Matthew Settle

Jacob Wheeler

Matthew Settle, as lead pioneer Jacob Wheeler, has played key roles in several other noteworthy television projects, including the Steven Spielberg/Tom Hanks produced Band of Brothers and the Richard Dreyfuss' starrer Lansky,both for HBO. He made his television acting debut for CBS in Louis Lamour's Shaughnessy. Other starring tv credits include Crime in Connecticut: The Story of Alex Kelly., Hallmark’s A Place Called Home, The Mystery of Natalie Wood, in which he played the young Warren Beatty, and roles on the series ER and The Practice.   He has co-starred with Jennifer Love Hewitt in I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, with Ashley Judd in The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, in U-571, Attraction, Until the Night and next in The Celestine Prophecy, due for release this Fall.  At age eighteen, Settle moved away from his Southern roots to New York City and studied acting there with renowned teacher, William Esper. See interview with Matthew Settle.

Simon R. Baker

Loved by the Buffalo

Simon R. Baker, playing the vision-seeking Lakota son Loved by the Buffalo, fell into acting at age 9 when he starred in the film Once in a Blue Moon. He went on to play the lead role in the recent Disney Channel film Buffalo Dreams.  His recent film credits include The Missing; I, Robot; On the Corner; The Sweet Hereafter; Now and Forever, Shanghai Noon and Smoke Signals.  Baker’s television credits include the telefilm North of 60 and the series The Crow, Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy, Two and Hawkeye. 

Skeet Ulrich

Jethro Wheeler

Skeet Ulrich studied acting at New York University and performed with the Atlantic Theatre Company before making his film debut in The Craft.  His feature-film credits also include The Newton Boys, Scream, As Good as It Gets, Touch, Albino Alligator, Last Dance and Boys, as well as the independent films Kevin of the North and Nobody’s Baby.  On television, Ulrich starred in the CBS series Miracles, Showtime’s A Soldier’s Sweetheart and The Hallmark Hall of Fame movie on CBS The Magic of Ordinary Days. He plays Jethro Wheeler, brother of Jacob Wheeler.

Tonantzin Carmelo

Thunder Heart Woman

Native American actress Tonantzin Carmelo delivers a shining performance in the INTO THE WEST series as Thunder Heart Woman, the wife of pioneer Jacob Wheeler.  She has had leading roles in King Rikki and 187 Shadow Lane and guest-starred on the ABC drama Dragnet.  As a student of acting, vocals and dance, she has appeared in several student films and numerous theatrical shows.

Michael Spears

Dog Star 

Michael Spears delivers a phenomenal performance in INTO THE WEST as Dog Star, a Lakota who believes Natives and whites should walk different paths.  Spears’ acting experience includes features such as Dances with Wolves, as well as the television movies Lakota Woman, Skins, TNT’s The Broken Chain and The Broken Cord.  He travels to schools and universities throughout the United States as an inspirational speaker and has close ties with his Native American heritage as a professional solo singer and dancer.  Spears is currently working on his first album of his original songs.

Zahn McClarnon

Running Fox

Of Irish, Native American and Hispanic descent, Zahn McClarnon is accustomed to Native American roles.  His feature film work includes co-starring in Silent Fall and a role in Skins.  McClarnon has had recurring roles on the TV series Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman and Dangerous Minds, and has guest-starred on more than 10 different TV shows, including NYPD Blue, Chicago Hope and The Shield. McClarnon plays Running Fox, a courageous brother of the Lakota family who reaches out to improve Native American relationships with the white men.

Josh Brolin

Jedediah Smith

Playing the legendary mountain man Jedediah Smith, Josh Brolin continues to challenge himself in a wide range of roles, starting with his feature-film debut in the action-comedy Goonies and since appearing in films including Hollow Man, All The Rage and Best Laid Plans.  He received critical acclaim and audience recognition in Flirting With Disaster.  His additional film credits include Coastlines, which premiered at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival; Mod Squad; Nightwatch; and Mimic.  Brolin will next be seen in Into the Blue for MGM. 

For television, he made his mark as a series regular in the popular ABC series The Young Riders, as well as Private Eye for NBC and Winnetka Road for CBS.  He also appeared in the CBS television movie Prison of Children and in the Showtime original film Gang in Blue.  Brolin co-starred in CBS’s Picnic and, more recently, had the title role in NBC’s political drama Mr. Sterling.

