Owen Cunningham Wilson (born November 18, 1968) is an American actor and comedian. He has frequently worked with filmmaker Wes Anderson, with whom he has shared writing and acting credits on the films Bottle Rocket (1996), Rushmore (1998), and The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)—the latter received a nomination for the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay. He has also appeared in Anderson's The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), The Darjeeling Limited (2007), Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), and The French Dispatch (2021). Wilson also starred in the Woody Allen romantic comedy Midnight in Paris (2011) as disenchanted screenwriter Gil Pender, a role which received a Golden Globe Award nomination. In 2014, he appeared in Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice and Peter Bogdanovich's She's Funny That Way.

Wilson is also known as part of the Frat Pack, with whom he has starred in comedic films Meet the Parents (2000), Zoolander (2001), Starsky & Hutch (2004), Wedding Crashers (2005), You, Me and Dupree, Night at the Museum (both 2006), Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009), How Do You Know (2010), The Internship (2013), and Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (2014). He has collaborated with Jackie Chan on three action comedy films: Shanghai Noon (2000), Shanghai Knights (2003), and Around the World in 80 Days (2004). He is also known for appearing in the family films Marley and Me (2008) and Haunted Mansion (2023). His non-comedic films include Anaconda (1997), Armageddon (1998), The Haunting (1999), and Behind Enemy Lines (2001). His voice acting roles include Lightning McQueen in the Cars film series (2006–2017), the titular character in Marmaduke (2010), Reggie in Free Birds (2013), and Mobius M. Mobius in the Marvel Cinematic Universe series Loki (2021–2023).

Wilson's accolades include an Academy Award and a BAFTA nomination for Best Original Screenplay (for The Royal Tenenbaums), a Golden Globe and two SAG acting nominations (for Midnight in Paris and The Grand Budapest Hotel) and an Independent Spirit Award (for Inherent Vice).

Wilson was born in Dallas, the middle child of three sons of photographer Laura Cunningham Wilson (born 1939) and Robert Andrew Wilson (1941–2017), an advertising executive and operator of a public television station. His brothers Andrew and Luke are also actors. Wilson's parents are of Irish descent. As a teenager, Wilson broke his nose twice: the first time in a high school fight, and the second time playing football with friends. “You know, probably my nose wouldn’t have been that great even if it hadn’t been broken," Wilson told The Los Angeles Times.

After getting expelled for cheating in geometry, he attended New Mexico Military Institute. He later attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, but did not graduate. While in college, he met and was roommates with director and frequent collaborator Wes Anderson.

Wilson made his film debut acting in the Wes Anderson short film Bottle Rocket (1994) which was later expanded into the feature-length film Bottle Rocket (1996) which Wilson co-wrote with Anderson. Wilson also acted opposite his brother Luke Wilson. David Hunter of The Hollywood Reporter praised the film describing it as, "A marvelous debut film for its director, writer and lead actors, Bottle Rocket is propelled by a fresh approach to the caper genre". That same year, he had a supporting role in the black comedy The Cable Guy (1996) starring Jim Carrey and directed by Ben Stiller, an early admirer of Bottle Rocket. Wilson played Leslie Mann's date in the film. In 1997, he had a role in the adventure thriller Anaconda and executive produced the James L. Brooks comedy As Good as It Gets.

In 1998, Wilson had roles in the science fiction disaster film Armageddon and the independent drama film Permanent Midnight. He also reunited with Anderson co-writing the script for Anderson's next two directorial films, Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, for which they garnered an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay. While Wilson did not act in Rushmore, he appears briefly in a photograph in the film. After appearing in supporting roles in 1999, he acted in horror film The Haunting, The Minus Man, in which his future girlfriend, singer Sheryl Crow, was a co-star.

Wilson starred in the 2000 comedy action film Shanghai Noon alongside Jackie Chan. The film grossed nearly $100 million worldwide. His fame continued to rise after starring alongside Ben Stiller and Will Ferrell in the 2001 film Zoolander. Gene Hackman reportedly took notice of Wilson's performance in Shanghai Noon and recommended the actor to co-star in the 2001 action film Behind Enemy Lines. Also in 2001, Wilson and Anderson collaborated on their third film, The Royal Tenenbaums, a financial and critical success. The film earned the writing team an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

Wilson returned to the buddy-comedy genre in 2002 with the action comedy I Spy, co-starring Eddie Murphy. The big-screen remake of the same-named television series did not perform well at the box office. He made a cameo appearance in the Girl Skateboards video Yeah Right! in 2003. He then reunited with Chan to make Shanghai Knights (2003), and co-starred in the film remake of the 1970s television series Starsky & Hutch (2004). Due to his busy schedule as an actor and an ongoing sinus condition, Wilson was unavailable to collaborate on the script for Wes Anderson's fourth feature film, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. The 2004 film was ultimately co-written by filmmaker Noah Baumbach. However, Wilson did star in the film as Bill Murray's would-be son, Ned Plimpton; it was a role written specifically for him. In 2004, he and his brother Luke played the Wright brothers in the 2004 film Around the World in 80 Days. Wilson is said to be attached to a sequel to Shanghai Knights, marking his third collaboration with Jackie Chan.

