Billy Bob Thornton

Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker, and musician. He made his film debut in Hunter’s Blood (1986), with Sam Bottoms, Kim Delaney, Clu Gulager, Ken Swofford and Joey Travolta. Other early film roles include South of Reno (1988), with Jeff Osterhage, Lisa Blount, Lewis Van Bergen, Joe Estevez, Julia Montgomery, Brandis Kemp, Danitza Kingsley, and Bert Remsen; Going Overboard (1989), with Adam Sandler, Burt Young, Allen Covert, Billy Zane, Terry Moore, and Milton Berle; Troma Picture’s Chopper Chicks In Zombietown (1989); and For the Boys (1991), with Bette Midler, James Caan, and George Segal.

He had his first major role in Carl Franklin’s One False Move (1992), with Bill Paxton, Cynda Williams, Michael Beach, and Jim Metzler; which he also co-wrote with frequent collaborator Tom Epperson. Subsequent roles include George P. Cosmatos’ Tombstone (1993), with Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Michael Biehn, Powers Boothe, Robert Burke, Dana Delany, Sam Elliott, Stephen Lang, Joanna Pacula, Paxton, Jason Priestley, Michael Rooker, Jon Tenney, Zane, and Charlton Heston; Taylor Hackford’s Blood In Blood Out (1993), with Jesse Borrego, Benjamin Bratt, Enrique Castillo, and Damian Chapa; Adrian Lyne’s Indecent Proposal (1993), with Robert Redford, Woody Harrelson, Demi Moore, Seymour Cassel, Oliver Platt, and Billy Connelly; Ghost Brigade (1993), with Corbin Bernsen, Adrian Pasdar, and Martin Sheen; and Trouble Bound (1993), with Michael Madsen, Patricia Arquette, and Florence Stanley.

More films in the early to mid 1990s include On Deadly Ground (1994), with Steven Seagal (who also directed), Michael Caine, Joan Chen, John C. McGinley and R. Lee Ermey; Floundering (1994), with James LeGros, John Cusack, Ethan Hawke, Steve Buscemi, Kim Wayans, and Lisa Zane; Jim Jarmusch’s Dead Man (1995), with Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Iggy Pop, Jared Harris, Crispin Glover, John Hurt, Michael Wincott, Lance Henriksen, Gabriel Byrne, Mili Avital, Alfred Molina, and Robert Mitchum; and James Keach’s The Stars Fell on Henrietta (1995), with Robert Duvall, Aidan Quinn, Frances Fisher, and Brian Dennehy.

Thornton’s major breakthrough came when he wrote, directed and starred in the independent drama Sling Blade (1996), with Dwight Yoakam, John Ritter, Lucas Black, Natalie Canerday, James Hampton, J.T Walsh, and Duvall. The film was a financial and critical success, and he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and won for Best Adapted Screenplay. He also directed the films All The Pretty Horses (2000), with Matt Damon, Henry Thomas, Black, Penélope Cruz, Rubén Blades, Robert Patrick, Bruce Dern, and Sam Shepard; Daddy and Them (2001), with John Prine, Laura Dern, Andy Griffith, Ben Affleck, Kelly Preston, Diane Ladd, Brenda Blethyn, Tuesday Knight, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Jim Varney; and Jane Mansfield’s Car (2013), with Duvall, Hurt, Kevin Bacon, Patrick, Ray Stevenson, Katherine LaNasa, and Frances O’Connor. He also co-wrote scripts for films he didn’t appear in, such as A Family Thing (1996), with Duvall and James Earl Jones; and Sam Raimi’s The Gift (2000), with Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Keanu Reeves, Katie Holmes, Greg Kinnear, Hilary Swank, Michael Jeter, Kim Dickens, Gary Cole, J.K. Simmons, and Rosemary Harris.

He received a third Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in Sam Raimi’s A Simple Plan (1998), with Paxton and Bridget Fonda. Other films in the late 1990s include Alex Cox’s The Winner (1997), with Rebecca De Mornay, Vincent D’Onofrio, Richard Edson, Delroy Lindo, Madsen, and Frank Whaley; Oliver Stone’s U Turn (1997), with Sean Penn, Jennifer Lopez, Jon Voight, Boothe, Joaquin Phoenix, Claire Danes, and Nick Nolte; The Apostle (1997), with Duvall (who also directed), John Beasley, Farrah Fawcett, Walton Goggins, June Carter Cash, Miranda Richardson, and Billy Joe Shaver; Mike Nichols’ Primary Colors (1998), with John Travolta, Emma Thompson, Kathy Bates, Maura Tierney, Larry Hagman, and Adrian Lester; Stephen Gyllenhaal’s Homegrown (1998), with Hank Azaria, Kelly Lynch, Jon Bon Jovi, Ryan Phillippe, Judge Reinhold, Tenney, Ted Danson, John Lithgow, and Curtis; Armageddon (1998), with Bruce Willis, Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Owen Wilson, Will Patton, Peter Stormare, William Fichtner, Michael Clarke Duncan, Keith David, and Buscemi; and Mike Newell’s Pushing Tin (1999), with Cusack, Blanchett, and Angelina Jolie (whom he was married to from 2000 to 2003).

Films in the 2000s include South of Heaven, West of Hell (2000), with Yoakam (who also directed), Vince Vaughn, Peter Fonda, Paul Reubens, Bud Cort, Jeter, Bo Hopkins, Luke Askew, and Joe Ely; Marc Forster’s Monster’s Ball (2001), with Halle Berry, Heath Ledger, and Peter Boyle; Barry Levinson’s Bandits (2001), with Willis and Blanchett; Joel & Ethan Coen’s The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001), with Frances McDormand, Michael Badalucco, Richard Jenkins, Scarlett Johansson, Jon Polito, Tony Shalhoub, and James Gandolfini; Waking Up in Reno (2002), with Charlize Theron, Patrick Swayze, and Natasha Richardson; and The Badge (2002), with Arquette, William Devane, Sela Ward, Julie Hagerty, Ray McKinnon, Tom Bower, Thomas Hayden Church, and Jena Malone.

More films in the early 2000s include Terry Zwigoff’s Bad Santa (2003), with Tony Cox, Lauren Graham, Brett Kelly, Lauren Tom, Ritter, and Bernie Mac; Richard Curtis’s Love Actually (2003), with Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Martine McCutcheon, Bill Nighy, Rowan Atkinson, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, and Chiwetel Ejiofor; Intolerable Cruelty (2003), with George Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Cedric the Entertainer, Edward Herrmann, Paul Adelstein, Jenkins, and Geoffrey Rush; Levity (2003), with Morgan Freeman, Holly Hunter, and Kirsten Dunst; Peter Berg’s Friday Night Lights (2004), with Derek Luke, Jay Hernandez, Black, Garrett Hedlund, and Tim McGraw; John Lee Hancock’s The Alamo (2004), with Dennis Quaid, Jason Patric, Patrick Wilson, Jordi Mollà, and Emilio Echevarría; and Crystal (2004), with Lisa Blount, Harry Lennix, Goggins and Grace Zabriskie.

Films in the mid to late 2000s include Harold Ramis’s The Ice Harvest (2005), with Cusack, Connie Nielsen,Randy Quaid, and Platt; Richard Linklater’s Bad News Bears (2005), with Kinnear, and Marcia Gay Harden; School for Scoundrels (2006), with Jon Heder, Jacinda Barrett, Luis Guzmán, David Cross, Horatio Sanz, Sarah Silverman, and Duncan; Michael Polish’s The Astronaut Farmer (2007), with Virginia Madsen, Dern, Max Thieriot, and Tim Blake Nelson; Craig Gillespie’s Mr. Woodcock (2007), with Seann William Scott, Susan Sarandon, Amy Poehler, and Ethan Suplee; Eagle Eye (2008), with Shia LaBeouf, Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, Michael Chiklis, and Anthony Mackie; The Informers (2008), with Kim Basinger, Winona Ryder, Mickey Rourke, Jon Foster, Amber Heard, Rhys Ifans, Chris Isaak, Austin Nichols, Lou Taylor Pucci, Mel Raido, and Brad Renfro; and The Smell of Success (2009), with Téa Leoni, Kyle MacLachlan, Ed Helms, Pruitt Taylor Vince, and Frances Conroy.