An accomplished stage actor, Brolin spent five years at the Reflections Festival at the GeVa Theatre in Rochester, N.Y.  While there, he performed in and directed several of the festival’s plays.  Brolin also starred in the acclaimed Broadway production of True West and recently starred in the award-winning Off-Broadway play The Exonerated.

Gary Busey

Johnny Fox

Gary Busey has starred in more than 40 feature films, including Carny, Lethal Weapon, Predator 2, The Player, Under Siege, The Firm and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.  Busey is best-known for his critically acclaimed role in The Buddy Holly Story, in which he played famed singer Buddy Holly and performed all the original guitar and vocal work.  This garnered him both Academy Award® and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actor.  He has also made several television appearances, which include NBC’s Law & Order; SciFi’s The Outer Limits; UPN’s Walker, Texas Ranger and Shasta McNasty; and CBS’ Gunsmoke.  Busey made his acting debut in an episode of the Western series High Chaparral, which quickly led to his feature-film debut in Angels Hard as They Come.  He began entertaining as a professional drummer in the band The Rubber Band and eventually landed an opening as a percussionist with Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson.  In INTO THE WEST, Busey is a gruff mountain man who enters a dual with Jacob Wheeler for ownership of Thunder Heart Woman.

Will Patton

James Fletcher

After attending the North Carolina School of the Arts, Will Patton has enjoyed a career in film, television and on the stage.  A veteran of more than forty films ranging from studio fare such as Remember The Titans, The Mothman Prophecies, The Punisher, Armageddon, Gone In Sixty Seconds, The Postman, Entrapment and No Way Out to indies such as The Spitfire Grill, Jesus's Son, The Rapture, In The Soup and The Paint Job.  On stage, his performances in Richard Foreman's What Did He See and Sam Shepards' Fool For Love earned him Obie Awards for best actor.    Patton plays the role of Fletcher, a mountain man who takes Jacob Wheeler under his wing and shows him the ways of the West.

Alan Tudyk

Nathan Wheeler

Texas native and Juilliard graduate Alan Tudyk’s career has spanned features, independent films and theatre.   His feature-film credits include Serenity; I, Robot; Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story; Patch Adams; Wonder Boys; 28 Days; A Knight's Tale; and Hearts in Atlantis and Ice Age 2.  He also appeared in the independent film RX.  Tudyk has performed on and off-Broadway, most recently starring opposite Sarah Jessica Parker in Wonder of the World.  He was on Broadway in Epic Proportions, The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, Oedipus Rex, Much Ado About Nothing, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Bunny Bunny, for which he received both the Clarence Derwent and Drama League awards.  Most recently, Tudyk is starring in the ABC pilot, Love Life.  Tudyk plays a son of the Wheeler family who leaves Virginia for the West with Jacob.

Please Note:  Biographies for Matthew Settle, Skeet Ulrich, Tonantzin Carmelo, Michael Spears and Zahn McClarnon can be found in the Episode One section.

George Leach

Loved by the Buffalo

Raised in the Sta’atl’imx Nation, George Leach is a multi-disciplinary artist who has achieved success as a musician, actor and visual artist. His television acting credits include North of 60, for which he won he won the Best Actor Award at the American Indian Film Institute for his performance, This Is Wonderland, Dreamkeeper, After the Harvest and guest roles on PSI Factor, The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne and La Femme Nikita.  He has also appeared in a variety of stage performances across the country.  Leach is an accomplished singer, songwriter and guitarist who performs his original compositions in a distinctive style. His award-winning debut album, Just Where I’m At, was composed, performed, arranged and produced by Leach.  In INTO THE WEST, Leach plays the older vision-seeking Lakota, Loved by the Buffalo.

 Keri Russell

Naomi Wheeler

Golden Globe winner Keri Russell, as Naomi Wheeler, a daughter in the settlers’ family, won over young audiences with her honest, bold portrayal of a teen-age girl in the hit series Felicity. 

Most recently, audiences saw her co-star in the feature film The Upside of Anger along side Joan Allen and Kevin Costner and in the Hallmark Hall of Fame television film The Magic of Ordinary Days, which garnered CBS their highest ratings for the season.

Russell marked her stage debut starring in the off-Broadway production of Neil LaBute’s play Fat Pig. 

