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Starsky and Hutch
Background:
American comic actor/screenwriter Owen Wilson, who is recognized for his
improvisational abilities, attracted attention from the public for his bright
portrayal of TV cop Ken ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson in the big screen adaptation of the
1970s cop series Starsky and Hutch (2004, opposite Ben Stiller), where he took
home an MTV movie Award. One of “The Frat Pack” members, Wilson is also
best-known among his fans as Jackie Chan’s reluctant partner Roy O’Bannon in
Shanghai Noon (2000) and Shanghai Nights (2003). His film credits include The
Wendell Baker Story (2005), Wedding Crashers (2005), the hit sequels Meet the
Fockers (2004) and Meet the Parents (2000), I Spy (2002), Behind Enemy Lines
(2001), Zoolander (2001), The Haunting (1999), The Minus Man (1999) and Bruce
Willis’ Armageddon (1998). Owen, who earned $10,000,000 for Starsky & Hutch
(2004) and Wedding Crashers (2005), will also add the upcoming animated Cars
(2006), the comedy You, Me and Dupree (2006) and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
(2006), to his resume.
One of the most promising new talents to emerge in the 1990s, Wilson initially
garnered attention when he co-scripted (with Wes Anderson) and starred in the
wide screen version of the acclaimed festival-screened short Bottle Rocket
(1996). Due to his bravura work, Owen picked up a Lone Star Film & Television
Award. With Anderson, he later wrote the critical acclaimed comedy-drama
Rushmore (1998), in which he took home a Lone Star Film & Television Award, and
an Oscar-nomination for Best Original Screenplay for The Royal Tenenbaums (2001,
also acted in).
Off screen, left-handed Wilson was among nine other actors to top “Hollywood’s
Hottest Bachelor,” which including Jesse Metcalfe, Kanye West, Adrian Grenier,
Joaquin Phoenix, Keith Urban, Vince Vaughn, Wentworth Miller, John Cusack and
Ben McKenzie. Owen was once rumored to be an alcoholic and undergoing intensive
treatment to overcome his addiction, but he strongly denied the reports. As for
his romantic life, 5’ 11” inch tall Owen was formerly linked to singer/actress
Sheryl Crow (born on February 11, 1962), but they are no longer together. The
couple met while on the set of the 1999 The Minus Man. Currently, Owen is
reportedly searching for a wife because he’s ready to settle down and start a
family.
“I thought that I’d be married by the time I was 30 and be starting a family,
but it just hasn’t worked out that way. I think that there's something about
being in Hollywood. I don’t know if I’m shallow, but you want to make sure that
you make the right choice because you know that it's forever and I didn’t
realize that I have such a strong scientific side that demands that I experiment
with and compare women.” Owen Wilson
Troubled O
Childhood and Family:
Owen Cunningham Wilson was born in November 18, 1968, in Dallas, Texas. He was
reared under the care of his father, Robert Wilson, an advertising executive,
and his mother, Laura Wilson, a photographer. Along with his brothers, Andrew
(the oldest) and Luke (the youngest), Owen enjoyed a typical American boyhood.
“We spent so much time together that I can remember us being in our teens and
our dad saying we should try to find some other friends because he thought we
were our own lowest common denominator when we got together.” Owen Wilson on his
brothers
Self-proclaimed troublemaker Owen Wilson, whose nickname is O, was expelled from
St. Mark’s Academy in Dallas, Texas, in the tenth grade and transferred to
Thomas Jefferson High School in Austin, Texas. After finishing his sophomore
year, Owen headed to a military academy in New Mexico. He next enrolled as an
English major at the University of Texas in Austin, in which he graduated with a
BA degree in 1991. It was there that Owen met his future mentor and friend Wes
Anderson.
Son to Irish Catholic descendant parents, Owen grew up in a non-religious
family. As a baby, he was not baptized, but later on he was received into the
Roman Catholic Church and is now a practicing Catholic.
Rushmore
Career:
“I guess a lot of me in the sense is like Dignan, that’s my sense of humor. The
stuff that Dignan is doing is what I would do. When we test-screened the movie,
I realized that not everybody laughed where I did. I realized there's not a big
audience for my type of humor. Dignan doesn't have self-awareness. Donald Trump
has none either. When I read “The Art of the Deal,” I laughed at that because
neither of them realize how funny they are.” Owen Wilson on his character Dignan
in Bottle Rocket
Known for his assortment of roles and his slightly crooked nose, Owen Wilson
made a grand entrance to the cinematic industry with the 1994 short Bottle
Rocket, which he co-wrote with like-minded, artistic, aspiring filmmaker Wes
Anderson and co-starred with his brothers Luke and Andrew. Debuting at the
Sundance Film Festival in 1993, the well-received, festival-screened short
caught the attention of producer Polly Platt and writer/director James L.
