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John Howard (born October 22, 1952) is an Australian stage and screen actor. He is best known for his appearances in the film The Club and the television series SeaChange and Always Greener.

Early in his career, he decided (partly in response to a recognised tendency for successful Australian actors to end up in England or the US) that he would only appear in Australian productions.

After a different John Howard was elected Prime Minister of Australia in 1996, jokes about the coincidence entered Australian comedy - notably in an episode of the satirical television series The Games in which the organisers of the Sydney Olympics hired the actor (played by himself) to stand in for the Prime Minister, figuring that the foreign dignitaries wouldn't know the difference.

This piece became almost legendary overnight. John Howard the actor, playing himself but identifying himself only as John Howard, said Sorry to the Australian aborigines for their treatment at the hands of the English settlers and their descendants, through to the present day. This was a direct comment on the repeated refusal by Prime Minister John Howard to make such an apology on behalf of the Government of Australia.