Wilson partnered with Vince Vaughn in the 2005 comedy film Wedding Crashers, which grossed over $200 million in the US alone. Also in 2005, Owen collaborated with his brothers in The Wendell Baker Story, written by Luke and directed by Luke and Andrew. In 2006, Wilson voiced Lightning McQueen in the Disney/Pixar film Cars, starred in You, Me and Dupree with Kate Hudson, and appeared with Stiller in Night at the Museum as cowboy Jedediah.

During this time, Wilson gained a reputation for frequently exclaiming "Wow!" in movies and shows, becoming something of a meme, as well as his trademark.

Wilson appeared in another Wes Anderson film, The Darjeeling Limited, which screened at the 45th annual New York Film Festival, the Venice Film Festival, and opened September 30, 2007. It co-stars Jason Schwartzman and Adrien Brody. The Darjeeling Limited was selected for a DVD and Blu-ray release by The Criterion Collection in October 2010. Wilson next starred in the Judd Apatow comedy, Drillbit Taylor which was released in March 2008. He appeared in a film adaptation of John Grogan's best-selling memoir, Marley & Me (2008), co-starring Jennifer Aniston. He provided the voice for the Whackbat Coach Skip in Wes Anderson's stop motion animated film Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009). Wilson is a member of the comedic acting brotherhood colloquially known as the Frat Pack. Wilson made a guest appearance on the NBC comedy Community with fellow Frat Pack member Jack Black.

In 2011, Wilson starred as a nostalgia-seized writer in the romantic comedy Midnight in Paris, written and directed by Woody Allen. The film premiered at the 64th Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim. The film became Allen's highest grossing thus far, and was also well received by critics. Roger Ebert wrote of Wilson's performance, "[He] is a key to the movie's appeal". Peter Debruge of Variety also praised Wilson, writing "Wilson makes the role endearingly his own". For his performance, Wilson earned a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

That same year, he starred in the film The Big Year (2011) an adaptation of Mark Obmascik's book The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession. The film was released in October 2011 by 20th Century Fox, and co-starred Jack Black, JoBeth Williams, Steve Martin and Rashida Jones. The same year, Wilson returned to voice McQueen in Cars 2. In March 2012, Wilson was signed to star in the John Erick Dowdle thriller The Coup, later renamed "No Escape", in which he played the role of the father of an American family that moves to Southeast Asia, only to find itself swept up in a wave of rebel violence that is overwhelming the city. The film was not released until 2015, and was Wilson's return to the action genre for the first time since Behind Enemy Lines in 2001. He also voiced turkey Reggie in Reel FX's first animated film, Free Birds.

In 2014, Wilson appeared in Wes Anderson's acclaimed ensemble comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel and in Paul Thomas Anderson's book adaptation of Inherent Vice. In 2015, he starred with Jennifer Aniston in Peter Bogdanovich's film She's Funny That Way, and in the action thriller film No Escape alongside Lake Bell and Pierce Brosnan. Wilson's films have grossed more than US$2.25 billion domestically (United States and Canada), with an average of US$75M per film.

In 2017, Wilson again voiced Lightning McQueen in Cars 3, played a suburban father in the drama Wonder, and co-starred with Ed Helms in the comedy Father Figures. In November 2017, Wilson became the face of a new £20 million advertising campaign for the UK sofa retailer Sofology. He returned to work with Sofology in 2019 for a second advertising campaign.

In 2021, Wilson starred in the comedy film Bliss, directed by Mike Cahill opposite Salma Hayek for Amazon Studios. In 2021, Wilson also reunited with Wes Anderson for The French Dispatch, which premiered at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. and Marry Me alongside Jennifer Lopez and directed by Kat Coiro for Universal Pictures.

Wilson is currently starring in the Marvel Cinematic Universe series Loki opposite Tom Hiddleston on Disney+ as Mobius M. Mobius. He also signed on to star in a new film adaptation of The Haunted Mansion.

In August 2007, Wilson attempted suicide and was subsequently treated for depression at St. John's Health Center and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. A few days after his hospitalization, Wilson withdrew from his role in Tropic Thunder. The incident resulted in much unwanted publicity for Wilson, and he became reluctant in doing interviews. In a 2021 interview with Esquire, Wilson briefly opened up about his suicide attempt, describing how his brothers supported him during his recovery.

In January 2011, Wilson and his then-girlfriend Jade Duell had a son. Wilson and Duell ended their relationship later that year. In January 2014, he had a son with Caroline Lindqvist. He had a third child, a daughter, in October 2018 with ex-girlfriend Varunie Vongsvirates.

