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Revision as of 14:49, 12 April 2006
William "Bill" Paxton (born May 17, 1955 in Fort Worth, Texas) is an American actor and film director. He is a son of John Lane Paxton (an occasional actor) and Mary Lou Paxton.
Distinctive and memorable characters that Paxton has played include the sneering older brother Chet in John Hughes' Weird Science, Hudson, the loud-mouthed space soldier in James Cameron's Aliens ("Game over, man! Game over!"), astronaut Fred Haise in Ron Howard's Apollo 13, the sadistic vampire Severen in Kathryn Bigelow's film Near Dark and a tornado researcher opposite Helen Hunt in the blockbuster Twister.
Paxton moved to Los Angeles at 18 and began working for director Roger Corman as a set designer on his films. Exposed to films and actors at that age, had influenced his decision to pursue acting, and Paxton relocated to New York City where he studied with Stella Adler.
In addition to his acting career, Paxton has directed a number of short films, including Fish Heads, which made a splash on Saturday Night Live in 1982. He has also moved into directing feature films with Frailty and The Greatest Game Ever Played. He was also a member of the band Martini Ranch.
He is currently seen in the television drama, Big Love, as the head of a polygynous family in Utah, produced by HBO.
Paxton claims the unusual distinction of being the only actor to be killed, on-screen, once each by an Alien, a Predator and a Terminator.
Filmography
- Haven (2004)
- Thunderbirds (2004)
- Club Dread (2004)
- Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003)
- Ghosts of the Abyss (2003)
- Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams (2002)
- Frailty (2002)
- Vertical Limit (2000)
- U-571 (2000)
- Mighty Joe Young (1998)
- A Simple Plan (1998)
- A Bright Shining Lie (1998)
- Traveller (1997)
- Titanic (1997)
- The Evening Star (1996)
- Twister (1996)
- Apollo 13 (1995)
- The Last Supper (1995)
- True Lies (1994)
- Frank and Jesse (1994)
- Tombstone (1993)
- Boxing Helena (1993)
- Future Shock (1993)
- Indian Summer (1993)
- Monolith (1993)
- Trespass (1992)
- The Vagrant (1992)
- The Dark Backwards (1991)
- One False Move (1991)
- Predator 2 (1990)
- Navy Seals (1990)
- Back to Back (1990)
- Brain Dead (1990)
- The Last of the Finest (1990)
- Next of Kin (1989)
- Slipstream (1989)
- Pass the Ammo (1988)
- Near Dark (1987)
- Aliens (1986)
- Fresno (1986)
- Weird Science (1985)
- Commando (1985)
- The Atlanta Child Murders (1985)
- An Early Frost (1985)
- The Terminator (1984)
- Streets of Fire (1984)
- Impulse (1984)
- Mortuary (1984)
- The Lords of Discipline (1983)
- Deadly Lessons (1983)
- Taking Tiger Mountain (1983)
- Stripes (1981)
- Night Warning (1981)
- Crazy Mama (1979)