Her feature film credits include Mad About Mambo, The Curve, Eight Days A Week and We Were Soldiers Once…And Young.

Jessica Capshaw

Rachel Wheeler

Jessica Capshaw is a graduate of Brown University and has trained with Harold Guskin and Ivana Chubbuck.  Her feature-film credits include Valentine, Minority Report and A View from the Top.  Capshaw had a successful two-year run on the Emmy-award winning series The Practice and is currently staring in a pilot for NBC under Lorne Michaels.  She made her NY stage debut in the recent production Fat Pig.  Capshaw plays Rachel Wheeler, a daughter in the settlers’ family.

Beau Bridges

Stephen Hoxie

As part of a pre-eminent Hollywood acting dynasty, Beau Bridges has won Emmys for his performances in The Second Civil War, The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom and Without Warning: The James Brady Story and was nominated for his roles in We Were the Mulvaneys, P.T. Barnum, Inherit the Wind, Hidden in America, Kissinger and Nixon, The Outer Limits and 5 American Kids – 5 American Handguns.

Bridges made his feature-film debut in The Red Pony and went on to play his first adult roles in The Incident, For Love of Ivy and Hammersmith Is Out.  He has demonstrated enviable range in a variety of movies, including Child’s Play, The Other Side of the Mountain, Greased Lightning, Norma Rae and opposite brother Jeff Bridges and Michelle Pfeiffer in The Fabulous Baker Boys, for which he was named Best Supporting Actor by the National Society of Film Critics.  Bridges has appeared in more than 80 television shows, including The Fugitive, Amazing Stories, and with his father, Lloyd Bridges, in Sea Hunt.  He starred in the CBS series Harts of the West and in ABC’s Maximum Bob.  He also starred with his father and son Dylan in Sandkings, a two-hour movie that kicked-off the revival of The Outer Limits franchise.  Bridges guest starred on the popular WB series Everwood, along with James Earl Jones, and was a regular on the CBS series The Agency in its first and second seasons.

Bridges has directed films in recent years, including The Wild Pair and Seven Hours to Judgment, in which he also starred.  Bridges directed his father in a movie of the week entitled Secret Sins of the Father and his son Jordan in The Thanksgiving Promise.  Bridges’ After School Special Don’t Touch was nominated for an Emmy.

Bridges has appeared on Broadway in Where’s Daddy? and Who’s Who in Hell.  His other theater work includes the original productions of The Trial of the Catonsville Nine and Looking for Normal.

Bridges plays Stephen Hoxie, a lawyer who leads the wagon train and Wheelers into the West.

Please Note:  Biographies for Matthew Settle, Skeet Ulrich, Tonantzin Carmelo, George Leach, Michael Spears and Zahn McClarnon can be found in the Episode One section.

John Terry

Jacob Wheeler

Playing the role of the older pioneer Jacob Wheeler, John Terry boasts a successful career that has spanned film, television and theatre.  His feature films include In Country, Of Mice and Men, The Clearing and Full Metal Jacket.  He has starred in television films, including Lifetime’s Blue Valley Song Bird and A Change of Heart, NBC’s the Judge, Dead by Sunset and Miracle at Clement’s Pond, CBS’ A Mother’s Instinct, Killing in a Small Town and ABC’s As Bad as I Wanna Be, Please Forgive Me, Betrayed: A Story of Three Women and Inner Sanctum.  Terry has had recurring roles on the television series Lost on ABC, NBC’s Las Vegas and Fox’s 24.  He appeared on stage in productions of Sweet Bird of Youth and Dames at Sea and The Normal Heart.

Sheila Tousey

Thunder Heart Woman

Professional dancer and actress Sheila Tousey is a Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee Indian.  Her film credits include Skinwalkers; Christmas in the Clouds, which she co-produced; Backroads; Wildflowers; Ravenous; Sparkler; Lord of Illusions; Silent Tongue; Thunderheart; Coyote Waits; and Thief of Time.  Tousey had a recurring role on Law & Order: SVU and guest appearances on Dreamkeeper, X-Files and Law & Order.  She has starred in several stage renditions of The Late Henry Moss, as well as The Scarlet Letter, Tongue of a Bird, Alchemy of Desire, Antigone in New York and In the Summer House.  Tousey plays the older Thunder Heart Woman, wife of Jacob Wheeler.

