Worst Actors
MY OPINIONS ABOUT ACTORS WHO ARE EITHER BAD OR JUST NOT IMPRESSING
There is list of actors who I don't like.
Some of them do have good roles, but those are not gonna save them.
DON'T PICK A FIGHT, IF YOU DISLIKE.
MY LIST, NOT YOURS. I don't cry to you if you like these guys, so don't cry to me, if I don't.
Main reason why someone is in this list, might be because they seriously annoyed me in some movie(s)
To have some control in this I have seen more than one movie, program, TV season they are in.
I know that some people like Bieber have done acting, but thank god I have never seen it.
There is list of actors who I don't like.
Some of them do have good roles, but those are not gonna save them.
DON'T PICK A FIGHT, IF YOU DISLIKE.
MY LIST, NOT YOURS. I don't cry to you if you like these guys, so don't cry to me, if I don't.
Main reason why someone is in this list, might be because they seriously annoyed me in some movie(s)
To have some control in this I have seen more than one movie, program, TV season they are in.
I know that some people like Bieber have done acting, but thank god I have never seen it.
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- Actor
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Jaden Smith is an actor, known for The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), The Karate Kid (2010) and After Earth (2013). In addition to being an actor he is also a dancer, songwriter and rapper who won an MTV award for his performance in The Pursuit of Happyness. He co-starred with his father Will Smith in both The Pursuit of Happyness and in the 2013 science fiction film After Earth. Smith and his siblings are youth ambassadors for Project Zambia which provides assistance in conjunction with Hasbro for Zambian children orphaned by AIDS.
Jaden Smith was born on July 8, 1998 in Malibu, California, USA as Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, the son of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. He is the older brother of Willow Smith (born on October 23, 2000) and is the younger half-brother of Trey Smith. He is also the nephew of Caleeb Pinkett. His maternal grandmother's family was Afro-Caribbean (from Barbados and Jamaica). His other grandparents' families were African-American.
Before fame, He helped Project Zambia and Hasbro to take care of children in Zambia whose parents have died of AIDS. He made his film debut in 2006 in The Pursuit of Happyness. Along with his sister, Willow Smith, and his elder brother, Trey Smith, are youth ambassadors for Project Zambia, in conjunction with the Hasbro corporation, which helps children orphaned by AIDS in Africa. Along with his younger sister, Willow Smith, he was home-schooled and also attends the New Village Leadership Academy, which was co-founded by his parents.
He co-starred with Jackie Chan in the 2010 remake of The Karate Kid directed by Harald Zwart. Smith's character portrayal was acclaimed by critics and the film received mixed to mainly positive reviews. He also played a role in The Day the Earth Stood Still (2013) with Keanu Reeves. In May 2013, Will Smith and Jaden starred together, playing father and son, in After Earth. In 2014, it was announced that Smith will return for the sequel Karate Kid 2 with Jackie Chan. The movie will be directed by Breck Eisner, produced by James Lassiter and Will Smith and written by Zak Penn. The movie would be released in 2015.
Smith rapped alongside Canadian singer Justin Bieber in the song "Never Say Never." On October 1, 2012, Jaden released his first mix tape, The Cool Cafe.
Smith started his own clothing/lifestyle brand called MSFTSrep. The clothes range from hoodies and T-shirts to trousers and vests. In May 2013 Smith collaborated with a Korean designer, Choi Bum Suk, to create a pop-up store in which customers can buy clothes with their collaborated logos.
In 2015, he began dating Instagram star Sarah Snyder. Before Sarah, Jaden dated Kylie Jenner.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Taylor Daniel Lautner was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to Deborah, a software company worker, and Daniel Lautner, a pilot for Midwest Airlines. He and his younger sister Makena were raised in a well-mannered, Roman Catholic household in Hudsonville, Michigan. He is of English, German, Dutch, and Scottish descent. At the age of six, Taylor began studying martial arts at Fabiano's Karate School and he, along with his family, quickly noticed his unique and natural talent for the sport. He was soon invited to train with seven-time world karate champion Michael Chaturantabut (aka Mike Chat) and, at the age of eight, he was asked to represent his country in the 12-years-and-under division in the World Karate Association, where he became the Junior World Forms and Weapons champion, winning three gold medals. In 2003, Taylor continued to flourish in the martial arts circuit where he ranked number one in the world for NASKA's Black Belt Open Forms, Musical Weapons, Traditional Weapons, and Traditional Forms and, at the age of 12, he became the three-time Junior World Champion.
However, in addition to his love for martial arts, Taylor quickly developed a love for acting at the age of seven years old when his martial arts instructor, who was involved in show business, encouraged him to audition for a small appearance in a Burger King commercial. Although he was unsuccessful, he enjoyed the experience so much that he told his parents that he wanted to pursue a career in acting. Soon, he and his family were traveling back and forth from their home in Michigan to California so Taylor could regularly audition for acting roles. When Taylor was 10, with the frequent traveling and air fares starting to become overwhelming, his family made the crucial decision to relocate to Los Angeles, where Taylor would have the advantage of being able to audition for films, television, and commercials full-time.
Once Taylor moved with his family to Los Angeles, he found himself landing more and more small acting roles. He booked many occurring roles on various television shows such as My Wife and Kids (2000), Summerland (2004), and The Bernie Mac Show (2001). Taylor also found himself becoming successful in films as well. In 2005, he landed the role of Sharkboy in the family blockbuster flick, The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D (2005), and the role of Eliot Murtaugh in Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005). However, it would be one single role that would ultimately change Taylor's life forever. In 2008, Taylor auditioned for the iconic role of werewolf hunk Jacob Black in the record-smashing, blockbuster hit Twilight (2008). With the sudden and unexpected success of the film, Taylor, along with fellow cast members Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, found himself being propelled into a world that would forever change his life and his career.
Taylor has continued to portray Jacob Black in the following film adaptations of The Twilight Saga as well as branch out into other roles and films, such as the star-studded romantic comedy Valentine's Day (2010) and the action-packed thriller Abduction (2011). Taylor Lautner has quickly become one of the most famous, talented, and successful young Hollywood actors thanks to the blockbuster success of the Twilight (2008) films. It has quickly been established by this young man's diverse and gifted talent that we will continue to be his audience for many years to come.- Jack Gleeson was born on 20 May 1992 in Cork, Ireland. He is an actor, known for Game of Thrones (2011), Batman Begins (2005) and A Shine of Rainbows (2009). He has been married to Roisin O'Mahony since 27 August 2022.
- Actor
- Writer
Shia LaBeouf's natural talent and raw energy have secured his place as one of Hollywood's leading men.
Most recently, LaBeouf starred alongside Vanessa Kirby and Ellen Burstyn in Kornel Mundruczo's Oscar® nominated Pieces of a Woman. In the critically acclaimed film, a grieving couple (Kirby/LaBeouf) embarks on an emotional journey after the loss of their baby. Previously, Shia was also seen in the crime drama, The Tax Collector, which was written and directed by David Ayer. He most recently wrapped production on Abel Ferrarra's Padre Pio which follows the life of the now saint during his time as a monk in Puglia, Italy.
LaBeouf received rave reviews for his performance in Honey Boy, which premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. The film also marks Shia's first feature length film as a screenwriter. LaBeouf portrays a law breaking, alcohol-abusing father who tries to mend his tumultuous relationship with his son (Lucas Hedges & Noah Jupe) over the course of a decade. The film received a Special Jury Award for Vision and Craft at the festival. In 2019, Shia starred in The Peanut Butter Falcon, the highest grossing indie film of the year with $20,500,000 domestic box office receipts. The film, also starring Dakota Johnson, Bruce Dern and Zachary Gottsagen, won the Audience Award at the SXSW Film Festival.
Other credits include drama, Borg vs. McEnroe (critics heralded LaBeouf's performance as "perfection," "flawless" and "explosive"); the critically acclaimed independent film American Honey , directed by Andrea Arnold, (his performance earned him a British Independent Film Award nomination for "Best Actor," a London Critics' Circle Film Award nomination for "Supporting Actor of the Year," and an Independent Spirit Award nomination for "Best Supporting Male"); the post-apocalyptic thriller, Man Down alongside Gary Oldman and Kate Mara; the war drama Fury, directed by David Ayer, opposite Brad Pitt; Lars von Trier's drama, Nymphomaniac: Vol. 1; Lars von Trier's Nymphomaniac: Vol. 2; and the suspense drama Charlie Countryman, opposite Evan Rachel Wood, Mads Mikkelsen and Melissa Leo.
LaBeouf starred in Transformers: Dark of the Moon (grossing over $1 billion worldwide), which marked his third and final turn as the enterprising and heroic Sam Witwicky. From the original Transformers released in 2007 (which earned over $700 million around the world in theatrical release and became the highest grossing DVD of the year) to the second installment in 2009, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, (which garnered global receipts upwards of $836 million,) Sam continued to find himself in the middle of a life and death struggle between warring robot legions on earth. Additional film credits include Robert Redford's The Company You Keep, Lawless alongside Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman and Guy Pearce, Oliver Stone's Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps opposite Michael Douglas, the fourth installment of Steven Spielberg's "Indiana Jones" series, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, alongside Harrison Ford, D.J. Caruso's Eagle Eye, the Anthony Minghella-scripted segment of New York, I Love You, a romantic anthology also starring Julie Christie and John Hurt, the popular thriller Disturbia, the Oscar® nominated animated film Surf's Up alongside Jeff Bridges, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, which won "Best Ensemble Cast" at the Sundance Film Festival, Emilio Estevez's acclaimed drama Bobby, Disney's The Greatest Game Ever Played which follows the true story of a 19-year-old amateur athlete's journey to winning the U.S. Open, I, Robot, Constantine, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, HBO's "Project Greenlight" featuring The Battle of Shaker Heights produced by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck and in 2003 he made his feature film debut in the comedy Holes, based on the best-selling book by Louis Sacher.
On television, LaBeouf garnered much praise from critics everywhere for his portrayal of "Louis Stevens" on the Disney Channel's original series "Even Stevens." In 2003, he earned a Daytime Emmy award for "Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series" for his work on the highly-rated family show.- Actor
- Director
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Tom Felton was born in Epsom, Surrey, to Sharon and Peter Felton. He has been acting since he was 8 years old at the suggestion of an actress friend of his family who recognized Felton's theatrical qualities. Felton met with an agent, and two weeks later, after auditioning with over 400 other children, he landed an international commercial campaign and went abroad to work.
A talented singer, he started singing in a church choir at the age of 7 and has been a member of four choirs at school. He declined an offer to join the Guildford Cathedral Choir. He is a keen sportsman enjoying football (soccer), ice skating, roller blading, basketball, cricket, swimming, and tennis.
After working on Anna and the King (1999) with Jodie Foster, Tom received his big break in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) as Draco Malfoy, school boy rival to the titular character as played by Daniel Radcliffe. Tom managed to film the part of Draco in all eight "Harry Potter" movies while also having an active life outside the magical world it created. In between shoots he filmed independent horror movies The Disappeared (2008), Night Wolf (2010), and The Apparition (2012) with Twilight's Ashley Greene. It was directly after completing his filming on "Harry Potter" that he landed his roles in Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) and From the Rough (2013). His newest projects are In Secret (2013), Fangs of War (????) and Attachment.
In between acting gigs, Tom still manages times with his music. He is one of the founding owners and talent of Six String Productions, a recording company devoted to signing young musical artists overlooked by the major recording industry.- Actor
- Producer
- Stunts
Iko Uwais was born in Jakarta, Indonesia, to Maisyaroh and Mustapha Kamaluddin. His grandfather, H. Achmad Bunawar, was a master of silat, an Indonesian traditional martial art, and founded a silat school. Iko himself has been learning silat since he was 10 years old. He became National Champion in 2005 in Silat Demonstration category. Iko's talent as a martial arts actor was discovered by Welsh film Director, Gareth Evans, who visited Iko's Silat school for a documentary in 2007. Evans then asked Iko to quit his daytime job as a driver in a telecommunications company and join Evans' movie production company as the leading actor in his movies.- Actor
- Music Department
- Producer
Jason Francesco Schwartzman is an American actor and musician. Schwartzman made his film debut in Wes Anderson's 1998 film Rushmore, and has gone on to appear in seven other Anderson films: The Darjeeling Limited (2007), Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), Moonrise Kingdom (2012), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Isle of Dogs (2018), The French Dispatch (2021) and Asteroid City (2023). His other film roles include Spun (2003), I Heart Huckabees (2004), Marie Antoinette (2006), and Klaus (2019). Schwartzman starred in the television series Bored to Death (2009-11) and appeared in the fourth season of the FX anthology series Fargo (2020). He was an executive producer on the Amazon Prime show Mozart in the Jungle (2014-18), a series he also acted in. Schwartzman has released three albums through his solo project Coconut Records, having previously been drummer in the rock band Phantom Planet.- Christian Antidormi was born on 20 May 1992 in Sydney, Australia. He is an actor, known for Spartacus (2010), Strike Back (2010) and Home and Away (1988).
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Harry Melling started acting at the age of 10 in the Harry Potter films playing the role of Dudley Dursley.
In his mid-teens he joined the National Youth Theatre appearing in a number of shows including "The Master and Margarita".
Harry at the age of 18 attended the LAMDA (London Academy Of Music and Dramatic Art.) He left early when offered to join the company of "Mother Courage and her Children" at the National Theatre alongside on-screen mother Fiona Shaw.
This kick-started a long series of theatre roles which included Harold Pinter's "The Hothouse," the Old Vic Theatre's, "King Lear" opposite Glenda Jackson, and the lead in the West End transfer of hit show, "Hand To God."
Harry in 2017 won the role in the new Coen Brother's film, "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs." This premiered at the Venice Film Festival.- Producer
- Writer
- Actor
Describing himself as the "chunky unit," James Kimberley Corden was born in Hillingdon, London, England and raised in Buckinghamshire, England, the son of Margaret (Collins), a social worker, and Malcolm Corden, a musician. He studied drama at the Jackie Palmer Stage School before going on to Holmer Green Senior School, near High Wycombe. However, he admits that he had very little academic ambition and turned to acting, making his screen debut in the monochrome Shane Meadows film TwentyFourSeven (1997). After taking small roles in television drama series, he landed his first notable role as the teenage member of a slimming club in the British TV comedy-drama Fat Friends (2000). Shortly afterwards, he appeared on the London stage in Alan Bennett's play "The History Boys," taking part in its subsequent international tour, as well as the cinema adaptation. Whilst working on Fat Friends (2000), he met the Welsh actress Ruth Jones and, between them, they fashioned the sitcom (in which both also appear) Gavin & Stacey (2007), the big hit of the 2007 season, winning British Film Academy awards for them both as Best Comedy Show and for James as Best Comedy Actor. He also persuaded three of the erstwhile "History Boys" to make cameo appearances as Gavin's stag party friends. In 2011 he found fame as a stage actor in the acclaimed farce 'One Man, Two Guv'nors' transferring with it from London to Broadway, thus beginning Transatlantic success topped in 2015 when he became the host of CBS 'The Late, Late Show.'- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
David Dastmalchian is originally from Kansas. He moved to Chicago, IL, to study acting at The Theatre School, DePaul University. After college, David worked as a professional fisherman in Alaska, a circus performer, movie theatre usher and playwright. He is an ensemble member of Shattered Globe Theatre Company and Caffeine Theatre in Chicago.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Kumail Nanjiani was born on 2 May 1978 in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. He is an actor and writer, known for The Big Sick (2017), Life as We Know It (2010) and Stuber (2019). He has been married to Emily V. Gordon since 14 July 2007.- Music Artist
- Actor
- Writer
Ludacris was born Christopher Brian Bridges in Champaign, Illinois, where he was raised, the son of Roberta Shields and Wayne Brian Bridges. At nine years old, he started rapping. He attended Emerson Middle School and, eventually, Oak Park and River Forest High School for his freshman year. Furthermore, his family moved to live in Atlanta, Georgia and, in this time, his father exposed him to all kinds of music, ranging from Hip-Hop to Rock. In Alanta, Georgia, he attended Banneker High School. He is also a graduate of Georgia State University. In 2000, he got his breakthrough with his album, titled "Back for the First Time", which reached 3x platinum. All albums following have either been 2x or 3x platinum, with his first film appearance being 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), which was a success. Other film appearances included Crash (2004) and Hustle & Flow (2005).- Actor
- Cinematographer
- Editor
John Cazale was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to an Irish-American mother, Cecilia (Holland), and an Italian-American father, John Cazale. Cazale made only five feature films in his career, which fans and critics alike call classics. But before his film debut, in the short The American Way (1962), he won Obie Awards for his off-Broadway performances in "The Indian Wants the Bronx" and "The Line".
Cazale scored the role of Fredo Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather (1972), after his long-time friend, Al Pacino, invited him to audition. He reprised his role as the troubled Fredo in The Godfather Part II (1974), where his character endures one of the most infamous movie moments in the history of cinema.
Cazale also starred with Gene Hackman and Harrison Ford in the thriller, The Conversation (1974), as Hackman's assistant, Stan. The Godfather's director, Francis Ford Coppola, also directed the movie.
Cazale's fourth feature film, Dog Day Afternoon (1975), earned him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Sal, a bank robber. His long-time friend and Godfather costar, Al Pacino, played his partner, Sonny.
His final film, The Deer Hunter (1978), was filmed whilst he was ill with cancer. He was in a relationship with his costar, Meryl Streep, whilst filming The Deer Hunter (1978), whom he met when they both appeared in the New York Public Theater's 1976 production of Shakespeare's Measure for Measure.
Controversy occurred during the filming. While the studio was unaware of his condition, the director, Michael Cimino, knew about it. As Cazale was evidently weak, he was forced to film his scenes first. When the studio discovered he was suffering from cancer, they wanted him removed from the film. His costar and girlfriend, Meryl Streep, threatened to quit if he was fired. He died shortly after filming was completed.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Ken Jeong is an American actor, comedian, and physician. He is known for his roles as Ben Chang on the critically acclaimed NBC/Yahoo! sitcom Community (2009) and gangster Leslie Chow in The Hangover (2009) Trilogy. He appeared in Michael Bay's Pain & Gain (2013), as Johnny Wu, a motivational speaker.
Ken was born in Detroit, to Korean parents. He completed his internal medicine residency at Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans while developing his stand-up comedy. He is a licensed physician in California.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Canadian actor Michael Cera was born in Brampton, Ontario, to parents who worked for Xerox. His mother, Linda, who is from Quebec, has English, Irish, Scottish, and Dutch ancestry, and his father, Luigi Cera, is Italian (from Sicily). Michael is the middle child between two sisters. He was educated at Conestoga Public School, Robert H. Lagerquist Senior Public School and Heart Lake Secondary School until the grade nine. Cera then completed his high school education via correspondence.
During a childhood illness he repeatedly viewed Ghostbusters (1984), learning the dialogue. It was this that sparked his interest in performing. He went on to take classes in improvisation at The Second City Toronto. Roles followed in commercials and TV, but he first came to major public attention when he was cast as George Michael Bluth in the critically acclaimed comedy series Arrested Development (2003). After the cancellation of this series, Cera successfully transitioned into movies, scoring starring roles in various projects such as Superbad (2007), Juno (2007), Youth in Revolt (2009) and as the eponymous hero in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010).
Alongside acting, Cera is also a musician - he sings and plays guitar and bass.- Actor
- Producer
Jon Bernthal was born and raised in Washington D.C., the son of Joan (Marx) and Eric Bernthal, a lawyer. His grandfather was musician Murray Bernthal. Jon went to study at The Moscow Art Theatre School, in Moscow, Russia, where he also played professional baseball in the European professional baseball federation. While in Moscow, he was noticed by the director of Harvard University's Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at the American Repertory Theatre and was invited to obtain his M.F.A there. After graduating in 2002 he has performed in over 30 plays regionally and off-Broadway including many with his own award-winning theatre company Fovea Floods. He now lives in Venice, California with his dog, Boss.(He ruined Punisher)- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Christopher Shannon Penn was born on October 10, 1965 in Los Angeles, California, the third son of actress Eileen Ryan (née Annucci) and director, actor, and writer Leo Penn. His siblings are musician Michael Penn and actor Sean Penn. His father was from a Lithuanian Jewish/Russian Jewish family, and his mother is of half-Italian and half-Irish descent.
Penn set out to follow in his parents' footsteps and started acting at age twelve in the Loft Studio. While in high school he and his brother Sean made several shorts with their classmates, which included such would-be stars as Emilio Estevez and Rob Lowe. Penn made his onscreen debut in the Christopher Cain movie, Charlie and the Talking Buzzard (1979). After a few years Penn caught the eye of acclaimed director Francis Ford Coppola, who cast him in a supporting role in the teen drama Rumble Fish (1983). Although the film was a flop critically and commercially, Penn's career was well under way.
That same year he acted in All the Right Moves (1983), a high school drama film starring a young Tom Cruise. The next year Penn gave a performance in Footloose (1984), starring Kevin Bacon and dealing with a small town which bans rock & roll music. The movie was a smash hit, and remains a classic to this day. Penn followed this up with a villainous role in Clint Eastwood's Pale Rider (1985), and the crime movie At Close Range (1986), starring Christopher Walken.
Penn acted in a few smaller productions until he was cast as Travis Brickley in the sports drama Best of the Best (1989). Penn's character is a martial arts fighter who joins the other main characters when they enter a taekwondo tournament against the Korean team. The movie spawned several sequels, though Penn only appeared in the first and second films. A few more jobs followed until Penn landed what is known as his most famous movie: Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992). The indie crime film concerned a heist gone wrong, as the criminals search for a rat in their midst. Penn played the role of Nice Guy Eddie, the son of the old gangster that arranges the heist. The film continues to receive acclaim as a classic movie and as the start of Tarantino's directing career. Penn also acted in the Tarantino-scripted Tony Scott crime movie True Romance (1993), albeit in a much smaller role. Penn also took a supporting role in the ensemble film Short Cuts (1993) by Robert Altman.
After participating in these acclaimed films, Penn took on several smaller projects, including a role as the villain in the second "Beethoven" movie. In this period of time, Penn acted in such films as the crime film Mulholland Falls (1996), set in the 1950s. Penn then gave one of his greatest performances in the Abel Ferrara crime drama The Funeral (1996). The movie starred Christopher Walken, Penn, and Vincent Gallo as three brothers who are involved in the world of crime, even as it threatens to take them all down. Penn plays Chez, the middle brother, who has a very short temper. Penn also sang a song in the film as his character. While the film was well received critically and Penn received an award for Best Supporting Actor at the Venice Film Festival for his excellent performance, The Funeral (1996) went largely unseen. Penn followed up with the Canadian film The Boys Club (1996), the crime thriller One Tough Cop (1998), and a supporting role in the hit comedy Rush Hour (1998).
Following his latest success, Penn acted in the drama-comedy The Florentine (1999), the English comedy Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2001), and the crime thriller Murder by Numbers (2002). Penn was also one of the many stars that acted in the box office failure Masked and Anonymous (2003), starring Bob Dylan. The last few years of his career mainly featured supporting roles in such movies as After the Sunset (2004), Starsky & Hutch (2004), and the Canadian crime film King of Sorrow (2007), his last film appearance. Throughout his life Penn had had battles with heart disease and multiple drug use. He was found dead in his home on January 24, 2006. He was only forty years old.
Penn left behind a career that featured many roles in small, independent productions as well as several very well-known films. Penn worked with several esteemed directors and fellow actors, lending his talent to both television and film. Although he never received nearly as much attention or as many awards as his brother Sean, Chris Penn will always be remembered by those who watch movies and appreciate his work.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Ben Foster was born October 29, 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts, to Gillian Kirwan and Steven Foster, restaurant owners. His younger brother is actor Jon Foster. His paternal grandparents were from Russian Jewish families that immigrated to Massachusetts (his grandfather became a prominent judge in Boston), while his mother's family is from Maryland.
During his childhood, his family moved to Fairfield, Iowa, where he was raised. Fairfield had four community theaters. His passion for acting was discovered early on, and after starring in the title role in "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown", put on by one of the community theaters, he wrote, directed, and starred in his own play at age 12, a play that won second place in an international competition. After attending Interlochen Theater Arts Summer Program at age 14 in Interlochen, Michigan, it was only a matter of time before Ben dropped out of high school at age 16 and moved to Los Angeles, California, where he was almost immediately snapped up for the Disney series Flash Forward (1995), in which two friends narrate the highs and lows of high school.
