What Has The Burn Notice Cast Been Up To Since The Show Ended?

To be a proper spy, you tend to need the backing of some sort of organization, governmental or otherwise. Without that, you're just sort of a guy skulking around, and that's not very James Bond, is it? In "Burn Notice," Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) finds out firsthand what it's like to be a spy left out in the cold, when he is "burned" (or discredited) and abandoned by his former employer. Left with an impressive but fairly limited set of skills, he has no choice but to go freelance, taking on assignments within the criminal underworld of Miami.

"Burn Notice" initially ran on the USA Network, and it was popular enough to earn itself a respectable seven seasons from 2007 to 2013, as well four Emmy nominations over the years. After the show went off the air, its talented cast of performers moved on to other things. Now that it's been over 10 years since we last saw "Burn Notice," it seems as good a time as any to check in on what its alumni are up to these days. While most are still working in Hollywood, some have moved on to greener pastures.

Here's what the "Burn Notice" cast has been up to since the show ended. 

Although Jack Coleman didn't appear on "Burn Notice" until its seventh and final season, he had a long and celebrated career on the small screen before he took on the role of Andrew Strong. In the early 1980s, he appeared in 117 episodes of "Days of Our Lives," before earning his star-making role as Steven Carrington on the frothy drama "Dynasty." Coleman worked steadily on the big and small screen for the next two decades, before popping up on the mainstream radar again with his performance as Noah Bennet on "Heroes." As Andrew Strong on "Burn Notice," he's Michael Westen's new CIA handler, working with him on some very sensitive season 7 missions.

Coleman has certainly kept himself busy in the years since his time on "Burn Notice." He's made appearances on popular series like "Scandal," "Castle," "How to Get Away With Murder," and "Westworld." He also reprised his role as Noah Bennet on "Heroes Reborn" and "Heroes Reborn: Dark Matters." His most recent work was on "Chicago PD," where he's appeared as Bob Ruzek on five episodes between 2015 and 2025.

Lauren Stamile joined the cast of "Burn Notice" as Agent Dani Pearce, one in a string of CIA handlers for Michael, most of whom had the staying power of a Spinal Tap drummer. Pearce was on the show through seasons 5 and 6 and didn't wind up dead by the end of her tenure, so that puts her head and shoulders ahead of most CIA operatives who appear on "Burn Notice." When she was cast in the show, many TV fans would likely have recognized her from her time as Nurse Rose on "Grey's Anatomy" or Professor Slater on "Community," although "Burn Notice" was her biggest and longest-running credit to date.

In the years since "Burn Notice" went off the air, Stamile has maintained a steady presence on television, making appearances on shows like "The Mentalist," "Scandal," "American Horror Story," "Good Girls," and "Veronica Mars." Her biggest roles since her recurring turn on "Burn Notice" have been on "Chicago Fire" – a show with its share of ups and downs – where she had a five-episode stint as political consultant Susan Weller, and "Gotham Knights," where she played the cool, calculating Rebecca March. That was in 2023, and she doesn't appear to have any other projects in the works at this time.

Although Michael Westen kind of comes across as a lone wolf at times, he actually has a brother, Nate (Seth Peterson), for whom he has a lot of protective instincts for. Unfortunately, Nate's biggest instinct is for getting into trouble, which leads to his tragic end in season 6. Seth Peterson got his start as an actor back in the 1990s, when he earned parts on teen shows like "Beverly Hills, 90210" and "Clueless," as well as the high school comedy "Can't Hardly Wait." His biggest pre-"Burn Notice" role was playing Robbie Hansen on nearly 100 episodes of "Providence."

After leaving "Burn Notice," Peterson has seemingly stepped away from acting, with only a few credits to his name in the years since. He played Pirl in the 2013 horror film "Unlucky Charms," and he had a one-episode appearance on the series "Bones," as well as 2017's "Intent," a thriller that doesn't look like it wound up with a distribution deal. Still, Peterson is a jack of all trades. In 2013, he published a book of poetry, and in 2016, he was selected to participate as a dealer at the World Poker Tournament. Nowadays, he lives in Los Angeles and has four children.

Barry (Paul Tei), Miami's premier money launderer, may not have been a series regular on "Burn Notice," but he pops up surprisingly often, joining the small ensemble cast for at least a few episodes in each of the show's seven seasons. The recurring role was Tei's most prominent up to that point in his career — until then, he only had minor roles in "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "Going to California," and "Transporter 2."

In the years since "Burn Notice" went off the air, Tei has had several prominent roles as a voice actor, appearing in the video game "Dead Rising 3," as well as voicing Alebrije in the Netflix animated series "Legend Quest" and "Legend Quest: Masters of Myth." He also had a four-episode run on Netflix's "Bloodline," playing the coroner Jim Shakowski opposite Kyle Chandler and Ben Mendelsohn. His most recent credit was in 2020, when he served as associate producer on the comedy short series "Oh, Hi Cornk!"