Gil Birmingham

Dog Star

Gil Birmingham, playing older Dog Star, has starred in several films, including Walk His Trail, Skins, Wild Wild West and Speed Dog. Birmingham’s credits also include a lead role in the television films Dreamkeeper, Long Ranger, Gentle Ben I, II and as a series regular on Body & Soul as well as appearances in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, VIP, Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman and Nightman.

Birmingham trained under Larry Moss and Lee Strasburg at the Charles Conrad Studio, which led to leads in theatrical productions such as Jump Kiss, Roundball, Of Mice and Men and Girls of Summer.  Birmingham is also an accomplished guitarist, singer and horse rider.

Russell Means

Running Fox

Oglala/Lakota Sioux Indian Russell Means has spent much of his life championing the rights of indigenous peoples around the world and initiating programs for the betterment of Native Americans, and he was the first national director of the American Indian Movement.  He began a career in the entertainment industry and went on to appear in several feature films, including 29 Palms, The Last of the Mohicans, Natural Born Killers, Wagons East, Wind Runner and Disney’s Pocahontas, as the voice of Pocahontas’ father.   Means’ television appearances include a television documentary for HBO, Paha Sapa, Showtime’s The Song of Hiawatha, CBS’s Buffalo Girls and guest roles on the shows Curb Your Enthusiasm, Politically Incorrect, The Roseanne Show, Profiler and Walker, Texas Ranger.   In INTO THE WEST, he plays the older Running Fox.

Graham Greene

Conquering Bear

Oneida Indian Graham Greene’s career has spanned feature films, television, theatre and radio.  He has worked as a very well-known actor in Canada before shooting Revolution with Al Pacino.  He is best known for his role in the award-winning film Dances with Wolves, for which his performance earned him an Academy Award® nomination for Best Supporting Actor.  He has since gone on to star in other feature films, including The Green Mile, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Thunderheart, Maverick and Camilla.  Greene’s other film credits include The Walt Disney Co. animated feature Brother Bear, the critically acclaimed independent film Skins and HBO’s The Last of His Tribe.   His most recent credits include the Disney Channel’s Buffalo Dreams, CTV’s Spirit Bear and the independent film Transamerica.  Greene has had television success with regular and guest lead roles in several Canadian television series and won a Gemini Award® for Best Supporting Performance in the Canadian children’s TV series Dudley the Dragon.  He made three guest appearances in the series Northern Exposure along with various appearances in Wolf Lake, Mr. Sterling, Red Green Show, Slings & Arrows, Shattered City and  North of 60.

Greene garnered a DORA Mavor Moore award for his role in the acclaimed theatrical production Dry Lips Oughtta Move to Kapuskasing, and he was honored for his dedication to Native American culture by the Southwest Museum in Los Angeles with their Lifetime Achievement Award.  He is currently hosting and narrating the PBS special event  The War That Made America. In INTO THE WEST, Greene plays Conquering Bear, a dignified Brule elder who is a Native representative at the Treaty of Long Meadows.

Christian Kane

Abe Wheeler

Christian Kane has had roles in such blockbuster films as EDTV, Life or Something Like It, Just Married, Taxi and Friday Night Lights.  He starred in TNT’s Original movie Louis L’Amour’s Crossfire Trail, opposite Tom Selleck.  Kane has had recurring roles on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Dawson’s Creek, and the NBC drama Las Vegas.  He is also a country music singer, and his music has been featured in the films Life or Something Like It, with Angelina Jolie and Ed Burns, and Just Married, with Ashton Kutcher.  Kane plays Abe, a fourth-generation pioneer son of Jacob Wheeler in INTO THE WEST. 

Tyler Christopher

Jacob Wheeler Jr.

Choctaw/Seneca Indian Tyler Christopher currently plays Nikolas Cassidine on the ABC soap opera General Hospital, for which he received his second Emmy nomination this year.  He won First Americans in the Arts Awards for his roles in the independent feature Cat Fish in Black Bean Sauce and the television series The Pretender.  His other independent films include Out of the Black and Face the Music.  He had a recurring role on the popular series Charmed and has also appeared in the hit TV dramas Crossing Jordan, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, JAG, Family Law, Boomtown, The Twilight Zone, Felicity and Angel.  Christopher plays Jacob Jr., a fourth-generation Wheeler, son of Jacob Wheeler.

