Billy Zane | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Zane atGalaxyCon Raleigh in 2025 | |
| Born | William George Zane Jr. (1966-02-24)February 24, 1966 (age 59) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Spouse | |
| Partner(s) | Candice Neil (2010–present; engaged) |
| Children | 2 |
| Family | Lisa Zane (sister) |
William George Zane Jr. (born February 24, 1966) is an American actor. His breakthrough role was in the Australian filmDead Calm (1989), a performance that earned him a nomination for theChicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actor. He has since appeared in numerous films and television series, and starred as the main antagonist Caledon Hockley in theepic filmTitanic (1997), for which he and the rest of the ensemble cast were nominated for aScreen Actors Guild Award.
Zane's other film roles includeKit Walker / The Phantom in the superhero filmThe Phantom (1996), "Match" in theBack to the Future franchise, Lieutenant Val Kozlowski inMemphis Belle (1990), The Collector inDemon Knight (1995), Curtis Zampf inThe Believer (2001), and Richard Miller in theSniper film series. He also played the recurring role of John Justice Wheeler in the second season of the television seriesTwin Peaks, and provided the voice ofAnsem in the video gameKingdom Hearts (2002).
Zane was born inChicago to Thalia and William George Zane Sr.; both were professional actors and founders of a school for medical technicians.[1][2] His parents are ofGreek descent (fromChios through his mother andMani through his father); and his family's original surname, "Zanetakos", wasanglicized to "Zane" by his parents. He grew up in theGreek Orthodox faith.[3][4][5] He has an older sister,Lisa Zane, who is an actress and singer.[6]
After completing a year of school atThe American School in Switzerland (TASIS), Zane graduated fromFrancis W. Parker School and attendedHarand Camp of the Theater Arts inElkhart Lake, Wisconsin.[citation needed]
Zane's first two screen roles were in the science fiction filmsBack to the Future in 1985 andCritters in 1986, around the same time he appeared in the music videos forSheena Easton's songs "Do It For Love" and "Magic of Love". In 1988, he played Tony Gambini alongside Jessica Fletcher inMurder, She Wrote: A Very Good Year for Murder. Zane also appeared in an episode ofMatlock entitled "The Nurse". In 1989, he reprised his henchman role inBack to the Future Part II. Earlier that same year, Zane gained international recognition with the role of villain Hughie Warriner in the thrillerDead Calm, alongsideNicole Kidman andSam Neill. He also starred in theNBC filmThe Case of the Hillside Stranglers (1989), and Adam Sandler's "no budget" debutGoing Overboard (1989) which was not released to a wider audience until 1996.
Zane's first starring role was in a 1990independent film, thelow-budgetscience fictionthrillerMegaville. In 1990, he also co-starred as the bombardier in the filmMemphis Belle, a film version of a 1944 film about aWorld War IIBoeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber. Zane also forayed into television work, and in 1991 he appeared as John Justice Wheeler in several episodes ofDavid Lynch's hit TV-seriesTwin Peaks. In 1992, Zane co-starred alongsideTilda Swinton in thefilm adaptation ofVirginia Woolf's novelOrlando. In 1993, he played theShakespearean actor "Mr. Fabian" inTombstone and took a starring role inSniper. Zane also starred alongsideMario Van Peebles as a cold-blooded and corrupt Colonel Graham inPosse and also in Lake Consequence and played a playboy named Harry, posing as the elusive, albeit fake Damon Bradley alongsideMarisa Tomei andRobert Downey Jr. inOnly You.
Zane also starred in a couple ofTales from the Crypt productions, includingTales From the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight, where he played a henchman of Satan called The Collector, and the episode "Well-Cooked Hams", where he played a poorly skilled magician who killed to steal good tricks from other magicians. In 1996, Zane played the eponymous classic comic book hero in the big budget action filmThe Phantom, based onLee Falk's comic.
Zane played the snobbish millionairemisanthrope Caledon Hockley inJames Cameron's 1997blockbusterTitanic. This role as Rose's (played byKate Winslet) fiancé earned him an MTV Movie Award nomination for "Best Villain" and a Blockbuster Entertainment Award. Along with the rest of the ensemble cast, he was nominated for aSAG award.
In 1998, Zane starred in and producedI Woke Up Early the Day I Died, a silent film based onEd Wood's last script, intended as a parody on bad filmmaking. He won several awards at theB-Movie Film Festival, including Best Movie and Best Actor, for this work. The year after, he starred oppositeTimothy Dalton,Bruce Payne,Sean Pertwee andLeonor Varela (who became his fiancé after shooting ended) in a miniseries aboutCleopatra. Zane played the role ofMark Antony.
The same year, Zane voicedJohn Rolfe inDisney'sPocahontas II: Journey to a New World andEtrigan the Demon in an episode ofThe New Batman Adventures.