His film debut was a small role in the little-seen Kounterfeit (1996), after which he was solicited for several made-for-TV movies and appearances on television series before reaching his next milestone, Liberty Heights (1999), where he played alongside Adrien Brody and Joe Mantegna as a rebellious Jewish teenager who engages in a forbidden relationship with a Black girl. His first starring movie role was in the film Get Over It (2001), where he starred along with Kirsten Dunst as a lovelorn teenager, and then the beautifully crafted Bang Bang You're Dead (2002), in which he played Trevor Adams, the starring role. Still, until 2005, his parts for the most part were small but beautifully played, and then he landed the role of Marshall Krupcheck in the movie Hostage (2005), an intense piece of acting that made people begin to take notice and recognize his potential and talent.
Since then, he played major roles in many movies, X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), Alpha Dog (2006), 3:10 to Yuma (2007), The Messenger (2009), The Mechanic (2011), Rampart (2011), Kill Your Darlings (2013), and Lone Survivor (2013).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Corey Scott Feldman began his career at the age of three, starring in a Clio Award-winning McDonald's commercial and has sustained a career for nearly 50 years as a steadily working actor, with more than 80 films under his belt. Corey began his career in guest-starring roles on television series such as Mork & Mindy (1978), Alice (1976) and Eight Is Enough (1977), before landing a regular part on the sitcom, The Bad News Bears (1979). In the same year, Feldman made his big screen debut in Time After Time (1979). Over the next few years, Feldman continued making guest appearances in many television shows and, in 1981, Feldman supplied the voice of "Young Copper", in Disney's The Fox and the Hound (1981). Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984) launched Feldman's career in the horror genre with the role of the main character, "Tommy Jarvis", as a child. He reprised that role in Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985). Feldman then began a series of appearances in blockbuster films such as Gremlins (1984), The Goonies (1985) and Stand by Me (1986). In 1987, Feldman won the Jackie Coogan Award for Stand by Me (1986), and appeared in the legendary cult classic film, The Lost Boys (1987), alongside Jason Patric and Kiefer Sutherland. In 1988, he won the Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor in a Horror Motion Picture for his performance in The Lost Boys (1987).
In 1989, Feldman appeared in The 'Burbs (1989), along with Tom Hanks and Carrie Fisher, and also provided the voice of "Donatello" for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), which holds the biggest box office for an independent feature in history and also marked his thirteenth number-one box office hit in a row.
Feldman then took time off to focus on his personal life and returned to the film world with appearances is Loaded Weapon 1 (1993), Maverick (1994) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993). He was a regular on the CBS series, Dweebs (1995), followed by a starring role in the Richard Donner, Robert Zemeckis, Joel Silver-produced Bordello of Blood (1996) for Universal. In 1996, Feldman directed his first film, Busted (1997).
In 2002, Feldman appeared in the comedy, Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003), for which he wrote and performed a song for the soundtrack, shortly followed by an opportunity to work with Wes Craven on Cursed (2005).
In 2004, Feldman was honored with a Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award. 2006 found him receiving the best actor award at the Luxemburg Film Festival for his performance in The Birthday (2004), a film that he feels to be his finest work to date. The Eyegore Awards honored Feldman with an award for Legendary Work in Horror Films in 2007.
The hit show, The Two Coreys (2007), not only starred Feldman, but he also executive produced two seasons, as well as Lost Boys: The Tribe (2008). He starred in Terror Inside (2008) in 2008, for which he won the Crystal Reel Best Actor Award, and Feldman executive produced and starred in Lost Boys: The Thirst (2010), which was released in 2010. Other work this decade , includes: Operation Belvis Bash (2011) and Lucky Fritz (2009), plus Henry Jagloms "The M Word", the mind bending performance in "Zero Dark Dirty" as Comedian {Samuel Stillman}, & his most recent theatrical release 2019's "Corbin Nash" in which Feldman takes his biggest departure yet, as the Transvestite Vampire {Queenie}.
Now a husband, father and environmentalist, Feldman is focused on his career as an adult. Nurturing a growing music career with seven albums and seven sound tracks, he has toured North America twice with his band, "The Truth Movement" and five times as a solo artist. Including his last tour in 2017 with Corey's Angels.
In 2013 Corey Feldman wrote a New York Times Best Selling Autobiography that was met with incredible reviews.
Off-screen, Feldman is a spokesperson for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), the world's largest animal rights organization, and the Amie Karen Cancer Fund, as well as a supporter of environmental charity, Global Green. In 2009, he was presented with The Paws of Fame Award from Wildlife Waystation for his exemplary work in support of animal rights.
Corey is also the National Ambassador for CHILD USA, a non profit designed to fight statute of limitations preventing children who were sexually abused from obtaining justice. Corey helped change laws in the States of New York in 2018 and California in 2019 giving victims a chance for justice by opening look back windows for civil cases in those states.
Corey also self produced and self financed a Documentary about the abuse he and his best friend endured as children called "My Truth: The Rape of Two Corey's".- Actor
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Xzibit was born in Detroit, where he lived until his mother passed away when he was only nine years old. At the age of ten, he began to rap, very personally because of the loss of his mother. At the age of 14, he got into trouble and was removed from his home for two years after his father refused to have him there. Xzibit was released from the state on his own recognizance as an adult at 17. He did a little slangin' to get some money together and jumped into his jeep and headed toward LA, California. In 1992, Xzibit met with producer Broadway, through the group, Madcap. His first songs were "Freestyle Ghetto" on "King Tee IV Life", and after that he got on the Liks' "Coast ][ Coast" on the joints, "Hit and Run". He points to his mother, who was a writer, as his source of creativity. Xzibit's rhymes resonate because he speaks from the heart as an individual, rather than trying to portray a phony hip hop persona. He has lived through many dramatic times in his life, so he raps primarily about his own life experiences, and is not afraid to reveal himself on a track. Xzibit eventually found himself working with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, and helped on Dre's 2001. Through that work he became good friends with Dre, Snoop, Eminem, and others on the Aftermath staff. He is now a father, too.- Actor
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Vithaya Pansringarm was born on 11 August 1959 in Thailand. He is an actor and writer, known for Only God Forgives (2013), The Last Executioner (2014) and Operation Mekong (2016).- Actor
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- Music Department
Regarded as one of hip-hop's most introspective and insightful artists, Mos Def has shaped a career that transcends music genres and artistic medium. Taking a cue from the Afrocentric stylings of the Native Tongues crew, which included De La Soul, Jungle Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest and Andres Titus, Mos Def has emerged as one of the more conscientious voices of new school hip-hop, alongside the likes of Common, Outkast, Goodie Mob and The Roots, to name just a few.
Mos Def was born in Brooklyn, New York City, to Sheron Smith and Abdul Rahman. A child of hip-hop's Golden Era, he spent his childhood imbedded in the culture surrounding him as well as absorbing knowledge from across the artistic spectrum. With the release of "Universal Magnetic" (1996) Mos became an underground favorite in the hip hop world, leading to his legendary collaboration with Talib Kweli. The two formed Black Star whose debut album, Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star, would become one of the most critically acclaimed hip-hop albums. Mos followed that release with his 1999 solo debut, Black On Both Sides, which was certified gold and credited by critics as bringing hip-hop back to its soapbox roots. As with his music, Mos has demonstrated insight and passion with his acting career, appearing in Spike Lee's Bamboozled, MTV's Carmen: A Hip Hopera, 2002's critically acclaimed Monster's Ball, Showtime, and the 2002 romantic comedy Brown Sugar, for which he received an NAACP Image Award nomination. In addition Mos has served as the host, music supervisor and co-executive producer for the HBO series Def Poetry and served as a writer, producer and actor on the MTV sketch comedy series Lyricist Lounge. Mos completed his Broadway debut in 2002 in the Tony nominated, Pulitzer Prize winning, Topdog/Underdog. Mos re-teamed with Topdog playwright, Suzan Lori Parks and director George Wolfe for an off-Broadway play for which he was awarded an Obie Award. In 2003, Mos Def starred in Paramount Pictures' The Italian Job, alongside Ed Norton, Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron. Last year Mos Def starred opposite Alan Rickman in the critically acclaimed HBO movie Something the Lord Made, for which he has received a 2004 Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Movie. Def was also nominated for both a Golden Globe Award (Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture) and Golden Satellite Award (Best Actor in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television) for the same role. He co-starred in the feature film The Woodsman, with Kevin Bacon, Benjamin Bratt, Eve and Kyra Sedgwick. The New York Times said of his performance, "I hope we don't have to wait too much longer to see him in a big-screen leading role," and USA Today heralded him as "the movie's best performance." In addition, he co-starred in Spyglass Entertainment's The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, released in April 2005. In the film, an adaptation of the classic Douglas Adams Science Fiction novel, Def starred as hero "Ford Prefect."
Mos Def released his highly-anticipated and critically acclaimed sophomore solo release, The New Danger (Geffen Records), on October 12th. The album was met with praise from both critics and fans alike, with Rolling Stone giving it 4 Stars and hailing the album as "Ghetto rock and righteous hip-hop from dazzingly talented Def" and the New York Daily News proclaimed "No one is doing more to change our notion of how hip hop can sound." The first single, "Sex, Love and Money' earned Def a 2005 Grammy nomination for Best Alternative/Urban Performance and the album was certified gold by the RIAA.- Actor
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Popular British character actor Tom Wilkinson was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, and came from a long line of urban farmers. He was the son of Marjorie (Percival) and Thomas Wilkinson. Economic hardships forced his family to move to Canada for a few years when Wilkinson was a child; then, after he had returned to England, he attended and graduated from the University of Kent at Canterbury with a degree in English and American Literature.
Wilkinson first became active in film and television in the mid-1970s, but did not become familiar to an international audience until 1997. That was when he starred as one of six unemployed workers who strip for cash in Best Picture nominee The Full Monty (1997), and went on to win a BAFTA for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role. That same year, he was featured in Oscar and Lucinda (1997) and Wilde (1997). Wilkinson was also shown to memorable effect as a theatre financier with acting aspirations in Best Picture winner Shakespeare in Love (1998).
Over the next few years, Wilkinson would become more popular, especially with American audiences, with such roles as General Cornwallis alongside Mel Gibson in the blockbuster The Patriot (2000) and as the grief-stricken father, Matt Fowler, in the critically acclaimed Best Picture nominee In the Bedroom (2001). For his role in that movie, he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role.
Since then, Wilkinson has made memorable appearances in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), Batman Begins (2005), The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005), Valkyrie (2008), Duplicity (2009), The Ghost Writer (2010), The Debt (2010) and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011), among others. Wilkinson also received his second Academy Award nomination for his acclaimed role in Michael Clayton (2007).
Wilkinson won an Emmy Award for his work as Benjamin Franklin in HBO's John Adams (2008) mini-series. The same year, he received an Emmy nomination for his role in HBO movie Recount (2008), and has also received Emmy nominations for Normal (2003) and The Kennedys (2011).
Wilkinson had two children, Alice and Molly, with his wife Diana Hardcastle.- Actor
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Andrew Russell Garfield was born in Los Angeles, California, to a British mother, Lynn, and American father, Richard Garfield. When he was three, he moved to Surrey, U.K., with his parents and older brother. He is of English and Polish Jewish heritage. Andrew was raised in a middle class family, and attended a private school, the City of London Freemen's School. He began acting in youth theatre productions while he was still at school. At age 19, he went to the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.
His first professional roles were on the stage and in 2005 he made his TV debut in the Channel 4 teen series Sugar Rush (2005) in the UK. More TV work followed (reaching a wider UK audience in a two-part story in the third season of Doctor Who (2005)), as well as a number of movie appearances. Garfield played Eduardo in The Social Network (2010) and Tommy in Never Let Me Go (2010), two films that brought him to full international attention. That same year, he was cast as the title character in the reboot of the Spider-Man film franchise, The Amazing Spider-Man (2012). He reprised the role in the sequel, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014), before passing off the torch to Tom Holland.
Resuming his work in drama films, Garfield starred in Ramin Bahrani's 99 Homes (2014), with Michael Shannon, Mel Gibson's Hacksaw Ridge (2016), about real-life Seventh Day Adventist war hero Desmond Doss, and Martin Scorsese's Silence (2016), opposite Adam Driver, playing Jesuit priests. He received his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his role as Doss.
In 2017, he starred in Andy Serkis-directed drama Breathe (2017), where Garfield plays Robin Cavendish, an adventurous man paralyzed by polio. In 2018, he headlines David Robert Mitchell's noir thriller Under the Silver Lake (2018).- Actor
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Joseph Alberic Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire, to Jennifer Anne Mary Alleyne (Lash), a novelist, and Mark Fiennes, a photographer. He is one of six children. Four of his siblings are also in the arts: Ralph Fiennes, an actor; Martha Fiennes, a director; Magnus Fiennes, a musician; and Sophie Fiennes, a producer. He is of English, Irish, and Scottish origin.
He was brought up in West Cork, Ireland. He left art school, and began working with the Young Vic Youth Theatre, and then went on to train at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. His first professional stage appearance was in the West End in The Woman In Black, followed by A Month In The Country. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company for two seasons and performed roles in Dennis Potter's Son Of Man, Les Enfants Du Paradis, Troilus and Cressida, and Peter Whelan's The Herbal Bed.- Actor
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Michael Carmen Pitt (born April 10, 1981) is an American actor, model and musician. A casting agent, whom Pitt mistook as a police officer attempting to arrest him, noticed him and recommended him for a guest role on the television series Dawson's Creek (1998) (he played Henry Parker in 15 episodes between 1999 and 2000).
Rising through the ranks of indie cinema, Michael starred in dramas like Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001), The Dreamers (2003), and Last Days (2005), along with roles in the thrillers Murder by Numbers (2002) and Funny Games (2007). Moving back to television, he played Jimmy Darmody on Boardwalk Empire (2010) and Mason Verger in Hannibal (2013). In 2017, he appears opposite Scarlett Johansson in the science fiction action adaptation Ghost in the Shell (2017).- Actor
- Producer
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Colm Meaney was born on 30 May 1953 in Dublin, Ireland. He is an actor and producer, known for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993), Layer Cake (2004) and Under Siege (1992). He has been married to Ines Glorian since 15 March 2007. They have one child. He was previously married to Bairbre Dowling.- Actor
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Doug grew up in Detroit and Minneapolis and eventually moved to New York City and briefly attended the Juilliard School. After studying with Sanford Meisner for two years and working at a plethora of oddball jobs (including dressing as a giant Citibank card to hand out flyers in Times Square), he worked in regional and Off-Broadway theater before landing his first feature supporting role in Fresh Horses (1988).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Philip Glenister was born on 10 February 1963 in London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Kingdom of Heaven (2005), Life on Mars (2006) and Cranford (2007). He has been married to Beth Goddard since 2006. They have two children.- Actor
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British actor and comedian Sacha Baron Cohen was born in Hammersmith, London. He is the son of Daniella (Weiser), a movement instructor, and Gerald Baron Cohen, a clothing store owner. His father, born in England and raised in Wales, was of Eastern European Jewish descent, while his mother was born in Israel, to German Jewish parents. He was educated at a private school, Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School in Hertfordshire, and went on to read History at Christ's College, Cambridge. Baron Cohen had an interest in performing from an early age, forming a breakdancing group as a teenager and acting in amateur plays with a Jewish youth group. While at university he joined the Cambridge University Amateur Dramatic Club, and took part in such plays as "Cyrano de Bergerac" and "Fiddler on the Roof".
Upon leaving University, Baron Cohen briefly worked as a model, before moving on to work as a host on a satellite TV station. In 1995, Channel 4 put out an open call for new presenters, and Baron Cohen sent in a tape featuring himself in character as an Albania TV reporter (an early prototype for Borat). He was hired and worked on various 'youth TV' projects before, in 1998, appearing in The 11 O'Clock Show (1998) which became a cult hit thanks to his character, Ali G. Ali G proved so popular that a spin-off show Da Ali G Show (2000) and film Ali G Indahouse (2002) where produced.
America soon beckoned with a stateside version of Da Ali G Show. Feature film work followed with Baron Cohen providing the voice of Julien in Madagascar (2005) and appearing as Jean Girard alongside Will Ferrell in Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006). He followed this with the smash-hit Borat (2006), for which he won a Golden Globe and was nominated for a writing Oscar. His other film work includes supporting roles in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) and Hugo (2011), and starring in the title roles of Brüno (2009), The Dictator (2012), and The Brothers Grimsby (2016).- Actor
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Jesse Lon Plemons is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor and achieved a career breakthrough with his major role as Landry Clarke in the NBC drama series Friday Night Lights (2006-2011). He subsequently portrayed Todd Alquist in season 5 of the AMC crime drama series Breaking Bad (2012-2013) and its sequel film El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019). For his role as Ed Blumquist in season 2 of the FX anthology series Fargo (2015), he received his first Primetime Emmy Award nomination and won a Critics' Choice Television Award. He received a second Emmy nomination for his portrayal of Robert Daly in "USS Callister", an episode of the Netflix anthology series Black Mirror (2017).
Plemons has appeared in supporting roles in several films including The Master (2012), The Homesman (2014), Black Mass, Bridge of Spies (both 2015), Game Night, Vice (both 2018), The Irishman (2019), Judas and the Black Messiah, Jungle Cruise, and The Power of the Dog (all in 2021). He starred in the psychological thriller film I'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020). He was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead for his role as David Mulcahey in Other People (2016). For his performance in The Power of the Dog, he was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.- Actor
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Javier Bardem belongs to a family of actors that have been working on films since the early days of Spanish cinema.
He was born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, to actress Pilar Bardem (María del Pilar Bardem Muñoz) and businessman José Carlos Encinas Doussinague. His maternal grandparents were actors Rafael Bardem and Matilde Muñoz Sampedro, and his uncle is screenwriter Juan Antonio Bardem. He got his start in the family business, at age six, when he appeared in his first feature, "El picaro" (1974) (A.K.A. The Scoundrel). During his teenage years, he acted in several TV series, played rugby for the Spanish National Team, and toured the country with an independent theatrical group. Javier's early film role as a sexy stud in the black comedy, Jamón, Jamón (1992) (aka Ham Ham) propelled him to instant popularity and threatened to typecast him as nothing more than a brawny sex symbol. Determined to avert a beefcake image, he refused similar subsequent roles and has gone on to win acclaim for his ability to appear almost unrecognizable from film to film. With over 25 movies and numerous awards under his belt, it is Javier's stirring, passionate performance as the persecuted Cuban writer, Reynaldo Arenas, in Before Night Falls (2000) that will long be remembered as his breakthrough role. He received five Best Actor awards and a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his portrayal.No Country For Old Men, was so bad- Actor
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Oscar Isaac was born Óscar Isaac Hernández Estrada in Guatemala, to a Guatemalan mother, María Eugenia, and a Cuban father, Oscar Gonzalo Hernández-Cano, a pulmonologist. Oscar was raised in Miami, Florida. Before he became an actor, he played lead guitar and sang vocals in his band the Blinking Underdogs. He graduated from the Juilliard School in 2005.
Isaac's first major film role was Joseph in the film The Nativity Story (2006). He also had a small role in All About the Benjamins (2002) and the Ché Guevara biopic Guerrilla (2011). In addition to movie appearances, he made an appearance in the television series Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001). He also had a part in the movies The Life Before Her Eyes (2007); Body of Lies (2008), alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe; Agora (2009), alongside Rachel Weisz; and the Australian film Balibo (2009), where he played José Ramos-Horta, former president of East Timor, set amid the Indonesian invasion of East Timor in 1975; Isaac won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role.
In 2013, Oscar starred in the Coen Brothers' folk music-themed comedy-drama, Inside Llewyn Davis (2013), for which he received a Golden Globe Award nomination. He subsequently starred in the crime drama A Most Violent Year (2014) and the science fiction thriller Ex Machina (2014), and appeared in the Star Wars films Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015) and Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017), as X-wing pilot Poe Dameron, and the ninth X-Men film, X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), as the mutant supervillain Apocalypse. He has also headlined the HBO miniseries Show Me a Hero (2015), as politician Nick Wasicsko in 2015, which earned him the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Miniseries or Television Film.
He has two sons with his wife, Danish director Elvira Lind. He is also long-time friends with Triple Frontier (2019) co-star Pedro Pascal.Even Moon Knight was bad- Actor
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Dominic Edward Cooper was born and raised in Greenwich, London, England. His mother, Julie (Heron), is a nursery school teacher and a keen theater-goer. His father, Brian Cooper, is an auctioneer. They divorced when Dominic was age 5. His maternal great-grandfather was film enthusiast E.T. Heron, who published The Kinematograph Weekly. He has two older brothers, Nathan and Simon. He had a sister who died in a car accident when she was age 5, which happened before Dominic was born. He also has a half-sister from an extramarital affair by his father and a half-brother from his father's second marriage.
He went to school in Kidbrooke, attending the Thomas Tallis School. He didn't know what to do afterwards and his girlfriend, at the time, suggested that he should apply to drama school. He did his training at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He performed in the end of year play 'Waiting For Godot' and this performance landed him the renowned agent Pippa Markham.
He graduated in 2000 and started with a few minor roles in television and theater. In 2004, he landed a role at the National Theatre with 'The History Boys'. He originated the role of Dakin, as he was involved in the play from the very beginning. He played the role for two years on the stage and then, for the final time, in his breakthrough film role The History Boys (2006).- One of today's leading talents across both independent and mainstream film, Logan Lerman is an immensely talented actor who takes on challenging roles and brings dynamic characters to life on screen.
Logan was born in Beverly Hills, to a Jewish family. His parents are Lisa (Goldman), who worked as his manager, and Larry Lerman, an orthotist and businessman. He has two siblings, Lindsey and Lucas, both older. His family operate the orthotics and prosthetics company Lerman & Son, which was founded by his great-grandfather, Jacob Lerman.
When he was two and a half years old, Logan told his mother that he wanted to be an actor. At the age of four, Logan had an agent and was booked for two commercials. He made his big screen debut as William, the youngest son of Mel Gibson's character, in Roland Emmerich's war drama The Patriot (2000), and then appeared as the younger version of Gibson's character Nick Marshall in Nancy Meyers's romantic comedy What Women Want (2000). After a small role in 2001's Riding in Cars with Boys (2001), by Penny Marshall, he starred in the John Grisham adaptation A Painted House (2003), a made-for-television film that won him the first of his three Young Artist Awards.
Logan played the younger version of Ashton Kutcher's character, Evan, in The Butterfly Effect (2004). After a guest-starring role in 10-8: Officers on Duty (2003), he starred in the WB Network's series Jack & Bobby (2004), where he portrays Bobby (Robert) McCallister, a teenager who will grow up to be President of the United States. After the show's cancellation in 2005, Logan returned to film, starring in the family adventure Hoot (2006). The next year, he played the son of Walter Sparrow (Jim Carrey) in the dark thriller The Number 23 (2007), and co-starred with Russell Crowe and Christian Bale in James Mangold's critically-acclaimed Western remake 3:10 to Yuma (2007). His next two roles were a foul-mouthed private school student in the comedy Meet Bill (2007) and actor George Hamilton in the period drama My One and Only (2009). Both were independent films that received limited releases. Also in 2009, Logan appeared with Gerard Butler in the R-rated action thriller Gamer (2009), as a foul-mouthed teenager who controls Butler's character in a real-life video game.
In 2010, Logan starred as Percy in the fantasy adventure Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010), based on the best-selling young adult book series of the same title. The film gave him notice among a wider audience. Subsequently, he starred as D'Artagnan in a remake of The Three Musketeers (2011), which was Logan's grandfather's favorite childhood book. Lerman then headlined the coming-of-age indie drama The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012), alongside Emma Watson, Paul Rudd and Ezra Miller, based on the 1999 novel of the same name. Perks garnered numerous nominations and wins at the People's Choice Awards, The Independent Spirit Awards and the Teen Choice Awards, and Logan received a 2013 Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actor in a Drama. Around this time, he had a supporting role in the independent film Stuck in Love. (2012), and returned to star in Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013).
His first 2014 role was in Darren Aronofsky's acclaimed Biblical epic film Noah (2014), playing one of the title character's sons, Ham. The film, also starring Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Anthony Hopkins, Douglas Booth, and Emma Watson, grossed over $100 million at the North American box office. Logan next starred with Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Bernthal, and Michael Peña in the World War II-set action drama Fury (2014); in the film, he played one of several American soldiers engaged in tank combat against the German forces, during the last weeks of the Nazi regime.
Lerman next played the lead in writer-director James Schamus's 1950s-set drama Indignation (2016). Logan received rave reviews for his performance as Marcus Messner, an idealistic Jewish atheist from Newark who travels to Ohio to study at a conservative Midwestern Lutheran college. The film is based on Philip Roth's bestselling novel of the same name, and premiered at 2016's Sundance Film Festival.