Irene Bedard

Margaret Wheeler

Playing the role of Margaret Wheeler, the half-white, half-Native American daughter of Jacob Wheeler and Thunder Heart Woman, Irene Bedard has appeared in a range of performances, including starring roles in the feature films Smoke Signals, Squanto: A Warrior’s Tale, The Song of Hiawatha and Disney’s Pocahontas, for which her likeness was drawn for the image of the title character.  She also starred in TNT’s Two for Texas and Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination. 

Rachael Leigh Cook

Clara Wheeler

Rachael Leigh Cook began her acting career shortly after her move from Minneapolis to Los Angeles at the age of sixteen when she was cast in Columbia Picture’s The Babysitters Club.  She hasn’t looked back since.  Having “broken out” in the hit She’s All That, starring opposite Freddie Prinze, Jr, Cook went on to star as Josie in Josie and the Pussycats.  She also starred in Anti-Trust, with Tim Robbins and Ryan Phillippe; Get Carter, with Sylvester Stallone; as well as numerous critically acclaimed independent films such as The House of Yes.  In INTO THE WEST, Cook’s character is a fourth-generation Wheeler daughter.

Balthazar Getty

David Wheeler

Balthazar Getty, as fourth-generation Wheeler relative David Wheeler, has appeared in more than 30 films and television series during his career.  Discovered at age 12 and cast for the lead role in the feature film Lord of the Flies, he went on to star in such films as Young Guns II, Judge Dredd, White Squall, Mr. Holland’s Opus and Ladder 49.  Getty has also appeared in the television projects Traffic for USA, Showtime’s The Hunter and Nightmare as well as the independent film Shadowhours, which he also produced.

Sean Astin

Martin Jarrett

Playing the role of gold-mining pioneer Martin Jarrett, Sean Astin made his feature-film debut in Goonies.  He went on to star in several motion pictures, including Boy Meets Girl, War of the Roses, Toy Soldiers, Memphis Belle, Bulworth, Courage under Fire, Rudy and The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Astin’s television appearances have included the Showtime movie Harrison Bergeron and TNT’s Original series Bull.  Astin broadened his career by directing and co-producing the short film Kangaroo Court, which was nominated for an Academy Award® for Best Short Film.  He has also directed a short film, The Long and the Short of It, which premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival.

Matthew Modine

Samson Wheeler

As Samson Wheeler, Jacob Wheeler’s cousin, Matthew Modine is a veteran of the arts in film, television, stage, writing and directing.  His feature film credits include Birdy, Married to the Mob, Vision Quest, Full Metal Jacket, Gross Anatomy, The Browning Version, Pacific Heights, Any Given Sunday and Le Divorce.  He can next be seen in Abel Ferrara’s Mary, opposite Juliet Binoche and Forest Whitaker.

Modine earned Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominations for his performance in HBO’s critically acclaimed drama And the Band Played On, and also received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in What the Deaf Man Heard for CBS.  He was a recipient of the Venice Film Festival’s Volpi Cup for his work in Robert Altman’s Streamers. He received a second Volpi Cup and a special Golden Globe for his work in Altman’s Short Cuts. Other television credits include the CBS miniseries Hitler: The Rise of Evil and Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story; CBS’ Flowers for Algernon; and TNT’s The Winning Season.  Modine was last seen in Arthur Miller’s last play Finishing the Picture.

He directed three short films that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim and have gone on to play in major film festivals worldwide. He wrote, directed and starred in his film directorial debut If … Dog ... Rabbit for Showtime and directed the play 12 Angry Men.

Daniel Gillies

Ethan Biggs

Daniel Gillies, who plays Margaret’s husband Ethan Biggs in INTO THE WEST, was born in Winnipeg, Canada.  He made his feature film debut in A Soldier’s Sweetheart, with Keifer Sutherland. He went on to play lead roles in such films as Spider-Man 2, with Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst and the Miramax film Bride & Prejudice.  He also starred in several independent films, including  Trespassing, No One Can Hear You and The Act of a Dying Man.

