Aaron Eckhart

Birthday: 12 March 1968, Cupertino, California, USA

Height: 5' 10¾" (1.80 m)

 

Biography

Aaron Edward Eckhart (born March 12, 1968) is an American film and stage actor. Born in California, he moved to England at the age of 13, when his father relocated the family. Several years later, he began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Sydney, Australia, for his high school senior year. He left high school without graduating, but earned a diploma through an adult education course, and graduated from Brigham Young University (BYU) in 1994 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in film. For much of the mid-1990s he lived in New York City as a struggling, unemployed actor.

As an undergraduate at Brigham Young, Eckhart met director and writer, Neil LaBute, who cast him in several of his own original plays. Five years later Eckhart made a debut as an unctuous, sociopathic ladies' man in LaBute's black comedy film, In the Company of Men (1997). Under LaBute's guidance he worked in the director's films, Your Friends & Neighbors (1998), Nurse Betty (2000), and Possession (2002). Eckhart has chosen roles in an eclectic range of movies, from science fiction film such as The Core (2003) and Paycheck (2003) to romantic dramas like Conversations with Other Women (2006) and No Reservations (2007).

Eckhart gained wide recognition as George in Steven Soderbergh's critically acclaimed film, Erin Brockovich (2000), and in 2006 received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor for his portrayal of Nick Naylor in Thank You for Smoking. In 2008 he starred in the big-budget studio film The Dark Knight as Harvey Dent/Two-Face. Eckhart starred alongside Nicole Kidman in the film, Rabbit Hole (2010).

Early life

Eckhart was born in Cupertino, California, the son of Mary Eckhart (née Lawrence), a poet and children's author, and James C. Eckhart "Jim Senior", a computer executive. He is the youngest of three brothers. Eckhart was raised as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints whose members are commonly know as Mormons, and served a two-year mission in France and Switzerland.

Eckhart's family relocated to England in 1981, following his father's job in information technology. The family resided in Surrey, South East England, first in Walton-on-Thames, later moving to Cobham. While living in England Eckhart attended American Community School, now known as ACS International Schools, where he was first introduced to acting, starring in a school production as Charlie Brown. In 1985 he moved to Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, where he attended American International School of Sydney for his high school senior year; he further developed his acting skills in productions like Waiting for Godot, where he admits that he did a "terrible" production. In the fall of his senior year Eckhart left the school in order to take a job working at a mall movie theater. He eventually earned his diploma through an adult education course. This also allowed Eckhart time to enjoy a year of surfing and skiing in Hawaii and the coastal waters of France. In 1988, Eckhart returned to the United States and enrolled as a film major at Brigham Young University–Hawaii, but later transferred to Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. He graduated in 1994 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. 

Career Early work

While at Brigham Young University, Eckhart appeared in the Mormon-themed film, Godly Sorrow, and the role marked Eckhart's professional debut. At this time he met director/writer, Neil LaBute, who cast him in several of his own original plays. After graduating from BYU, Eckhart moved to New York City, acquired an agent, and took various occasional jobs, including bartending, bus driving, and construction work. His first television roles were in commercials. In 1994 he appeared as an extra on the television drama series, Beverly Hills, 90210. Eckhart followed this small part with roles in documentary re-enactments, made-for-television movies, and short-lived programs like Aliens in the Family.

In 1997 Eckhart was approached by Neil LaBute to star in a film adaptation of LaBute's stage play, In the Company of Men. He played a frustrated white-collar worker who planned to woo a deaf office worker, gain her affections, then suddenly dump her. The film, his first feature to reach theaters, was critically well received, with Desson Howe of The Washington Post reporting that Eckhart is the "movie's most malignant presence" and that he "is in chilling command as a sort of satanic prince in shirtsleeves". In the Company of Men was a critical success, winning Best First Film at the 63rd annual New York Film Critics Circle Award. His performance won him the Independent Spirit Award in the category of Best Debut Performance. The film was ranked as one of "The 25 Most Dangerous Movies" by Premiere magazine.

The following year Eckhart starred in another LaBute feature, Your Friends & Neighbors (1998), as Barry, a sexually frustrated husband in a dysfunctional marriage. For the role Eckhart was required to gain weight. In 1999 he starred opposite Elisabeth Shue in Molly, a romantic comedy-drama in which he played the self-absorbed brother of an autistic woman who was cured by surgery. Eckhart also starred that year as a football coach, an offensive coordinator in Oliver Stone's Any Given Sunday.

Critical success

Eckhart first gained wide exposure in 2000 as George, a pony-tailed biker, in Steven Soderbergh's drama, Erin Brockovich. The film was met with reasonable reviews, and was a box office success, earning $256 million worldwide. His performance was well received by critics; Entertainment Weeklys Owen Gleiberman, wrote that Eckhart "may be playing a bit of an ideal [...] but he makes goodness as palpable as he did yuppie evil in 'In the Company of Men'." In an August 2004 interview, Eckhart claimed that he had not worked for nearly a year before he was cast in the movie. "I felt like I sort of was getting away from what I wanted to do as an actor. [...] I had nine months off, but it wasn't a vacation. Sure, I didn't earn any money for nine months, but every day I was reading scripts, I was producing my own material, I was taking meetings, I was working on my craft." 