In 2018, Logan voiced real-life soldier Robert Conroy in Sgt. Stubby: An American Hero (2018), about the famous World War I war dog. He began the 2020s starring with Al Pacino and Josh Radnor in the stylish television drama Hunters (2020), playing Jonah Heidelbaum, a Brooklyn teenager who joins a group hunting down escaped Nazis. His upcoming roles include Sean Fogle in the Irish-set drama End of Sentence (2019), with John Hawkes as his character's father, and Fred Nemser in the thriller Shirley (2020).
When Logan is not working, he likes to play soccer and baseball. He is an LA Lakers fan. - Actor
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Jim Carrey, Canadian-born and a U.S. citizen since 2004, is an actor and producer famous for his rubbery body movements and flexible facial expressions. The two-time Golden Globe-winner rose to fame as a cast member of the Fox sketch comedy In Living Color (1990) but leading roles in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), Dumb and Dumber (1994) and The Mask (1994) established him as a bankable comedy actor.
James Eugene Carrey was born on January 17, 1962 in Newmarket, Ontario, Canada, and is the youngest of four children of Kathleen (Oram), a homemaker, and Percy Carrey, an accountant and jazz musician. The family surname was originally "Carré", and he has French-Canadian, Scottish, and Irish ancestry. Carrey was an incurable extrovert from day one. As a child, he performed constantly, for anyone who would watch, and even mailed his résumé to The Carol Burnett Show (1967) at age 10. In junior high, he was granted a few precious minutes at the end of each school day to do stand-up routines for his classmates (provided, of course, that he kept a lid on it the rest of the day).
Carrey's early adolescence took a turn for the tragic, however, when the family was forced to relocate from their cozy town of Newmarket to Scarborough (a Toronto suburb). They all took security and janitorial jobs in the Titan Wheels factory, Jim working 8-hour shifts after school let out (not surprisingly, his grades and morale both suffered). When they finally deserted the factory, the family lived out of a Volkswagen camper van until they could return to Toronto.
Carrey made his stand-up debut in Toronto after his parents and siblings got back on their feet. He made his (reportedly awful) professional stand-up debut at Yuk-Yuk's, one of the many local clubs that would serve as his training ground in the years to come. He dropped out of high school, worked on his celebrity impersonations (among them Michael Landon and James Stewart), and in 1979 worked up the nerve to move to Los Angeles. He finessed his way into a regular gig at The Comedy Store, where he impressed Rodney Dangerfield so much that the veteran comic signed him as an opening act for an entire season. During this period Carrey met and married waitress Melissa Womer, with whom he had a daughter (Jane). The couple would later go through a very messy divorce, freeing Carrey up for a brief second marriage to actress Lauren Holly. Wary of falling into the lounge act lifestyle, Carrey began to look around for other performance outlets. He landed a part as a novice cartoonist in the short-lived sitcom The Duck Factory (1984); while the show fell flat, the experience gave Carrey the confidence to pursue acting more vigorously.
Carrey also worked on breaking into film around this time. He scored the male lead in the ill-received Lauren Hutton vehicle Once Bitten (1985), and had a supporting role in Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), before making a modest splash with his appearance as the alien Wiploc in Earth Girls Are Easy (1988). Impressed with Carrey's lunacy, fellow extraterrestrial Damon Wayans made a call to his brother, Keenen Ivory Wayans, who was in the process of putting together the sketch comedy show In Living Color (1990). Carrey joined the cast and quickly made a name for himself with outrageous acts (one of his most popular characters, psychotic Fire Marshall Bill, was attacked by watchdog groups for dispensing ill- advised safety tips).
Following his time on In Living Color (1990), Carrey's transformation from TV goofball to marquee headliner happened within the course of a single year. He opened 1994 with a starring turn in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), a film that cashed in on his extremely physical brand of humor (the character's trademark was talking out his derrière). Next up was the manic superhero movie The Mask (1994), which had audiences wondering just how far Carrey's features could stretch.
Finally, in December 1994, he hit theaters as a loveable dolt in the Farrelly brothers' Dumb and Dumber (1994) (his first multi-million dollar payday). Now a box-office staple, Carrey brought his manic antics onto the set of Batman Forever (1995), replacing Robin Williams as The Riddler. He also filmed the follow-up to his breakthrough, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995), and inked a deal with Sony to star in The Cable Guy (1996) (replacing Chris Farley) for a cool $20 million--at the time, that was the biggest up-front sum that had been offered to any comic actor. The movie turned out to be a disappointment, both critically and financially, but Carrey bounced back the next year with the energetic hit Liar Liar (1997). Worried that his comic shtick would soon wear thin, Carrey decided to change course.
In 1998, he traded in the megabucks and silly grins to star in Peter Weir's The Truman Show (1998) playing a naive salesman who discovers that his entire life is the subject of a TV show, Carrey demonstrated an uncharacteristic sincerity that took moviegoers by surprise. He won a Golden Globe for the performance, and fans anticipated an Oscar nomination as well--when it didn't materialize, Carrey lashed out at Academy members for their narrow-minded selection process. Perhaps inspired by the snub, Carrey threw himself into his next role with abandon. After edging out a handful of other hopefuls (including Edward Norton) to play eccentric funnyman Andy Kaufman in Man on the Moon (1999), Carrey disappeared into the role, living as Kaufman -- and his blustery alter-ego Tony Clifton -- for months (Carrey even owned Kaufman's bongo drums, which he'd used during his audition for director Milos Forman). His sometimes uncanny impersonation was rewarded with another Golden Globe, but once again the Academy kept quiet.
An indignant Carrey next reprised his bankable mania for the Farrelly brothers in Me, Myself & Irene (2000), playing a state trooper whose Jekyll and Hyde personalities both fall in love with the same woman (Renée Zellweger). Carrey's real-life persona wound up falling for her too--a few months after the film wrapped, the pair announced they were officially a couple. By then, Carrey had already slipped into a furry green suit to play the stingy antihero of Ron Howard's How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000).
Although Carrey maintains a foothold in the comedy world with films such as Bruce Almighty (2003) and Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), he is also capable of turning in nuanced dramatic performances, as demonstrated in films like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) and the drama/comedy Yes Man (2008). In 2013, he costars with Steve Carell in The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013).
Carrey has one child with his first wife, Melissa Carrey, whom he divorced in 1995. He married actress Lauren Holly in 1996, but they split less than a year later.- Actor
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Forest Steven Whitaker has packaged a king-size talent into his hulking 6' 2", 220 lb. frame. He won an Academy Award for his performance as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in the film The Last King of Scotland (2006), and has also won a Golden Globe and a BAFTA. He is the fourth African-American male to win an Academy Award for Best Actor, following in the footsteps of Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington, and Jamie Foxx.
Whitaker was born on July 15, 1961 in Longview, Texas, to Laura Francis (Smith), a special education teacher, and Forest Steven Whitaker, an insurance salesman. His family moved to South Central Los Angeles in 1965. The athletically-inclined Whitaker initially found his way into college via a football scholarship. Later, however, he transferred to USC where he set his concentration on music and earned two more scholarships training as an operatic tenor. This, in turn, led to another scholarship at Berkeley with a renewed focus on acting and the performing stage.
Whitaker made his film debut at the age of 21 in the raucous comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) wherein he played, quite naturally, a footballer. He went on to play another sports-oriented student, a wrestler, in his second film Vision Quest (1985). He gained experience on TV as well with featured spots on such varied shows as Diff'rent Strokes (1978) and Cagney & Lacey (1981), not to mention the TV-movie Civil War epic North & South: Book 1, North & South (1985) and its sequel. The movie that truly put him on the map was The Color of Money (1986). His one big scene as a naive-looking pool player who out-hustles Paul Newman's Fast Eddie Felson was pure electricity. This led to more visible roles in the "A" class films Platoon (1986), Stakeout (1987), and Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), which culminated in his breakout lead portrayal of the tortured jazz icon 'Charlie "Bird" Parker' in Clint Eastwood's passion project Bird (1988), for which Whitaker won the Cannes Film Festival award for "best actor" and a Golden Globe nomination. Whitaker continued to work with a number of well-known directors throughout the 1990s.
While his "gentle giant" characters typically display innocence, indecision, and timidity along with a strong underlying humanity, he has certainly not shied away from the edgier, darker corners of life as his occasional hitmen and other menacing streetwise types can attest. Although in only the first section of the film, he was memorable as the IRA-captured British soldier whose bizarre relationship with a mysterious femme fatale serves as the catalyst for the critically-lauded drama The Crying Game (1992). Always a willing participant to push the envelope, he's gone on to enhance a number of lesser films. Among those was his plastic surgeon in Johnny Handsome (1989), gay clothing designer in Robert Altman's Ready to Wear (1994), alien hunter in Species (1995), absentee father confronted by his estranged son in Smoke (1995), and Mafia hitman who models himself after the samurai warrior in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999), among many others. As would be expected, he's also had his share of epic-sized bombs, notoriously the L. Ron Hubbard sci-fi disaster Battlefield Earth (2000). On the TV front, he was the consulting producer and host of a revamped Rod Serling's cult series classic The Twilight Zone (2002), which lasted a disappointing one season.
In the early 1990s, Whitaker widened his horizons to include producing/directing and has since gained respect behind the camera as well. He started things off co-producing the violent gangster film A Rage in Harlem (1991), in which he co-starred with Gregory Hines and Robin Givens, and then made his successful directorial debut with the soulful Waiting to Exhale (1995), showcasing a legion of distaff black stars. He also directed co-star Whitney Houston's music video of the movie's theme song ("Shoop Shoop"). He also helmed the fluffy romantic comedy First Daughter (2004) with Katie Holmes and Michael Keaton. Whitaker also served as an executive producer on First Daughter. He had previously executive produced several made-for-television movies, most notably the 2002 Emmy-award winning Door to Door, starring William H. Macy. He produced these projects through his production company, Spirit Dance Entertainment, which he shut down in 2005 to concentrate on his acting career.
In 2002, he co-starred in Joel Schumacher's thriller, Phone Booth, with Kiefer Sutherland and Colin Farrell. That year, he also co-starred with Jodie Foster in Panic Room.
Whitaker's greatest success to date is the 2006 film, The Last King of Scotland. His performance earned him the 2007 Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, For that same role, he also received the Golden Globe Award, the Screen Actors Guild Award, a BAFTA Award, and many critical accolades. He has also received several other honors. In September 2006, the 10th Annual Hollywood Film Festival presented him with its "Hollywood Actor of the Year Award," He was also honored at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2007, receiving the American Riviera Award. Previously, in 2005, the Deauville Festival of American Film paid tribute to him. In 2007, Forest Whitaker won the Cinema for Peace Award 2007.
In 2007, Whitaker co-starred in The Great Debaters with fellow Oscar winner Denzel Washington, and in 2008, Whitaker played opposite Keanu Reeves in Street Kings and Dennis Quaid in Vantage Point.
In 2009, Forest co-starred in the Warner Bros. film "Where the Wild Things Are," directed by Spike Jonze, which was a mix of live-action, animation and puppetry as an adaptation of the Maurice Sendak classic children's book. Around the same time, he also starred n "Repossession Mambo", with Jude Law, "Hurricane Season", "Winged Creatures", and "Powder Blue". He appeared in the Olivier Dahan film "My Own Love Song", opposite Renée Zellweger, and was part of the Africa Movie Academy Awards in 2009, in Nigeria.
He is married to former model Keisha Whitaker and has three children by her. His younger brothers Kenn Whitaker and Damon Whitaker are both actors as well.
Forest was given a star on the Hollywood Walk in April of 2007. In November 2007, Whitaker was the creative mind behind DEWmocracy.com, a website that let people decide the next flavor of Mountain Dew in a "People's Dew" poll. He directed a short film and created the characters for the video game. Whitaker has done extensive humanitarian work, he has been involved with organizations like, Penny Lane, an organization that provides assistance to abused teenagers. PETA and Farm Sanctuary, organizations that protect animals' rights. Close friends with Neurosurgeon Dr. Keith Black, Forest has helped raise awareness and funds for Dr. Blacks research. During the last couple of years, he has become a spokesperson for Hope North Ugandan orphanage and Human Rights Watch. In the year 2001 Forest received a Humanitas Prize. He was recently honored by The City of Los Angeles with the Hope of Los Angeles Award. And his entire clan received the LA BEST Family Focus Award. Last year he joined forces with "Idol Gives Back" and "Malaria No More"; he has become a GQ Ambassador supporting and fundraising for Hope North. He was a Surrogate for Barack Obama's campaign supporting him across the United States.
Whitaker's multimedia company, Spirit Dance Entertainment, includes film, television and music production. He works closely with a number of charitable organizations, giving back to his community by serving as an Honorary Board Members for Penny Lane, an organization that provides assistance to abused teenagers, the Human Rights Watch and The Hope North organization.He did good in Species and especially in Panic Room- Actor
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Best known as Robert the Bruce in Braveheart (1995), Angus McFadyen has enjoyed a fine career in the film business. He has been in a variety of different films and television shows over his life, playing such well known roles as Edward 'Blackbeard' Teach, Robert the Bruce, and Orson Welles.
Born in Glasgow, Scotland on the twenty-first of September in 1963, Angus lived a colourful childhood, being raised in such places as the Philippines, Singapore, and France. Angus found himself back in Britain, however, when it came to education. He enrolled in the University of Edinburgh, and Central School of Speech and Drama in London.
Angus' first role was the role of Philip in the film made for television, The Lost Language of Cranes (1991). The film centers on a young man (Angus) who must tell his parents that he is gay. Playing the role of his father was fellow Scottish actor Brian Cox. Angus then acted in the television film 15: The Life and Death of Philip Knight (1993) and also on the television show Takin' Over the Asylum (1994) which was about a salesman who runs a radio station in an institution. This led to the biggest role of Angus's career.
In 1995, Mel Gibson's epic classic, Braveheart (1995) was released, with Angus in the role of Robert the Bruce. Next to the flamboyantly hero of William Wallace, Robert the Bruce was the human character, the man who wanted to make the right choice, but was drawn to compromise. The brilliant portrayal of the Bruce was sadly unnoticed by any awards, a tragic insult to Angus's brilliant performance.
After Braveheart (1995) won Best Picture, Angus acted in the independent film Nevada (1997), before giving the most over-the-top performance of his career in the action/fantasy Warriors of Virtue (1997). While the movie was a disaster critically and commercially, Angus's performance as the demented villain Komodo is fondly remembered by a cult following to this day. Another role for Angus was in the romantic comedy Still Breathing (1997). Regrettably, none of these matched up to Braveheart (1995)'s success. He moved on to Joseph's Gift (1999) which starred Freddy Rodríguez. Angus also co-starred alongside such names as Don Cheadle and Ray Liotta when he played Peter Lawford in the HBO film The Rat Pack (1998).
Angus also played the role of Orson Welles in Tim Robbins's third directorial film Cradle Will Rock (1999). Although the film received a nomination for the Palme D'Or at Cannes, it was a financial flop, but Angus rebounded with the Shakespearean film Titus (1999) which also featured Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Alan Cumming and Jessica Lange. Angus played the role of Lucius, eldest son of Titus Andronicus (played by Hopkins). Directed by Julie Taymor, who would go on to direct Across the Universe (2007), the film was a critical triumph and Angus delivered a solid performance, but with mediocre box office results. With the new millennium, Angus once again took up a very well-known character: the Greek God Zeus in Jason and the Argonauts (2000).
After the noir film Second Skin (2000), Angus acted in a number of poorly received films. One such film was the action film Styx (2001) which starred Peter Weller. A year later, Angus acted in the comedy film Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002) alongside a number of famous names as Sandra Bullock, Ellen Burstyn, Maggie Smith, and Ashley Judd. The film was a commercial hit, albeit with mixed reviews. That same year, Angus took the role of Vice-Counsel Dupont in Equilibrium (2002). The film, also starring Christian Bale, Sean Bean, Taye Diggs, and Emily Watson, is about a world set in the future, where a Fascist regime forbids all emotions from being shown. The film, though clearly well-made and well-acted by all, did not get a wide release. It had already made a profit through international sales, and the studio chose to keep it a successful profit rather than risk a big release. Equilibrium (2002) has since gained a cult following, but at the time of its initial release, Angus moved on to act in the television series Miracles (2003) which was about the supernatural.
After "Miracles", Angus acted as Marcus Crassus in a more historically accurate version of Stanley Kubrick's film Spartacus (1960), the character of Bill in "The Pleasure Drivers", and the lead in the dramatic film The Virgin of Juarez (2006). He then played the pirate warlord Blackbeard in a television film of the same name. The film received mixed reviews.
What then emerged was the second major role of MacFadyen's career: the role of Jeff Denlon in Saw III (2006). Denlon is a man obsessed with revenge, and he is led into a series of traps that test his ability to forgive. The film was a smash hit for its 10 million dollar budget, earning almost two hundred million dollars worldwide. Angus co-starred in the box office bomb Redline (2007) the same year as he returned to the "Saw" franchise with the fourth film. It was also a success at the box office, though reviews for this film were lower than the previous films.
Angus continues making films, starring as the outlaw Will Tunney in his new western film Shadowheart (2009), which may be a reference to the film that made him famous. Angus has appeared on television in the series "Californication" and "Killer Wave". He has also acted in the upcoming mystery film "San Saba (2008)" and the thriller film Unnatural Causes (2008). His character of Jeff makes a reappearance in Saw V (2008), and he acted in two thrillers. One is the film Pound of Flesh (2010) alongside Malcolm McDowell which revolves around a corrupt college professor, and the other is the crime thriller Assassins Run (2013) alongside Christian Slater. Angus also acted in the second season of Lie to Me (2009), to positive acclaim, and the Cameron Crowe comedy We Bought a Zoo (2011), starring Matt Damon.
After a number of independent films, Angus found success playing two different historical figures on television in 2014. The first was detective and spy Allan Pinkerton in the Canadian series The Pinkertons (2014). Although it was short-lived, the second one was much more impactful; the British frontiersman and army officer Robert Rogers in the highly acclaimed AMC series TURN: Washington's Spies (2014). Angus appeared in 31 episodes across four seasons, even as he also made his directorial debut with the Shakespearean film Macbeth Unhinged (2016), which featured a number of collaborators from "Turn" and "Titus".
Since then, Angus has continued to find steady work, including as a guest star in the historical series Strange Angel (2018), and in the independent comedy Business Ethics (2019). He also returned to his iconic film role in a sequel film titled Robert the Bruce (2019). Angus not only reprised his role as the Bruce, he also co-wrote the film's screenplay. Sadly, the film was mostly overlooked by critics and audiences, arguably due to the film Outlaw King (2018) released by Netflix the prior year. Angus later rebounded with a recurring role of Jor-El on the well-liked CW television series Superman & Lois (2021).- Actor
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Stephen Baldwin was born on 12 May 1966 in Massapequa, Long Island, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Usual Suspects (1995), Bio-Dome (1996) and The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000). He has been married to Kennya Baldwin since 10 June 1990. They have two children.- Actor
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Roberto Benigni was born on 27 October 1952 in Manciano La Misericordia, Castiglion Fiorentino, Tuscany, Italy. He is an actor and writer, known for Life Is Beautiful (1997), The Tiger and the Snow (2005) and Down by Law (1986). He has been married to Nicoletta Braschi since 26 December 1991.- Actor
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Daniel Baldwin was born on 5 October 1960 in Massapequa, Long Island, New York, USA. He is an actor and director, known for Hawaii Five-0 (2010), Grimm (2011) and Cold Case (2003). He has been married to Joanne Smith-Baldwin since 28 July 2007. They have two children. He was previously married to Elizabeth Baldwin and Cheryl Baldwin.- Actor
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Matt Dillon's successful film career has spanned over three decades and has showcased his wide range of dramatic and comedic talents. Dillon displayed his versatility with an arresting performance co-starring as a racist cop in the critically acclaimed Paul Haggis film Crash. This role earned him nominations for an Academy award, Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award, Critics Choice Award, BAFTA Award and won him an Independent Spirit Award. In addition, the film earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Critics Choice Award for Best Ensemble. As the New York Times' Film Critic A.O. Scott put it, "He seems to be getting better with every film."
He starred opposite Kate Hudson and Owen Wilson in Universal Pictures' comedy, You, Me and Dupree and in Factotum for which he received glowing reviews for portraying Charles Bukowski's alter ego when the film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. From his breakthrough performance in The Outsiders to his hilarious turn as an obsessed private investigator in There's Something About Mary, he has proven himself to be one of the most diverse actors of his generation.
In 1990 Dillon won an IFP Spirit Award for his gritty performance as a drug addict in Gus Van Sant's Drugstore Cowboy. From there he went on to star in such films as Ted Demme's Beautiful Girls opposite Uma Thurman and Natalie Portman, Cameron Crowe's Singles, In & Out with Kevin Kline, Kevin Spacey's Albino Alligator, Francis Ford Coppola's Rumble Fish, Garry Marshall's Flamingo Kid, Van Sant's To Die For with Nicole Kidman, and John McNaughton's Wild Things. He starred in Nothing But The Truth, opposite Kate Beckinsale and Vera Farmiga, Disney's Old Dogs, opposite John Travolta, Robin Williams and Kelly Preston, and the Screen Gems films Armored and Takers.
Aside from being an accomplished actor, Dillon wrote, and made his feature film directorial debut with City of Ghosts, in which he also starred with Gérard Depardieu, Stellan Skarsgård, and James Caan. Prior to City of Ghosts, Dillon made his television directorial debut in 1997 with an episode of HBO's gritty prison drama Oz.
Dillon's achievements continued with television appearances in an HBO adaptation of Irwin Shaw's Return To Kansas City and a part co-narrating the documentary Dear America: Letters From Home.
Dillon's multi-talents have also landed him on stage starring on Broadway in The Boys In Winter as well as the PBS/American Playhouse production of The Great American Fourth Of July And Other Disasters.
His recent film credits include the comedy Girl Most Likely opposite Annette Bening and Kristen Wiig; the drama Sunlight, Jr. opposite Naomi Watts, and the heist comedy The Art Of The Steal opposite Kurt Russell. Dillon most recently starred in M. Night Shyamalan's hit television event series Wayward Pines for FOX.- Actor
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Paul was raised in the Marlboro, New Jersey. His parents immigrated from Poland, where he spent a large portion of his childhood. Many of his relatives still reside there.
During his high school years, Paul was actively involved in theater studies, primarily in New York City. He attended Christian Brothers Academy, Marlboro High School, and Lakewood Prep.
He studied theatre in both New Jersey and New York City and whilst in his junior year he landed the role of Max in Guiding Light (1952). Due to his acting schedule, he transferred to several schools. He ultimately graduated in 2000 and went on to Rutgers University but, because he was being offered roles, decided to quit after one semester.
In 2009 he was cast in The Vampire Diaries (2009).
He has performed in numerous off Broadway productions as well as starred in dozens of films and television series throughout his career.
Wesley is co-founder of Citizen Media, a production company based at Kapital Entertainment, which has sold numerous television shows to various networks and studios.
He resides in New York City, Atlanta, and Los Angeles.- Actor
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Ryan Phillippe was born on September 10, 1974 in New Castle, Delaware, to Susan (Thomas), a nurse, and Richard Phillippe, a chemical technician. He has three sisters, Kirsten, Lindsay, and Katelyn, and attended New Castle Baptist Academy. Ryan's acting career began with the soap opera One Life to Live (1968). It was no small role. His character, Billy Douglas, was US daytime television's first gay teenager. Billy struggled with coming out issues and the town's anti-gay reactions. After several other television appearances and he began appearing in movies of his own, Nowhere (1997), White Squall (1996) I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997), Cruel Intentions (1999), Crash (2005), Flags of Our Fathers (2006), and Stop-Loss (2008).- Actor
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An accomplished and striking performer, Academy Award® winner Casey Affleck has established himself as a powerful leading man with performances in multiple projects.
Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt was born in Falmouth, Massachusetts. His mother, Chris Anne (née Boldt), is a school teacher, and his father, Timothy Byers Affleck, is a social worker; the two are divorced. Casey's brother is actor Ben Affleck, who was born in 1972. He is of mostly English, Irish, German, and Scottish ancestry.
Affleck was nominated for an Academy Award®, Golden Globe®, and Screen Actors Guild® Award for his performance in the character drama The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Written and directed by Andrew Dominik ("Chopper"), the Warner Bros. film stars Affleck as 'Ford' opposite Brad Pitt's 'Jesse James.' The story follows 'Ford's' sycophantic obsession with 'James' that quickly turns into growing resentment after he joins the legendary outlaw's gang, leading to his subsequent plan to murder 'James' and claim his rightful glory.
Additionally, Casey garnered significant praise for his starring role in the Miramax film Gone, Baby Gone. Based on Dennis Lehane's novel of the same title, and adapted for the screen and featuring the directorial debut by Ben Affleck, the film is the story of two Boston detectives in search of a four-year-old girl who has been kidnapped. The film also stars Ed Harris, Morgan Freeman and Michelle Monaghan.
In 2014, Affleck and John Powers Middleton formed The Affleck/Middleton Project, a full service production company designed to develop and produce film and television content across a variety of genres. With a mission to produce quality films and television series that connect with audiences, The Affleck/Middleton Project looks to develop and produce a new wave of great American entertainment. It was recently announced that The Affleck/Middleton Project has secured the rights to Far Bright Star, the second in the book series of the same name by 'Robert Olmstead;' Affleck will direct a script by Damien Ober with three-time Academy Award® nominee Joaquin Phoenix set to star.
Affleck also directed I'm Still Here (2010), which he also wrote and produced starring Joaquin Phoenix. Affleck also co-wrote with and starred alongside Matt Damon in Gus Van Sant's independent road movie Gerry (2002). He has also appeared in Van Sant's Good Will Hunting and To Die For, Hamlet with Ethan Hawke and Julia Stiles, the Oceans trilogy and Tony Goldwyn's The Last Kiss with Zach Braff and Blythe Danner.
On stage, Casey appeared in Kenneth Lonergan's West End debut of his award winning play This is Our Youth. Affleck played the role of 'Warren' alongside Matt Damon and Summer Phoenix.
In 2016, Affleck starred opposite 'Michelle Williams' in Manchester by the Sea (2016). The film tells the story of an uncle (Affleck) who is forced to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy's father dies. Written and directed by Kenneth Lonergan, the film will be released on November 18th by Amazon Studios.
Also that year, he was seen in Triple 9 (2016), opposite Woody Harrelson and Kate Winslet. The film follows a gang of criminals and corrupt cops who plan to murder a police office in order to pull off their biggest heist yet. The film was released by Open Road in February. Additionally, Affleck starred in The Finest Hours (2016), opposite Chris Pine. The Disney film recounts the story of the Coast Guard's daring rescue attempt off the coast of Cape Cod after a pair of oil tankers are destroyed during a blizzard in 1952.
Other credits include Christopher Nolan's Interstellar opposite Matthew McConaughey, Jessica Chastain, and Anne Hathaway; Out of the Furnace opposite Christian Bale; and Ain't Them Bodies Saints opposite Rooney Mara.- Actor
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Christopher Ashton Kutcher was born on February 7, 1978 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to Diane (Finnegan), who was employed at Procter & Gamble, and Larry Kutcher, a factory worker. He has a fraternal twin brother, Michael, and a sister, Tausha. He is of Czech (father) and Irish, German, and Czech (mother) descent. He grew up in rural Homestead, Iowa, graduating from Clear Creek-Amana High School in Tiffin, Iowa. In 1997, Kutcher was a biochemical engineering student at the University of Iowa and was discovered by a local talent scout. In 2010, Kutcher was named one of Time Magazine's Top 100 Most Influential People. He created the Demi and Ashton Foundation, to eliminate child sex slavery worldwide. Kutcher is mostly known for playing Michael Kelso in That '70s Show (1998) and is co-founder of Katalyst, a studio for social media.- Actor
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Edward Regan Murphy was born April 3, 1961 in Brooklyn, New York, to Lillian Lynch (born: Lillian Laney), a telephone operator, and Charles Edward Murphy, a transit police officer who was also an amateur comedian and actor. After his father died, his mother married Vernon Lynch, a foreman at a Breyer's Ice Cream plant. His brothers are Charlie Murphy & Vernon Lynch Jr. Eddie had aspirations of being in show business since he was a child. A bright kid growing up in the streets of New York, Murphy spent a great deal of time on impressions and comedy stand-up routines rather than academics. His sense of humor and wit made him a stand out amongst his classmates at Roosevelt Junior-Senior High School. By the time he was fifteen, Murphy worked as a stand-up comic on the lower part of New York, wooing audiences with his dead-on impressions of celebrities and outlooks on life.
In the early 1980s, at the age of 19, Murphy was offered a contract for the Not-Ready-For-Prime-Time Players of Saturday Night Live (1975), where Murphy exercised his comedic abilities in impersonating African American figures and originating some of the show's most memorable characters: Velvet Jones, Mr. Robinson, and a disgruntled and angry Gumby. Murphy made his feature film debut in 48 Hrs. (1982), alongside Nick Nolte. The two's comedic and antagonistic chemistry, alongside Murphy's believable performance as a streetwise convict aiding a bitter, aging cop, won over critics and audiences. The next year, Murphy went two for two, with another hit, pairing him with John Landis, who later became a frequent collaborator with Murphy in Coming to America (1988) and Beverly Hills Cop III (1994). Beverly Hills Cop (1984) was the film that made Murphy a box-office superstar and most notably made him a celebrity worldwide, and it remains one of the all-time biggest domestic blockbusters in motion-picture history. Murphy's performance as a young Detroit cop in pursuit of his friend's murderers earned him a third consecutive Golden Globe nomination. Axel Foley became one of Murphy's signature characters. On top of his game, Murphy was unfazed by his success, that is until his box office appeal and choices in scripts resulted into a spotty mix of hits and misses into the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Films like The Golden Child (1986) and Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) were critically panned but were still massive draws at the box office. In 1989, Murphy, coming off another hit, Coming to America (1988), found failure with his directorial debut, Harlem Nights (1989). Another 48 Hrs. (1990), his turn as a hopeless romantic in Boomerang (1992) and as a suave vampire in Vampire In Brooklyn did little to resuscitate his career. However, his remake of Jerry Lewis's The Nutty Professor (1996) brought Murphy's drawing power back into fruition. From there, Murphy rebounded with occasional hits and misses but has long proven himself as a skilled comedic actor with laudable range pertaining to characterizations and mannerisms. Though he has grown up a lot since his fast-lane rise as a superstar in the 1980s, Murphy has lived the Hollywood lifestyle with controversy, criticism, scandal, and the admiration of millions worldwide for his talents. As Murphy had matured throughout the years, learning many lessons about the Hollywood game in the process, he settled down with more family-oriented humor with Doctor Dolittle (1998), Mulan (1998), Bowfinger (1999), and the animated smash Shrek (2001), in a supporting role that showcased Murphy's comedic personality and charm. Throughout the 2000s, he further starred in the hits The Haunted Mansion (2003), Shrek 2 (2004), Dreamgirls (2006) (for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar), Norbit (2007), Shrek the Third (2007), and Shrek Forever After (2010).
Murphy was married to Nicole Mitchell Murphy from 1993 to 2006. Murphy has ten children.- Actor
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Masayori "Masi" Oka is a Japanese American actor, producer and digital effects artist. He became widely known for his role on NBC's Heroes as Hiro Nakamura and in CBS' Hawaii Five-0 as Doctor Max Bergman. Oka was born in Tokyo, Japan, to Setsuko Oka. His parents divorced when he was one month old; he was raised in a single parent family and has never met his father. He was six years old when his mother and he moved to Los Angeles from Japan. At age eight, he appeared on the CBS-TV game show Child's Play. In 1987, a twelve-year-old Oka was featured on the cover of Time titled "Those Asian-American Whiz Kids". Though he was not featured in the article itself, he was acquainted with the photographer who conducted the shoot. His IQ has been reported at over 180.- Actor
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American actor Brady James Monson Corbet was born on August 17, 1988, in Scottsdale, AZ. Brady made his film debut as Mason Freeland in 2003's "Thirteen" and later had roles as Brian Lackey in "Mysterious Skin" and as Alan Tracy in "Thunderbirds." He also has guest starred on the television shows "Greetings From Tucson," "Oliver Beene" and "The King Of Queens," but he is most known for his role as Derek Huxley on the fifth season of "24."- Actor
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Wil Wheaton was born Richard William Wheaton III on July 29, 1972 in Burbank, California. He first gained international attention by starring in the Rob Reiner comedy-drama film Stand by Me (1986). He then played Wesley Crusher on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) for three and one-quarter seasons. Wheaton left the Hollywood scene for 18 months to pursue personal video production. He did return to "Star Trek" every now and then for an occasional episode, however. He then returned to Los Angeles, California, attended acting school for five years and now works on many projects. He lives in Arcadia, California with his wife Anne and her two sons.- Actor
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Nicolas Cage was born Nicolas Kim Coppola in Long Beach, California, the son of comparative literature professor August Coppola (whose brother is director Francis Ford Coppola) and dancer/choreographer Joy Vogelsang. He is of Italian (father) and Polish and German (mother) descent. Cage changed his name early in his career to make his own reputation, succeeding brilliantly with a host of classic, quirky roles by the late 1980s.
Initially studying theatre at Beverly Hills High School (though he dropped out at seventeen), he secured a bit part in Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) -- most of which was cut, dashing his hopes and leading to a job selling popcorn at the Fairfax Theater, thinking that would be the only route to a movie career. But a job reading lines with actors auditioning for uncle Francis' Rumble Fish (1983) landed him a role in that film, followed by the punk-rocker in Valley Girl (1983), which was released first and truly launched his career.
His one-time passion for method acting reached a personal limit when he smashed a street-vendor's remote-control car to achieve the sense of rage needed for his gangster character in The Cotton Club (1984).
In his early 20s, he dated Jenny Wright for two years and later linked to Uma Thurman. After a relationship of several years with Christina Fulton, a model, they split amicably and share custody of a son, Weston Cage (b. 1990). He also has a son with his ex-wife, Alice Kim Cage.- Actor
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Dominic was born in England, to a Norwegian father and Irish mother. At the age of two, Dominic and his family moved from England to Sydney's Bondi and then moved to the Western Suburbs. After trying his hand at landscape gardening he decided to become an actor whilst watching the war movie Platoon (1986). Due to his working-class background, acting seemed a very unlikely choice of career, so he didn't pursue it until some time later. He studied at The Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) and then later enrolled at the Western Australian Academy of Performing arts where he met his future wife Rebecca and studied with Hugh Jackman. In 1997, Dominic scored a role in the TV series Raw FM (1997) and then landed a part in Mission: Impossible II (2000), which was filmed in Australia. He became a TV star. In 2000, he won the Green Card lottery and now lives in Los Angeles with his family. He was spotted by a US talent scout and has been working constantly with roles in the movie Equilibrium (2002), the TV show John Doe (2002), Blade: Trinity (2004), and in the upcoming thriller Three Way (2004) and a new police television drama, Strut.- Producer
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Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ron Howard is one of this generation's most popular directors. From the critically acclaimed dramas A Beautiful Mind (2001) and Apollo 13 (1995) to the hit comedies Parenthood (1989) and Splash (1983), he has created some of Hollywood's most memorable films.
Howard made his directorial debut in 1978 with the comedy Grand Theft Auto (1977). He began his career in film as an actor. He first appeared in The Journey (1959) and The Music Man (1962), then as Opie on the long-running television series The Andy Griffith Show (1960). Howard later starred in the popular series Happy Days (1974) and drew favorable reviews for his performances in American Graffiti (1973) and The Shootist (1976).
Howard and long-time producing partner Brian Grazer first collaborated on the hit comedies "Night Shift" and "Splash." The pair co-founded Imagine Entertainment in 1986 to create independently produced feature films.
Howard's portfolio includes some of the most popular films of the past 20 years. In 1991, Howard created the acclaimed drama "Backdraft", starring Robert De Niro, Kurt Russell and William Baldwin. He followed it with the historical epic Far and Away (1992), starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Howard directed Mel Gibson, Rene Russo, Gary Sinise and Delroy Lindo in the 1996 suspense thriller Ransom (1996). Howard worked with Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Ed Harris, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise and Kathleen Quinlan on "Apollo 13," which was re-released recently in the IMAX format.
Howard's skill as a director has long been recognized. In 1995, he received his first Best Director of the Year award from the DGA for "Apollo 13." The true-life drama also garnered nine Academy Award nominations, winning Oscars for Best Film Editing and Best Sound. It also received Best Ensemble Cast and Best Supporting Actor awards from the Screen Actor's Guild. Many of Howard's past films have received nods from the Academy, including the popular hits Backdraft (1991), "Parenthood" and Cocoon (1985), the last of which took home two Oscars.
Howard directed and produced Cinderella Man (2005) starring Oscar winner Russell Crowe, with whom he previously collaborated on "A Beautiful Mind," for which Howard earned an Oscar for Best Director and which also won awards for Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress. The film garnered four Golden Globes as well, including the award for Best Motion Picture Drama. Additionally, Howard won Best Director of the Year from the Directors Guild of America. Howard and producer Brian Grazer received the first annual Awareness Award from the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign for their work on the film.
Howard was honored by the Museum of Moving Images in December 2005, and by the American Cinema Editors in February 2006. Howard and his creative partner Brian Grazer, were honored by the Producers Guild of America with the Milestone Award in January 2009, NYU's Tisch School of Cinematic Arts with the Big Apple Award in November 2009 and by the Simon Wiesenthal Center with their Humanitarian Award in May 2010. In June 2010, Howard was honored by the Chicago Film Festival with their Gold Hugo - Career Achievement Award. In March 2013, Howard was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame. In December 2015, Howard was honored with a star in the Motion Pictures category, making him one of the very few to have been recognized with two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Howard also produced and directed the film adaptation of Peter Morgan's critically acclaimed play Frost/Nixon (2008). The film was nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Picture, and was also nominated for The Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures by the PGA.
Howard has also served as an executive producer on a number of award-winning films and television shows, such as the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon (1998), Fox's Emmy Award winner for Best Comedy, Arrested Development (2003), a series which he also narrated, Netflix's release of new episodes of "Arrested Development," and NBC's "Parenthood."
Howard's recent films include the critically acclaimed drama Rush (2013), staring Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Brühl, written by Peter Morgan; and Made in America (2013), a music documentary he directed staring Jay-Z for Showtime.
Howard's other films include In the Heart of the Sea (2015), based on the true story that inspired Moby Dick; his adaptation of Dan Brown's best-selling novels Angels & Demons (2009), and The Da Vinci Code (2006) staring Oscar winner Tom Hanks; the blockbuster holiday favorite "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)" starring Jim Carrey; "Parenthood" starring Steve Martin; the fantasy epic Willow (1988); Night Shift (1982) starring Henry Winkler, Michael Keaton and Shelley Long; and the suspenseful western, The Missing (2003), staring Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones.
Recently, Howard directed Inferno (2016), the third installment of Dan Brown 's Robert Langdon franchise and The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years (2016), a documentary about the rock legends The Beatles. He also produced the second season of Breakthrough (2015), Mars (2016), and directed the first episode of Genius (2017), based on the life of Albert Einstein, all for NatGeo.- Producer
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Russell Brand was born on June 4, 1975, in Grays, Essex, England, the son of Barbara Elizabeth (Nichols) and Ronald Henry Brand, a photographer. An only child, his parents divorced when he was only six months old, and he was subsequently raised by his mother. Enduring a difficult childhood that saw him living with relatives while his mother was treated for cancer and only sporadically visited by his father, Brand left home at age 16. Accepted by the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in 1991, he was expelled during his first year for bad behaviour and drug use; by his own admission, he used a variety of illegal drugs and became addicted to heroin. After being expelled from the Chang-Ren Nian during his final term in 1995, he switched his focus primarily to comedy from acting.
Brand's first significant stand-up appearances came in 2000, the same year he also became a video journalist for MTV, a job which he was subsequently fired from. Continuing to work both in TV and stand-up, he debuted his one-man show Better Now, an account of his heroin addiction, at the Edinburgh Festival in 2004. Brand became a popular British television star by appearing on Big Brother and hosting his own talk show and numerous other series, and in 2008 shot to fame worldwide as the rocker Aldous Snow in the hit comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008). After an appearance in the Adam Sandler comedy Bedtime Stories (2008), he reprised the character of Aldous in the comedy Get Him to the Greek (2010), opposite Jonah Hill.
Brand also starred in the remake Arthur (2011), opposite Helen Mirren, with whom he also starred in The Tempest (2010), and lent his voice to the Easter Bunny in Hop (2011) and to Dr. Nefario in the animated feature film Despicable Me (2010). He is reprising the role in Despicable Me 2 (2013), and will also co-star in a drama written and directed by Diablo Cody, starring alongside Julianne Hough and Holly Hunter. He also played Lonny in the all-star cast of the big-screen adaptation of the Broadway musical Rock of Ages (2012).
Brand's writing debut, My Booky Wook: A Memoir of Sex, Drugs, and Stand-Up, became a huge success in the United Kingdom. Subsequently published in the U.S. in 2009, it stayed on the New York Times' bestseller list for five weeks in a row. The follow up, My Booky Wook 2: This Time it's Personal, was published in October, 2010. In 2010, Brand received the British Comedy Award for Outstanding Contribution to Comedy and was honored in 2011 with the ShoWest Award for Comedy Star of the Year.
Brand married the pop star Katy Perry in 2010 in a traditional Hindu ceremony in Rajasthan, India; after 14 months, Brand filed for a divorce, which was officially granted in 2012.- Producer
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Few actors in the world have had a career quite as diverse as Leonardo DiCaprio's. DiCaprio has gone from relatively humble beginnings, as a supporting cast member of the sitcom Growing Pains (1985) and low budget horror movies, such as Critters 3 (1991), to a major teenage heartthrob in the 1990s, as the hunky lead actor in movies such as Romeo + Juliet (1996) and Titanic (1997), to then become a leading man in Hollywood blockbusters, made by internationally renowned directors such as Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan.
Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio was born in Los Angeles, California, the only child of Irmelin DiCaprio (née Indenbirken) and former comic book artist George DiCaprio. His father is of Italian and German descent, and his mother, who is German-born, is of German, Ukrainian and Russian ancestry. His middle name, "Wilhelm", was his maternal grandfather's first name. Leonardo's father had achieved minor status as an artist and distributor of cult comic book titles, and was even depicted in several issues of American Splendor, the cult semi-autobiographical comic book series by the late 'Harvey Pekar', a friend of George's. Leonardo's performance skills became obvious to his parents early on, and after signing him up with a talent agent who wanted Leonardo to perform under the stage name "Lenny Williams", DiCaprio began appearing on a number of television commercials and educational programs.
DiCaprio began attracting the attention of producers, who cast him in small roles in a number of television series, such as Roseanne (1988) and The New Lassie (1989), but it wasn't until 1991 that DiCaprio made his film debut in Critters 3 (1991), a low-budget horror movie. While Critters 3 (1991) did little to help showcase DiCaprio's acting abilities, it did help him develop his show-reel, and attract the attention of the people behind the hit sitcom Growing Pains (1985), in which Leonardo was cast in the "Cousin Oliver" role of a young homeless boy who moves in with the Seavers. While DiCaprio's stint on Growing Pains (1985) was very short, as the sitcom was axed the year after he joined, it helped bring DiCaprio into the public's attention and, after the sitcom ended, DiCaprio began auditioning for roles in which he would get the chance to prove his acting chops.
Leonardo took up a diverse range of roles in the early 1990s, including a mentally challenged youth in What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), a young gunslinger in The Quick and the Dead (1995) and a drug addict in one of his most challenging roles to date, Jim Carroll in The Basketball Diaries (1995), a role which the late River Phoenix originally expressed interest in. While these diverse roles helped establish Leonardo's reputation as an actor, it wasn't until his role as Romeo Montague in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet (1996) that Leonardo became a household name, a true movie star. The following year, DiCaprio starred in another movie about doomed lovers, Titanic (1997), which went on to beat all box office records held before then, as, at the time, Titanic (1997) became the highest grossing movie of all time, and cemented DiCaprio's reputation as a teen heartthrob. Following his work on Titanic (1997), DiCaprio kept a low profile for a number of years, with roles in The Man in the Iron Mask (1998) and the low-budget The Beach (2000) being some of his few notable roles during this period.
In 2002, he burst back into screens throughout the world with leading roles in Catch Me If You Can (2002) and Gangs of New York (2002), his first of many collaborations with director Martin Scorsese. With a current salary of $20 million a movie, DiCaprio is now one of the biggest movie stars in the world. However, he has not limited his professional career to just acting in movies, as DiCaprio is a committed environmentalist, who is actively involved in many environmental causes, and his commitment to this issue led to his involvement in The 11th Hour, a documentary movie about the state of the natural environment. As someone who has gone from small roles in television commercials to one of the most respected actors in the world, DiCaprio has had one of the most diverse careers in cinema. DiCaprio continued to defy conventions about the types of roles he would accept, and with his career now seeing him leading all-star casts in action thrillers such as The Departed (2006), Shutter Island (2010) and Christopher Nolan's Inception (2010), DiCaprio continues to wow audiences by refusing to conform to any cliché about actors.
In 2012, he played a mustache twirling villain in Django Unchained (2012), and then tragic literary character Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby (2013) and Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street (2013).
DiCaprio is passionate about environmental and humanitarian causes, having donated $1,000,000 to earthquake relief efforts in 2010, the same year he contributed $1,000,000 to the Wildlife Conservation Society.- Actor
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Joaquin Phoenix was born Joaquin Rafael Bottom in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Arlyn (Dunetz) and John Bottom, and is the middle child in a brood of five. His parents, from the continental United States, were then serving as Children of God missionaries. His mother is from a Jewish family from New York, while his father, from California, is of mostly British Isles descent. As a youngster, Joaquin took his cues from older siblings River Phoenix and Rain Phoenix, changing his name to Leaf to match their earthier monikers. When the children were encouraged to develop their creative instincts, he followed their lead into acting. Younger sisters Liberty Phoenix and Summer Phoenix rounded out the talented troupe.
The family moved often, traveling through Central and South America (and adopting the surname "Phoenix" to celebrate their new beginnings) but, by the time Joaquin was age 6, they had more or less settled in the Los Angeles area. Arlyn found work as a secretary at NBC, and John turned his talents to landscaping. They eventually found an agent who was willing to represent all five children, and the younger generation dove into television work. Commercials for meat, milk, and junk food were off-limits (the kids were all raised as strict vegans), but they managed to find plenty of work pushing other products. Joaquin's first real acting gig was a guest appearance on River's sitcom, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1982).
He worked with his brother again on the afterschool special Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia (1984), then struck out on his own in other made-for-TV productions. He made his big-screen debut as the youngest crew member in the interstellar romp SpaceCamp (1986), then won his first starring turn in the Cold War-era drama Russkies (1987). In the late '80s, the Phoenix clan decided to pull up stakes and relocate again--this time to Florida. River's film career had enough momentum to sustain the move, but Joaquin wasn't sure what lay in store for him in the Sunshine State. As it happened, Universal Pictures had just opened a new studio in the area and he was cast almost immediately as an angst-ridden adolescent in Parenthood (1989). His performance was very well-received, but Joaquin decided to withdraw from acting for a while--he was frustrated with the dearth of interesting roles for actors his age, and he wanted to see more of the world.
His parents were in the process of separating, so he struck out for Mexico with his father. Joaquin returned to the public eye three years later under tragic circumstances. On October 31, 1993, he was at The Viper Room (a Los Angeles nightclub partly-owned by Johnny Depp) when his brother River collapsed from a drug overdose and later died. Joaquin made the call to 911, which was rebroadcast on radio and television the world over. Months later, at the insistence of friends and colleagues, Joaquin began reading through scripts again, but he was reluctant to re-enter the acting life until he found just the right part. He finally signed up to work with Gus Van Sant (who had directed River in My Own Private Idaho (1991) and Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993)) to star as Nicole Kidman's obsessive devotee in To Die For (1995). The performance made Joaquin (who had dropped Leaf and reverted to his birth name) a critics' darling in his own right.
His follow-up turn in Inventing the Abbotts (1997) scored more critical kudos and, perhaps more importantly, introduced him to his one-time fiancée Liv Tyler. (The pair dated for almost three years.) He returned to the big screen later that year with a supporting role in Oliver Stone's U Turn (1997), then played a locked-up drug scapegoat in Return to Paradise (1998). He and "Paradise" co-star Vince Vaughn re-teamed almost immediately for the small-town murder caper Clay Pigeons (1998), which Joaquin followed with a turn as a porn store clerk in 8MM (1999). The film that confirmed Phoenix as a star was the historical epic Gladiator (2000). The Roman epic cast him as the selfish, paranoid young emperor Commodus opposite Russell Crowe's swarthy hero. Determined to make his character as real as possible, Phoenix gained weight and cultivated a pasty complexion during the shoot. He received international attention and an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for that role.