Gillies made his television debut in Young Hercules and went on to appear in such shows as Street Legal, Showtime’s Jeremiah and Hallmark’s The Snow Queen.  His stage credits include The Godboy, in which he won a Chapman-Tripp Theatre award for Best Actor for his role as Jimmy Sullivan.  Gillies’ other credits include The Lower Depths, Anthony and Cleopatra, PlayLunch, Julius Ceaser and The Judas Kiss.  He has also written and directed his own play, Maybe, which was performed at the Unitec Theatre in New Zealand. 

Cast Biographies

Please Note:  Biographies for Gil Birmingham, Russell Means, Christian Kane, Tyler Christopher, Irene Bedard and Rachael Leigh Cook can be found in the Episode Three section.

Steve Reevis

Loved by the Buffalo

Steve Reevis plays the older visionary Loved by the Buffalo.  Reevis is Native American and part of the Blackfoot Nation.  He can next be seen in theaters this summer in The Longest Yard, starring Adam Sandler.  Reevis’ other feature film credits include The Missing, Oscar-nominated Fargo, The Doors and Dances with Wolves.  He has had several guest-starring roles on television series such as LAX, Malcolm in the Middle, JAG and Walker, Texas Ranger.  Among his other television credits, he has also appeared in the television films Lakota Moon, Crazy Horse and Miracle in the Wilderness.

Lance Henriksen

Daniel Wheeler

Lance Henriksen has starred in a wide variety of films and television projects.  James Cameron used Henriksen in his first directorial effort, Piranha II: The Spawning, followed by The Terminator and then the sci-fi classic Aliens.  Henriksen’s other film credits include AVP, The Quick and the Dead, Near Dark, Jagged Edge, Pumpkinhead, Horror Show, Survival Quest, Johnny Handsome, The Pit and the Pendulum, Jennifer Eight, The Color of Night, Powder, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Damien: Omen II, The Right Stuff, Disney’s animated feature Tarzan and Hard Target.  

Henriksen starred for three seasons in Fox’s Millennium, garnering three consecutive Golden Globe nominations and a People’s Choice Award nomination.  Henriksen was nominated for a Golden Satellite Award for the lead role in TNT original film The Day Lincoln Was Shot and had starring roles in the PBS Emmy® winning Dark End of the Street and HBO’s Tales from the Crypt, Cutting Cards and Yellow. 

Tom Berenger

Col. John Chivington

Tom Berenger’s career spans feature films, television and production.  His film career took off when he appeared in the Oscar-nominated film The Big Chill, with Glenn Close and William Hurt.  He went on to receive a Golden Globe and an Academy Award^® nomination for his role in the Oscar-winning film, Platoon, with Willem Dafoe and Forest Whitaker. 

Berenger has had several television appearances, including an Emmy nomination for his guest role on the hit television series Cheers. Berenger’s interest in producing led him to executive-produce The Occasional Hell and the television series Peacemakers and Rough Riders, in which he also starred.  He plays Col. Chivington, the ruthless ex-minister who perpetrates the Sand Creek massacre. 

Warren Kole

Robert Wheeler

Warren Kole has spent most of his professional career on stage, including appearing in productions of Happy End, A Tale of Two Cities, Hamlet, Richard II, and A View from the Bridge.  He’s made several television appearances, including Third Watch, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, The Guardian and the television film Nobody’s Fool.  Kole’s film credits include Love Song for Bobby Long and the independent film Company K.  His next project will be One Last Thing starring Cynthia Nixon. He plays Robert Wheeler, son of Daniel Wheeler and cousin to Jacob.

Jonathan Scarfe

General George Custer

Jonathan Scarfe has been seen in several films, including The Work & The Glory, Liberty Stand Still and The Lesser Evil.  He has also been featured in such television films as Sheldon Kennedy Story, for which he won the Gemini Award for Best Actor; Judas and Jesus; 100 Days in the Jungle; and White Lies.  Scarfe has a recurring role on ER and has made guest appearances on CSI: Miami, NYPD Blue, Outer Limits and Lonesome Dove.  His theatrical achievements include lead roles in A Midsummer Nights Dream, The Real Thing and Absolution.

Garrett Wang

Chow-Ping Yen

Garrett Wang portrays Chow-Ping Yen, an immigrant who befriends Abe Wheeler while working on the railroad.  Wang played the lead role in the film Hundred Percent, was a series regular on Star Trek Voyager and on All American Girl.  Wang’s theatrical credits include Porcelain, Language of Their Own and Model Minority.  Among Wang’s talents, he is fluent in Mandarin Chinese.

