Woody Harrelson

Woody Harrelson is an American actor whose career has moved from network television comedy to independent film, studio franchises and acclaimed dramatic work. Born Woodrow Tracy Harrelson in Midland, Texas, in 1961, he was raised partly in Ohio and studied theatre and English at Hanover College. He first became famous on television as Woody Boyd, the genial bartender introduced during the fourth season of the long-running sitcom Cheers. The role made him a household name and brought him a Primetime Emmy Award, but it also could have trapped him in light comedy; instead, he used the visibility to build one of the more varied film careers among actors who emerged from 1980s television.

Harrelson's early film work showed a willingness to play against his sitcom persona. He appeared in sports comedy with White Men Can't Jump, but Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers gave him a far more dangerous and satirical screen identity. In The People vs. Larry Flynt, he played the Hustler publisher Larry Flynt, earning major awards recognition and proving that his range extended well beyond amiable comedy. He continued to work steadily in projects such as Wag the Dog, The Thin Red Line, EDtv, Play It to the Bone and Anger Management, often bringing a loose, unpredictable energy to supporting and leading roles.

In the 2000s and 2010s, Harrelson became known for alternating between character-driven films and large-scale commercial projects. He earned awards attention for The Messenger and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, appeared in No Country for Old Men, A Scanner Darkly, Seven Pounds and Rampart, and took major popular roles in Zombieland, the Hunger Games films, Now You See Me and Solo: A Star Wars Story. His work often depends on contrasts: charm and menace, comedy and volatility, laid-back warmth and moral ambiguity.