Brooks, which eventually led to the full-length version in 1996. Though it made
little impression at the box office, Bottle Rocket received several positive
responses from critics for its originality and even handed Wilson a Lone Star
Film & Television for Debut of the Year. Additionally, Wilson’s performance as
aspiring criminal Dignan won him notice and became his Hollywood calling card.
Riding high in his initial success, Wilson soon received offers to play more
roles in movies. He was seen as a loathsome date for leading lady Leslie Mann in
Ben Stiller’s dark comedy The Cable Guy (1996), became snake food in the
Amazonian action thriller Anaconda (1997), appeared as one of the oil drillers,
Oscar Chio, in the mega blockbuster Armageddon (1998) and made an impressive
cameo as the drug-addled buddy in Permanent Midnight (1998, starring Ben
Stiller). He was also an associated producer of Brooks’ Academy Award-nominated
As Good As It Gets (1997).
Rejoining Anderson, Wilson co-scripted and produced the comedy-drama Rushmore
(1998). The Anderson-helmed film, which starred Bill Murray as miserable
millionaire Blume and Jason Schwartzman as young genius Max Fischer, garnered
acclaim from critics and nabbed a Lone Star Film & Television for Best
Screenplay. Unfortunately, its critical reviews were not followed by success at
the box office.
In the following year, after providing his voice for the television movie Heat
Vision and Jack (1999), Owen returned to acting with the lead role of delightful
serial killer Vann Siegert in Hampton Fancher’s gripping drama The Minus Man
(1999). His fine performance won the actor critical raves from film critics. The
same year, Owen had a small supporting role in Alan Rudolph’s poorly received
Breakfast of Champions (1999) before finding himself acting opposite Liv Taylor
and Catherine Zeta-Jones in the ensemble cast of The Haunting (1999).
Entering the new millennium, Owen was put in the Hollywood mainstreams when he
joined Hong Kong action hero and Hollywood heavyweight Jackie Chan to star in
the “chop-sockey” Western Shanghai Noon (2000). His uproarious performance as
Chan’s reluctant partner Roy O’Bannon practically stole the movie although
Shanghai Noon was one of Jackie Chan’s vehicles. Wilson followed it up with a
feature role opposite Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro in the blockbuster hit Meet
the Parents (2000), a comedy film directed by Jay Roach.
Owen further established his reputation as a comedic actor when he rejoined Ben
Stiller to play empty-headed male model Hansel, who becomes the rival of
Stiller, in Zoolander (2001). The hilarious performance was followed by another
when he portrayed the colorful supporting role of off-kilter novelist Eli Cash,
opposite Gene Hackman, Stiller, Gwyneth Paltrow and his brother Luke, in the
unusual family story The Royal Tennenbaums (2001). In addition to acting, Wilson
also produced and co-scripted the film with Wes Anderson. The two even received
a nomination at the Oscars for Best Original Screenplay. 2001 also saw the
comedian actor pick up the mantle of action hero when he took home the starring
role of Navy pilot Lt. Chris Burnett, opposite Gene Hackman, in the war-theme
drama Behind Enemy Lines. Returning to the comedy genre, Wilson teamed up with
Eddy Murphy for the big screen adaptation of the action comedy I Spy (2002) and
reprised his role of Roy O’Bannon in the sequel Shanghai Knights (2003).
In 2004, Wilson once more attracted fans when he was cast opposite Ben Stiller
as TV cop Ken ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson in the comedic, parody-minded, silver screen
version of the 1970s cop series Starsky & Hutch (2004). Wilson’s good
performance handed him a MTV Movie for Best Kiss. With his long-time companion
Stiller, Owen also received a nomination for Best On-Screen Team at the MTV
Movie Awards.
The same year, he also appeared as a con man, alongside Morgan Freeman, in the
less-successful comedy The Big Bounce (2004), made a cheery cameo appearance,
alongside his brother Luke, in the Disney live action feature Around the World
in 80 Days (2004), starred with Bill Murray and Cate Blanchett in the Wes
Anderson-directed The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) and experienced his
next box-office exposure with the second installment of the 2000 hit Meet the
Parents, Meet the Fockers (2004).
Recently, moviegoers could watch Owen as Neil King in The Wendell Baker Story
(2005) and coupled with Vince Vaughn as cute cads who crash weddings to pick up
forlorn, defenseless women in the hilarious comedy Wedding Crashers (2005). In
2006, Wilson will add four movies to his impressive resume. He will first lend
his voice to Lightning McQueen in the Disney Pixar animated film Cars (2006),
then play Matt Dillon’s best man in the comedy You, Me and Dupree (2006) and
play the title character in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2006). Wilson will
also join Harold Ramis for an untitled project in 2006.
Awards:
