Kevin Bacon

Kevin Norwood Bacon is an American actor known for playing a wide variety of roles, including leading man characters. His extensive screen career across numerous genres has made him a prominent figure in film and television, earning him recognition such as a Golden Globe Award and two Actor Awards.

Born on July 8, 1958, Bacon was raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as the youngest of six children. His mother, Ruth Hilda, was an elementary school teacher and liberal activist, while his father, Edmund Bacon, was an urban planner who served as executive director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. Bacon attended Julia R. Masterman School for middle and high school. At age 16, he won a scholarship to the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts at Bucknell University, where he studied theater under Glory Van Scott. At age 17, he moved to New York City to pursue a career in theater.

Bacon made his feature film debut in the comedy National Lampoon's Animal House (1978), followed by television roles on soap operas such as Search for Tomorrow and Guiding Light. After appearing in Friday the 13th (1980) and winning an Obie Award for the play Forty Deuce, he made his Broadway debut in Slab Boys. His performance as Timothy Fenwick in Barry Levinson's film Diner (1982) garnered significant critical praise. Bacon achieved a major career breakthrough starring in the musical-drama film Footloose (1984). Later in the 1980s, he appeared in comedies including She's Having a Baby (1988) and The Big Picture (1989).

In 1990, Bacon starred in the horror-comedy Tremors and the drama Flatliners. Seeking to transition into character acting, he took supporting roles in major projects, portraying Willie O'Keefe in Oliver Stone's JFK (1991) and a prosecuting attorney in A Few Good Men (1992). His subsequent film work in the 1990s included The River Wild (1994), Apollo 13 (1995), Murder in the First (1995), Sleepers (1996), Picture Perfect (1997), and Stir of Echoes (1999). He also made his directorial debut with the television film Losing Chase (1996).

Throughout the 2000s and 2010s, Bacon continued to star in diverse film projects, including Hollow Man (2000), Mystic River (2003), The Woodsman (2004), Loverboy (2005)—which he also directed—Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011), X-Men: First Class (2011), and Patriots Day (2016). On television, he earned a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for portraying Michael Strobl in the HBO movie Taking Chance (2009). He later starred in the series The Following, I Love Dick, and City on a Hill.

In addition to acting, Bacon formed the music group The Bacon Brothers with his brother Michael in 1995, releasing seven albums. He is also the subject of the trivia game "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon," which led him to create the charitable initiative SixDegrees.org. Bacon has worked as a brand ambassador for British mobile network operator EE and served as a commercial spokesperson for the U.S. egg industry. He married actress Kyra Sedgwick in 1988, with whom he has two children.