Dallas is one of the largest and most modern cities in the world. It has given many talented people, including film actors. We completed the list of top Dallas-born actors who rose to fame in comedy, tragedy, adventure and other films, many of which became global bestsellers. Read more about them on i-dallas.
Owen Wilson
Owen Wilson is an American actor, screenwriter and producer born in Dallas. He studied at the University of Texas at Austin. There, he met future director Wes Anderson, who was his roommate. Together, they worked on the script for the comedy film Bottle Rocket, which became the directorial debut of Wes Anderson and the acting debut of brothers Owen Wilson and Luke Wilson. Another successful work of Wilson and Anderson was the film The Royal Tenenbaums, which was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. Among other successful films were Shanghai Noon with Jackie Chan, Zoolander, Starsky & Hutch, Wedding Crashers and Marley and Me.
Luke Wilson
Luke Wilson, the brother of Owen Wilson, had an equally successful acting career. He got his first role in the movie Bottle Rocket. After this success, he moved to Hollywood, where he acted in the films Telling Lies in America and Scream-2. He also starred with Reese Witherspoon in the 2001 comedy Legally Blonde. The films Old School and The Royal Tenenbaums were also released with the participation of the actor.
Robin Wright
The future actress and director was born on April 8, 1966 in Dallas. In her school years, she was interested in modeling. After completing her studies, she decided to become an actress. The first role was a small one in the TV series The Yellow Rose. Then, she was invited to the role of Kelly Capwell in the daytime soap opera Santa Barbara, after which she was nominated three times for the Daytime Emmy Award.
True popularity came after the film Forrest Gump with Tom Hanks, which became the highest grossing film of the year. For her participation in the drama, the actress received the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.
In 2013, she was nominated for an Emmy Award and was awarded a Golden Globe Award for her role as Claire Underwood in the TV series House of Cards.
She also received roles in such successful films as Message in a Bottle, Unbreakable, Nine Lives, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Everest, Wonder Woman and the science fiction film Blade Runner 2049.
Jensen Ackles
The actor is associated with the defender of humanity from demons, angels, spirits and ghosts after participating in one of the most successful series Supernatural, where he played Dean Winchester from 2005 to 2020. During the creation of the series, Jensen also had the opportunity to prove himself as a director. He directed the 4th episode of season 6 called Bobbie’s Weekend. It was one of six episodes of the series directed by Ackles.
He was born in Dallas and started career in 1996, when he appeared in cameo roles on the TV series Mr. Rhodes, Sweet Valley High and Cybill. In 1997, he got the role of Eric Brady in the TV series Days of Our Lives. In 2020, Jensen joined the cast of the superhero TV series The Boys (Season 3) as Soldier Boy.
Piper Perabo
Dallas is also the birthplace of actress Piper Perabo, who was born on October 31, 1976. She first got into the movies with the role of FBI agent Karen Sympathy in The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle. Her next film was Coyote Ugly, for which Piper Perabo received an MTV award in the nomination for Best Musical Moment for the performance of the song One Way or Another.
After a successful start, she starred in the films The Prestige and Angel Has Fallen. She was invited to play the role of CIA agent Annie Walker in the spy drama series Covert Affairs. For it, she was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama.
Brigette Lundy-Paine
Brigette Lundy-Payne was born in Dallas and grew up in a talented acting family. She rose to fame for her role as Casey Gardner in all four seasons of the Netflix comedy-drama series Atypical. In 2020, she got the role of Billie Logan in the third part of the film Bill & Ted directed by Dean Parisot and starring Keanu Reeves.
Amy Acker
This American actress from Dallas became famous after appearing in the supernatural drama series Angel as Winifred Burkle and Illyria. Thanks to this project, the actress was awarded the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television. Then, she got the role of Kelly Peyton in the drama series Alias. She can also be found in the movie Catch Me If You Can as Miggy and in selected episodes of such TV series as Supernatural, How I Met Your Mother, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Dollhouse.
William Jackson Harper
William was born on February 8, 1980 in Dallas. His real name was William Fitzgerald Harper. Later, he changed it because Fitzgerald was long and difficult to pronounce.
He is best known for starring in the NBC comedy series The Good Place, which ran from 2016 to 2020. Following the project, he was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. In 2022, he was cast for the lead role in the comedy mystery series The Resort. The following year, he showed himself in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, playing Quaza in the movie Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Peter MacNicol
Peter MacNicol is a native of Dallas, where he was born on April 10, 1954. He started his acting career in the theater. He performed at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis for two seasons, appearing in Hamlet and The Pretenders. In 1981, he made his Broadway debut in the play Crimes of the Heart, for which he received a Theatre World Award.
Major film roles included Galen in Dragonslayer, Stingo in Sophie’s Choice, Janosz Poha in Ghostbusters II, camp counselor Gary Granger in Addams Family Values and David Langley in Bean.
James Gregory Vaughan
He is another actor born in the Texas city of Dallas in 1973. In his school years, he became interested in modeling. At the age of 16, while getting a haircut, he heard about a modeling contest. Having familiarized himself with the conditions of participation, he sent several pictures to it. He reached the finals but did not win. The finalist of this competition encouraged young James to continue developing in modeling. Then, he signed a contract with a modeling agency. After finishing school, he was invited to Milan, where he presented the creations of designer Giorgio Armani. Later, he worked with Gianni Versace, Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren.
After a while, he got tired of working as a model and decided to become an actor. His first role was in Baywatch and Aaron Spelling’s 1996 pilot Malibu Shores. Subsequently, he starred in Beverly Hills, 90210 and was also a regular actor in the second season of Charmed. The role of Lucky Spencer in the series General Hospital brought him the greatest popularity.