If you’ve spotted the surname Swayze in a film credit and wondered whether it’s a relative of Dirty Dancing star Patrick Swayze, the answer is yes: Don Swayze is Patrick’s younger brother, and he’s built his own four-decade acting career largely by playing the kind of violent, unsavoury characters his more famous brother rarely touched. He’s still working today, with roles in three separate 2025 releases and another due in 2026.

This guide covers who Don Swayze actually is, the Swayze family background, a full rundown of Don Swayze movies and TV roles from the 1980s through to now, and where UK viewers can actually watch some of his best-known work.

Who Is Don Swayze?

Donald Carl Swayze was born on 10 August 1958 in Houston, Texas, making him currently 67 and due to turn 68 in a few weeks. He’s the middle child of Patsy Swayze, a well-known dance instructor, and Jesse Wayne Swayze, an engineering draftsman, and the younger brother of Patrick Swayze, who died in 2009.

Unlike Patrick, who became known for romantic leads in films like Dirty Dancing and Ghost, Don carved out a niche playing rougher, more menacing characters across four decades of television and film. He’s rarely been the lead, but he’s worked consistently, appearing in everything from 1980s TV crime dramas to major 2025 festival films.

Don Swayze’s Family: Growing Up a Swayze

The Swayze household in Houston was a genuinely creative one. Patsy Swayze ran her own dance studio, where Patrick met his future wife Lisa Niemi, and the family has described growing up under real pressure to perform and succeed, a dynamic Patrick later called “growing up Swayze” in his 2009 memoir.

Don was one of five Swayze siblings. His older sister Vickie Lynn was born in 1949 and died in 1994; Patrick followed in 1952; Don himself arrived in 1958; younger brother Sean Kyle was born in 1962; and youngest sibling Bora Song “Bambi” Swayze, adopted by the family, was born in 1966. Sadly, Sean passed away on 15 December 2025 at the age of 63, meaning Don and Bambi are now the two surviving Swayze siblings.

Don Swayze Movies: Career Highlights

Don Swayze’s filmography stretches back more than 40 years, and it’s genuinely extensive, so here’s a breakdown by era rather than one long list.

Early Career: 1980s and 1990s

Don’s screen career began in the early 1980s with small TV roles, including appearances in Street Hawk and The Fall Guy. His first notable film role came in Andrei Konchalovsky’s Shy People (1987), alongside Jill Clayburgh and Barbara Hershey, and the same year he appeared in W.A.R. Women Against Rape.

The late 1980s and early 1990s kept him busy with action and thriller titles including Driving Force (1989), Trapper County War (1989), and Edge of Honor (1991) alongside Corey Feldman. He also shared the screen with his brother Patrick in Road House (1989), one of the few films where the two actually appeared together.

Through the 1990s, Don worked steadily across film and television, including Body of Influence and Sexual Malice (both 1993), Money to Burn (1994), and Pontiac Moon (1994) opposite Ted Danson. In 1999’s Movie Stars, he played a fictionalised version of himself, a rare bit of self-aware casting.

TV Guest Roles and Recurring Characters

Television has been where Don Swayze has built the bulk of his career, with guest appearances across an unusually wide range of shows: L.A. Law, Matlock, Columbo, Murder, She Wrote, Renegade, NYPD Blue, Lois & Clark, Walker, Texas Ranger, Profiler, and The X-Files, among others.

He’s also held recurring roles that gave him more screen time than a typical guest spot: Tattooed Man in HBO’s Carnivàle (2003), Gus the werewolf in True Blood (2008), and Tampa Tim in The Bridge (2013). One of his more memorable turns came in Criminal Minds, where he played serial killer Charles Hankel across two episodes in 2005.

Recent Films: 2024 to 2026

This is the part most existing articles about Don Swayze miss entirely, since his career has had a genuine resurgence recently. In 2024, he appeared as Terence in On Swift Horses, the 1950s-set romance starring Jacob Elordi and Daisy Edgar-Jones, which became a notable streaming hit after its release.

