5 Zachary Quinto movies and TV shows to watch if you liked him in Brilliant Minds 

Zachary Quinto plays Dr. Oliver Wolf on Brilliant Minds, a medical drama that combines patient stories with quieter family conflicts within the hospital. The role puts him in scenes that reveal how a doctor balances clinical decisions with private loyalties, and viewers who respond to that mix of calm professionalism and internal pressure may want to see how he handles other kinds of parts.

This list of 5 Zachary Quinto movies and TV shows highlights performances that showcase different sides of his acting, from tense TV antagonists to quieter, plot-driving film roles. We have picked entries that give specific moments where his choices change a scene.

The reveal that turns a good episode into a darker one, the line that makes another character act differently, or the decision that moves the plot forward, he has delivered time and again.

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A darker turn as Sylar on Heroes

Zachary Quinto’s Sylar (Gabriel Gray) is introduced as a watchmaker whose life takes a violent turn when he learns he can take other people’s abilities; early scenes show him changing from a quiet loner into someone who actively hunts others to gain power. That shift from a hesitant character to an intentional antagonist gives Quinto room to vary his voice and posture in ways that matter to the plot.

One moment, he studies a clock; the next, he coldly examines a victim’s power. The role anchors much of Heroes’ first season and explains why the show keeps circling back to him as a force that complicates other characters’ choices.

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Measured logic and emotional beats as Spock in the Star Trek films

In J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek films, Zachary Quinto plays Spock, a role that requires him to keep an exterior of logic while letting small, clear emotional beats show through. Watch scenes where Spock’s facial control slips into a brief look after a moral choice.

Those moments show how Zachary Quinto makes a famously reserved character feel present and reactive in a modern action film. His performance is less about big speeches and more about tiny reactions that change how other characters respond in the next scene.

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Quiet urgency and the pivot in Margin Call

In Margin Call, Zachary Quinto plays Peter Sullivan, a junior risk analyst who finds a fatal flaw in his firm’s models. The discovery scene, when he runs the numbers and realizes the scale of the problem, moves the whole film into crisis mode. Pay attention to how Zachary Quinto balances the technical language with an increasing sense of alarm.

His calm explanations make the stakes clearer to the other characters, and that clarity forces older, more powerful figures to act. The movie also showcases his work behind the camera; his production company helped make the film, which ties him to the project beyond his acting role.

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Unsettling control in NOS4A2

Zachary Quinto’s Charlie Manx on NOS4A2 is an eerie change of pace: he plays an almost mythic predator who lures children to a place called Christmasland. Specific scenes where Manx negotiates with other adults about a child’s fate highlight how Quinto uses calm, polite speech to make a character feel threatened.

The mismatch between his polite delivery and the dark acts he plans is what makes those moments stick. The show uses his steadiness as a way to unsettle viewers rather than shock them with sudden noise.

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Early TV work

Zachary Quinto appears in the first season of 24 as Adam Kaufman, a CTU analyst who does background checks and supports field operations. His screen time is limited, but look for how he makes technical, procedural lines read like real work.

A few detailed exchanges with other analysts show he can make a small part feel credible and necessary to the episode’s pressure. Those small-businesslike moments are the same craft that helps him anchor longer, more complex roles.

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Across these five choices, you’ll see a pattern. Zachary Quinto often plays characters who are calm on the surface but whose decisions push a scene into a new direction. In Heroes, that turn is literal and violent; in Margin Call, it’s an analyst’s discovery that shifts an entire firm’s trajectory; in NOS4A2, his politeness masks a threat. Watching how he changes tone with a look or a quiet sentence can help you spot similar choices in his role on Brilliant Minds.

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If you want a short viewing plan, start with Heroes to see his most dramatic TV arc, then Margin Call to watch him lead a scene that changes the story’s direction, follow with the Star Trek films to watch controlled emotion in a blockbuster setting; move to NOS4A2 for a measured, creepy turn, and finish with his 24 appearance to observe his craft in a compact role.