Jim Byrnes, born James Thomas Kevin Byrnes on September 22, 1948, in St. Louis, Missouri, is an American actor and musician who has built an extensive career in film, television, and voice acting. He has resided in Vancouver, British Columbia, since the mid-1970s, where he became a prominent figure in the local entertainment industry. His acting career began in earnest with a major role in the television series Wiseguy, which ran from 1987 to 1990. He is perhaps best known for his live-action portrayal of Joe Dawson, a mortal member of the secretive Watchers society, in the fantasy series Highlander: The Series, a role he played for nearly 100 episodes and later reprised in subsequent films.

This long-standing connection to the Highlander franchise extended into animation. Byrnes provided the voice for the character Doc in the 2007 anime film Highlander: The Search for Vengeance, a project that reunited him with the franchise in a new medium. His voice work in anime and Western animation adapted from Japanese properties is considerable. He voiced the character Dr. Thomas Light in the English adaptation of the Mega Man animated series, which ran from 1994 to 1996. He also voiced the same character, Dr. Light, in the 1993 original video animation Mega Man: Upon a Star, creating a vocal continuity for the scientist across different productions.

Byrnes' anime voice acting credits also include significant roles in other major series. He voiced Dekim Barton in the English version of the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz OVA. He was also part of the voice cast for the popular Transformers franchise, providing the voice for the Predacon Inferno in Beast Wars: Transformers and later for Thrust in its sequel, Beast Machines: Transformers. His other notable voice roles in animated series with connections to anime or Japanese-inspired stories include Colonel Nick Fury in X-Men: Evolution and Duke Dermail in Gundam Wing. Across these projects, Byrnes frequently collaborated with other prominent Vancouver-based voice actors, such as Scott McNeil, who worked alongside him in both the Mega Man series and Highlander: The Search for Vengeance.

In addition to his acting achievements, Byrnes is an acclaimed blues musician. His musical career has earned him three Juno Awards for Blues Album of the Year, recognizing his work on That River in 1996, House of Refuge in 2007, and Everywhere West in 2011. This combination of a prolific acting career, encompassing both live-action and voice work in iconic franchises, alongside significant recognition in the music industry, defines his professional legacy.