Following the release of Erin Brockovich, Eckhart co-starred with Renée Zellweger in LaBute's Nurse Betty (2000). He next appeared in Sean Penn's mystery feature The Pledge (2001), in which he played a young detective partnered with a veteran detective, played by Jack Nicholson. The movie received generally favorable reviews, but it did not fare particularly well at the box office. The following year, he collaborated with LaBute in a film adaptation of the Man Booker Prize-winning novel Possession (2002). In 2003, Eckhart co-starred with Hilary Swank in The Core, a film about a geophysicist who tries to detonate a nuclear device in order to save the world from destruction. The film was critically and financially unsuccessful. Also in 2003, he appeared in The Missing, in which he played Cate Blanchett's lover, and in the action-thriller Paycheck opposite Ben Affleck. Paycheck, based on a short story by science fiction writer Philip K. Dick, garnered generally negative reception. Film critic Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film two stars (out of four), saying that he "enjoyed the movie" but felt that it "exploits [Dick's story] for its action and plot potential, but never really develops it."

The following year, away from film, Eckhart guest starred in two episodes of NBC's comedy sitcom Frasier, where he played a boyfriend of Charlotte, Dr. Frasier Crane's love interest. His next film role was in E. Elias Merhige's thriller Suspect Zero, a movie about an FBI agent who tracks down a killer who murders serial killers. Upon release, the movie received broadly negative reviews. Despite the reception, Eckhart's performance was favored by critics; Newsday wrote that Eckhart was a "classically handsome leading man ... but Merhige demands of him complexity and anguish." Suspect Zero was a box office disappointment, earning $11 million worldwide. Also in 2004, Eckhart starred on the London stage, opposite Julia Stiles, in David Mamet's Oleanna at the Garrick Theatre. The drama ran until mid-2004. For this performance, Eckhart received favorable critical reviews. In 2005, returning to film, Eckhart appeared in Neverwas as a therapist who takes a job at a rundown mental hospital that once treated his father (Nick Nolte). The feature was never given a full theatrical release, eventually being released straight to DVD in 2007. 

Worldwide recognition

Eckhart's next project was Thank You for Smoking, in which he played Nick Naylor, a tobacco lobbyist who researched the link between smoking cigarettes and lung cancer. Eckhart said that he felt challenged playing the role: "You have to say these words that are crazy, and yet do it with a smile on your face and have the audience like you. At one point, I'm doing a talk show with a kid who's dying of cancer, and he's going through chemotherapy and the whole thing, and I spin it so the anti-smoking people are the bad guys and I'm the good guy, and I'm this guy's best friend. I mean, it's whacked out." The film was screened at a special presentation at the 30th annual Toronto International Film Festival in 2005. It had a limited release in March 2006 and was released worldwide the following month. For his performance, Eckhart received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. A contributor of USA Today wrote that he gave a "standout, whip-smart performance" citing that as Nick Naylor he kept him "likable even in his cynicism." In the Seattle Post-Intelligencer review of the film, it was reported that "Under his chummy but compassionless smile" Eckhart radiated charm and "Naylor's true joys: manipulating arguments, steering debate, cooking words." 

In this same year, he starred with Helena Bonham Carter in Conversations with Other Women (2006). While promoting this film, Eckhart revealed that he wishes not to be typecast or repeat himself, saying he does not want to play any more villains. He appeared in the 2006 film noir The Black Dahlia—based on a real 1947 crime—as Sergeant Leland "Lee" Blanchard, a detective investigating the murder of 

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1997	In the Company of Men	Chad	Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance Satellite Award for Outstanding New Talent
	Slaughter of the Innocents	Ken Reynolds
1998	Your Friends & Neighbors	Barry
	Thursday	Nick
1999	Molly	Buck McKay
	Any Given Sunday	Nick Crozier
2000	Erin Brockovich	George
	Nurse Betty	Del Sizemore
	Tumble	"Man"
2001	The Pledge	Stan Krolak
2002	Possession	Roland Michell
2003	The Core	Dr. Josh Keyes
	The Missing	Brake Baldwin
	Paycheck	James Rethrick
2004	Suspect Zero	Thomas Mackelway
	Frasier	Frank	TV series; 2 episodes
2005	Neverwas	Zach Riley	Co-producer
2006	Conversations with Other Women	Man
	Thank You for Smoking	Nick Naylor	Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead Nominated – St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor
	The Wicker Man	Truck Stop Patron
	The Black Dahlia	Sgt. Lee Blanchard
2007	No Reservations	Nick Palmer
	Towelhead	Mr. Vuoso
2008	Meet Bill	Bill	Executive producer
	The Dark Knight	Harvey Dent/Two-Face	Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Best Acting Ensemble People's Choice Award for Favorite Cast Nominated – Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated – Scream Award for Best Villain
2009	Love Happens	Dr. Burke Ryan
2010	Rabbit Hole	Howie Corbett	Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead Nominated – San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor
2011	Battle: Los Angeles	SSgt. Michael Nantz
	The Rum Diary	Sanderson
2012	The Expatriate	Ben Logan
2013	Olympus Has Fallen	President Benjamin Asher
2014	I, Frankenstein	Adam Frankenstein	Post-Production
	Divergent	Andrew Prior	Filming

Year	Ride	Role	Notes
2008	The Dark Knight Coaster	Harvey Dent/Two-Face	Ride