Spent a good chunk of A Man on the Inside Season 2 looking at Ben Cole thinking, "Wait… where do I know this guy from?" You’re in good company!Dr. Benjamin Cole, the intellectual and intimidating English professor who becomes a suspect and an ally in the latest season, has a memorable character arc. But the actor behind him has been stealing scenes in some of the biggest movies and TV shows of the last four decades.Benjamin Cole looks familiar because he’s played by David Strathairn, an Emmy winner, Oscar nominee, and one of Hollywood’s best actors.Who is David Strathairn, the actor who plays Benjamin Cole on A Man on the Inside?Strathairn brings bite and unexpected softness to Dr. Ben Cole. This character starts as a suspect in a Wheeler College scheme and ends up as someone we will defend. Yes, he might be aloof, but he is also tender and very loyal.But A Man on the Inside is far from his first rodeo. His CV is rather varied, so you might recognize him from the following projects:Nomadland (2020), where he starred opposite Frances McDormand as Dave.Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), in which he played the role of journalist Edward R. Murrow.The Bourne Ultimatum & The Bourne Legacy, where he played CIA officer Noah Vosen.Temple Grandin, for which he earned an Emmy.Lincoln (2012) portrays U.S. Secretary of State William Seward.The Sopranos, Monk, Alphas, and Interrogation because he’s also a TV regular.And those are just the mainstream ones. He’s also an indie darling who collaborated with director John Sayles in Matewan and Limbo. Even if you missed all of that, you may have heard him voicing characters in projects from Fairfax to the upcoming Zootopia 2!David Strathairn's early careerStrathairn didn't really have a predictable rise to fame. He attended Williams College and then enrolled in Ringling Bros. Clown College! Can you believe that the man now playing a stern English professor once trained to honk horns and juggle for a living? It is a significant shift for sure. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostFrom there, he hitchhiked around America doing summer theatre gigs and eventually, acting stuck, as seen on A Man on the Inside.RELATED: A Man on the Inside Season 2 is an instant hit with a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes scoreWhat makes Strathairn stand out is his philosophy. He sees acting and filmmaking overall as a way to explore the contradictions of human nature. Villains are, to him, just misunderstood people with context. Heroes have dents. And he thrives on complicated, morally gray men like Dr. Ben Cole.He once said TV shows and movies are “our libraries now, our history books,” and that approach is evident in A Man on the Inside. Even when playing someone as grumpy and guarded as Dr. Cole, he injects enough empathy to make us feel that there’s more happening beneath the surface.A Man on the Inside is streaming on Netflix.NEXT UP: Are there any chances of a Season 3 renewal for A Man on the Inside?