In 2025 alone, Don appeared in three separate films: Gary, a piano bar regular, in Ethan Coen’s Honey Don’t! (which premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival alongside stars Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza and Chris Evans), Kier Connolly in All Saints Day, and Mr. Hobbs in Where the Wind Blows. A further role, playing a biker in Don’t Trust the Quiet Ones, is listed for 2026.

“Swayze Don”: Why the Name Sometimes Gets Reversed

If you’ve seen the search term written the other way round, as “Swayze Don” rather than “Don Swayze,” it’s almost always the same person being searched for, just with the words transposed, a common thing that happens with two-word names that don’t have an obvious first-name-surname order to search engines. There’s no separate person or project called “Swayze Don,” so if that’s what brought you here, you’ve got the right actor.

Don Swayze’s Personal Life

Don was married to Marcia Swayze from 1985 to 1993, and the couple have a daughter together, Danielle. He remarried in 2014, to Charlene Lindstrom, and the couple remain married as of today.

Compared with his brother Patrick, whose life and final years with pancreatic cancer were extensively covered in the press and in his own memoir, Don has kept a considerably lower public profile outside his acting work, with most publicly available information about him centred on his career and family history rather than his personal life in detail.

How Old Is Don Swayze?

Don Swayze was born on 10 August 1958, which makes him 67 years old as of today, 29 July 2026, with his 68th birthday falling on 10 August 2026. That’s six years younger than Patrick would be if he were still alive, since Patrick was born in 1952.

Where to Watch Don Swayze’s Films in the UK

A few of his higher-profile recent and classic roles are accessible to UK audiences, though streaming availability shifts often enough that it’s worth checking before you commit. On Swift Horses has been available on major streaming platforms following its 2024 release, and Honey Don’t! had a UK cinema run through Universal Pictures following its Cannes premiere in May 2025, so it’s worth checking for a home entertainment release if you missed it in cinemas.

Road House (1989), the film where Don appears alongside Patrick, has circulated across various UK streaming platforms and is also widely available to rent or buy digitally. True Blood, where Don had a recurring werewolf role, has been available through NOW with a Sky Entertainment membership in the UK, while Criminal Minds has appeared on Disney+ under its general entertainment content.

[Screenshot: Example UK streaming listing for On Swift Horses or Honey Don’t!]

FAQ

Is Don Swayze related to Patrick Swayze?

Yes, Don Swayze is Patrick Swayze’s younger brother, born in 1958, six years after Patrick. Both were raised in Houston, Texas, by their parents Patsy and Jesse Wayne Swayze.

What movies has Don Swayze been in with Patrick Swayze?

The two brothers appeared together in Road House (1989), one of the few films to feature both Swayze brothers on screen. Don’s own career largely ran on a separate track from Patrick’s, with far fewer leading roles and a focus on darker, more villainous characters.

Is Don Swayze still acting?

Yes, Don Swayze remains actively working, with three film releases in 2025 alone (Honey Don’t!, All Saints Day and Where the Wind Blows) and another, Don’t Trust the Quiet Ones, listed for 2026. His role in On Swift Horses (2024) also drew renewed attention to his career.

How old is Don Swayze now?

Don Swayze was born on 10 August 1958, making him 67 as of July 2026, with his 68th birthday due shortly on 10 August 2026.

Does Don Swayze have children?

Yes, Don Swayze has one daughter, Danielle, from his first marriage to Marcia Swayze, which lasted from 1985 to 1993. He has been married to Charlene Lindstrom since 2014.

What is Don Swayze best known for?

Don Swayze is probably best known for recurring television roles, including Gus the werewolf in True Blood and serial killer Charles Hankel in two episodes of Criminal Minds, alongside a long list of guest spots across major US crime and drama series since the 1980s. His most recent high-profile work includes On Swift Horses (2024) and Honey Don’t! (2025).

How many siblings does Don Swayze have?

Don Swayze had four siblings in total: older sister Vickie Lynn (1949 to 1994), older brother Patrick (1952 to 2009), younger brother Sean Kyle (1962 to 2025), and younger adopted sister Bambi (born 1966). Following Sean’s death in December 2025, Don and Bambi are the two remaining Swayze siblings.