William Newman made his film debut in the Stuart Rosenberg film Brubaker (1980), starring Robert Redford, and followed this up with Le facteur sonne toujours deux fois (1981) opposite Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange.
Acting roles continued through out the 1980s with roles in the Stephen King horror film Peur bleue (1985) alongside Gary Busey and Corey Haim, the drama Mosquito Coast (1986) with Harrison Ford and River Phoenix, and the Chevy Chase comedy Funny Farm (1988). He played a sheriff in the The Last Days of Frank and Jesse James (1986) and appeared in George A. Romero's Incidents de parcours (1988) proving that, as a character actor, he has the ability to adapt to various genres.
During the 1990s, work for Newman did not slow down. He appeared in: Leprechaun (1993), Madame Doubtfire (1993), Stephen King's Le fléau (1994) opposite Rob Lowe, Dangereuse alliance (1996) and Touch (1997), the latter two films with Skeet Ulrich.
Newman has since worked steady in film, but is also a familiar face on TV, his roles including Marshall et Simon (1991) episode 'Mr Chaney', Un drôle de shérif (1992), and Earl (2005).
