Billy Zane Profile

Birth Name : William George Zane Jr.

Date of Birth : 24 February 1966, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Height : 6' (1.83 m)

Occupation : Actor, producer, director

William George Zane Jr., better known as Billy Zane, was born on February 24, 1966, in Chicago, Illinois, USA to parents William George Zane Sr. and Thalia Zane. Both of his parents ran a medical technical school. Billy also has a sister named Lisa Zane, an actress born in 1961. Billy was bitten by the acting bug early on. In his early teens, he attended Harand Camp of the Theater Arts in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. In 1982, he attended the American School in Switzerland.

Zane's theatre credits include performances in American Music at the Second Stage Theatre and The Boys in the Backroom with Tim Robbins' experimental group, The Actor's Gang.

Three weeks in Hollywood and Zane already landed a small role in the blockbuster Back to the Future (1985), playing one of Biff's bullies.

Zane also found work on the small screen, including a starring role in the 1986 television movie, The Brotherhood of Justice with Kiefer Sutherland. In addition, Zane portrayed serial killer Kenneth Bianchi in the highly-acclaimed telefilm, Two of a Kind: The Case of the Hillside Strangler. He also starred in six episodes of David Lynch's internationally acclaimed series, Twin Peaks.

Mainly a B-movie actor, Billy Zane enjoyed a few brief moments in the sun most impressively for his supporting role as the villain Caledon Hockley in the historic blockbuster, "Titanic" (1997). The intense actor began his career playing an assortment of villains and oddballs in occasionally notable films like "Dead Calm" (1989) and "Orlando" (1993), but following a run of supporting roles in big budget Hollywood films and a not-so-well-received starring turn as "The Phantom" (1996), he took up residence in the realm of macho low-budget action films and sci-fi thrillers. A prolific working actor to say the least, Zane churned out numerous B-movies and cable telepics yearly, occasionally turning heads in acclaimed independent dramas like "The Believer" (2001) and John Sayles' "Silver City" (2004), though his curious movie choices made it difficult for him to rise to the status of a solid Hollywood supporting player, for which he unquestionably had the looks and talent.

He took over Timothy Olyphant's role as Christina Applegate's ex-boyfriend on Samantha Who?; Olyphant had to depart because of scheduling conflicts with his role in Damages. The show, however, was not renewed for the 2009–2010 season.