Biografia

His son with ex-wife Lauren Lambert, Max McGinley (born August 5, 1997), has Down's Syndrome. John took his TV role in Scrubs: Medici ai primi ferri (2001) so he could stay close to home to be with him.

On Scrubs: Medici ai primi ferri (2001), his character Dr. Cox's habit of referring to J.D. ( Zach Braff) by girls' names was put in the show after the writers noticed McGinley doing it to Braff. He claims to do this to all of his friends.

Describes Dr. Cox, his character on Scrubs: Medici ai primi ferri (2001), as "a hard-ass with a heart of gold" in the tradition of Danny DeVito's Louie DiPalma on Taxi (1978) and Edward Asner's Lou Grant on Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970). Many of his co-stars say the same of him, that while he may seem intimidating at first he is very talented and great to work with.

Had to audition five times for his role in Scrubs: Medici ai primi ferri (2001).

Calls Oliver Stone his favorite director to work with, and has accordingly been cast in his films six times, more than any actor except Sean Stone, the director's son.

[on how he memorizes his lines and prepares for his roles] I go downstairs and don't come up from there until I get that stuff hammered in my skull, until I can do it water skiing or jumping out of a plane. It's all about the text, flushing it out, to excavate, to really get in there and see what falls through your fingers.

[on why he feels he never landed a role as a TV series regular until Scrubs: Medici ai primi ferri (2001)] With my dorky head, I guess I just wasn't handsome enough. I'd do the audition but never hear back. TV tends to look for the living equivalents of squeaky-clean Kens and Barbies, but with my dial I'm more like Ken's dirty old uncle.

[on talking to his Ogni maledetta domenica (1999) costar, Al Pacino] When Johnny [John Cusack] and I were shooting Il prezzo della giustizia (1999) in Calgary, he told me just to go up and knock on Al's trailer door. That's the secret of talking to him. If no one knocks on his door, he stays closeted up by himself. It really worked. I spent a lot of time talking to Al.

The [Scrubs: Medici ai primi ferri (2001)] pilot script's notes described the character as a John C. McGinley-type. Now, I don't know what that type is, but I said, "Well, you've got him." I still had to audition five times for the network.

I did Highlander II - Il ritorno (1991), with Sean Connery and Christopher Lambert down in Buenos Aires, and I stunk. I was infatuated with Orson Welles' filmography at the time, so I wanted to see if I could make my voice as low as his, and I succeeded. Nothing in the text supported that choice, though, so in the film, I look like a jackass. I don't look like a tough guy, I look like an idiot actor trying to toy around with his vocal apparatus.