Renn Hawkey

About

Renn McDonnell Hawkey, born March 29, 1974, is an American musician, songwriter, music producer, and occasional actor best known as the synthesizer player for the rock band Deadsy, having performed on their unreleased 1996 self-titled debut and subsequent albums Commencement (2002) and Phantasmagore (2006).

Hawkey has built an extensive career beyond Deadsy, serving as musical director and producer on his wife Vera Farmiga’s 2011 directorial debut film Higher Ground, and executive producing the documentary Unspoken in 2017. He also stepped into acting with a recurring role as Paul Koretsky on the A&E series The Returned in 2015.

Since 2024, he has performed alongside Farmiga in the rock band The Yagas, for which he also produced their 2025 debut album Midnight Minuet, marking a new chapter of collaborative work with his wife across both film and music.

Born in New York City and raised in Ossining, New York, Hawkey is the third of five children born to Penelope “Penny” Hawkey (née Sharp), an advertising executive who wrote the famous Coca-Cola commercial “Hey Kid, Catch!,” and William Stevenson “Bill” Hawkey, who also worked in advertising. His parents now run Sundial Farm, a plant nursery in Ossining, and his siblings include Adam, a film compositor and colorist, and Robin, a chiropractor, reflecting a family with varied creative and professional pursuits.

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