Films in the early 2010s include Faster (2010), with Dwayne Johnson, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Carla Gugino, Maggie Grace, Mike Epps, Moon Bloodgood, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, and Tom Berenger; a voice role in Puss in Boots (2011), with Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Zach Galifianakis, and Amy Sedaris; The Baytown Outlaws (2013), with Andre Braugher, Clayne Crawford, Daniel Cudmore, Travis Fimmel, Eva Longoria, and Paul Wesley; Parkland (2013), with James Badge Dale, Zac Efron, Jackie Earle Haley, Tom Welling, Colin Hanks, David Harbour, Harden, Ron Livingston, Jeremy Strong, Jacki Weaver, and Paul Giamatti; Cut Bank (2014), with Liam Hemsworth, Teresa Palmer, Dern, Michael Stuhlbarg, Platt, and John Malkovich; and The Judge (2014), with Robert Downey Jr., Duvall, Vera Farmiga, Vincent D’Onofrio, Strong, and Dax Shepard.

Films in the mid to late 2010s include Into the Grizzly Maze (2015), with James Marsden, Thomas Jane, Piper Perabo, and Scott Glenn; Entourage (2015), with Kevin Connolly, Adrian Grenier, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, and Jeremy Piven; David Gordon Green’s Our Brand Is Crisis (2015), with Sandra Bullock, Scoot McNairy, Mackie, Ann Dowd, and Joaquim de Almeida; Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016), with Tina Fey, Margot Robbie, Martin Freeman, and Alfred Molina; Bad Santa 2 (2016), with Cox, Kelly, Bates, Christina Hendricks, and Mike Starr; London Fields (2018), with Heard, Jim Sturgess, Theo James, Jason Isaacs, Cara Delevingne, Obi Abili, and Jaimie Alexander; and Sam Taylor-Johnson’s A Million Little Pieces (2018), with Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Odessa Young, Giovanni Ribisi, Juliette Lewis, and Charlie Hunnam.

Films in the 2020s include Anthony & Joe Russo’s The Gray Man (2022), with Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jessica Henwick, Regé-Jean Page, Wagner Moura, Julia Butters, Dhanush, and Alfre Woodard; Devil’s Peak (2023), with Hopper Penn, Katelyn Nacon, Emma Booth, Brian d’Arcy James, Haley, and Robin Wright; and Standing on the Shoulders of Kitties (2024), with Mike Smith, Robb Wells, John Paul Tremblay, and Patrick Roach.

He also starred in the tv series Hearts Afire (1992-1995), with Ritter, Markie Post, Beth Broderick, Wendie Jo Sperber, Clark Duke, Leslie Jordan, and Conchata Ferrell; season 1 of Fargo (2014), with Allison Tolman, Hanks, Freeman, Bob Odenkirk, Keith Carradine, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, and Stephen Root; Goliath (2016-2021), with William Hurt, Maria Bello, Olivia Thirlby, Nina Arianda, Molly Parker, Tania Raymonde, Sarah Wynter, Britain Dalton, Diana Hopper, Ana de la Reguera, Matthew Del Negro, Morris Chestnut, Mark Duplass, Quaid, Amy Brenneman, Beau Bridges, Shamier Anderson, Graham Greene, Julia Jones, Simmons, Malone, Lenora Crichlow, Brandon Scott, Geoffrey Arend, Dern, and Clara Wong; and Landman (2024- present), with Moore, Ali Larter, Jacob Lofland, Michelle Randolph, Paulina Chavez, Kayla Wallace, Mark Collie, James Jordan, Jon Hamm, Andy Garcia, and Elliott.

Each review will be linked to the title below.

(*seen originally in theaters)

(**seen rereleased in theaters)