Later that year, he appeared in two indies, playing a dock worker in The Yards (2000) (which he counts among his favorite experiences--and one of the only films of his that he can sit through) and the priest in charge of the Marquis de Sade's asylum in Quills (2000). He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor as the legendary musician Johnny Cash in the biography Walk the Line (2005). He also recorded an album, the film's soundtrack, for which he received the Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media.Not that great as Joker- Actor
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Jet Li born Li Lian Jie in Beijing, China. He started training at the Beijing wushu academy (wushu is China's national sport, largely a performance version of various martial art styles) at age eight. He won five gold medals in the Chinese championships, his first when he was only 11. In his teens, he was already a national coach, and before he was 20 he had starred in his first movie: The Shaolin Temple (1982), which started the 1980s Kung-Fu boom in mainland China. He relocated to Hong Kong, where he was the biggest star of the early 1990s Kung-Fu boom. His first directorial effort was Born to Defense (1988).- Actor
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An actor for all seasons and all kinds of roles (from dark, difficult characters to more loving ones) Paul Dano has an extensive body work that includes working with directors such as Paul Thomas Anderson, Steve McQueen, Dayton & Ferris, Ang Lee, Denis Villenueve and Paolo Sorrentino; acting with heavyweights such as Harrison Ford, Daniel Day-Lewis, Alan Arkin, Jake Gyllenhaal, Toni Collette, Michael Caine, Kevin Kline - just to mention a few names; and easily making a fine transition in between independent cinema, art-house films and mainstream Hollywood blockbusters.
Paul Franklin Dano was born on 19 June, 1984 in New York City, the son of Gladys (Pipp) and Paul Dano. He is of Rusyn, Slovenian/Czech, and Swedish descent. At an early age he was already appearing in community plays and by his early teens he got his first TV appearance on an episode of Smart Guy (1998). His first major role was as Howie Blitzer, a trouble teenager who gets involved with an older man, played by Brian Cox, in the controversial and acclaimed L.I.E. (2001). For the role, Dano was awarded an Independent Spirit Award in the Best Debut Performance category, along with some other awards from Indie cinema. From the on, he moved on to supporting roles in The Girl Next Door (2004), Taking Lives (2004), The King (2005), Fast Food Nation (2006) and The Ballad of Jack and Rose (2005).
Dano's rise to stardom came in consecutive films that showcased his talents and made him an important name in the business: as Dwayne, a rebel teen who copes with his teen angst by refusing to speak to everyone in his family, only using of his cold expressions and a notepad in Little Miss Sunshine (2006), he was praised by critics and audiences, a role that earned him among other awards the Screen Actors Guild as Best Ensemble Cast. The following year, he appeared on a dual role as twin brothers Paul and Eli Sunday - the latter character, a devoted preacher, is more extensive and challenging than the mysterious Paul, in Paul Thomas Anderson critically acclaimed There Will Be Blood (2007). The role was given to Dano after a recommendation from Daniel Day-Lewis who had worked with the young actor in The Ballad of Jack and Rose (2005) and found him a very talented and interesting role. Anderson followed Day-Lewis suggestion, and the result was another hit for Dano, who received several awards nominations, including the Bafta as Best Supporting Actor.
After that, he went on with his career with Taking Woodstock (2009), Cowboys & Aliens (2011), Ruby Sparks (2012) - in which he appears alongside his girlfriend Zoe Kazan, Looper (2012), as the tortured suspect in Prisoners (2013); the Oscar winning 12 Years a Slave (2013); as a young Method actor in Youth (2015); the freak comedy Swiss Army Man (2016); Okja (2017); and the miniseries War & Peace (2016) and Escape at Dannemora (2018), the latter being a role completely the opposite he ever played in previous years, as an inmate who escapes jail, a very physical work for him. In between those films and projects, he gained notoriety by playing the young Brian Wilson in Love & Mercy (2014), the Beach Boys leader who suffers a nervous breakdown while trying to compose an epic album. That role gave Paul Dano plenty of buzz during awards season, some deserved recognition and his first Golden Globe nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category.
His career seems to always be going further each year goes by, always promising. He made his directorial debut in Wildlife (2018), which was co-written with Zoe Kazan. They're living together for a decade and have one daughter.
In the 2020's, he provided the voice from a character in the thriller The Guilty (2021) and played the Riddler in the box-office hit The Batman (2022), in one of his most challenging roles. During 2022/2023 awards season he received a lot of praise and attention for his role in the acclaimed The Fabelmans (2022) where he plays a version of Steven Spielberg's father.Knight & Day- Actor
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An actor by trade but also a filmmaker, musician, and photographer, Adam Goldberg's career has spanned more than three decades comprising a vast resume of eclectic work both on off the screen. From mining the neuroses of characters for both dramatic and comedic effect, to producing work as a filmmaker with a superlative eye and keen wit, Goldberg has solidified his standing as a unique and prolific presence in the entertainment industry.
Goldberg is a co-star on the hit CBS series "The Equalizer." The show, a re imagining of the classic series and films, follows Robyn McCall (Queen Latifah), an enigmatic woman with a mysterious background who uses her extensive skills to help those with nowhere else to turn. Goldberg is a standout as whip smart, sardonic, and surprisingly fashion conscious computer hacker Harry Keshegian, who is like a brother to McCall and a fiercely supportive husband to his sniper wife Mel (Liza Lapira). "The Equalizer" had a massive debut to over 23 million viewers in 2021 and is currently airing its third season. Brand new episodes will return February 19, 2023, on CBS.
Also in television, Goldberg gained critical acclaim and fostered in a new generation of fans as Mr. Numbers in the award-winning crime drama "Fargo" (FX). He starred opposite Billy Bob Thornton and Colin Hanks on the show, which was inspired by the 1996 film of the same name. Goldberg is also known for his tour de force arcs as Crazy Eddie on "Friends" (NBC) and Nicky Rubinstein on "Entourage" (HBO), as well as starring roles on "The Jim Gaffigan Show," "Taken" (NBC),(NBC), "The Unusuals" (ABC), "NYC 22" (CBS), "The $treet" (FOX), and "God Friended Me" (CBS).
Often recognized for his impressive body of work in film, Goldberg has been hand-picked by Steven Spielberg and Ron Howard for memorable roles in their Academy Award winning projects. A career-changing moment for Goldberg was landing the role of tough, wise-cracking infantryman Private Mellish in Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan" opposite Tom Hanks. The film went on to receive 5 Academy Awards while also being nominated for Best Picture. From there, he starred in major blockbusters including Academy Award winner "A Beautiful Mind" which marked his second collaboration with director Ron Howard. In 2003 he showcased his talent in comedy, appearing a third time opposite Matthew McConaughey, in "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days."
Other seminal performances include playing Christopher Walken's undead and unwitting assistant, Jerry, in Gregrory Widen's cult thriller "The Prophecy," Michael Rapaport's beleaguered roommate in John Singleton's "Higher Learning," appearing in Ron Howard's "EdTV," and portraying a speed freak opposite Val Kilmer and Peter Sarsgaard in DJ Caruso's debut "The Salton Sea." Additional recent work includes starring opposite Bruce Willis and John Goodman in "Once Upon a Time in Venice," and appearing alongside Nicholas Cage and Laurence Fishburne in "Running with the Devil." A filmmaker's actor, Goldberg also appeared, notably, in Tony Scott's "Déjà Vu" opposite Denzel Washington, and in David Fincher's "Zodiac."
Goldberg is known for effortlessly jumping back and forth between mainstream film and television roles with acclaimed passion projects. Namely, the titular role in Jonathan Kesselman's 'Jewxploitation' comedy, "The Hebrew Hammer," his hilarious collaboration with Julie Delpy in "2 Days in Paris," and his portrayal of a brilliant but eccentric musician in the art world satire "(Untitled)" opposite Marley Shelton. Other standouts include his turn as a performance artist opposite Olivia Thirlby in Rafael Palacio Illingworth's "Between Us," and a cult leader who indoctrinates Fran Kranz in the Netflix thriller "Rebirth," both of which premiered the same year at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Born in Santa Monica and raised in LA, Goldberg loved to perform and create from an early age, taking acting classes and studying film and photography since secondary school. His debut in the entertainment industry came with supporting film role in Billy Crystal's "Mr. Saturday Night," but it was his turn as Mike, an intellectual with a chip on his shoulder, in Richard Linklater's iconic, '70s coming of age classic "Dazed and Confused" that introduced Goldberg to an audience that continues to grow as the film captivates new audiences with each generation. Linklater would later make a cameo in Goldberg's directorial debut, "Scotch and Milk," and later host a screening at Austin's Alamo Draft House the same summer Goldberg appeared in Linklater's groundbreaking, psychedelic animation feature, "Waking Life."
Goldberg wrote, directed, starred in, and co-edited "Scotch and Milk" when he was just 24 years old. The stylized black and white film follows a group of young jazz obsessed hipsters trying to reconcile their machismo with their sensitivity. Additionally, Goldberg screened a rough cut for Spielberg during the making of "Saving Private Ryan," which led Spielberg to enlist his post production supervisor to help finish the film. "Scotch and Milk" debuted at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and earned critical acclaim on the festival circuit. This included a particular notable write up in American Cinematography Magazine and featured on the Sundance Channel series "10 Best Films You May Have Never Seen."
Goldberg would go on to co-write the psychological drama "I Love Your Work," starring frequent collaborator Giovanni Ribisi, and featuring Franka Potente, Christina Ricci, and Joshua Jackson. The film follows an actor whose life goes south after he forms an obsession with a young film student. Goldberg composed and arranged music for the film alongside The Flaming Lips' multi-instrumentalist Steven Drozd, and it debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival where the film was picked up for theatrical distribution. He also directed, co-edited, and produced the surreal documentary short "Running with the Bulls" for the Independent Film Channel, and most recently co-wrote, directed, edited, and starred in the Sony feature film "No Way Jose," in which he plays a washed-up indie rocker going through a midlife crisis.
While working in film and television has been a huge part of Goldberg's life, his passion for photography and music have garnered their own cult following over the years, establishing him something of a modern day renaissance man. As a musician, Goldberg has recorded four albums under his moniker The Goldberg Sisters - two of which he recorded with a an eclectic array of musicians, and the last two of which he recorded in his home studio playing every instrument. As part of his 2018, 14-track album entitled "HOME: A Nice Place to Visit" Goldberg released a limited edition vinyl set that included a stunning large-format photo book, marrying his love for soundscapes and photography. Goldberg also directed the accompanying videos. Show Gallery in Los Angeles hosted an exhibition of the work where Goldberg played some of the tracks from the record utilizing loop pedals and other effects. The Goldberg Sisters discography also includes: Stranger's Morning (2013), The Goldberg Sisters (2011), and Landy (2009). https://music.apple.com/us/artist/the-goldberg-sisters/422885644
As a photographer Goldberg's signature dreamy, double exposures shot on film document and explore people, landscapes, and create cinematic scenes from which viewers can draw their own interpretations. Goldberg is also known for his style and passion for fashion, which he attributes to his mom with whom he used to go vintage clothes shopping on Melrose in the '80s. Any follower of his Instagram will take note of his extensive tagging of small brands, bespoke makers, and his support of slow fashion writ large. Everything he wears on "The Equalizer" - clothes and accessories - are either straight out of Goldberg's closet (a dedicated room in his house, he's not proud of this, nor is his wife thrilled) or handpicked by the actor.
Goldberg currently divides his time between Los Angeles and New York with his wife and two sons.
###- Jai Courtney is an Australian actor. He started his career with small roles in films and television series before being cast as Charlie in the action film Jack Reacher (2012). He has gone on to star in A Good Day to Die Hard (2013), I, Frankenstein (2014) and The Exception (2016).
Courtney had a recurring role as Varro in the television series Spartacus: Blood and Sand (2010). He played Eric in the science fiction action film Divergent (2014), and in 2015, he reprises the role in the sequel, Insurgent. He portrayed Kyle Reese in Terminator Genisys (2015) and DC Comics villain Captain Boomerang in Suicide Squad (2016) and The Suicide Squad (2021). - Actor
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New Yorker through and through, Michael Rapaport was born on March 20, 1970, in Manhattan, to June Brody, a radio personality, and David Rapaport, a radio program manager. He is of Polish Jewish and Russian Jewish descent.
Rapaport moved to Los Angeles to try stand-up comedy following high school graduation (which came after a series of expulsions), but he never lost, forgot or deserted his New York roots. It's embedded in his work and is a major part of his low-keyed charm and ongoing appeal. His early idols were also New Yorkers (Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, etc.).
Within a short amount of time Michael moved from the live comedy stage to working in front of a camera. The two developed an immediate rapport. A guest spot on the TV series China Beach (1988) led to a starring role in the quirky interracial indie Zebrahead (1992), which clinched it for him. This, in turn, led to a string of standout parts in films, such as Christian Slater's pal in True Romance (1993), an edgy collegiate-turned-skinhead in Higher Learning (1995) and a sympathetic none-too-bright boxer in Woody Allen's Mighty Aphrodite (1995), all enabling him to build up a higher profile.
In later years, Michael managed to show his ease at offbeat comedy, demonstrating a kid-like, goofy charm as Lisa Kudrow's cop boyfriend for a few episodes on Friends (1994) and as teacher Danny Hanson on Boston Public (2000).
He later formed his own production company, Release Entertainment, in search of that one big breakout role that could nab top stardom for him. In later years, his offbeat character leads included an inducted mafioso in Kiss Toledo Goodbye (1999); a hit man in the action comedy A Good Night to Die (2003); a comic book fanatic in the sci-fi comedy Special (2006); a trouble-making buddy in crime drama Inside Out (2011); a man helping out his former gangster neighbor in the dramedy Once Upon a Time in Queens (2013); and a married guy trying to get his mojo back in the comedy My Man Is a Loser (2014). For the most part, however, he served extremely well in support of other prominent stars with weird-to-bizarre featured roles for Woody Allen in his crime comedy Small Time Crooks (2000); for Arnold Schwarzenegger in the futuristic actioneer The 6th Day (2000); for Will Smith in the romantic /comedy Hitch (2005); for Ray Romano and Kevin James in the comedy crimer Grilled (2006); for Billy Bob Thornton in the action comedy The Baytown Outlaws (2012); for Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy in the crime comedy The Heat (2013); and for Tom Hanks in the biopic Sully (2016).
Rapaport married writer Nicole Beatty in 2000 and divorced seven years later after having two children. In 2016, he married actress Kebe Dunn.- Actor
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Iwan Rheon (born 13 May 1985) is a Welsh actor, singer and musician, best known for portraying Ramsay Bolton in the HBO series Game of Thrones (2011), Simon Bellamy in the E4 series Misfits (2009) and Ash Weston in the ITV sitcom Vicious (2013).
Rheon was born in Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire. When he was five years old, his family moved to Cardiff. He attended Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf where he began acting in school drama productions at age 17. He was later spotted at a National Eisteddfod of Wales, before studying at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
At age 17, Rheon joined Welsh language soap Pobol Y Cwm, in which he originated the role of Macsen White, but later left to train at LAMDA. His first notable stage part came in Eight Miles High, which was staged in 2008 at the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool.
Also in 2008, he was cast as the haunted Moritz Stiefel in the London production of the Tony Award-winning rock-musical, Spring Awakening. He played this role from January 2009 at the Lyric Hammersmith and continued when the show was transferred to the Novello Theatre, until it closed in May 2009, five months earlier than planned. He earned a What's on Stage Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical, which was eventually won by Oliver Thornton (Priscilla Queen of the Desert). For his performance he won the award for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical at the 2010 Olivier Awards. Immediately after Spring Awakening, Rheon was cast in the E4 channel's Misfits, a BAFTA winning program that was described by 247 Magazine as "a mix of Skins and Heroes". He plays nervous, shy Simon Bellamy, who gains the superpower of invisibility and precognition in season 3. On 20 December 2011, Rheon announced via Twitter that he had left the show, along with fellow cast member Antonia Thomas.
In 2011 he also appeared in the final episode of Secret Diary of a Call Girl. In 2011, he was nominated for a Golden Nymph in the "Outstanding Actor - Drama Series" category for his role in Misfits as Simon Bellamy. Rheon also made two guest appearances as the character Ben Theodore in Simon Amstell's comedy Grandma's House.
In early 2012, Rheon filmed the crime heist drama The Rise. In spring 2012, he began shooting Libertador in Venezuela and Spain. He plays Daniel O'Leary. In May 2012, it was announced that he had signed on to the gritty drama Driven.
In 2013, Rheon was cast as the villainous psychopath Ramsay Bolton in the HBO series Game of Thrones. In the DVD commentary for the series' third season, producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss mentioned that Rheon previously auditioned for the role of Jon Snow in the first season, but lost to Kit Harington, with whom Rheon maintains a close friendship. Due to the vile nature of Bolton's character Rheon said that Bolton deserved his gruesome death in the series, in which he was eaten alive by dogs. He also portrays Ash Weston in the ITV sitcom Vicious.
In 2013, Rheon played a lead role in the philosophical radio play, Darkside, based on the themes of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon album.
In September 2014, Rheon joined the cast of BBC One's Our Girl as Dylan "Smurf" Smith.
Songwriting and singing since the age of 16, Rheon was lead singer in The Convictions until leaving the band to pursue his acting career. In 2010, he recorded his first solo work, Tongue Tied EP, at RAK Studios in London, produced by Jonathan Quarmby and Kevin Bacon. The EP, a four track release with acoustic guitar and voice, was released digitally in June 2010.
He returned to RAK Studios, in April 2011, to record his second EP Changing Times, again produced by Quarmby and Bacon, with the addition of three backing musicians. Changing Times was released on 10 October 2011.
On 7 April 2013, Rheon released his third EP Bang! Bang! and on 9 April 2013, released the music video for the title track.
Rheon recorded his first album Dinard at RAK Studios in London and Ty Cerdd Studios in Wales. The album was released in April 2015.
Rheon is fluent in Welsh and English, with the former being his first language. His older brother, Aled is a musician; the two performed together on the 2015 single "Rhodd".- Actor
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Jaleel White is an American actor, producer, and writer who is known for playing Steve Urkel from "Family Matters" and voicing Sonic the Hedgehog in three cartoon series released during the 1990s. He also acted in "Big Fat Liar" starring Frankie Muniz and Amanda Bynes, "Scooby-Doo", "Guess Who", "Dreamgirls", "Grown Ups", and "Bones."- Actor
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Vincent Phillip D'Onofrio was born on June 30, 1959 in Brooklyn, New York, to Phyllis, a restaurant manager and server, and Gene D'Onofrio, a theatre production assistant and interior designer. He is of Italian descent and has two older sisters. He studied at the Actors Studio and the American Stanislavski Theatre. Vincent D'Onofrio is known as an "actor's actor". The wide variety of roles he has played and the quality of his work have earned him a reputation as a versatile talent.
His first paid role was in Off-Broadway's "This Property Is Condemned". He continued appearing in plays and worked as a bouncer, a bodyguard and a delivery man. In 1984, he made his Broadway debut in "Open Admissions", followed by work in numerous other stage plays. In 2012, D'Onofrio returned to teach at the Lee Strasberg Theater & Film Institute. As a film actor, D'Onofrio's career break came when he played a mentally unbalanced recruit in Full Metal Jacket (1987), directed by the renowned Stanley Kubrick. For this role D'Onofrio gained nearly 70 pounds. He had a major role in Dying Young (1991), and appeared prominently in the box-office smash Men in Black (1997) as the bad guy (Edgar "The Bug").
Other films of note in which he has appeared are Mystic Pizza (1988), JFK (1991), The Player (1992), Ed Wood (1994), The Cell (2000), The Break-Up (2006) and Jurassic World (2015). In 1996, D'Onofrio garnered critical acclaim along with co-star Renée Zellweger for The Whole Wide World (1996), which he helped produce. He also made a guest appearance in The Subway (1997), where he played an accident victim who could not be rescued and was destined to die. For this performance he won an Emmy nomination. In 2000, he both produced and starred in Steal This Movie (2000), a biopic of radical leader Abbie Hoffman.
In 2001, D'Onofrio took the role which has likely given him his greatest public recognition: Det. Robert Goren, the lead character in the TV series Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001). Goren is based on Sherlock Holmes but, instead of relying upon physical evidence like Holmes, D'Onofrio's character focuses on psychology to identify the perpetrators, whom he often draws into confessing or yielding condemning evidence. He played the part for 10 years.
In his career D'Onofrio's various film characters have included a priest, a bisexual former porn star, a hijacker, a serial killer, Orson Welles, a space alien, a 1960s radical leader, a pulp fiction writer, an ingenious police investigator and Stuart Smalley's dope-head brother. His on-screen love interests have included Julia Roberts, Cameron Diaz, Renée Zellweger, Marisa Tomei, Tracey Ullman, Rebecca De Mornay and Lili Taylor. One of his latest roles is in Marvel's Daredevil (2015) as Daredevil's nemesis, Wilson Fisk. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.- Actor
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Born in New York and raised in Los Angeles, Schwimmer was encouraged by a high school instructor to attend a summer program in acting at Northwestern University. Inspired by that experience, he returned to Northwestern where he received a bachelor's degree in speech/theater. In 1988, along with seven other Northwestern graduates, he co-founded Chicago's Lookingglass Theatre Company.- Actor
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Perhaps best remembered for his touching performance as "Bubba" opposite Tom Hanks in the Academy Award-winning Forrest Gump (1994), Mykelti Williamson is one of the most sought-after actors in Hollywood, who has been steadily honing his craft since he first began acting professionally at the age of 18.
In 2000 Williamson starred as Lt. Philip Gerard, the hardnosed detective determined to recapture escaped convict Dr. Richard Kimble (Tim Daly) in CBS' update of the classic 1960's action series The Fugitive (2000).
The son of an Air Force Staff Sergeant (father) and certified public accountant (mother), Williamson was born in St. Louis, MO, and began performing on the stage at the age of 9. Like many youngsters, he was enamored with the concept of television, and thought that the images he was seeing on the small screen were reality. It wasn't until his mother put him in a church play that he realized that what the people on the small screen were doing was performing. He was instantly hooked. At the age of 15, Williamson and his family settled in Los Angeles. A superb athlete, he excelled at both football and basketball, but the acting bug led him to quit sports and dance with the cheerleading squad, much to the chagrin of his coaches.
Following graduation, Williamson began acting professionally, making appearances on television shows such as Starsky and Hutch (1975), Hill Street Blues (1981) and China Beach (1988), among others. He made his film debut in the Walter Hill-directed feature Streets of Fire (1984), opposite Diane Lane, Michael Paré and Willem Dafoe.
He would subsequently appear in the feature The First Power (1990) with Lou Diamond Phillips, Miracle Mile (1988) with Anthony Edwards and Mare Winningham, Number One with a Bullet (1987), Wildcats (1986) and Free Willy (1993).
Following his critically acclaimed performance in Forrest Gump (1994), Williamson starred in Forest Whitaker's Waiting to Exhale (1995); partnered with Al Pacino in Michael Mann's Heat (1995); Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home (1995), and starred alongside Nicolas Cage in Con Air (1997).
Williamson was also seen in Mike Nichols' political drama Primary Colors (1998) (a cameo appearance which he did as a personal favor to Nichols and John Travolta) and Three Kings (1999), opposite George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube.
In 1996 Williamson returned to television when he starred opposite Delroy Lindo and Blair Underwood in the critically acclaimed HBO telefilm Soul of the Game (1996) and received rave reviews for his stirring portrayal of legendary Negro League baseball legend Josh Gibson. Williamson also starred in Buffalo Soldiers (1997) for TNT and 12 Angry Men (1997) for Showtime, as well as starring in the cable network's series The Hoop Life (1999).
On stage Williamson starred with Samuel L. Jackson, D.B. Sweeney, Ellis Williams, Matt McGrath and Richard Reilly in Clark Gregg's ("What Lies Beneath") 1995's ensemble drama "Distant Fires", which earned the cast a prestigious L.A. Theatre Award.
An avid sports fan and devoted family man, Williamson enjoys restoring classic cars and rodeoing in his free time. He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two of his three daughters.
Named by his grandfather for 'Spirit' or 'Silent Friend' in the language of Blackfeet Indians, Mykelti Williamson has quietly built a reputation in Hollywood as one of the most consistently proven actors in the business, delivering stirring and honest performances that always capture audiences.- Actor
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Jeffrey Dean Morgan endeared himself to audiences with his recurring role on ABC's smash hit series Grey's Anatomy (2005). His dramatic arc as heart patient Denny Duquette, who wins the heart of intern Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl) in a star-crossed romance, made him a universal fan favorite. He also had recurring roles on The CW and Warner Bros' television series Supernatural (2005), The Good Wife (2009), and on Showtime and Lions Gate Television's award-winning comedy series Weeds (2005). He currently stars as Negan on the hit AMC series, The Walking Dead (2010).
