the title with Body of Influence. That relationship should be treated as a title-identity possibility, not a definitive alternate-title equivalence. |
For viewers in the United States, digital availability can change by platform, date, and rental-versus-purchase format. The current tracking record identifies On Swift Horses on Netflix and Amazon Video, while Honey Don’t! is documented as a digital title. Check where to watch On Swift Horses before assuming that a subscription includes it.
Collectors looking for older independent, video-release, or western titles may have better luck with Don Swayze movies on DVD and used physical media than with a single streaming subscription. Inventory, editions, prices, and shipping vary, so a marketplace listing should be checked title by title rather than treated as proof that the entire filmography is available.
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Swayze’s television work is broader than his feature-film résumé. He often appeared for one episode in a crime, action, supernatural, or procedural series, but several shows gave him multi-episode or recurring parts.
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Notable recurring and multi-episode television roles
| Series | Years | Character and appearance information |
|---|---|---|
| Murder, She Wrote | 1991–1993 | Gus Tardio and Edge Potter across two episodes |
| Renegade | 1993 | John Poe and T-Bone across two episodes |
| NYPD Blue | 1995 | Alex across two episodes |
| Movie Stars | 1999–2000 | Don Swayze, a fictionalized version of himself, across 14 episodes |
| V.I.P. | 2000–2002 | Merrick across two episodes |
| The Division | 2001–2004 | Gary Gold and Elvin “Tupelo” Seaforth |
| Carnivàle | 2003–2005 | Tattooed Man across six episodes |
| NCIS | 2004–2021 | Logan Clay and Peter Walker across two episodes in the long-running procedural |
| Criminal Minds | 2007 | Charles Hankel in “The Big Game” and “Revelations” |
| True Blood | 2010 | Gus, a werewolf, across six episodes |
| The Young and the Restless | 2010 | Shaw Roberts across five episodes |
| Passenger | 2010 | Kylek across two episodes |
| Days of Our Lives | 2011 | Pawn Broker and Rip across three episodes |
| The Bridge | 2013 | Tampa Tim across multiple episodes |
| Family Guy | 2009–2017 | Voice of Patrick Swayze in two episodes; this is a voice credit, not an on-camera appearance as himself |
These recurring parts show the range of Swayze’s working pattern: he could play a physically imposing genre character, a criminal-world figure, a law-enforcement or government-associated character, or a lightly fictionalized version of himself. Carnivàle and True Blood are especially relevant for viewers looking for his supernatural and genre work, while The Division, Criminal Minds, and NCIS represent his recurring presence in crime and procedural television.
1980s and early-1990s TV appearances
| Program | Year | Role and format |
|---|---|---|
| I Married a Centerfold | 1984 | Actor #2; television movie |
| Street Hawk | 1985 | Pug, in “Follow the Yellow Gold Road” |
| J.O.E. and the Colonel | 1985 | Max Carney; television movie |
| Prince of Bel Air | 1986 | Darryl |
| Tall Tales & Legends | 1986 | Groom, in “My Darlin’ Clementine” |
| The Fall Guy | 1986 | Stretch, in “War on Wheels” |
| 1st & Ten | 1986 | Clay Daniels, in “A Second Chance” |
| L.A. Law | 1986 | William Dollar, in the pilot |
| Dead or Alive | 1988 | Brewer; television movie |
| Paradise | 1989 | Langston, in “A House Divided” |
| Matlock | 1989 | Tommy Jenks, in “The Thoroughbred” |
| Hunter | 1989 | Lyle, in “On Air” |
| The World According to Straw | 1990 | Abalone; television movie |
| Dragnet | 1991 | Pete Brown, in “The Vandals” |
| The New Adam-12 | 1991 | Don, in “Families” |
| Columbo: No Time to Die | 1992 | Albert Wagner; television movie |
| Dark Justice | 1993 | Fitzimmons |
| Beyond Suspicion | 1993 | Duke; television movie |
1990s and 2000s guest appearances
| Program | Year | Role and format |
|---|---|---|
| A Father for Charlie | 1995 | Reuben Cantwell; television movie |
| Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman | 1995 | Jesse James, in “Tempus Fugitive” |
| Walker, Texas Ranger | 1995 | Harry Peterson, in “The Guardians” |
| Land’s End | 1995 | Thomas Dwayne Boller, in “A Line in the Sand” |
| The Magnificent Seven | 1998 | Gage Lawless, in “Inmate 78” |
| Babylon 5: Thirdspace | 1998 | Raider Leader; television movie, uncredited |
| Profiler | 1998 | Gelb, in “Do the Right Thing” |
| Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction? | 2000 | William Pope, in “Anatole” |
| The X-Files | 2002 | Terry Pruit, in “Hellbound” |
| Tremors | 2003 | Orville James, in “Water Hazard” |
| Karen Sisco | 2004 | Jackie, in “No One’s Girl” |
| CSI: Miami | 2005 | Norm Buford |
| Charmed | 2005 | Lucius, in “Little Box of Horrors” |
| Without a Trace | 2005 | Randy Stone, in “Lost Time” |
| Love, Inc. | 2006 | Troy, in “Major Dad” |
| My Name Is Earl | 2006 | Bail Bonds Man, in “The Bounty Hunter” |
| Shark | 2006 | Beau Dawkins, in “Déjà Vu All Over Again” |
| Mystery Woman: In the Shadows | 2007 | Bishop; television movie |
| Cold Case | 2007 | Grant Hall, in “Shuffle, Ball Change” |
| CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | 2008 | Dave Bohr, in “The Theory of Everything” |
2010s and 2020s TV credits
| Program | Year | Role and format |
|---|---|---|
| It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia | 2010 | Ray, in “The Gang Buys a Boat” |
| Wilfred | 2012 | Shady Guy, in “Letting Go” |
| Hawaii Five-0 | 2012 | Lloyd Grimes |
| Sons of Anarchy | 2014 | Carl Egan |
| General Hospital | 2017 | Buzz; soap-opera appearance |
| The Rookie | 2019 | Agent Sharp |
| American Horror Story: 1984 | 2019 | Roy, in the season premiere |
| Deadwood: The Movie | 2019 | Dennis Seacrest; television movie |
| Lucifer | 2021 | Uncredited gas-station-owner role in two episodes, according to international filmography records |
| Magnum P.I. | 2021 | Melvin Muchado |
| NCIS: Hawai’i | 2022 | Joe |
| Perry Mason | Year and episode detail not clear in the accessible record | Listed by TV Guide among his acting credits; character information is not stated here because the available record is insufficiently specific |
| Longmire | Not specified in the supplied record | James “Jim” Mackey, in a season-five episode |
What kind of roles does Don Swayze usually play?