Hunter’s Blood (1986) – directed by Robert C. Hughes
South of Reno (1988) – directed by Mark Rezyka
Circus (1988) – directed by Fielder Cook – TV movie
Going Overboard (1989) – directed by Valerie Breiman
Chopper Chicks In Zombietown (1989) – directed by Dan Hoskins
The Dark Backward (1991) – directed by Adam Rifkin – uncredited
For the Boys (1991) – directed by Mark Rydell
Widespread Panic: Live from the Georgia Theatre, Athens, GA (1991) – director only – documentary short
One False Move (1992) – directed by Carl Franklin – also co-writer
Trouble Bound (1993) – directed by Jeffrey Reiner
Blood In, Blood Out (1993) – directed by Taylor Hackford
Indecent Proposal (1993) – directed by Adrian Lyne
Tombstone (1993) – directed by George P. Cosmatos
Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade (1994) – directed by George Hickenlooper – also writer – short
Flounderling (1994) – directed by Peter McCarthy
On Deadly Ground (1994) – directed by Steven Seagal
The Stars Fell on Henrietta (1995) – directed by James Keach
Dead Man (1995) – directed by Jim Jarmusch
Out There (1995) – directed by Sam Irvin – TV movie
Don’t Look Back (1996) – directed by Geoff Murphy – also co-writer, co-story – TV movie
Sling Blade (1996) – also director, writer
A Family Thing (1996) – directed by Richard Pearce – co-writer only
The Winner (1997) – directed by Alex Cox
A Gun, a Car, a Blonde (1997) – directed by Stefani Ames
Princess Mononoke (1997)** – directed by Hayao Miyazaki – English dub
U Turn (1997) – directed by Oliver Stone
The Apostle (1997) – directed by Robert Duvall
An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1998) – directed by Arthur Hiller (as Alan Smithee) – cameo as himself
Primary Colors (1998) – directed by Mike Nichols
Homegrown (1998) – directed by Stephen Gyllenhaal
Armageddon (1998) – directed by Michael Bay
A Simple Plan (1998) – directed by Sam Raimi
Pushing Tin (1999) – directed by Mike Newell
The Last Real Cowboys (2000) – directed by Jeff Lester – also co-story – short
South of Heaven, West of Hell (2000) – directed by Dwight Yoakam
The Gift (2000) – directed by Sam Raimi – co-writer only
All the Pretty Horses (2000) – director only
Camouflage (2001) – directed by James Keach – co-writer only (as as Reginald Perry)
Daddy and Them (2001) – also director, writer
Bandits (2001) – directed by Barry Levinson
The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001) – directed by Joel & Ethan Coen
Monster’s Ball (2002) – directed by Marc Forster
The Badge (2002) – directed by Robby Henson
Waking Up in Reno (2002) – directed by Jordan Brady
Levity (2003) – directed by Ed Solomon
Intolerable Cruelty (2003)* – directed by Joel & Ethan Coen
Love Actually (2003)* – directed by Richard Curtis
Bad Santa (2003) – directed by Terry Zwigoff
Alamo (2004) – directed by John Lee Hancock
Friday Night Lights (2004) – directed by Peter Berg
Chrystal (2005) – directed by Ray McKinnon
Bad News Bears (2005) – directed by Richard Linklater
The Ice Harvest (2005) – directed by Harold Ramis
School for Scoundrels (2006) – directed by Todd Phillips
The Astronaut Farmer (2007) – directed by Michael Polish
Mr. Woodcock (2007) – directed by Craig Gillespie
Eagle Eye (2008) – directed by D.J. Caruso
The Informers (2009) – directed by Gregor Jordan
My Run (2009) – directed by Tim VandeSteeg – narrator – documentary
Faster (2010)* – directed by George Tillman Jr.
The King of Luck (2011) – director only – documentary
Nashville Rises (2011) – directed by Zac Adams – narrator – documentary short
The Smell of Success (2011) – directed by Michael Polish (as Larry Smith)
Puss in Boots (2011)* – directed by Chris Miller
The Baytown Outlaws (2013) – directed by Barry Battles
Jayne Mansfield’s Car (2013) – also director, co-writer
Parkland (2013) – directed by Peter Landesman
The Judge (2014) – directed by David Dobkin
Cut Bank (2015) – directed by Matt Shakman
In the Grizzly Maze (2015) – directed by David Hackl
Entourage (2015) – directed by Doug Ellin
Our Brand Is Crisis (2015) – directed by David Gordon Green
Trailer Park Boys: Drunk, High & Unemployed (2015) – directed by Gary Howsam, Mike Smith, John Paul Tremblay, & Robb Wells – cameo as himself – TV movie
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016) – directed by Glenn Ficarra & John Requa
Bad Santa 2 (2016) – directed by Mark Waters
London Fields (2018) – directed by Mathew Cullen
A Million Little Pieces (2019) – by Sam Taylor-Johnson
Hollywood.Con (2021) – directed by Mika Boorem
The Gray Man (2022) – directed by Anthony & Joe Russo
Devil’s Peak (2023) – directed by Ben Young
The Electric State (2024) – directed by Anthony & Joe Russo

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