Chris O'Donnell
CHRIS O'DONNELL
Date of Birth: June 26, 1970This native of Winnetka, Illinois, cashed in early on his wholesome good looks at 12, when he began getting modeling and TV commercial gigs. Years from now you can bet the McDonald's commercial where O'Donnell plays the counter boy serving Michael Jordan will surface on the talk show circuit.
But TV commercials were just the beginning for O'Donnell who landed his first plum role at age 17 as Jessica Lange's son in Men Don't Leave. He again hooked up with Lange in Blue Sky, a project that sat on the shelf for three years before finally being released to much acclaim and an Oscar for Lange.
O'Donnell's real breakthrough role was as Al Pacino's seeing-eye person in Scent of a Woman. The movie was a big hit and O'Donnell was on his way to boy wonder status—a position he really staked a claim to when he literally became the Boy Wonder alongside a couple of Batmans in that movie franchise.
But O'Donnell has always tried to keep this career thing in perspective. "When you're labeled as a young-leading-man type," he says, "there can be a huge success for a little while. But there's so many of them and you can be gone so quick.... It's really frustrating to think: How long is this going to last? That's why you've got to know what the most important things in your life are and let them be the most important things."
One of those important things for him was marrying his longtime girlfriend Caroline Fentress, a kindergarten teacher. They have five children.
Filmography:
Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore (2010)A Little Help (2010)
Max Payne (2008)
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008)
The Sisters (2005)
Kinsey (2004)
29 Palms (2002)
Vertical Limit (2000)
The Bachelor (1999)
Cookie's Fortune (1999)
Batman and Robin (1997)
The Chamber (1996)
In Love and War (1996)
Batman Forever (1995)
Mad Love (1995)
Blue Sky (1994)
Circle of Friends (1994)
The Three Musketeers (1993)
Scent of a Woman (1992)
School Ties (1992)
Fried Green Tomatoes (1991)
Men Don't Leave (1990)