Swayze’s credits are defined less by one signature franchise than by a durable character-actor range. His television work repeatedly places him in crime dramas, police procedurals, action series, westerns, and supernatural stories. That pattern can be seen in the guest roles on Matlock, Hunter, Dragnet, NYPD Blue, Walker, Texas Ranger, The X-Files, CSI, Criminal Minds, and Longmire.
He also has a clear genre presence. He played the Tattooed Man in Carnivàle, a werewolf named Gus in True Blood, Orville James in Tremors, and Roy in American Horror Story: 1984. His film roles include western and frontier productions such as Heathens and Thieves, Ambush at Dark Canyon, and Prairie Fever.
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Stunt work
Acting is not his only screen credit. TV Guide lists Letters From a Killer as a stunt-player credit, Most Wanted as a stunt credit, and Drop Zone as a skydiving stunt-performer credit. IMDb also identifies him as an actor, stunt performer, and producer. The accessible records do not provide enough detail to responsibly expand the producer credit.
Voice and self appearances
On Movie Stars, Swayze played a fictionalized version of himself rather than appearing as a conventional dramatic character. His Family Guy credits are voice performances as Patrick Swayze in two episodes; they should not be counted as live-action appearances by Don or as appearances by Patrick himself.
How this filmography should be read
- It is not a short celebrity cameo list. The available TV Guide index contains 105 acting credits before separate stunt and stunt-player entries are considered.
- Television movies are included in the TV section. Titles such as I Married a Centerfold, J.O.E. and the Colonel, Columbo: No Time to Die, Deadwood: The Movie, and Mystery Woman: In the Shadows are not presented as theatrical features.
- Year labels can differ. The clearest example is On Swift Horses, which is commonly labeled a 2024 film in production databases and a 2025 release in consumer and distributor listings.
- Alternate-title claims require caution. Don’t Trust the Quiet Ones may be associated with Body of Influence in some records, but the available evidence does not justify treating the two titles as definitively identical.
- Availability is local and temporary. A film being listed on Netflix, Amazon Video, or a physical-media marketplace in the United States does not mean it is available in every country or included with every subscription.
Best starting points for watching Don Swayze
- For an early feature: Start with Shy People, the film most often cited as his first feature-film role.
- For western and frontier material: Try Heathens and Thieves, Ambush at Dark Canyon, or Prairie Fever.
- For recurring television work: Look for Carnivàle, True Blood, The Division, or The Young and the Restless.
- For crime and procedural appearances: His credits on Criminal Minds, NCIS, CSI, NYPD Blue, and The X-Files provide a useful cross-section.
- For recent work: Check On Swift Horses and Honey Don’t!, while verifying the current release platform and region.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Don Swayze related to Patrick Swayze?
Yes. Don Swayze is Patrick Swayze’s younger brother. They are separate performers, and the credits in this list belong to Don unless specifically identified as a voice or self-related appearance.
What is Don Swayze’s most famous TV role?
He is best known among television viewers for recurring or multi-episode work in shows such as Carnivàle, True Blood, The Division, The Young and the Restless, and Criminal Minds. He has also made many one-episode appearances in major crime, action, and genre series.
Was Don Swayze in Family Guy?
Yes, but as a voice performer. He voiced Patrick Swayze in two Family Guy episodes; this was not a live-action appearance as himself.
What is Don Swayze’s newest listed movie?
The recent records include On Swift Horses, released in the 2025 cycle after being catalogued as a 2024 production, as well as 2025 titles Honey Don’t!, Where the Wind Blows, and All Saints Day. Records also identify Don’t Trust the Quiet Ones as a 2026 television movie, but its title relationship to Body of Influence and some cast details require caution.
The Bottom Line
Don Swayze’s filmography is the working record of a prolific character actor: dozens of guest roles, recurring genre and procedural parts, independent films, television movies, and a small but documented body of stunt and voice work. The most useful places to begin are Shy People, Heathens and Thieves, Carnivàle, True Blood, Criminal Minds, and his recent appearances in On Swift Horses and Honey Don’t!.
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