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1994	Bottle Rocket	Dignan	Short
1996	Bottle Rocket		Also writer
	The Cable Guy	Robin's Date
1997	Anaconda	Gary Dixon
	As Good as It Gets	—	Associate producer
1998	Armageddon	Oscar Choice
	Permanent Midnight	Nicky
	Rushmore	—	Writer
1999	The Haunting	Luke Sanderson
	Breakfast of Champions	Monte Rapid
	The Minus Man	Vann Siegert
2000	Shanghai Noon	Roy O'Bannon
	Meet the Parents	Kevin Rawley
2001	Zoolander	Hansel McDonald
	The Royal Tenenbaums	Eli Cash	Also writer
	Behind Enemy Lines	Lt. Chris Burnett
2002	I Spy	Alex Scott
	The Sweatbox	Himself	Archive footage; haven't been released to the public
2003	Shanghai Knights	Roy O'Bannon
	Yeah Right!	Himself	Cameo appearance
2004	The Big Bounce	Jack Ryan
	Starsky & Hutch	Ken Hutchinson
	Around the World in 80 Days	Wilbur Wright
	The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou	Ned Plimpton
	Meet the Fockers	Kevin Rawley
2005	The Wendell Baker Story	Neil King
	Wedding Crashers	John Beckwith
2006	Cars	Lightning McQueen	Voice role
	Mater and the Ghostlight		Voice role; Short film
	You, Me and Dupree	Randolph Dupree	Also producer
	Night at the Museum	Jedediah	Uncredited
2007	The Darjeeling Limited	Francis Whitman
2008	Drillbit Taylor	Drillbit Taylor
	Marley & Me	John Grogan
2009	Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian	Jedediah
	Fantastic Mr. Fox	Coach Skip	Voice role
2010	Marmaduke	Marmaduke
	How Do You Know	Matty Reynolds
	Little Fockers	Kevin Rawley
2011	Hall Pass	Richard "Rick" Mills
	Midnight in Paris	Gil Pender
	Cars 2	Lightning McQueen	Voice role
	The Big Year	Kenny Bostick
2013	The Internship	Nick Campbell
	Free Birds	Reggie	Voice role
	Are You Here	Steve Dallas
2014	The Grand Budapest Hotel	M. Chuck
	The Hero of Color City	Ricky The Dragon	Voice role
	Inherent Vice	Coy Harlingen
	Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb	Jedediah
2015	She's Funny That Way	Arnold Albertson
	No Escape	Jack Dwyer
2016	Zoolander 2	Hansel McDonald
	Masterminds	Steve Chambers
2017	Lost in London	Himself
	Cars 3	Lightning McQueen	Voice role
	Wonder	Nate Pullman
	Father Figures	Kyle Reynolds
2021	Bliss	Greg Wittle
	The French Dispatch	Herbsaint Sazerac
2022	Marry Me	Charlie Gilbert
	Secret Headquarters	Jack Kincaid / The Guard
2023	Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania	Mobius M. Mobius	Uncredited cameo; post-credits scene
	Paint	Carl Nargle
	Haunted Mansion	Kent

Key

†	Denotes films that have not yet been released

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1999	Heat Vision and Jack	Heat Vision	Voice; Short
2001	King of the Hill	Rhett Van Der Graaf	Voice; Episode: "Luanne Virgin 2.0"
2010	Community	Other Study Group's Leader	Episode: "Investigative Journalism"; uncredited
2013	Drunk History	John Harvey Kellogg	Episode: "Detroit"
2014	Cars Toons: Tales From Radiator Springs	Lightning McQueen	Voice; Episode: "The Radiator Springs 500 ½"
2016	Saturday Night Live	Hansel McDonald	Episode: "Larry David/The 1975"
2019	Documentary Now!	Father Ra-Shawbard	Episode: "Batsh*t Valley" (2 parts)
2021–present	Loki	Mobius M. Mobius	Main role
2021	Saturday Night Live	Himself (host)	Episode: "Owen Wilson/Kacey Musgraves"
2022	Cars on the Road	Lightning McQueen	Voice; Disney+ Original Short Series
TBA	Rambler & the Birdie Machine	Pryce Cahill	Upcoming series

Year	Title	Role
2006	Cars	Lightning McQueen
2012	Kinect Rush: A Disney-Pixar Adventure
2014	Cars: Fast as Lightning
2018	Lego The Incredibles

List of music videos, with year released and lead artist shown

Year	Song	Artist
2006	"God's Gonna Cut You Down"	Johnny Cash
2008	"You Don't Think I'm Funny Anymore"	Willie Nelson
2013	"Christmas in L.A."	The Killers

Year	Title	Role
2017–2019	Sofology	Himself

• Frat Pack, group of actors he has appeared in several films with

• Owen Wilson at IMDb
• Owen Wilson at the TCM Movie Database
• Owen Wilson at People.com