Coby Bell didn't join the cast of "Burn Notice" until its fourth season, but he certainly made up for lost time, appearing in an impressive 67 episodes before the show ended in 2013. Bell played Jesse Porter, a former government agent who joined Michael's team after being burned himself — ironically, as a result of Michael's actions. Before signing up for "Burn Notice," Bell's biggest credit was a starring role on "Third Watch," a New York City crime drama meant to serve as a companion piece to "ER," created by the same production team as the popular medical drama. Bell was in all six seasons as NYPD officer Ty Davis, Jr.

While he was on "Burn Notice," he found time to pull double duty, also appearing in the TV series "The Game," which ran from 2006 to 2015. He kept just as busy after leaving "Burn Notice," with prominent roles on "The Gifted" and "Walker," the latter of which he was featured in 69 episodes alongside its prolific star Jared Padalecki. His most recent credit came in 2025, when he played David in the Damon Wayans (both junior and senior) sitcom "Poppa's House."

Out of all the cast members on "Burn Notice," Sharon Gless, who played Michael Westen's mother Madeline, is arguably the one who came into the show with the most TV cred. Although her career began in the early 1970s, she shot to TV stardom with the role of Chris Cagney on the popular series "Cagney & Lacey." She won two acting Emmys for her work on the show, and it's now widely considered one of the best crime dramas in television history. for which she won two acting Emmys. Gless followed that performance up with another star turn on the groundbreaking "Queer As Folk," where she played Debbie Novotny.

After her 111 episodes on "Burn Notice," which earned her another Emmy nomination, the 10th of her career, she showed no signs of slowing down. Gless made appearances on "The Gifted," "Rizzoli & Isles," "Station 19," and "Casualty." She also played Mavis in 2013's "Fast Charlie," also starring Pierce Brosnan and Morena Baccarin. And if you want to see more of Gless, you're in luck — she currently has "Constance," a TV movie about a former beauty queen (Elisabeth Shue), slated for release in the near future.

Bruce Campbell, we presume, needs no introduction. But just in case, here's a quick primer. In the 1980s, he became a horror icon when he starred as Ash Williams in Sam Raimi's iconic "Evil Dead" movies, which quickly grew into a cult phenomenon and a thriving film and TV franchise. He reprised the popular role in "Evil Dead 2," "Army of Darkness," "Evil Dead" (the remake, in which he had an uncredited cameo), and "Ash vs Evil Dead."

By the time he took on the role of Sam, an ex-Navy SEAL and professional vibe merchant who also happens to be Michael Westen's BFF, on "Burn Notice," Campbell was pretty much a camp institution. His post-"Burn Notice" roles have included stints on "Fargo," "Archer," and "A.P. Bio," along with a brief voiceover performance in season 3 finale of "Invincible" (fittingly, he played a demon).

In 2022, he teamed up with Sam Raimi once again to play Pizza Poppa in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness." Campbell has also penned a few books, mostly about his career in Hollywood — in 2016, he released his third memoir, "Hail to the Chin: Further Confessions of a B Movie Actor." He doesn't appear to have any new acting projects currently in the works, but knowing Campbell, that won't last for too long.

What's a spy drama without an ethically dubious love interest? Gabrielle Anwar fills that role in "Burn Notice," playing Fiona, an Irish gun runner with a set of skills that would put Liam Neeson to shame. She also happens to be Michael's on-and-off girlfriend, although part of the charm of the final season is that the two of them finally seem to get their happily ever after ending. In the years leading up to "Burn Notice," her biggest role was on the steamy historical drama "The Tudors" as Princess Margaret, King Henry VIII's sister.

Since "Burn Notice" went off the air, Anwar took on the role of Lady Tremaine on the seventh season of the ABC fantasy series "Once Upon a Time." She also appeared in the Netflix teen comedy "The Last Summer" as Griffin's mom, alongside "Riverdale" star KJ Apa and "Teen Beach Movie" actress Maia Mitchell. She currently has two projects in various stages of production: Mario Van Peebles' historical drama "The Price For Freedom," which revolves around the murder of civil rights activist Harry T. Moore, and "Awaken," a thriller from director Bob Degus.

"Burn Notice" wouldn't have been half the success it was without Jeffrey Donovan in the lead role of Michael Westen, providing both a winning performance and a dryly monotone voiceover in each and every episode. Although he'd had starring roles in TV shows before, this was the first one that stayed the course, lasting more than one season. In 2000, he starred opposite Mark Ruffalo in the short-lived police drama "The Beat," and four years later he headlined "Touching Evil," another crime drama that was cancelled at the end of its first season. But with "Burn Notice," he found something that caught on with audiences.

After the show went off the air, Donovan used the momentum to earn himself a series of high-profile credits. He played Steve Forsing in "Sicario" opposite Benicio Del Toro, reprising his role in the 2018 sequel. He was John F. Kennedy in the "LBJ" biopic starring Woody Harrelson. (Interestingly enough, he'd already played his brother Robert Kennedy earlier in his career — that Boston accent comes in handy.) He also had recurring roles on "Fargo" and "Law & Order," as well as appearing in the Netflix true crime drama "Extremely Wicked, Shocking Evil and Vile." You can even hear his voice in "Invincible," playing the role of Machine Head. Donovan currently has two thriller films in the pipeline, "The Cycle" and "Wardriver."