Zane appeared asneo-fascist Curtis Zampf inThe Believer, which won the Grand Jury Prize atSundance Film Festival in 2001. The same year, he also had a cameo as himself in the comedyZoolander.
Zane appeared onBroadway in the musicalChicago, where he played lawyer Billy Flynn.
Zane also had a recurring role in the television seriesCharmed in which he played poetry-loving ex-demon Drake. He also provided the voice ofAnsem, the main antagonist of the2002 video gameKingdom Hearts, oppositeHaley Joel Osment asSora. Though archive audio of Zane was later used forKingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, he was replaced byRichard Epcar for the rest of the series fromKingdom Hearts II onwards. However, Zane's performance was kept for theKingdom Hearts Final Mix remaster inKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 Remix.
In 2006, Zane starred inArthur Allan Seidelman'sWest End production ofSix Dance Lessons in Six Weeks as an acerbic gay dance instructor oppositeClaire Bloom.[7] In the same year, he appeared in theTurkish filmValley of the Wolves: Iraq (Kurtlar Vadisi: Irak in Turkish), part of theKurtlar Vadisi franchise. The film tells the story of the U.S. Army run amok in Iraq, eventually brought into check by a Turkish soldier. Zane plays Sam William Marshall, a cruel U.S. soldier who is the film's main antagonist.
He took overTimothy Olyphant's role asChristina Applegate's ex-boyfriend onSamantha Who?. However, the sitcom was not renewed for the 2009–2010 season.[8]
Zane is a principal at RadioactiveGiant, a film and television production and distribution company.[9]
Zane starred in the action/thriller filmThe Kill Hole (2012),[10] and in January 2017 he appeared in a commercial forKFC as a gold-coloredColonel Sanders to pitch the restaurant chain's newest limited-time flavor, Georgia Gold Honey Mustard BBQ chicken.[11] Zane also appeared in an episode ofCommunity, season 6's "Advanced Safety Features".
Zane was also featured in two episodes ofThe Boys portraying a fictional version of himself who made a movie with Popclaw and also attended a comic convention withTara Reid. In season 3, Zane appeared as himself portraying Alastair Adana in the Vought filmNot Without My Dolphin.
In 2024, Zane portrayedLarry Ray in theLifetime filmDevil on Campus: The Larry Ray Story as part of its "Ripped from the Headlines" feature films.[12]
Zane was married to actressLisa Collins from 1989 to 1995. He was also engaged for a time to Chilean actressLeonor Varela who was his co-star in the miniseriesCleopatra (1999).[13]
Later Zane was engaged to British model-turned-actressKelly Brook; he met her when they co-starred in the movieSurvival Island (2005), also known asThree. They split in April 2008, got back together again shortly after that, and ended the relationship in August 2008.[citation needed] Zane datedCroatian model Jasmina Hdagha in 2010; they broke up later that year.[14]
Through a friend, he metAmerican model Candice Neil with whom he has two daughters; they became engaged.[13][15] Their first daughter, Ava Catherine, was born in 2011, and their second daughter, Gia, was born in 2014.[16]
In 1999, Zane participated in the firstGumball 3000 rally, driving a 1964Aston Martin DB5.[17] He is anabstract expressionist painter and he has had many solo and group exhibitions.[18]
Zane executive-produced an album by bluesman Tim O'Connor that includes three songs fromDead Calm, in which Zane had one of the lead roles.[19]
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Back to the Future | "Match" | |
| 1986 | Critters | Steve Elliot | |
| 1989 | Going Overboard | King Neptune | |
| Dead Calm | Hughie Warriner | Nominated —Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actor | |
| Back to the Future Part II | "Match" | ||
| 1990 | Megaville | CKS Agent Raymond Palinov / Jensen | |
| Memphis Belle | Lieutenant Val Kozlowski | Nominated —Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actor | |
| 1991 | Femme Fatale | Elijah | |
| Blood and Concrete | Joey Turks | ||
| Millions | Maurizio Ferretti | ||
| 1992 | Orlando | Shelmerdine | |
| 1993 | Sniper | NSC Agent Richard Miller | |
