Scott Caan Biography

SCOTT CAAN

Date of Birth: August 23, 1976

This Los Angeles native was born to be famous. With both of his parents in the business, Scott Caan (oldest of five sons) had a good chance in the film industry. Childhood proved difficult for Caan as he spent most of it shuttling between his father, James, and mother, Sheila. His parents had divorced when he was only one. "I was the bad kid in school. I was usually in trouble. I'd get suspended for fighting, for graffiti, for smoking pot. And I learned that it's not worth it."

Although getting into acting may have seemed the most natural thing, film was not Caan's first choice. He says he "purposely shied away from acting as long as I could and my dad encouraged me to." He knew only too well the pitfalls of the business.

Instead, Caan had planned for a career in sports. "I was really into sports as a youngster. My dad even put his career on hold for about five years to coach all my little league teams." His dad pointed out, "I really thought he was going to be a ball player. I thought I'd have front row seats at Yankee Stadium for the rest of my life."

But before long, the acting bug caught up to Caan and when offered, he decided to take a swing at the acting thing in the indie film A Boy Called Hate (1995). Caan jumped at the chance to strut his stuff onscreen. After viewing the film, however, he humbly decided he had some homework to do and enrolled himself in L.A.'s Playhouse West, then acted in a few subsequent features, including Nowhere (1997). He admits, "I figured if I'm going to do something, I want to do it right."

After attending Playhouse West in Los Angeles for several years, Caan started going on auditions. He refused to ask his father for help. "I hate that," he says. "I love my dad to death, but I'm all about doing for myself. Otherwise, what's the point? In the end, the work shows if you're good. Sometimes I wish I didn't have somebody in my family who's in the business."

In 1998, Caan got another break with a part in Tony Scott's thriller, Enemy of the State. "When I auditioned for Enemy of the State [in which he plays a cocky government agent chasing Will Smith], Tony Scott told me, 'You're intimidating enough, man. Don't try to be intimidating. I already know you can kick the s--- out of someone.' "

In September 1998, Scott was arrested after a bar fight in West Hollywood, and the gossip columnists were abuzz. He now says, "I'm never going to get in a fight in public again. Life's a lot better. Good things happen when you get your priorities straight. I feel like I did all my dirt, so to speak, before I got a chance to get some fame."

The year 1999 brought Varsity Blues and an accompanying rush of exposure for Caan, who supplied the film's comic relief as a hell-raising quarterback.

He decided to start the millennium off with a bang, starring or co-starring in four films. He began with Boiler Room along side Ben Affleck. Then he and David Arquette laugh it up as two slackers with a pro-wrestling obsession in the comedy Ready to Rumble. And after his third film, Black and White, Caan went action-hero alongside Nicolas Cage in Jerry Bruckheimer's Gone in Sixty Seconds.

He co-starred with Colin Farrell in American Outlaws (2001), then joined an all-star cast in Ocean's Eleven (2001) and joined with them again for the sequel, Ocean's Twelve (2004). He has also written, directed and acted in the independent film Dallas 362 (2003), which screened at various film festivals and won the Critics Award at the CineVegas International Film Festival. Caan also managed to land a recurring role on two popular television series: Entourage and Hawaii Five-O. He can also be seen in the feature film A Beginner's Guide to Endings (2012) alongside Harvey Keitel.

Filmography:

Geezers! (2012)
A Beginner's Guide to Endings (2012)
Mercy (2009)
Deep in the Valley (2008)
Meet Dave (2008)
Ocean's Thirteen (2007)
The Dog Problem (2006)
Brooklyn Rules (2006)
Lonely Hearts (2006)
Friends with Money (2006)
Into the Blue (2005)
Ocean's Twelve (2004)
In Enemy Hands (2004)
Dallas 362 (2003)
Life Makes Sense If You're Famous (2002)
Sonny (2002)
You Always Stalk the Ones You Love (2002)
Ocean's Eleven (2001)
American Outlaws (2001)
Novocaine (2001)
Gone in 60 Seconds (2000)
Ready to Rumble (2000)
Boiler Room (2000)
Black and White (2000)
Saturn (1999)
Varsity Blues (1999)
Enemy of the State (1998)
Bongwater (1998)
Nowhere to Go (1998)
Wild Horses (1998/I)
Nowhere (1997)
The Last Resort (1997)
Aaron Gillespie Will Make You a Star (1995)
A Boy Called Hate (1995)