Billy Crudup
- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Known as much for his rigorous career choices as for his talent and
chiseled good looks, Billy Crudup has been straddling the line between
serious actor and "it" leading man for several years. He is father to eighteen-year-old William Atticus Parker -- a director, writer and actor.
Crudup was born in 1968 in Manhasset, New York (a Long Island suburb), the middle child in a family of three boys. He is the son of Georgann
(Gaither) and Thomas Henry Crudup III, and the grandson of prominent
attorney William Cotter "Billy" Gaither, Jr.
Crudup was raised in Florida and Texas. His family frequently moved and
always being the new kid meant Billy had to develop some way of gaining
acceptance. Being the class clown was his ticket in. He found roles in
school pageants and developed funny impersonations to entertain family
and friends. He received his undergraduate degree from the University
of North Carolina (where he confirmed his interest in acting). Upon
graduation, Crudup headed to NYC to live with his brother Tommy (who
was at that time a publicist) and study at New York University, where
he joined a theatre troupe called "the lab!" and did little plays and
musicals - he even played "Schroeder" in the famed children's musical
"You're A Good Man Charlie Brown!".
He then went on to earn a Master of Fine Arts from the Tisch School of
the Arts at NY in 1994. A year later, he'd already made a name for
himself on Broadway, earning the Outer Critics Circle Outstanding
Newcomer Award for his performance in
Tom Stoppard's "Arcadia".
Crudup's first big-screen acting gig was in the indie film
Grind (1997), which was shot in 1994, but
ended up on the shelf for three years. In 1996, he landed another, more
lucrative role, opposite Hollywood hotshots
Brad Pitt and
Jason Patric in the
Barry Levinson drama,
Sleepers (1996). He followed that up
with a brief appearance in Woody Allen's
Everyone Says I Love You (1996)
and a higher-profile turn as the rakish older brother in
Inventing the Abbotts (1997).
A self-described student of human nature, Crudup has said that he looks
for characters wrestling with their mistakes. Rumor has it that he
declined an audition for the lead in
Titanic (1997) in order to seek out more
challenging projects--like the "Steve Prefontaine" biopic
Without Limits (1998). "Limits"
showcased Crudup's ability to completely transform himself for a role
(a quality that would help him skirt stardom while continuing to land
substantive parts). In 2000, with three major films in release,
Crudup's already bustling movie career reached a fever pitch. He first
hit the festival circuit in
Keith Gordon's
Waking the Dead (2000), the tale
of an up-and-coming politician who is haunted by the death of his young
wife. Next came the art-house favorite
Jesus' Son (1999). Finally, he starred
as the semi-fictional
'70s rocker "Russell Hammond" in
Cameron Crowe's
much-lauded Almost Famous (2000).
In 2002, his production of "The Elephant Man" on Broadway closed after
65 performances, due to low ticket sales.
Crudup lives in New York and returns regularly to the stage - in fact,
it was during the 1996 Broadway run of "Bus Stop" that he began his
romance with longtime girlfriend,
Mary-Louise Parker. That romance
ended in 2004, when Crudup left the then-pregnant Parker for his
Stage Beauty (2004) co-star,
Claire Danes. He seems to prefer quiet
anonymity to the pomp and circumstance of the movie star lifestyle, but
his ever-growing popularity guarantees that he won't be able to avoid
the spotlight altogether.
chiseled good looks, Billy Crudup has been straddling the line between
serious actor and "it" leading man for several years. He is father to eighteen-year-old William Atticus Parker -- a director, writer and actor.
Crudup was born in 1968 in Manhasset, New York (a Long Island suburb), the middle child in a family of three boys. He is the son of Georgann
(Gaither) and Thomas Henry Crudup III, and the grandson of prominent
attorney William Cotter "Billy" Gaither, Jr.
Crudup was raised in Florida and Texas. His family frequently moved and
always being the new kid meant Billy had to develop some way of gaining
acceptance. Being the class clown was his ticket in. He found roles in
school pageants and developed funny impersonations to entertain family
and friends. He received his undergraduate degree from the University
of North Carolina (where he confirmed his interest in acting). Upon
graduation, Crudup headed to NYC to live with his brother Tommy (who
was at that time a publicist) and study at New York University, where
he joined a theatre troupe called "the lab!" and did little plays and
musicals - he even played "Schroeder" in the famed children's musical
"You're A Good Man Charlie Brown!".
He then went on to earn a Master of Fine Arts from the Tisch School of
the Arts at NY in 1994. A year later, he'd already made a name for
himself on Broadway, earning the Outer Critics Circle Outstanding
Newcomer Award for his performance in
Tom Stoppard's "Arcadia".
Crudup's first big-screen acting gig was in the indie film
Grind (1997), which was shot in 1994, but
ended up on the shelf for three years. In 1996, he landed another, more
lucrative role, opposite Hollywood hotshots
Brad Pitt and
Jason Patric in the
Barry Levinson drama,
Sleepers (1996). He followed that up
with a brief appearance in Woody Allen's
Everyone Says I Love You (1996)
and a higher-profile turn as the rakish older brother in
Inventing the Abbotts (1997).
A self-described student of human nature, Crudup has said that he looks
for characters wrestling with their mistakes. Rumor has it that he
declined an audition for the lead in
Titanic (1997) in order to seek out more
challenging projects--like the "Steve Prefontaine" biopic
Without Limits (1998). "Limits"
showcased Crudup's ability to completely transform himself for a role
(a quality that would help him skirt stardom while continuing to land
substantive parts). In 2000, with three major films in release,
Crudup's already bustling movie career reached a fever pitch. He first
hit the festival circuit in
Keith Gordon's
Waking the Dead (2000), the tale
of an up-and-coming politician who is haunted by the death of his young
wife. Next came the art-house favorite
Jesus' Son (1999). Finally, he starred
as the semi-fictional
'70s rocker "Russell Hammond" in
Cameron Crowe's
much-lauded Almost Famous (2000).
In 2002, his production of "The Elephant Man" on Broadway closed after
65 performances, due to low ticket sales.
Crudup lives in New York and returns regularly to the stage - in fact,
it was during the 1996 Broadway run of "Bus Stop" that he began his
romance with longtime girlfriend,
Mary-Louise Parker. That romance
ended in 2004, when Crudup left the then-pregnant Parker for his
Stage Beauty (2004) co-star,
Claire Danes. He seems to prefer quiet
anonymity to the pomp and circumstance of the movie star lifestyle, but
his ever-growing popularity guarantees that he won't be able to avoid
the spotlight altogether.