| Posse | Colonel Graham | ||
| Poetic Justice | Brad | ||
| Tombstone | Mr. Fabian | ||
| Betrayal of the Dove | Jesse Peter | ||
| 1994 | Reflections on a Crime | Colin | |
| The Silence of the Hams | Jo Dee Fostar | ||
| Flashfire | Jack Flinder | ||
| Only You | Harry / False Damon Bradley | ||
| 1995 | The Set-Up | Charles Thorpe | |
| Demon Knight | The Collector | ||
| 1996 | The Phantom | Kit Walker / The Phantom | |
| Head Above Water | Kent | ||
| Danger Zone | Rick Morgan | Also co-producer | |
| 1997 | This World, Then the Fireworks | Marty Lakewood | Also executive producer |
| Titanic | Caledon Hockley | Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Supporting Actor – Drama Nominated —Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast Nominated —MTV Movie Award for Best Villain | |
| 1998 | I Woke Up Early the Day I Died | The Thief | Also producer |
| Susan's Plan | Sam Myers | ||
| Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World | John Rolfe | Voice; direct-to-video[20] | |
| 1999 | Promise Her Anything | George Putter | |
| 2001 | Zoolander | Himself | Uncredited cameo |
| The Believer | Curtis Zampf | ||
| CQ | Mr. E. | ||
| Morgan's Ferry | Sam | Direct-to-video | |
| 2002 | Claim | Roberto Bealing | |
| Landspeed | Michael Sanger | ||
| 2003 | Silent Warnings | Sheriff Bill Willingham | Direct-to-video |
| Vlad | Adrian | ||
| The Kiss | Alan Roberts / Young Philip Naudet | Direct-to-video | |
| Starving Hysterical Naked | Jack | ||
| Imaginary Grace | Nero | ||
| 2004 | Silver City | Chandler Tyson | |
| Big Kiss | Billy | Also director and executive producer | |
| 2005 | Dead Fish | Virgil | |
| The Pleasure Drivers | Marvin | ||
| BloodRayne | Elrich | ||
| 2006 | The Last Drop | Lieutenant Robert Oates | Direct-to-video |
| Survival Island | Jack | ||
| Valley of the Wolves: Iraq | Sam William Marshall | ||
| Memory | Taylor Briggs | ||
| 2007 | The Mad | Jason Hunt | |
| Fishtales | Professor Thomas Bradley | Also co-producer | |
| Alien Agent | Tom Hanson / Saylon | Direct-to-video | |
| 2008 | Perfect Hideout | Victor | |
| The Man Who Came Back | Ezra | ||
| Love N' Dancing | Kent Krandel | ||
| 2009 | Surviving Evil | Sebastian "Seb" Beazley | |
| Evil: In the Time of Heroes | Prophitis Messenger | ||
| Darfur | Bob Jones | ||
| The Hessen Affair | Jack Durant | ||
| 2010 | Magic Man | Darius | |
| The Confidant | Monty | ||
| Enemies Among Us | Graham | ||
| 2011 | The Roommate | Professor Roberts | |
| Boop | Max Fleischer | Short film | |
| Sniper: Reloaded | NSC Agent Richard Miller | Direct-to-video | |
| Mercenaries | Colonel Torida | ||
| Flutter | Edwin "The Dentist" | ||
| Mysteria | The Producer | ||
| Lovemakers | Jake's Agent | ||
| Guido | Sid Shine | ||
| 2012 | The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption | King Talus | Direct-to-video |
| Electrick Children | Paul McKnight | ||
| Mama, I Want to Sing! | Dillan | ||
| A Green Story | Greg Hutchins | ||
| Two Jacks | Max Faraday | ||
| The Kill Hole | Marshall | ||
| Border Run | Aaron Talbert | ||
| Dark Star Hollow | The Devil | ||
| 2013 | The Employer | Alan | |
| Blood of Redemption | Quinn Forte | Direct-to-video | |
| Come Find Me | Uncle | Short film | |
| 2014 | Scorned | Kevin | |
| The Ganzfeld Haunting | Father | ||
| HUVr | Himself | Short film | |
| Ghost of Goodnight Lane | Alan | ||
| Mining for Ruby | Professor Sam Goodwell | ||
| 2015 | Zombie Killers: Elephant's Graveyard | Seiler | |
| Billy Zane Thinks Zayn Tweets Are About Him | Himself | Short film | |
| West of Redemption | Hank Keller | ||
| Trouble Sleeping | Charles | ||
| 2016 | A Winter Rose | Preston Holdsworth | |
| Zoolander 2 | Himself | ||
| Swing State | Governor Richard Sollow | ||
| Dead Rising: Endgame | Leo Rand | ||
| White Island | Leo | [21] | |
| Sniper: Ghost Shooter | NSC Agent Richard Miller | Direct-to-video | |
| The Adventure Club | Langley | ||
| 2017 | Sniper: Ultimate Kill | NSC Agent Richard Miller | Direct-to-video |
| 2018 | Samson | King Balek | |
| Holmes & Watson | Himself | Cameo | |
| Blue World Order | Master Crane | ||
| 2019 | Cliffs of Freedom | Christos | |
| The Great War | Colonel Jack Morrison | ||