Tatanka Means

Crazy Horse

Tatanka Means plays one of the most prominent Native leaders, Crazy Horse.  Means has appeared in a number of feature films, including Michael Mann’s award-winning Last of the Mohicans, as well as a starring role in the recent film Black Cloud, directed by Rick Schroder.

Means is skilled in horseback riding and pow wow dancing and was the 2001 USA National Boxing Champion.  He speaks Lakota and Sioux.

 Please Note:  Biographies for John Terry, Sheila Tousey, Gil Birmingham, Russell Means, Irene Bedard, Rachael Leigh Cook can be found in the Episode Three section and Warren Kole and Jonathan Scarfe in Episode Four.

Keith Carradine

Capt. Richard H. Pratt

Carradine has starred in more than 30 feature films and is an Academy Award®-winning singer and songwriter, with two albums and a hit single to his credit.  Most recently, Carradine completed the feature film Our Very Own.  In 2003, he co-starred in TNT’s Monte Walsh.  His other feature film credits include A Thousand Acres, 2 Days in the Valley, Welcome to L.A., Choose Me, Trouble in Mind, Andre, The Duellists, Pretty Baby, The Longriders, Southern Comfort, Falcons and The Moderns.

Carradine’s television credits include HBO’s Emmy nominated series Deadwood, ABC’s primetime comedy Complete Savages, Dead Man's Walk, In the Best of Families, A Rumor of War, Chiefs and Murder Ordained and the television films A Winner Never Quits, My Father, My Son, Stones for Ibarra and Eye on the Sparrow.  On Broadway, Carradine appeared in Foxfire, receiving an Outer Critics Circle Award for his performance. Earlier stage work includes Tobacco Road and Detective Story, and Broadway’s award-winning The Will Rogers Follies, for which he received a Tony Award nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Musical.

Carradine plays Capt. Richard H. Pratt, who was integral in developing the experimental school in Pennsylvania designed to civilize Native American children.

Judge Reinhold

Douglas Hillman

After attending Mary Washington College and the North Carolina School of the Arts, Reinhold performed at various regional theatres until achieving national exposure in film and television.  Reinhold’s film credits include Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Ruthless People, the Beverly Hills Cop trilogy, The Santa Clause and The Santa Clause 2. Reinhold has made several guest appearances on television, including the Emmy Award-winning series Seinfeld, Monk, TBS’s National Lampoon’s Thanksgiving Reunion and King of Queens.  Reinhold delivers an outstanding performance in his role as Douglas Hillman in TNT’s Into the West.

 Eric Schweig

Sitting Bull

Eric Schweig is of Inuit and German heritage.  He made his acting debut in 1987 when he won the role of the Shaman in an Ontario Stage production of The Cradle Will Fall.  His big film break came when director Michael Mann chose him to play the role of Uncas in the Twentieth Century Fox feature film The Last of the Mohicans.  Since then, Schweig has had roles in The Scarlet Letter, Disney’s Squanto: A Warrior’s Tale and Ron Howard’s The Missing, as well as many other films.  For his performance in Big Eden, he earned the Grand Jury Prize Outstanding Actor Award at the Outfest in July 2000.   He starred in Chris Eyre’s Skins and earned wonderful reviews for his portrayal of Rudy Yellowshirt.  His television credits include TNT’s Broken Chain and Cowboys and Indians: The Killing of JJ Harper, for which he received a nomination for Best Actor by the American Indian Film Institute. 

Most recently, Schweig appeared in the story of Shania Twain as her stepfather, Jerry.  The movie is set to be aired in Canada this year.

Schweig is an accomplished master carver. His artwork has been sold in Canada, the U.S., Asia and Europe.  His unique and gifted styles of carving along with the his personal connection to his masks are garnering him worldwide attention and increased popularity. 

Eddie Spears

Red Lance

Eddie Spears portrays Red Lance, a member of the Lakota family in the series INTO THE WEST.  He began his career at age 10, starring in TNT's Geronimo before later starring in The Witness, Through the Window and Somebody Said Pow Wow. 

Spears' most recent credits include leading roles in Black Cloud, for which he won the best actor at the 2004 Phoenix Film Festival, and Dreamkeeper, for which he won the 2004 FAITA Award for best actor. Additional film credits include Edge of America and The Slaughter Rule.