Aaron Eckhart

Aaron Edward Eckhart (born March 12, 1968) is an American actor.

Born in Cupertino, California, Eckhart moved to the United Kingdom at an early age. He began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Australia for his high school senior year. He left high school without graduating, but earned a diploma through a professional education course, and then graduated from Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah, in 1994 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in film.

As an undergraduate at BYU, Eckhart met director and writer Neil LaBute, who cast Eckhart in several of LaBute's original plays. Five years later Eckhart made a debut as an unctuous, sociopathic womanizer in LaBute's black comedy film In the Company of Men (1997), followed by appearances in three more of the director's films.

Eckhart gained wide recognition as George in Erin Brockovich (2000), and, in 2006, he received a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of Nick Naylor in Thank You for Smoking. In 2008, he played a major role in Christopher Nolan's blockbuster Batman film The Dark Knight as District Attorney Harvey Dent / Two-Face.

He went on to appear in Love Happens, Rabbit Hole, Battle: Los Angeles, The Rum Diary, Olympus Has Fallen, I, Frankenstein, Sully, and Midway.

Eckhart was born on March 12, 1968 in Cupertino, California, the son of Mary Martha Lawrence, a writer, painter and poet, and James Conrad Eckhart, a computer executive. He is the youngest of three brothers. His father is of Volga German descent, while his mother has English, German, Scots-Irish, and Scottish ancestry. He was raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and served a two-year mission in France and Switzerland. Eckhart's family relocated to the United Kingdom in 1981, following his father's job in information technology. During their time in the United Kingdom, the family moved around Surrey, England, living in towns such as Cobham, Ripley, and Walton-on-Thames. Eckhart attended American Community School, where he was first introduced to acting, starring in a school production as Charlie Brown.

In 1985, Eckhart moved to Australia and settled in Sydney, 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 gave a "terrible" performance. In the autumn of his senior year, Eckhart left school to take a job at the Warringah Mall movie theater. He eventually earned his diploma through a professional education course. This also allowed Eckhart time to enjoy a year of surfing in Hawaii and France, as well as skiing in the Alps. 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. He also studied acting at the William Esper Studio.

While at Brigham Young University, Eckhart appeared in the Mormon-themed film Godly Sorrow, and the role marked his professional debut. At this time he met director/writer Neil LaBute, who cast Eckhart in several of LaBute's 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 (Ancient Secrets of the Bible: Samson), 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 for LaBute at the 63rd annual New York Film Critics Circle Awards. 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.

Eckhart's next project was Thank You for Smoking, in which he played Nick Naylor, a tobacco lobbyist whose firm 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 Elizabeth Short, later dubbed the "Black Dahlia". The film premiered at the 63rd Venice International Film Festival. Reception for the movie was mixed, but many critics enjoyed Eckhart's performance; Time Out magazine praised Eckhart and co-star Hilary Swank for their performances, writing "...both [are] great in their secondary roles."

Internationally viewed as a sex symbol, he was named one of People magazine's 100 Most Beautiful People in 2006. The following year, Eckhart was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He starred in No Reservations (2007), a remake of the 2001 German romantic comedy Mostly Martha. He starred opposite Catherine Zeta-Jones as an up-and-coming hotshot chef. The film was met with mixed reviews and was unfavorably compared to the original film. Eckhart starred in the 2008 comedy Meet Bill, in which he played the eponymous character, a sad executive working at his father-in-law's bank. He gained 30 pounds and donned a fat suit for the role.

Also in 2008, Eckhart portrayed the comic book character Harvey Dent in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight, the sequel to the 2005 film Batman Begins. Nolan's decision to cast Eckhart was based on his portrayal of corrupt characters in the films In the Company of Men, The Black Dahlia, and Thank You For Smoking. He noted in his depiction of the character that "[he] is still true to himself. He's a crime fighter, he's not killing good people. He's not a bad guy, not purely", while admitting "I'm interested in good guys gone wrong." The Dark Knight was a big financial and critical success, setting a new opening weekend box office record for North America. With revenue of $1 billion worldwide, it became the fourth highest-grossing film of all time, and the highest-grossing film of Eckhart's career. Roger Ebert opined that Eckhart did an "especially good job" as his character in the feature, while Premiere magazine also enjoyed his performance, noting that he "makes you believe in his ill-fated ambition ... of morphing into the conniving Two-Face."

Following the success of The Dark Knight, Eckhart next appeared in Alan Ball's Towelhead (2008), an adaptation of the Alicia Erian novel of the same name, in which he played a Gulf War Army reservist who sexually abuses his 13-year-old Arab-American neighbor. The film was screened under the name Nothing is Private at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival. When asked about the sex scenes, Eckhart said: "Those were difficult times .... The way I did it was to really trust Alan. It was in the words. I really trusted Summer [Bishil], and I tried to get her to trust me, to build a relationship when we were doing physical scenes. We'd really rehearse them mechanically, and I'd say, 'OK, I'm going to put my hand here, I'm going to do this.' ... I think I found it more difficult." Towelhead was critically and financially unsuccessful.

Eckhart met actress Emily Cline during the filming of In the Company of Men and they became engaged, but they separated in 1998. He has always been reluctant to speak about his relationships in interviews. Eckhart dated songwriter and member of SHeDAISY Kristyn Osborn from 2006 to 2007. He appeared in the group's video for their song "I'm Taking the Wheel".

Eckhart has noted that hypnosis helped him to quit drinking, smoking, and partying, and that he undertakes amateur photography in his spare time.

Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance

Satellite Award for Outstanding New Talent

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