| 2020 | Ghosts of War | Dr. Engel | Also executive producer |
| Final Kill | Carl Riser | ||
| Guest House | Douglas Masters | ||
| Battle of the Bulge: Winter War | GeneralOmar Bradley | Direct-to-video | |
| Centurion: The Dancing Stallion | Jeffrey Hall | ||
| 2021 | The Believer | Dr. Benedict | |
| Iké Boys | Newt Grafstrom | Also co-executive producer | |
| Rupture | Victor | ||
| 2022 | Hellblazers | Joshua | |
| 2023 | Legend of Destruction | Simon bar Giora | Voice; English dub |
| Centurion: The Dancing Stallion | Jeffrey Hall | ||
| The Oath | King Aaron | ||
| 2024 | Waltzing with Brando | Marlon Brando | |
| Tapawingo | Stoney Tarwater | ||
| 2025 | Day of Reckoning | Butch Hayden | |
| 2026 | Takeover† | Gamal Akopyan |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Brotherhood of Justice | Les | Television film |
| Heart of the City | Tobin | Episode: "Don't Sell Yourself to the Cannibals" | |
| 1987 | Matlock | Eric Dawson | Episode: "The Nurse" |
| Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 | Police Officer | Television film | |
| 1988 | Crime Story | Frankie "The Duke" Farantino | Episode: "Protected Witness" |
| Murder, She Wrote | Tony Gambini | Episode: "A Very Good Year for Murder" | |
| Police Story: Monster Manor | Officer Don Varney | Television film | |
| 1989 | The Case of the Hillside Strangler | Kenneth Bianchi | |
| 1991 | Twin Peaks | John Justice Wheeler | 5 episodes |
| 1993 | Lake Consequence | Billy | Television film |
| Running Delilah | Paul | ||
| Tales from the Crypt | Miles | Episode: "Well-Cooked Ham" | |
| 1998 | The New Batman Adventures | Jason Blood / Etrigan the Demon | Voice; episode: "The Demon Within"[20] |
| 1999 | Cleopatra | Mark Antony | 2 episodes |
| 2000 | Sole Survivor | Joe Carpenter | Television film |
| Hendrix | Michael Jeffrey | ||
| 2001 | The Diamond of Jeru | Mike Kardec | |
| Invincible | Os | ||
| Boston Public | Matthew Baskin | 4 episodes | |
| 2004 | Bet Your Life | Joseph | Television film |
| 2005 | Charmed | Drake | 3 episodes |
| 2008 | Finnegan | Brian Clark | Pilot |
| 2009 | Blue Seduction | Mikey Taylor | Television film |
| Samantha Who? | Winston Funk | 5 episodes[8] | |
| 2010 | Journey to Promethea | King Laypach | Television film |
| The Deep End | Cliff Huddle | 6 episodes | |
| 2012 | Red Clover | Sheriff Connor O'Hara | Television film |
| Hannah's Law | Lockwood | ||
| Robot Chicken | Commander Edwards,King Ding Dong | Voice; episode: "Poisoned by Relatives" | |
| Barabbas | Barabbas | Television film | |
| 2014 | Checked Out | Uncle Dennis | Pilot |
| Psych | Ian Collins | Episode: "The Break-Up"[22] | |
| 2015 | The Wheel of Time: The Winter Dragon | Elan Morin Tedronai / Ishamael | Television film; also executive producer |
| Community | Honda Boss | Episode: "Advanced Safety Features" | |
| 2015–2016 | Mad Dogs | Milo | 2 episodes |
| 2016 | Guilt | Stan Guthrie | 10 episodes |
| 2017 | Legends of Tomorrow | P. T. Barnum | Episode: "Freakshow" |
| 2018 | Deception | "Switch" | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | Curfew | "Joker" Jones | 8 episodes |
| 2019, 2022 | The Boys | Himself | 3 episodes |
| 2021 | True Story | Ari | 2 episodes |
| MacGruber | Brigadier Commander Enos Queeth | 5 episodes | |
| 2024 | Devil On Campus: The Larry Ray Story | Larry Ray | Television film |
| 2025 | Krapopolis | Potluckus | Voice; "Basket Baby" |
| Year | Film | Voice role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | SSX Tricky | Broderick "Brodi" Ford | [20] |
| 2002 | Kingdom Hearts | Ansem | [20] |
| 2013 | Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 Remix | Archival audio;Kingdom Hearts Final Mix only | |
| 2017 | Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix |
| Year | Song | Artist | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | "Do It For Love & Magic of Love" | Sheena Easton | Unknown |
| 1998 | "The Dope Show" | Marilyn Manson | Recording Industry Executive |
| 2001 | "Epiphany" | Staind | Unknown |
| 2013 | "Rock n Roll"[23] | Avril Lavigne | Protagonist / Antagonist / BearShark |
| 2023 | "I'm My Only Friend" | Dillon Francis,Arden Jones | Actor |