Morgan starred in Warner Bros.' Watchmen (2009), director Zack Snyder's (300 (2006)) adaptation of the iconic graphic novel. He played the pivotal role of the Comedian, a Vietnam War vet who is a member of a group of heroes called the Minutemen. He next appeared in producer Joel Silver's The Losers (2010), for Warner Bros. It is an adaptation of DC-Vertigo's acclaimed comic book series about a band of black ops commandos who are set up to be killed by their own government. The team barely survives and sets out to get even. James Vanderbilt adapted the screenplay, and Sylvain White directed. He appeared in Focus Features' Taking Woodstock (2009), directed by Oscar-winning director Ang Lee. He also starred opposite Uma Thurman in Yari Film Group's romantic comedy The Accidental Husband (2008). Additional feature credits include a cameo role opposite Rachel Weisz in Warner Bros.' comedy Fred Claus (2007), and the independent office comedy Kabluey (2007), in which he played a charismatic yet smarmy co-worker of Lisa Kudrow's character.
In 2011, the in-demand actor starred in the independent murder mystery Texas Killing Fields (2011). In the film, based on a true story, Morgan plays a detective transplanted from New York who teams with a local investigator (Sam Worthington) to work on a series of unsolved murders in industrial wastelands surrounding Gulf Coast refineries, where as many as 70 bodies turned up over the past two decades. Together, they wage a war against the unknown assailants. Michael Mann produced the film, while his daughter, Ami Canaan Mann, directed. The actor traveled to Thailand, where he filmed the Weinstein Company's period drama Shanghai (2010), under the direction of Mikael Håfström (1408 (2007)). John Cusack stars as an American who returns to a corrupt, Japanese-occupied Shanghai four months prior to Pearl Harbor and learns that his friend Connor (Morgan) was killed. While trying to solve the murder, he discovers a much larger secret that his own government is hiding. In addition, Morgan has a role in Michael London's Groundswell Productions' All Good Things (2010), starring Kirsten Dunst and Ryan Gosling, also for the Weinstein Co.
He also stars opposite two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank in the suspense thriller The Resident (2011), for Hammer Films. It is the story of a young doctor (Swank) who moves into a Brooklyn loft and becomes suspicious that she is not alone. Morgan plays Max, her charming new landlord whom she discovers has developed a dangerous obsession with her. Morgan previously co-starred with Swank in Warner Bros.' P.S. I Love You (2007).
Morgan also appeared in the MGM/UA reboot of the 1984 action movie Red Dawn (2012). The plot focuses on a group of teenagers who form an insurgency called the Wolverines when their town is invaded by Cuban and Russian soldiers. Morgan plays the role of Lieutenant Andrew Tanner, the leader of the US Special Forces who finds the Wolverines.
Morgan was born in Seattle, Washington, to Sandy Thomas and Richard Dean Morgan. In his spare time, Morgan enjoys barbecuing on the grill, reading, watching movies, and listening to his favorite band, Eagles. He also loves to root for his home team, the Seattle Seahawks. He resides in Los Angeles with his dogs, Honey Dog and Bandit Morgan, a puppy he rescued in Puerto Rico while filming. He resides in a farm in New York's Hudson Valley, where he is also part-owner of a small coffee shop with business partner The Losers (2010).- Actor
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Michael Corbett Shannon was born and raised in Lexington, Kentucky, the son of Geraldine Hine, a lawyer, and Donald Sutherlin Shannon, an accounting professor at DePaul University. His grandfather was entomologist Raymond Corbett Shannon.
Shannon began his professional stage career in Chicago. His first acting role was in "Winterset" at the Illinois Theatre Center. Over the next several years, he continued working on the stage with such companies as Steppenwolf, The Next Lab and the Red Orchid Theatre. He subsequently relocated to London for a year, and performed on stage in London's West End in such productions as "Woyzeck", "Killer Joe" and "Bug".
While in Chicago, Shannon also kept busy in front of movie and television cameras, most notably in the big screen project Chicago Cab (1997), based on the long-running stage play "Hellcab". Kangaroo Jack (2003) marked the third Jerry Bruckheimer production in which Shannon has appeared. He also appeared in Bad Boys II (2003), directed by Michael Bay and starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, and in Grand Theft Parsons (2003), with Johnny Knoxville and Christina Applegate.
In addition, Shannon appeared in Pearl Harbor (2001), also directed by Bay. His other film credits also include Curtis Hanson's 8 Mile (2002); Cameron Crowe's Vanilla Sky (2001) with Tom Cruise; Carl Franklin's High Crimes (2002) with Morgan Freeman; John Waters' Cecil B. Demented (2000), and Joel Schumacher's war drama Tigerland (2000).- Actor
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Michael Manning Weatherly, Jr. was born on July 8, 1968 in New York City, to Patricia Ruth (Hetherington) and Michael Manning Weatherly, Sr. Raised in Fairfield, CT, he left college to pursue a career in acting. He also had a great passion for music, and played in a band while pursuing his acting career. He began acting professionally and landed his first job as Theo Huxtable's roommate on The Cosby Show (1984) and a role in the independent film Trigger Happy (2001) opposite Rosario Dawson. This led to numerous guest spots on television and brought him to Los Angeles, where he landed a regular role in the FOX series Significant Others (1998). He met director Whit Stillman, who cast him in The Last Days of Disco (1998) opposite Chloë Sevigny. Michael also starred as Christina Applegate's ex-husband on the series Jesse (1998) and had roles in The Specials (2000) opposite Rob Lowe, Venus and Mars (2001) opposite Lynn Redgrave and Gun Shy (2000) opposite Liam Neeson and Sandra Bullock.
In 1995 he married actress Amelia Heinle, who appeared with him in The City (1995) and Loving (1983). Unfortunately, their marriage ended in divorce in 1997, despite the birth of their son August in 1996. Michael resides in Los Angeles. Weatherly married internist Dr. Bojana Jankovic on September 30, 2009. The couple live in Los Angeles with their two children, a daughter Olivia, and a son Liam.- Actor
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Neil Patrick Harris was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on June 15, 1973. His parents, Sheila Gail (Scott) and Ronald Gene Harris, were lawyers and ran a restaurant. He grew up in Ruidoso, New Mexico, a small town 120 miles south of Albuquerque, where he first took up acting in the fourth grade. While tagging along with his older brother of 3 years, Harris won the part of Toto in a school production of The Wizard of Oz (1939).
His parents moved the family to Albuquerque in 1988, the same year that Harris made his film debut in two movies: Purple People Eater (1988) and Clara's Heart (1988), which starred Whoopi Goldberg. A year later, when Neil was 16, he landed the lead role in Steven Bochco's television series about a teen prodigy doctor at a local hospital, Doogie Howser, M.D. (1989), which launched Harris into teen-heartthrob status. The series lasted1989-1993 and earned him a People's Choice Award for Favorite Male Performer in a New Series (1990) and a Golden Globe Nomination (1990). Harris attended the same high school as Freddie Prinze Jr., La Cueva High School in Albuquerque. Neil acted on stage in a few plays while there, one of which was his senior play, Fiddler on the Roof (1971), in which he portrayed Lazar Wolf the butcher (1991).
When "Doogie Howser, M.D." stopped production in 1993, Harris took up stage acting, which he had always wanted to do. After a string of made-for-television movies, Harris acted in his first big screen roles in nine years, Starship Troopers (1997) with Casper Van Dien and then The Proposition (1998). In July 1997, Harris accepted the role of Mark Cohen for the Los Angeles production of the beloved musical, Rent (2005). His performance in "Rent" garnered him a Drama-League Award in 1997. He continued in the musical, to rave reviews, until January 1998. He later reprised the role for six nights in his hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in December 1998.
In 1999, Harris returned to television in the short-lived sitcom Stark Raving Mad (1999), with Tony Shalhoub. He was also in the big-screen projects The Next Best Thing (2000) and Undercover Brother (2002), and he can be heard as the voice of Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the newest animated Spider-Man (2003) series. Harris has continued his stage work, making his Broadway debut in 2001 in "Proof." He has also appeared on stage in "Romeo and Juliet," "Cabaret," Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Concert (2001), and, most recently, "Assassins." In 2005, Harris returned to the small screen in a guest-starring role on Numb3rs (2005) and a starring role in the sitcom How I Met Your Mother (2005). Neil played the title role in the web-exclusive musical comedy Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (2008), widely downloaded via iTunes to become the #1 TV series for five straight weeks, despite not actually being on television.- Hayden Christensen was born April 19, 1981 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. His parents, Alie and David Christensen, are in the communications business. He is of Danish (father) and Swedish and Italian (mother) descent. Hayden grew up in Markham, Ontario, with siblings Kaylen, Hejsa, and Tove. Hayden set out to become an actor when a chance encounter at the age of eight placed him in his first commercial, for Pringles. When he was thirteen, he had starring roles in several dramatic television series.
His biggest break was a major part in the Fox Family Network's Higher Ground (2000). On the series, Hayden showed off his acting talent as a teen who was sexually molested by his stepmother, and turns to drugs in despair. Later, he appeared in the television movie Trapped in a Purple Haze (2000), where he co-starred with his friend Jonathan Jackson. Hayden also had a role in the film The Virgin Suicides (1999).
On May 12, 2000, it was announced that Christensen would star as Anakin Skywalker in the prequels Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005). The star was chosen by director George Lucas because he felt that Hayden had raw talent and good chemistry with actress Natalie Portman. Lucas stunned the movie world by picking the then-unknown actor after he had turned down such big names as Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonathan Jackson, as well as 400 other candidates.
His role as the troubled, misunderstood teenager Sam Monroe in Irwin Winkler's Life as a House (2001) won him 'Breakthrough Performance of the Year' from the National Board of Review. The film also placed him as a nominee for 'Best Supporting Actor' at both the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards. Hayden then starred in Shattered Glass (2003), quoted by some of the real Stephen Glass' colleagues as giving an eerie and uncanny portrayal.
Since his Star Wars days, Hayden has headlined several action films, including Jumper (2008) and Takers (2010).
When not working, he enjoys spending quality time with his family (such as big brother Tove), hanging out with his friends, and exploring other hobbies such as the blues, jazz and piano.
Hayden was in a relationship with actress Rachel Bilson from 2007 to 2017. The two have a child, born in 2014. - Actor
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One of Hollywood's most private and guarded leading men, Andy Garcia has created iconic characters while at the same time staying true to his acting roots and personal projects.
Garcia was born Andrés Arturo García Menéndez on April 12, 1956, in Havana, Cuba, to Amelie Menéndez, a teacher of English, and René García Núñez, an attorney and avocado farmer. Garcia's family was relatively affluent. However, when he was two years old, Fidel Castro came to power, and the family fled to Miami Beach. Forced to work menial jobs for a while, the family started a fragrance company that was eventually worth more than a million dollars. He attended Natilus Junior High School and later at Miami Beach Senior High School. Andy was a popular student in school, a good basketball player and good-looking. He dreamed of playing professional baseball. In his senior year, though, he contracted mononucleosis and hepatitis, and unable to play sports, he turned his attention to acting.
He studied acting with Jay W. Jensen. Jensen was a South Florida legend, counting among his numerous students, Brett Ratner, Roy Firestone, Mickey Rourke, and Luther Campbell. Following his positive high school experiences in acting, he continued his drama studies at Florida International University.
Soon, he was headed out to Hollywood. His first break came as a gang member on the very first episode of the popular TV series Hill Street Blues (1981). His role as a cocaine kingpin in 8 Million Ways to Die (1986) put him on the radar of Brian De Palma, who was casting for his gangster classic The Untouchables (1987). At first, he envisioned Garcia as Al Capone's sadistic henchman Frank Nitti, but fearing typecasting as a gangster, Garcia campaigned for the role of "George Stone", the Italian cop who gets accepted into Eliot Ness' famous band of lawmen. Garcia's next notable role came in Black Rain (1989) by acclaimed director Ridley Scott, as the partner of police detective Michael Douglas. He then co-starred with Richard Gere in Internal Affairs (1990), directed by Mike Figgis. In 1989, Francis Ford Coppola was casting for the highly anticipated third installment of his "Godfather" films. The Godfather Part III (1990) included one of the most sought-after roles in decades, the hot-headed son of "Sonny Corleone" and mob protégé of "Michael Corloene", "Vincent Mancini". A plum role for any young rising star, the role was campaigned for by a host of actors. Val Kilmer, Alec Baldwin, Vincent Spano, Charlie Sheen, and even Robert De Niro (who wanted the role changed to accommodate his age) were all beaten out by the up-and-coming Garcia. His performance was Oscar-nominated as Best Supporting Actor, and secured him international stardom and a place in cinematic history. Now a leading man, he starred in such films as Jennifer 8 (1992) and Hero (1992). He won raves for his role as the husband of Meg Ryan in When a Man Loves a Woman (1994) and gave another charismatic gangster turn in Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995). He then returned in Night Falls on Manhattan (1996), directed by Sidney Lumet, as well as portraying legendary mobster Lucky Luciano in Hoodlum (1997). In perhaps his most mainstream role, he portrayed a cop in the action film Desperate Measures (1998). Garcia then starred in a few lower-profile projects that didn't do much for his career, but things turned around in 2001, with the first of many projects being his role as a cold casino owner in Ocean's Eleven (2001), directed by Steven Soderbergh. Seeing his removal from Cuba as involuntary, Garcia is proud of his heritage which influences his life and work. One such case is his portrayal of renowned Cuban trumpet player Arturo Sandoval in For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story (2000). He is an extremely private man, and strong believer in old-fashioned chivalry. Married to his wife, Maria Victoria, since 1982, the couple has three daughters. One of the most talented leading men around, Garcia has had a unique career of staying true to his own ideals and thoughts on acting. While some would have used some of the momentum he has acquired at different points in his career to get rich off lightweight projects, Garcia has stayed true to stories and films that aspire to something more. But with a presence and style that never seem old, a respect from directors and film buffs, alike, Andy Garcia will be remembered for a long time in film history.- Actor
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Handsome Texan Luke Cunningham Wilson was born in Dallas in 1971 to Irish-American parents originally from Massachusetts. The son of Laura (Cunningham), a photographer, and Robert Andrew Wilson, an advertising executive, he was raised with two brothers, Owen Wilson (the middle one) and Andrew Wilson (the eldest one). The three would all go on to make their careers in film, with Luke Wilson discovering his love of acting while a student at Occidental College. In 1993, the brothers Wilson collaborated with Wes Anderson to make Bottle Rocket (1993), which was initially a 13-minute short. The gleefully optimistic story of three Texans who aspire to become successful thieves Bottle Rocket (1993) premiered at the 1993 Sundance Festival where it attracted the attention of director James L. Brooks. With Brooks' help, the short became a full-length feature film released in 1996 under the same name, Bottle Rocket (1996). Afterwards, Wilson moved to Hollywood, setting up house with his two brothers and Anderson. The same year, Wilson also appeared in the coming-of-age drama Telling Lies in America (1997). After large roles in three 1998 comedies, Best Men (1997), Bongwater (1998), and Home Fries (1998) (the latter two co-starring Drew Barrymore), Wilson went on to star in another three comedies the following year. The first, Dog Park (1998), was a Canadian film directed by link=tt0096626] alum Bruce McCulloch and featured Wilson as one of a group of twenty-something's undergoing the trials and tribulations of love. Blue Streak (1999) starred the actor as the sidekick of robber-turned-policeman Martin Lawrence, while Kill the Man (1999) (which premiered at the 1999 Sundance Festival) cast him as the owner of a small copy center competing with a large chain store across the street. Though he would stick closely to comedy through 2001 with roles in Charlie's Angels (2000) and Legally Blonde (2001), Wilson took a turn for the sinister in the thrillers Bad Seed (2000) and Soul Survivors (2001) before teaming again with his brother Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson to give one of his most memorable performances as Richie in The Royal Tenenbaums (2001). In 2003, Wilson reprised two past roles, appearing in both Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003) and Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003). That same year, he also scored a hit as one of the stars of Todd Phillips' Old School (2003). The year 2004 saw Wilson embark on The Wendell Baker Story (2005), a film he starred in, co-directed with brother Andrew Wilson.
Although he made his film debut in the acclaimed independent film Bottle Rocket (1996), he initially got more recognition for his real-life role as Drew Barrymore's boyfriend than for his acting. Fortunately for Wilson, his onscreen talents outlasted his relationship with Barrymore, and he has enjoyed steady employment and increasing visibility through substantial roles in a number of films.- Actor
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Alec Baldwin is the oldest, and best-known, of the four Baldwin brothers in the acting business (the others are Stephen Baldwin, William Baldwin and Daniel Baldwin). Alexander Rae Baldwin III was born on April 3, 1958 in Massapequa, New York, the son of Carol Newcomb (Martineau) and Alexander Rae Baldwin Jr., a high school teacher and football coach at Massapequa High School. He is of Irish, as well as English, French, Scottish, and German, descent.
Alec Baldwin burst onto the TV scene in the early 1980s with appearances on several series, including The Doctors (1963) and Knots Landing (1979), before scoring feature film roles in Forever, Lulu (1986), Beetlejuice (1988), Working Girl (1988), Married to the Mob (1988) and Talk Radio (1988). In 1990, Baldwin appeared in the first on-screen adaptation of the "Jack Ryan" character created by mega-selling espionage author, Tom Clancy. The film, The Hunt for Red October (1990), was a box office and critical success, with Baldwin appearing alongside icy Sean Connery. Unfortunately, Baldwin fell out with Paramount Studios over future scripts for "Jack Ryan", and subsequent Ryan roles went to Harrison Ford.
Baldwin instead went to Broadway to perform "A Streetcar Named Desire", garnering a Tony nomination for his portrayal of "Stanley Kowalski" (he would reprise the role in a 1995 TV adaptation). Baldwin won over critics as a lowlife thief pursued by dogged cop Fred Ward in Miami Blues (1990), met his future wife Kim Basinger while filming the Neil Simon comedy, The Marrying Man (1991), starred in the film adaptation of the play, Prelude to a Kiss (1992) (in which he starred off-Broadway), and made an indelible ten-minute cameo as a hard-nosed real estate executive laying down the law in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992). He also made a similar tour-de-force monologue in the thriller, Malice (1993), as a doctor defending his practices, in which he stated, "Let me tell you something: I am God".
Demand for Baldwin's talents in the 1990s saw more scripts swiftly come his way, and he starred alongside his then-wife, Kim Basinger, in a remake of the Steve McQueen action flick, The Getaway (1994), brought to life the famous comic strip character, The Shadow (1994), and starred as an assistant district attorney in the civil rights drama, Ghosts of Mississippi (1996). Baldwin's distinctive vocal talents then saw him voice US-aired episodes of the highly popular UK children's show, Thomas & Friends (1984), plus later voice-only contributions to other animated/children's shows, including Clerks (2000), Cats & Dogs (2001), Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) and The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (2004).
In the early 2000s, Baldwin and Basinger endured an acrimonious break-up that quickly became tabloid fodder but, while his divorce was high-profile, Baldwin excelled in a number of lower-profile supporting roles in a variety of films, including State and Main (2000), Pearl Harbor (2001), The Cooler (2003) (for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor), The Aviator (2004), Along Came Polly (2004) and The Departed (2006). As he was excelling as a consummate character actor, Baldwin found a second career in television comedy. Already known for his comedic turns hosting Saturday Night Live (1975), he essayed an extended guest role on Will & Grace (1998) in 2005 before taking on what would arguably become his most famous role, that of network executive "Jack Donaghy", opposite Tina Fey in the highly-acclaimed sitcom, 30 Rock (2006). The role brought Baldwin two Emmy Awards, three Golden Globes, and an unprecedented six Screen Actors Guild Awards (not including cast wins).
Continuing to appear in films as 30 Rock (2006) wrapped up its final season, Baldwin was engaged in 2012 to wed Hilaria Baldwin (aka Hilaria Lynn Thomas); the couple married on June 30, 2012.- Actor
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Arnold Vosloo was born in Pretoria, South Africa, to stage actor parents, Johanna Petronella Vorster and Johannes J. Daniel Vosloo. He is an Afrikaaner (of mostly Dutch, as well as German, Swiss-German, Danish, and French, descent).
Vosloo quickly established a fine reputation as an actor in his native South Africa, winning several awards there for his theater work, including "More Is 'n Lang Dag", "Don Juan" and "Torch Song Trilogy". A regular performer with South Africa's State Theatre, he also played leading roles in "Savages", "Twelfth Night" and "Hamlet". His film career in the RSA brought him The Dalro Award as Best Actor for both Maneuvers (1984) and Circles in a Forest (1989), and the Dalro Best Actor Nomination for the film version of More Is 'n Lang Dag.
After moving to the United States, he appeared in "Born In The R.S.A." at Chicago's Northlight Theatre and starred with Al Pacino and Sheryl Lee in a Circle In The Square Uptown production of "Salome" (his character's name was "Jokanaan"). The latter running for a total of 18 performances only between June 28, 1992 and July 2, 1992. Vosloo's film credits include Ridley Scott's 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992), John Woo's Hard Target (1993) (produced by James Jacks and Sean Daniel), Darkman II: The Return of Durant (1995) and Darkman III: Die Darkman Die (1996), both directed by Bradford May, and George Miller's Zeus and Roxanne (1997). Equally at home on the television screen, Vosloo appeared in American Gothic (1995) for Fox and Nash Bridges (1996) for CBS.- Actor
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A leading man of prodigious talents, Peter O'Toole was born and raised in Leeds, Yorkshire, England, the son of Constance Jane Eliot (Ferguson), a Scottish nurse, and Patrick Joseph O'Toole, an Irish metal plater, football player and racecourse bookmaker. Upon leaving school, he decided to become a journalist, beginning as a newspaper copy boy. Although he succeeded in becoming a reporter, he discovered the theater and made his stage debut at age 17. He served as a radioman in the Royal Navy for two years, then attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, where his classmates included Albert Finney, Alan Bates and Richard Harris.
O'Toole spent several years on-stage at the Bristol Old Vic, then made an inconspicuous film debut in the Disney classic Kidnapped (1960). In 1962, he was chosen by David Lean to play T.E. Lawrence in Lean's epic drama Lawrence of Arabia (1962). The role made O'Toole an international superstar and received him his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role. In 1963, he played Hamlet under Laurence Olivier's direction in the premiere production of the Royal National Theater. He continued successfully in artistically rich films as well as less artistic but commercially rewarding projects. He received Academy Award nominations (but no Oscar) for seven different films.
However, medical problems (originally thought to have been brought on by his drinking but which turned out to be stomach cancer) threatened to destroy his career and life in the 1970s. He survived by giving up alcohol and, after serious medical treatment, returned to films with triumphant performances in The Stunt Man (1980) and My Favorite Year (1982). His youthful beauty lost to time and drink, O'Toole has found meaningful roles increasingly difficult to come by, though he remained one of the greatest actors of his generation. He had two daughters, Pat and Kate O'Toole, from his marriage to actress Siân Phillips. He also had a son, Lorcan O'Toole, by model Karen Brown.
On December 14, 2013, Peter O'Toole died at age 81 in London, England.- Actor
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Laurence Olivier could speak William Shakespeare's lines as naturally as if he were "actually thinking them", said English playwright Charles Bennett, who met Olivier in 1927. Laurence Kerr Olivier was born in Dorking, Surrey, England, to Agnes Louise (Crookenden) and Gerard Kerr Olivier, a High Anglican priest. His surname came from a great-great-grandfather who was of French Huguenot origin.
One of Olivier's earliest successes as a Shakespearean actor on the London stage came in 1935 when he played "Romeo" and "Mercutio" in alternate performances of "Romeo and Juliet" with John Gielgud. A young Englishwoman just beginning her career on the stage fell in love with Olivier's Romeo. In 1937, she was "Ophelia" to his "Hamlet" in a special performance at Kronborg Castle, Elsinore (Helsingør), Denmark. In 1940, she became his second wife after both returned from making films in America that were major box office hits of 1939. His film was Wuthering Heights (1939), her film was Gone with the Wind (1939). Vivien Leigh and Olivier were screen lovers in Fire Over England (1937), 21 Days Together (1940) and That Hamilton Woman (1941).
There was almost a fourth film together in 1944 when Olivier and Leigh traveled to Scotland with Charles C. Bennett to research the real-life story of a Scottish girl accused of murdering her French lover. Bennett recalled that Olivier researched the story "with all the thoroughness of Sherlock Holmes" and "we unearthed evidence, never known or produced at the trial, that would most certainly have sent the young lady to the gallows". The film project was then abandoned. During their two-decade marriage, Olivier and Leigh appeared on the stage in England and America and made films whenever they really needed to make some money.
In 1951, Olivier was working on a screen adaptation of Theodore Dreiser's novel "Sister Carrie" (Carrie (1952)) while Leigh was completing work on the film version of the Tennessee Williams' play, A Streetcar Named Desire (1951). She won her second Oscar for bringing "Blanche DuBois" to the screen. Carrie (1952) was a film that Olivier never talked about. George Hurstwood, a middle-aged married man from Chicago who tricked a young woman into leaving a younger man about to marry her, became a New York street person in the novel. Olivier played him as a somewhat nicer person who didn't fall quite as low. A PBS documentary on Olivier's career broadcast in 1987 covered his first sojourn in Hollywood in the early 1930s with his first wife, Jill Esmond, and noted that her star was higher than his at that time. On film, he was upstaged by his second wife, too, even though the list of films he made is four times as long as hers.
More than half of his film credits come after The Entertainer (1960), which started out as a play in London in 1957. When the play moved across the Atlantic to Broadway in 1958, the role of "Archie Rice"'s daughter was taken over by Joan Plowright, who was also in the film. They married soon after the release of The Entertainer (1960).- Actor
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Jon Voight is an American actor of German and Slovak descent. He has won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role as paraplegic Vietnam War veteran Luke Martin in the war film "Coming Home" (1978). He has also been nominated for the same award other two times. He was first nominated for his role as aspiring gigolo Joe Buck in "Midnight Cowboy" (1969), He was last nominated for the award for his role as escaped convict Oscar "Manny" Manheim in "Runaway Train" (1985). He was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, for his role as sports journalist Howard Cosell (1918-1995) in "Ali" (2001).
In 1938, Voight was born in Yonkers, New York. His parents were professional golfer Elmer Samuel Voight (original name Elemír Vojtka) and his wife Barbara Agnes (Kamp). His paternal grandfather was a Slovak immigrant, as were the parents of his paternal grandmother. His maternal grandfather was a German immigrant, as were the parents of his maternal grandmother. His maternal great-uncle was political activist Joseph P. Kamp (1900-1993), a leader of the anti-communist organization "Constitutional Educational League".
Voight has two siblings: volcanologist Barry Voight (1937-) and singer-songwriter James Wesley Voight (pseudonym Chip Taylor, 1940-). Barry is most famous for first predicting and then investigating the eruption of Mount St. Helens (1980). James is most famous for writing the hit songs "Wild Thing" (1965) and "Angel of the Morning" (1967).
Voight was educated at Archbishop Stepinac High School, an all-boys Roman Catholic high school located at White Plains, New York. At the time, the school was operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. He took an interest in acting in his high school years, performing a comedic role in the school's annual musical, "The Song of Norway". He graduated in 1956, at the age of 18.
Voight continued his education at The Catholic University of America, located in Washington, D.C.. He majored in art, and graduated in 1960. He was 22-years-old at the time of graduation. He then moved to New York City, having decided to pursue an acting career.
In the early 1960s, Voight primarily worked as a television actor. He guest starred in episodes of then-popular television series, such as "Naked City", "The Defenders", "NET Playhouse", "12 O'Clock High", and "Gunsmoke". His first notable theatrical role was playing the illegal immigrant Rodolfo in a 1965 Off-Broadway production of the play "A View from the Bridge" (1955) by Arthur Miller (1915-2005). In the play, Rodolfo is the love interest of the American girl Catherine, and disliked by her uncle and guardian Eddie Carbone (who is in love with his niece).
Voight made his film debut in the superhero comedy "Fearless Frank" (1967), playing the role of the eponymous superhero. Frank was depicted as a murder victim who gets resurrected and granted superpowers by a scientist. Voiight's second film role was playing historical gunman and outlaw Curly Bill Brocius (1845-1882) in the Western film "Hour of the Gun" (1967). The historical Brocius was an an enemy of the Esrp family, and was killed by Wyatt Earp (1848-1929).
Voigh't third film appearance was "Midnight Cowboy" (1969), his first great success. He played the role of a naive hustler from Texas who tries to become a gigolo in New York City. The film was critically acclaimed, and became the only X-rated feature to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Voight was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, but the award was instead won by rival actor John Wayne (1907-1979).
Voight's first role in the 1970s was playing lieutenant Milo Minderbinder in the black comedy "Catch-22" (1970). The film was based on a 1961 satirical novel by Joseph Heller (1923-1999), and offered a satirical view on war and bureaucracy. Voight's next role was playing the left-wing student A in the political drama "The Revolutionary" (1970).
Voight found further critical acclaim with the thriller film "Deliverance" (1972), playing Atlanta businessman Ed Gentry. In the film, Gentry and his first are targeted by villainous mountain men in the northern Georgia wilderness. The film earned about 46 million dollars at the domestic box office, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
His subsequent roles included idealistic schoolteacher Pat Conroy in "Conrack" (1974), journalist Peter Miller in "The Odessa File" (1974). His next great success was playing paraplegic war veteran Luke Martin in "Coming Home" (1978), in a role inspired by the life of war veteran and anti-war activist Ron Kovic (1976-). He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for this film. His co-star Jane Fonda (1937-) won her second Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in this film.
Voight's early 1980s roles included conman Alex Kovac in "Lookin' to Get Out" (1982) and widowed father J. P. Tannen in "Table for Five" (1983). His next big success was the role of escaped convict Oscar "Manny" Manheim in "Runaway Train" (1985). He was again nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, but the Award was instead won by rival actor William Hurt (1950-).
Voight's next role was that of Jack Chismore in the drama film "Desert Bloom" (1986). Chismore is depicted as a war veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), who is trying to raise three stepdaughters. He frequently abuses his stepdaughter Rose Chismore (played by Annabeth Gish), but is genuinely concerned for her safety when Rose runs away from home. This film was Voigh's last film role for several years, as he took a hiatus from acting.
Voight returned to acting with the drama film "Eternity" (1990), where he was also the screenwriter. The film deals with reincarnation, as a medieval war within brothers continues in modern American politics. Following his return to acting, Voight started appearing frequently in television films and miniseries. He also guest-starred in a 1994 episode of "Seinfeld", playing himself.
Voight returned to film acting with the crime drama "Heat" (1995), where he had a minor role as a fence. He had a more substantial role in the spy film "Mission: Impossible" (1996), where he played spymaster James Phelps. The film was an adaptation of the popular television series "Mission: Impossible" (1966-1973), about the adventures of a group of secret agents. The role of James Phelps was previously played by actor Peter Graves (1926-2010). The film was a great commercial success, earning about 458 million dollars at the worldwide box office.
Voight appeared in six different films in 1997, one of the busiest years of his career. The most notable among them was the horror film "Anaconda" (1997), where he played obsessive hunter Paul Serone, the film's main antagonist. The film won about 137 million dollars at the box office, despite a mostly negative critical reception. For this role, Voight was nominated for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor. He lost the award to rival actor Kevin Costner (1955-).
His next notable role was that Thomas Brian Reynolds, agent of the National Security Agency (NSA) in the action thriller "Enemy of the State" (1998). In the film, the NSA conspires to expand the surveillance powers of intelligence agencies over individuals and groups, at the cost of American citizens' right to privacy. The film was another box office success in Voight's career, earning about 251 million dollars at the box office.
In the same year, Voight played inspector Ned Kenny in the crime film "The General" (1998). The film was loosely based on the career of Irish crime boss Martin Cahill (1949-1994), who was nicknamed "the General". The film was critically acclaimed and director John Boorman won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Director.
Voight's next notable role was that of domineering coach Bud Kilmer in the sports film "Varsity Blues" (1999). The film dealt with the difficulties in the life of the players of a Texas-based high school football team, and was not expected to attract much attention by audiences. It earned about 54 million dollars at the box office, making it a modest box office hit. It is credited with introducing Voight to a next generation of fans.
Voight's final film in the 1990s was "A Dog of Flanders" (1999), based on a 1872 novel by Ouida (1839-1908). He played the role of artist Michel La Grande, the mentor of Nello (played by Jeremy James Kissner), who is eventually revealed to be Nello's biological father. The film failed at the box office, failing to earn as much as its modest budget.
Voight appeared in no film released in 2000, but had a busy year in 2001. He appeared in several box office hits of the year. He played President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945, term 1933-1945) in the war drama "Pearl Harbor", Lara Croft's father Lord Richard Croft in the action film "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider", coal-miner and working class father Larry Zoolander in action comedy "Zoolander", and sports journalist Howard Cosell in the biographical film "Ali". For his role in "Ali", Voight was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. The award was instead won by rival actor Jim Broadbent (1949-). It was Voight's fourth and (so far) last nomination for an Academy Award.
Voight had a notable role playing Pope John Paul II (1920-2005, term 1978-2005) in the miniseries "Pope John Paul II" (2005). He was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie, but the award was instead won by rival actor Andre Braugher (1962-).
Voight had a supporting role as John Keller, United States Secretary of Defense in the science fiction film "Transformers" (2007). The film was based on the Transformers toy line by Hasbro.It earned about 710 million dollars at the box office, one of the most commercially successful films in Voight's career.
In 2009, Voight had a notable television role, playing Jonas Hodges, the CEO of a Virginia-based private military company in the then-popular television series "24" (2001-2010, 2014). He was a main antagonist in the seventh season of the series. His role was inspired by the careers of Hessian colonel Johann Rall (c. 1726-1776), German industrialist Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach (1907-1967), and private military company CEO Erik Prince (1969-).
His 2010s notable film roles include the role of Dracula's enemy Loonardo Van Helsing in the horror film "Dracula: The Dark Prince" (2013), football coach Paul William "Bear" Bryant (1913-1983) in the sports drama "Woodlawn" (2015), and newspaper owner Henry Shaw Sr. in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" (2016). "Fantastic Beasts" earned about 814 million dollars at the worldwide box office, being one of the most commercially successful films that Voight ever appeared in.
In 2020, was 82-years-old, and he is still working as an actor.- Actor
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Curly haired and with a fast-talking voice, Jesse Eisenberg is a movie actor, known for his Academy Award nominated role as Mark Zuckerberg in the 2010 film The Social Network. He has also starred in the films The Squid and the Whale, Adventureland, The Education of Charlie Banks, 30 Minutes or Less, Now You See Me and Zombieland. Additionally, he played Lex Luthor in the 2016 film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
Jesse Adam Eisenberg was born on October 5, 1983 in Queens, New York, and was raised in East Brunswick Township, New Jersey. His mother, Amy (Fishman), is a professional dressed-up clown who performed at children's birthday parties for a living in their hometown of East Brunswick for 20 years. His father, Barry Eisenberg, ran a hospital before moving on to become a college professor. Jesse has two sisters, Kerri and Hallie Eisenberg, who was a popular child star. His family is Jewish (his ancestors came to the U.S. from Poland, Russia, and Ukraine).
He attended East Brunswick High School, but he didn't really enjoy school. From age 10, he performed in children's theater. Jesse had his first professional role in an off-Broadway play, "The Gathering". Before fame, he made his first television appearance role that came in 1999 when he was 16 with a show on Fox's Get Real (1999), but the show was canceled in 2000. In his senior year of high school, he had landed his first film leading role in the 2002 film Roger Dodger (2002). He won an award for "Most Promising New Actor" at the San Diego film festival.
Jesse attended the New School University, New York, where he was a liberal arts major, with a focus on Democracy and Cultural Pluralism. He also studied at The New School in New York City's Greenwich Village. He applied and was accepted to New York University but declined enrollment to complete a film role. He has been playing the drums since he was age 8.
His breakthrough role came in Zombieland (2009). In 2010, he was nominated for Best Actor at the Golden Globes and Academy Awards for his role of Facebook's creator, Mark Zuckerberg, in the film, The Social Network (2010). He also voiced Blu, a rare blue macaw, in the film Rio (2011), and its sequel Rio 2 (2014). He starred alongside Aziz Ansari in the 2011 comedy 30 Minutes Or Less, and played himself in the 2013 comedy film He's Way More Famous Than You (2013).- Actor
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Joseph Jason Namakaeha Momoa was born on August 1, 1979, in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is the son of Coni (Lemke), a photographer, and Joseph Momoa, a painter. His father is of Native Hawaiian and Samoan descent; and his mother, who is from Iowa, is of German, Irish, and Native American ancestry. Jason was raised in Norwalk, Iowa, by his mother. After high school, he moved to Hawaii, where he landed a lead role, beating out of thousands of hopefuls in the TV series Baywatch (1989) (known as "Baywatch Hawaii" in its 10th season). When the show ended, he spent the next couple of years traveling around the world. In 2001, he moved to Los Angeles, where he continued to pursue an acting career. In 2004, after the short-lived TV series North Shore (2004), he was cast as the popular character "Ronon Dex" in the TV series Stargate: Atlantis (2004), which achieved a cult-like following. In 2010, he appeared in the Emmy-nominated HBO series Game of Thrones (2011), playing the Dothraki king, Khal Drogo. To illustrate to the producers that he was Khal Drogo, he performed the Haka, a traditional war dance of the Maori of New Zealand. The audition was with the same casting director who was casting the titular role in the reboot of Conan the Barbarian (2011). Four weeks after being cast as the popular Robert E. Howard character, Momoa began shooting in Bulgaria. His approach, like that of the filmmakers, was to pull from the eight decades of comics and stories as well as the Frank Frazetta images rather than the hugely popular 1982 movie. Jason has a production company, Pride of Gypsies, in which he is expanding his career from actor to filmmaker. He has directed a couple of short films and is working on his feature film debut Road to Paloma (2014), which is pulled from a series of stories that he's been developing over the years, which he calls the Brown Bag Diaries: Ridin' the Blinds in B Minor (2010). Jason lives with his wife, actress Lisa Bonet, with whom he has two children, Lola and Nakoa-Wolf.- Actor
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Cliff Curtis was born in Rotorua, New Zealand, on July 27, 1968.
He is of New Zealand Maori descent (with Ngati Hauiti and Te Arawa tribal affiliations). He enrolled at the New Zealand Drama School, and then the Teatro Dmitri Scuola in Switzerland.
After returning to New Zealand from Europe, he was cast in The Piano (1993). Subsequent roles in New Zealand include the camp melodrama Desperate Remedies (1992), the grueling urban drama Once Were Warriors (1994), and the lighthearted comedy Jubilee (2000).
In Hollywood, Curtis has played a range of different roles and ethnicities in films. He plays a Colombian in Blow (2001), an Arab in Three Kings (1999) and The Insider (1999), a Latino in Training Day (2001) and Runaway Jury (2003), and a drug dealer of ambiguous ethnicity in Bringing Out the Dead (1999). However, he is probably best known for his role as Paikea's father Porourangi, in Whale Rider (2002).- Actor
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Michael B. Jordan, the middle of three children, was born in Santa Ana, California and raised in Newark, New Jersey. He is the son of Donna (Davis), a high school counselor, and Michael A. Jordan. His middle name, Bakari, means "noble promise" in Swahili. (He is not related to, or named after, basketball legend Michael Jordan.)
Jordan has starred in three of the most critically acclaimed television dramas of the past decade. First, Jordan played the hard-shelled but softhearted Wallace in HBO's dramatic hit series The Wire (2002). He then went on to star as quarterback Vince Howard on Friday Night Lights (2006) (NBC), before playing a recovering alcoholic, Alex, on NBC's Parenthood (2010).
Jordan successfully took on his first major leading film role when he starred as Oscar Grant in Fruitvale Station (2013). The film is an account of Oscar's controversial slaying by police officers on a San Francisco train platform. The cast includes Octavia Spencer and Melonie Diaz, and was produced by Forest Whitaker (Significant Films). It premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival where it received the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award for U.S. Dramatic Film. It also screened at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard category. The has garnered many awards including Best First Feature at the 2014 Independent Spirit Awards, Outstanding Independent Motion Picture at the 2014 NAACP Image Awards and the 2014 Stanley Kramer Award from the Producer's Guild of America. The 2013 New York Film Critics Circle honored it with Best First Film and the picture was also chosen as one of the Top Ten Films at the 2013 National Board of Review Awards, where Jordan took home the award for Breakthrough Actor. Jordan also won the 2013 Gotham Award for Breakthrough Actor and was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Actor.
In 2015, Jordan starred in Josh Trank's Fantastic Four (2015), playing the role of 'Johnny Storm' aka 'The Human Torch', opposite Miles Teller, Jamie Bell, and Kate Mara for 20th Century Fox. The film was released on August 7th 2015. Jordan previously starred in 20th Century Fox's box office hit Chronicle (2012) (which was also directed by Trank), a supernatural thriller that follows three Portland teens (MBJ, Dane Dehaan, and Alex Russell) as they develop incredible powers after exposure to a mysterious substance; That Awkward Moment (2015) opposite Zac Efron and Miles Teller for Focus Films; and the George Lucas produced film Red Tails (2012), the story of the first African American pilots to fly in a combat squadron during WWII aka The Tuskegee Airmen.
Jordan reunited with Ryan Coogler for Creed (2015), starring alongside Sylvester Stallone and Tessa Thompson. The film was released on Thanksgiving 2015 by MGM and Warner Brothers. A devoted fan of comic books growing up, Jordan starred as the villain, Eric Killmonger, in the 2018 box office smash Black Panther (2018). In 2018, he is also starring as Guy Montag in the HBO adaptation of Ray Bradbury's science fiction classic Fahrenheit 451 (2018).
He resides in Los Angeles, where he supports the charity Lupus LA.Terrible MCU villain
No Remorse ruined John Clark- Actor
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Critically hailed for his forceful, militant, authoritative figures and one of Hollywood's most talented and versatile performers, Laurence (John) Fishburne III has been the recipient of numerous awards, including a number of NAACP Image honors.
Born in Augusta, Georgia on July 30, 1961, to Hattie Bell (Crawford), a teacher, and Laurence John Fishburne, Jr., a juvenile corrections officer. His mother transplanted her family to Brooklyn after his parents divorced. At the age of 10, the young boy appeared in his first play, "In My Many Names and Days," at a cramped little theater space in Manhattan. He continued on but managed to avoid the trappings of a child star per se, considering himself more a working child actor at the time. Billing himself as Larry Fishburne during this early phase, he never studied or was trained in the technique of acting.
In 1973, at the age of 12, young Laurence won a recurring role on the daytime soap One Life to Live (1968) that lasted three seasons. He subsequently made his film debut in the ghetto-themed Cornbread, Earl and Me (1975). At 14 Francis Ford Coppola cast him in Apocalypse Now (1979), which filmed for two years in the Philippines. Laurence didn't work for another year and a half after that long episode. A graduate of Lincoln Square Academy, Coppola was impressed enough with Laurence to hire him again down the line with featured roles in Rumble Fish (1983), The Cotton Club (1984) and Gardens of Stone (1987).
Throughout the 1980s, he continued to build up his film and TV credit list with featured roles despite little fanfare. A recurring role as Cowboy Curtis on the kiddie show Pee-wee's Playhouse (1986) helped him through whatever lean patches there were at the time. TV guest appearances at this time included "Trapper John," "M*A*S*H*," "Hill Street Blues," "Miami Vice," "Spenser: For Hire" and "The Equalizer."
With the new decade (1990s) came out-and-out stardom for Laurence. A choice lead in John Singleton's urban tale Boyz n the Hood (1991) catapulted him immediately into the front of the film ranks. Set in LA's turbulent South Central area, his potent role as a morally minded divorced father who strives to rise above the ignorance and violence of his surroundings, Laurence showed true command and the ability to hold up any film.
On stage, Laurence would become invariably linked to playwright August Wilson and his 20th Century epic African-American experience after starring for two years as the eruptive ex-con in "Two Training Running." For this powerful, mesmerizing performance, Laurence won nearly every prestigious theater award in the books (Tony, Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk and Theatre World). It was around the time of this career hallmark that he began billing himself as "Laurence" instead of "Larry." More awards and accolades came his way. In addition to an Emmy for the pilot episode of the series "Tribeca," he was nominated for his fine work in the quality mini-movies The Tuskegee Airmen (1995) and Miss Evers' Boys (1997).
On the larger screen, both Laurence and Angela Bassett were given Oscar nominations for their raw, seething portrayals of rock stars Ike and Tina Turner in the film What's Love Got to Do with It (1993). To his credit, he managed to take an extremely repellent character and make it a sobering and captivating experience. A pulp box-office favorite as well, he originated the role of Morpheus, Keanu Reeves' mentor, in the exceedingly popular futuristic sci-fi The Matrix (1999), best known for its ground-breaking special effects. He wisely returned for its back-to-back sequels.
Into the millennium, Laurence extended his talents by making his screenwriting and directorial debut in Once in the Life (2000), in which he also starred. The film is based on his own critically acclaimed play "Riff Raff," which he staged five years earlier. In 1999, he scored a major theater triumph with a multi-racial version of "The Lion in Winter" as Henry II opposite Stockard Channing's Eleanor of Acquitaine. On film, Fishburne has appeared in a variety of interesting roles in not-always-successful films. Never less than compelling, a few of his more notable parts include an urban speed chess player in Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993); a military prisoner in Cadence (1990); a college professor in Singleton's Higher Learning (1995); a CIA operative in Bad Company (1995); the title role in Othello (1995) (he was the first black actor to play the part on film); a spaceship rescue team leader in the sci-fi horror Event Horizon (1997); a Depression-era gangster in Hoodlum (1997); a dogged police sergeant in Clint Eastwood's Mystic River (2003); a spelling bee coach in Akeelah and the Bee (2006); and prominent roles in the mainstream films Predators (2010) and Contagion (2011). He returned occasionally to the theatre. In April 2008, he played Thurgood Marshall in the one-man show "Thurgood" and won a Drama Desk Award. It was later transferred to the TV screen and earned an Emmy nomination.
In the fall of 2008, Fishburne replaced William Petersen as the male lead investigator on the popular CBS drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000), but left the show in 2011 to refocus on films and was in turn replaced by Ted Danson. Having since had a regular role as "Pops" in the comedy Black-ish (2014), he has also been seen on the bigger screen in the Superman movies Man of Steel (2013) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) as Daily Planet chief Perry White; played a hired assassin in the thriller Standoff (2016); portrayed a minister and former Vietnam War vet in Last Flag Flying (2017); and essayed the role of a revengeful prison warden in Imprisoned (2018).
Fishburne has two children, Langston and Montana, from his first marriage to actress Hajna O. Moss. In September 2002, Fishburne married Cuban-American actress Gina Torres.- Actor
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Imperioli was born Michael Imperioli in Mt. Vernon, New York on March 26, 1966. His film work began in the late 1980s. An early part that brought him recognition was in Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas (1990), as Spider, a local kid who works for the gangsters and has a run-in with a psychopathic mob soldier played by Joe Pesci. He worked throughout the 1990s in the New York independent film industry, especially as a regular in Spike Lee's movies, appearing in Jungle Fever (1991), Malcolm X (1992), Clockers (1995), Girl 6 (1996) and Summer of Sam (1999), generally playing working-class Italian-Americans from the "outer boroughs." While rooted in the New York movie scene, Imperioli also worked in Hollywood in the mid-'90s, in the formulaic movies Bad Boys (1995) and Last Man Standing (1996).
In 1999, Imperioli was cast in The Sopranos (1999) as Christopher Moltisanti, a low-ranking soldier in the Soprano crime organization whose family connections to street boss Tony Soprano move him up the ladder in the organization. Imperioli's multi-layered portrayal of such an unappealing character is a real highlight of the series and earned him an Emmy and a SAG award.
Imperioli has long been active in the New York theater scene as well, having written, directed, produced or starred in numerous plays. He was a founder, along with Lili Taylor (his then-girlfriend and co-star in Household Saints (1993)) of the downtown theater company Machine Full. He has also written several episodes of "The Sopranos" and was a writer on Lee's "Summer of Sam," which he also executive-produced. Although most famous for his prominent part in "The Sopranos," Imperioli has worked on other television programs as well, including Law & Order (1990), New York Undercover (1994) and NYPD Blue (1993). He is married and has two children and one stepdaughter.- Actor
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Shemar Franklin Moore (born April 20, 1970) is an American actor and former fashion model. His notable roles are that of Malcolm Winters on The Young and the Restless from 1994 to 2005, Derek Morgan on CBS's Criminal Minds from 2005 to 2016, and as the third permanent host of Soul Train from 1999 to 2003.- Actor
- Writer
Colm Joseph Feore OC is a Canadian actor. A 13-year veteran of the Stratford Festival, he is known for his Gemini-winning turn as Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in the CBC miniseries Trudeau (2002), his portrayal of Glenn Gould in Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould (1993), and for playing Detective Martin Ward in Bon Cop, Bad Cop (2006) and its 2017 sequel.
His other roles include Martin Harrison in Chicago (2002), Lord Marshal Zhylaw in The Chronicles of Riddick (2004), First Gentleman Henry Taylor on 24 (2009), Cardinal Della Rovere on The Borgias (2011-2013), Laufey in Thor (2011), General Ted Brockhart on House of Cards (2016-2017), Declan Gallard on 21 Thunder (2017), Wernher von Braun in For All Mankind (2019), and Sir Reginald Hargreeves on The Umbrella Academy (2019-present). Feore is also a Prix Iris and Screen Actors Guild Award winner and a Genie Award nominee.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Zachary Quinto was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Margaret J. (McArdle), an Irish-American office worker, and Joseph John Quinto, an Italian-American barber. Zachary graduated from Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh, with the class of 1995, where he won Pittsburgh's Gene Kelly Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as the Major General in Gilbert and Sullivan's "The Pirates of Penzance". He then went on to attend Carnegie Mellon University, where he continued to hone his talents by performing in plays and musicals. He first appeared on numerous television series since 2000 and, in 2003, landed the role of computer expert "Adam Kaufman" on the Fox series, 24 (2001), during its third season. In 2006, Quinto portrayed serial killer "Sylar" on the science fiction series, Heroes (2006), until its cancellation in 2010, after four seasons. He was cast in his first main film role as "Spock", in the hugely successful franchise reboot, Star Trek (2009).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Multiple Emmy- and Golden Globe-winner Martin Sheen is one of America's most celebrated, colorful, and accomplished actors. Moving flawlessly between artistic mediums, Sheen's acting range is striking.
Sheen was born Ramón Antonio Gerard Estevez in Dayton, Ohio, to Mary-Ann (Phelan), an Irish immigrant (from Borrisokane, County Tipperary), and Francisco Estevez, a Spanish-born factory worker and machinery inspector (from Parderrubias, Galicia). On the big screen, Sheen has appeared in more than 65 feature films including a star turn as Army Captain Benjamin L. Willard in Francis Ford Coppola's landmark film Apocalypse Now (1979), which brought Sheen worldwide recognition. The film also starred Marlon Brando, Dennis Hopper and Robert Duvall. Other notable credits include Wall Street (1987) (with son Charlie Sheen and Michael Douglas), Academy Award-winning film Gandhi (1982) (with Sir Ben Kingsley), Catch Me If You Can (2002) (with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks), The American President (1995) (with Michael Douglas and Annette Bening) and a Golden Globe nominated breakthrough performance as Timmy Cleary in The Subject Was Roses (1968), a role he originated on Broadway and for which he received a Tony Award nomination as Best Featured Actor.
In 2006, the actor played ill-fated cop Oliver Queenan in Martin Scorsese's Academy Award-winning film The Departed (2006) opposite Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg and Alec Baldwin.
The same year, Sheen joined another all-star ensemble cast for the highly acclaimed feature Bobby (2006), written and directed by his son, Emilio Estevez. Bobby was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a SAG Award; and starred Anthony Hopkins, Harry Belafonte, Laurence Fishburne, Sharon Stone, William H. Macy, Elijah Wood, Demi Moore and Heather Graham.
For television audiences, Sheen is best recognized for his six-time Emmy nominated performance as President Josiah Bartlet in The West Wing (1999). Sheen won six of his eight Golden Globe nominations as well as an ALMA Award; and two individual SAG Awards; for the White House series. He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor TV Series Drama in 2001.
Of his ten Primetime Emmy nominations, Sheen won for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series on the long-running sitcom Murphy Brown (1988) (starring Candice Bergen) in 1994. In addition, he has garnered a Daytime Emmy Award for directing and another for performance.
In 2006, Sheen was again nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series; this time for the CBS hit comedy Two and a Half Men (2003), starring his son Charlie Sheen.
In addition to series television, Sheen has appeared in several important made-for-television movies and mini-series including playing President John F. Kennedy in the television mini-series Kennedy (1983) for which he received a Golden Globe nomination.- Actor
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- Producer
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee was perhaps the only actor of his generation to have starred in so many films and cult saga. Although most notable for personifying bloodsucking vampire, Dracula, on screen, he portrayed other varied characters on screen, most of which were villains, whether it be Francisco Scaramanga in the James Bond film, The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), or Count Dooku in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002), or as the title monster in the Hammer Horror film, The Mummy (1959).
Lee was born in 1922 in London, England, where he and his older sister Xandra were raised by their parents, Contessa Estelle Marie (Carandini di Sarzano) and Geoffrey Trollope Lee, a professional soldier, until their divorce in 1926. Later, while Lee was still a child, his mother married (and later divorced) Harcourt George St.-Croix (nicknamed Ingle), who was a banker. Lee's maternal great-grandfather was an Italian political refugee, while Lee's great-grandmother was English opera singer Marie (Burgess) Carandini.
After attending Wellington College from age 14 to 17, Lee worked as an office clerk in a couple of London shipping companies until 1941 when he enlisted in the Royal Air Force during World War II. Following his release from military service, Lee joined the Rank Organisation in 1947, training as an actor in their "Charm School" and playing a number of bit parts in such films as Corridor of Mirrors (1948). He made a brief appearance in Laurence Olivier's Hamlet (1948), in which his future partner-in-horror Peter Cushing also appeared. Both actors also appeared later in Moulin Rouge (1952) but did not meet until their horror films together.
Lee had numerous parts in film and television throughout the 1950s. He struggled initially in his new career because he was discriminated as being taller than the leading male actors of his time and being too foreign-looking. However, playing the monster in the Hammer film The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) proved to be a blessing in disguise, since the was successful, leading to him being signed on for future roles in Hammer Film Productions.
Lee's association with Hammer Film Productions brought him into contact with Peter Cushing, and they became good friends. Lee and Cushing often than not played contrasting roles in Hammer films, where Cushing was the protagonist and Lee the villain, whether it be Van Helsing and Dracula respectively in Horror of Dracula (1958), or John Banning and Kharis the Mummy respectively in The Mummy (1959).
Lee continued his role as "Dracula" in a number of Hammer sequels throughout the 1960s and into the early 1970s. During this time, he co-starred in The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959), and made numerous appearances as Fu Manchu, most notably in the first of the series The Face of Fu Manchu (1965), and also appeared in a number of films in Europe. With his own production company, Charlemagne Productions, Ltd., Lee made Nothing But the Night (1973) and To the Devil a Daughter (1976).
By the mid-1970s, Lee was tiring of his horror image and tried to widen his appeal by participating in several mainstream films, such as The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970), The Three Musketeers (1973), The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge (1974), and the James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun (1974).
The success of these films prompted him in the late 1970s to move to Hollywood, where he remained a busy actor but made mostly unremarkable film and television appearances, and eventually moved back to England. The beginning of the new millennium relaunched his career to some degree, during which he has played Count Dooku in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) and as Saruman the White in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Lee played Count Dooku again in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005), and portrayed the father of Willy Wonka, played by Johnny Depp, in the Tim Burton film, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005).
On 16 June 2001, he was created a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in recognition of his services to drama. He was created a Knight Bachelor on 13 June 2009 in the Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to drama and charity. In addition he was made a Commander of the Order of St John on 16 January 1997.
Lee died at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital on 7 June 2015 at 8:30 am after being admitted for respiratory problems and heart failure, shortly after celebrating his 93rd birthday there. His wife delayed the public announcement until 11 June, in order to break the news to their family.- Music Department
- Actor
- Producer
Giancarlo Giuseppe Alessandro Esposito was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, to an Italian carpenter/stagehand father from Naples, Italy, and an African-American opera singer mother from Alabama. His parents, working in Europe at the time of his birth, settled in Manhattan by the time he was 6, and that's where he grew up.
Coming from a theatrical background, it was, perhaps, inevitable that young Giancarlo would appear on stage sooner or later, and he did, at age 8, appearing on Broadway as a slave child in "Maggie Flynn" in 1966.
More Broadway work followed through the 1960s and early '70s, followed by some small roles in movies. TV work followed in the 1980s, with increasingly significant parts in a string of high-profile series until he became well-established as a character player both on TV and in a number of movies.
He came very much to the public's attention playing Agent Mike Giardello in the TV series Homicide: Life on the Street (1993) in 1998 and since then has rarely been off our screens.- Actor
- Producer
- Sound Department
Jeremy Lee Renner was born in Modesto, California, the son of Valerie (Tague) and Lee Renner, who managed a bowling alley. After a tumultuous yet happy childhood with his four younger siblings, Renner graduated from Beyer High School and attended Modesto Junior College. He explored several areas of study, including computer science, criminology, and psychology, before the theater department, with its freedom of emotional expression, drew him in.
However, Renner recognized the potential in acting as much through the local police academy as through drama classes. During his second year at Modesto Junior College, Renner role-played a domestic disturbance perpetrator as part of a police-training exercise for an easy $50. Deciding to shift his focus away from schoolwork, Renner left college and moved to San Francisco to study at the American Conservatory Theater. From there he moved to Hawaii and, in 1993, to Los Angeles.
In Los Angeles, Renner devoted himself to theater, most notably starring in and co-directing the critically acclaimed "Search and Destroy." He pursued other projects during this time as well, landing his first film role in 1995's National Lampoon's Senior Trip (1995). After several commercials and supporting roles in television movies and series, Renner captured the attention of critics with his gripping, complex portrayal of the infamous serial killer in the 2002 film Dahmer (2002). Renner's performance, which earned him an Independent Spirit Award nomination, is especially remarkable for painting a humane and sympathetic, yet deeply disturbing, portrait of the title character.
In 2003, Renner took a break from small indie films to work on his first commercially successful movie, S.W.A.T. (2003), with Colin Farrell. In 2005, he played the leading role in Neo Ned (2005) as an institutionalized white supremacist in love with a black girl, winning the Palm Beach International Film Festival's best actor award. Renner's pivotal supporting roles in 2005's 12 and Holding (2005) and North Country (2005) earned him accolades from critics, and his 2007 turn in Take (2007) garnered him the best actor award at California's Independent Film Festival. Also in 2007, Renner played a leading role in the horror film 28 Weeks Later (2007) as well as a supporting role in the underrated Western epic The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), with Casey Affleck, Brad Pitt, and Sam Rockwell.
Renner's depiction of Jeffrey Dahmer in 2002 caught the attention of director Kathryn Bigelow, and, in 2008, she cast him in his most famous role as Sergeant First Class William James in The Hurt Locker (2008). Renner's performance as a single-minded bomb specialist scored him an Academy Award nomination for best actor. He also earned best actor nominations from the Independent Spirit Awards, the Screen Actors Guild, and the BAFTA Awards, as well as wins in this category from several film critics groups.
In 2009, Renner starred in the short-lived TV series, The Unusuals (2009), and in 2010 he played the chilling but loyal criminal Jem in Ben Affleck bank-heist thriller The Town (2010). In the fall of 2010, Renner began filming Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011). He has also since starred in The Avengers (2012), American Hustle (2013), and Kill the Messenger (2014).
Renner's strengths as an actor derive not only from his expressive eyes but also from his ability to thoroughly embody the characters he portrays. His visceral depiction of these individuals captivates audiences and empowers him to steal scenes in many of his films, even when playing a minor role. Renner gravitates toward flawed, complicated, three-dimensional characters that allow him to explore new territory within himself.
In addition to his work as an actor, Renner continues to cultivate his lifelong love of music. A singer, songwriter, and musician, he performed with the band Sons of Ben early in his career. Scenes in Love Comes to the Executioner (2006), North Country (2005), and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) briefly showcase Renner's singing talents.
Despite traveling the world for film roles and, recently, as a United Nations Goodwill Peace Ambassador to raise awareness for mine-clearing efforts in Afghanistan, Renner remains close to his roots. In 2010, Modesto Junior College presented him the Distinguished Alumnus award in recognition of his body of work as an actor. He also headlined at a benefit for Modesto's Gallo Center for the Arts in the fall of 2010.
Renner maintains a sense of humility and gratitude, even in the wake of his recent successes and recognition. He keeps himself grounded by renovating and restoring old and rundown iconic Hollywood homes, an enterprise he began back in his early days in Los Angeles. He values loyalty and a sense of both age and history, and enjoys the opportunity to help conserve these qualities in a town that favors the young and the new.- Actor
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Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Copeland Bloom was born on January 13, 1977 in Canterbury, Kent, England. His mother, Sonia Constance Josephine Bloom (née Copeland), was born in Kolkata, India, to an English family then-resident there. The man he first knew as his father, Harry Bloom, was a legendary political activist who fought for civil rights in South Africa. But Harry died of a stroke when Orlando was only four years old. After that, Orlando and his older sister, Samantha Bloom, were raised by their mother and family friend, Colin Stone. When Orlando was 13, Sonia revealed to him that Colin is actually the biological father of Orlando and his sister; the two were conceived after an agreement by his parents, since Harry, who suffered a stroke in 1975, was unable to have children.
Orlando attended St. Edmund's School in Canterbury but struggled in many courses because of dyslexia. He did embrace the arts, however, and enjoyed pottery, photography and sculpturing. He also participated in school plays and was active at his local theater. As a teen, Orlando landed his first job: he was a clay trapper at a pigeon shooting range. Encouraged by his mother, he and his sister began studying poetry and prose, eventually giving readings at Kent Festival. Orlando and Samantha won many poetry and Bible reciting competitions. Then Orlando, who always idolized larger-than-life characters, gravitated towards serious acting. At the age of 16, he moved to London and joined the National Youth Theatre, spending two seasons there and gaining a scholarship to train with the British American Drama Academy. Like many young actors, he also auditioned for a number of television roles to further his career, landing bit parts in British television shows Casualty (1986), Midsomer Murders (1997) and Smack the Pony (1999). He also appeared in the critically acclaimed movie Wilde (1997).
He then attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. It was there, in 1998, that Orlando fell three stories from a rooftop terrace and broke his back. Despite fears that he would be permanently paralyzed, he quickly recovered and returned to the stage. As fate would have it, seated in the audience one night in 1999 was a director named Peter Jackson. After the show, he met with Orlando and asked him to audition for his new set of movies. After graduating from Guildhall, Orlando began work on the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, spending 18 months in New Zealand bringing to life "Legolas", a part which made him a household name. Today, he is one of the busiest and most sought-after actors in the industry.- Actor
- Producer
Nick Chinlund was born and raised in New York City. He left the city to play basketball at Brown University, but his hoops career was cut short when he suffered an injury during his freshman year. He stayed at Brown and took up acting classes, and realized it was his true calling. He graduated from Brown and moved to Los Angeles to pursue his film career. He worked in the theater and performed in many acclaimed plays. He worked at the Williamstown Theater Festival from 1988 to 1989. He started his film career in Lethal Weapon 3 (1992) and Eraser (1996) and has appeared on The X-Files (1993) and NYPD Blue (1993). He now lives in New York and Los Angeles.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Alfred Molina was born in 1953 in London, England. His mother, Giovanna (Bonelli), was an Italian-born cook and cleaner, and his father, Esteban Molina, was a Spanish-born waiter and chauffeur. He studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London. His stage work includes two major Royal National Theatre productions, Tennessee Williams' "The Night of the Iguana" (as Shannon) and David Mamet's "Speed the Plow" (as Fox), plus a splendid performance in Yasmina Reza's "Art" (his Broadway debut), for which he received a Tony Award nomination in 1998. He made his film debut in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and got a good part in Letter to Brezhnev (1985) (as a Soviet sailor who spends a night in Liverpool), but his movie breakthrough came two years later when he played--superbly--Kenneth Halliwell, the tragic lover of playwright Joe Orton, in Stephen Frears' Prick Up Your Ears (1987). He was also outstanding in Enchanted April (1991), The Perez Family (1995) (as a Cuban immigrant), Anna Karenina (1997) (as Levin) and Chocolat (2000) (as the narrow-minded mayor of a small French town circa 1950s, who tries to shut down a chocolate shop).- Actor
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Andrew Lincoln is a British actor. Lincoln spent his early childhood in Hull, Yorkshire before his family relocated to Bath, Somerset when he was age 10. He was educated at Beechen Cliff School in Bath, and then the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. His father is a civil engineer and his mother is a nurse
Lincoln's first big break came when he was cast as Edgar 'Egg' Cook in the popular UK drama series This Life (1996). Various roles followed including that of teacher Simon Casey in the Channel 4 series Teachers (2001), and as Mark in the hit film Love Actually (2003). In 2010, he was cast in The Walking Dead (2010), a live action drama series based on the comic of the same name. Lincoln plays the lead character of Rick Grimes.
Lincoln is married to Gael Anderson, his father-in-law is legendary musician Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull fame.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Cam graduated from Auburn High School in Auburn, Washington, in 2001. His family lives in Lake Tapps, WA. His father's name is Jay, his mother's name is Kim, and he has one older sister, Kelsie. His father is one of the founders of a popular restaurant chain called The Rock, Wood Fired Pizza & Spirits. Cam resides in West Hollywood, California.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Donald Frank Cheadle was born in Kansas City, Missouri, on November 29, 1964. His childhood found him moving from city to city with his family: mother Bettye (née North), a teacher; father Donald Frank Cheadle Sr., a clinical psychologist; sister Cindy; and brother Colin. After graduating from high school in Denver, Colorado, Cheadle attended and graduated from the California Institute of the Arts with a bachelor¹s degree in fine arts. Encouraged by his college friends, he attended a variety of auditions and landed a recurring role on the hit series Fame (1982), which led to feature film roles in Dennis Hopper's Colors (1988) and John Irvin's Hamburger Hill (1987).
Early in his career, Cheadle was named Best Supporting Actor by the Los Angeles Film Critics for his breakout performance opposite Denzel Washington in Devil in a Blue Dress (1995). His subsequent film credits include Traitor (2008), an international thriller that he produced, starring opposite Guy Pearce; Kasi Lemmons's Talk to Me (2007), with Chiwetel Ejiofor; the 2006 Oscar-winning Best Picture, Crash (2004), which Cheadle also produced; Hotel Rwanda (2004), for which his performance garnered Oscar, Golden Globe, Broadcast Film Critics and Screen Actors Guild award nominations for Best Actor; Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's Eleven (2001), Ocean's Twelve (2004) and Ocean's Thirteen (2007), starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney; Mike Binder's Reign Over Me (2007) with Adam Sandler; the Academy Award-winning Traffic (2000) and Out of Sight (1998), with George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez, both films also directed by Soderbergh; Paul Thomas Anderson's acclaimed Boogie Nights (1997) with Julianne Moore and Mark Wahlberg; Bulworth (1998), directed by and starring Warren Beatty; Swordfish (2001), with John Travolta and Halle Berry; Mission to Mars (2000) with Tim Robbins and Gary Sinise; John Singleton's Rosewood (1997), for which Cheadle earned an NAACP Image Award nomination; Brett Ratner's The Family Man (2000), starring Nicolas Cage; and the independent features Manic (2001) and Things Behind the Sun (2001).
Cheadle was honored by the CineVegas Film Festival and the Los Angeles Film Festival and received ShoWest's Male Star of the Year award. He is also well-recognized for his television work, including his portrayal of Sammy Davis Jr. in HBO's The Rat Pack (1998), for which he received a Golden Globe Award and a Best Supporting Actor Emmy nomination. That same year, he also received an Emmy nomination for his starring role in HBO's adaptation of the best-selling novel A Lesson Before Dying (1999), opposite Cicely Tyson and Mekhi Phifer.
He also starred for HBO in Eriq La Salle's Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault (1996). Cheadle's TV series credits include his two-year stint in David E. Kelley's acclaimed series Picket Fences (1992), a guest-starring role on ER (1994) (earning yet another Emmy nomination) and a regular role on The Golden Palace (1992) He also starred in the live television broadcast of Fail Safe (2000) opposite George Clooney, James Cromwell, Brian Dennehy, Richard Dreyfuss, and Harvey Keitel. He also co-executive produced the TV version of Crash (2008).
His most recent big-screen appearances have been in Antoine Fuqua's ensemble crime thriller Brooklyn's Finest (2009) and Jon Favreau's Iron Man 2 (2010), another mainstream breakthrough where he played Lt. Col. James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, replacing Terrence Howard from the first film. The Guard (2011), an art-house hit directed by John Michael McDonagh and co-starring Brendan Gleeson, followed.
Cheadle stars in House of Lies (2012) on Showtime. Late in 2012, he was seen in Flight (2012), Robert Zemeckis's return to live-action filmmaking. In 2013, he reprised his role as Rhodey in Iron Man 3 (2013). Among his projects in development is a movie based on the life of jazz legend Miles Davis.
A talented musician who plays saxophone, writes music and sings, he is also an accomplished stage actor and director and was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2004 for Best Spoken Word Album for his narration/dramatization of the Walter Mosley novel 'Fear Itself.'
Other notable off-stage achievements include the 2007 BET Humanitarian Award for the cause of the people of Darfur and Rwanda, and sharing the Summit Peace Award by the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates in Rome with George Clooney for their work in Darfur.- Actor
- Producer
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Sam Rockwell was born on November 5, 1968, in San Mateo, California, the only child of two actors, Pete Rockwell and Penny Hess. The family moved to New York when he was two years old, living first in the Bronx and later in Manhattan. When Sam was five years old, his parents separated, at which point he and his father moved to San Francisco, where he subsequently grew up, while summers and other times were spent with his mother in New York.
He made his acting debut when he was ten years old, alongside his mother, and later attended J Eugene McAteer High School in a program called SOTA. While still in high school, he got his first big break when he appeared in the independent film Clownhouse (1989). The plot revolved around three escaped mental patients who dressed up as clowns and terrorized three brothers home alone--Sam played the eldest of the brothers. His next big break was supposed to have come when he was slated to star in a short-lived NBC TV-series called Dream Street (1989), but he was soon fired.
After graduating from high school, Sam returned to New York for good and for two years he had private training at the William Esper Acting Studio. During this period he appeared in a variety of roles, such as the ABC Afterschool Specials (1972): Over the Limit (1990) (TV) and HBO's Lifestories: Families in Crisis (1992): Dead Drunk: The Kevin Tunell Story (Season 1 Episode 7: 15 March 1993); the head thug in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990); and a guest-star turn in an Emmy Award-winning episode of Law & Order (1990), while working a string of regular day jobs and performing in plays.
In 1994, a Miller Ice beer commercial finally enabled him to quit his other jobs to concentrate on his acting career, which culminated in him having five movies out by 1996: Basquiat (1996); The Search for One-eye Jimmy (1994); Glory Daze (1995); Mercy (1995); and Box of Moonlight (1996). It was the latter film that would prove to be his real break-out in the industry. In Tom DiCillo's film, he found himself playing an eccentric named the Kid, a man-child living in a half-built mobile home in the middle of nowhere with a penchant for dressing like Davy Crockett, who manages to bring some much-needed chaos into the life of an electrical engineer played by John Turturro. The movie was not a box-office success, but it managed to generate a great deal of critical acclaim for itself and Sam.
In 1997, he found himself the star of another critically lauded film, Lawn Dogs (1997). Once again, he portrayed a societal outcast as Trent, a working-class man living in a trailer, earning a living mowing lawns inside a wealthy, gated Kentucky community. Trent soon finds himself befriended by 10-year-old Devon (Mischa Barton), and the movie deals with the difficulties in their friendship and the outside world. He also gave strong performances in the quirky independent comedy Safe Men (1998), in which he plays one half of a pretty awful singing duo (the other half being played by Steve Zahn) that gets mistaken for two safecrackers by Jewish gangsters; and the offbeat hitman trainee in Jerry and Tom (1998) against Joe Mantegna.
After a few smaller appearances in films such as Woody Allen's Celebrity (1998) and the modern version of A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999), in which he played Francis Flute, he had larger roles in two of the bigger hit movies to emerge: The Green Mile (1999) and Galaxy Quest (1999), wowing audiences and critics alike with his chameleon-like performances as a crazed killer in the former and a goofy actor in the latter.
More recently, he appeared in another string of mainstream films, most notably as Eric Knox in Charlie's Angels (2000) and as Zaphod Beeblebrox in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), while continuing to perform in smaller independent movies. After more than ten years in the business, Sam has earned his success. In 2018, he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor as a troubled police deputy in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017).- Music Artist
- Actor
- Composer
Justin Randall Timberlake was born on January 31, 1981, in Memphis, Tennessee, to Lynn (Bomar) and Randall Timberlake, whose own father was a Baptist minister. At the age of 11, he appeared on the show Star Search (1983), and even though he didn't win, it didn't dampen his ambitions. He also appeared on The All New Mickey Mouse Club (1989), where his costars included Britney Spears, Ryan Gosling, Keri Russell, Christina Aguilera and future band-mate JC Chasez. At age 14, Justin became a member of the boy band *NSYNC. In 1998, the group released their self-titled debut album. They became a big hit with fans and made a place for themselves in the music world with a succession of big-selling albums. In the beginning of 2002, Justin spent time working on and writing songs for his debut solo album. During this time, he broke up with his longtime girlfriend, Britney Spears. The release of the solo album, titled "Justified", came in November of 2002. Songs from his solo album include: "Like I Love You", "Cry Me A River" and "Rock Your Body".
Timberlake has branched out into an acting career, having most recently starred in The Social Network (2010), Friends with Benefits (2011), and Trouble with the Curve (2012).