Christian Slater

Christian Slater is an American actor and producer whose career has moved across stage, film, television and voice work. Born Christian Michael Leonard Slater in New York City in 1969, he grew up in a show-business family: his father, Michael Hawkins, was an actor, and his mother, Mary Jo Slater, worked as a casting executive and producer. Slater attended New York performing-arts schools and began acting as a child, with early television work followed by Broadway appearances, including a revival of The Music Man.

Slater made his feature-film debut in The Legend of Billie Jean in 1985 and soon attracted wider attention as Adso of Melk opposite Sean Connery in The Name of the Rose. His defining early screen role came in the 1989 black comedy Heathers, in which he played Jason "J.D." Dean opposite Winona Ryder. The film became a cult landmark and helped establish Slater's screen image as a charismatic, volatile young actor. He followed it with youth-oriented and crime-tinged films such as Gleaming the Cube, Pump Up the Volume and Young Guns II, roles that made use of his quick delivery and rebellious screen persona.

During the 1990s, Slater became a familiar presence in mainstream Hollywood films. He appeared as Will Scarlett in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, had a small Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country cameo, and starred as Clarence Worley in True Romance, a crime romance written by Quentin Tarantino. His other prominent roles from the period included Interview with the Vampire, Broken Arrow, Hard Rain and Very Bad Things. Slater often alternated between leading parts in thrillers and ensemble roles in larger studio productions, and he continued theatre work in the United States and Britain alongside his film career.