Tim Robbins Biography

TIM ROBBINS

Date of Birth: October 16, 1958

Born the fourth and final child of devout Roman Catholic parents in California, Tim Robbins grew up surrounded by religion: he was an altar boy; he attended services every Sunday; and his father was the director of the congregational choir. He became a member of the Theatre for the New City at the age of twelve and stayed on for the next seven years. His participation in the drama club in high school gave him his first experience directing for the stage.

Robbins then attended the State University of New York at Plattsburgh for several semesters. With the goal in mind of getting a serious education in theater, he relocated to Los Angeles and worked for a year to establish California residency before enrolling at U.C.L.A., where he paid his way by delivering pizzas and by bussing tables at a country club. In 1983, he made his big screen debut in Toy Soldiers.

After winning the central role of "Nuke" LaLoosh in Bull Durham (1988), movies became more of a serious artistic ambition for Robbins. Co-stars Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon shared top billing for the film, but Robbins nonetheless won critical acclaim for infusing his character with an infectious, goofy charm. The film was more than just a breakthrough for the young actor; his sizzling onscreen love scenes with Sarandon led to a long-term offscreen relationship - so long-term, in fact, that it eventually became a common-law marriage.

In Jacob's Ladder (1990), Robbins confirmed he was capable of taking on characters of an entirely different sort, and he arrived in a major way with his knock-'em-dead turn in 1992's The Player. Later that same year, Robbins directed, wrote, starred and sang in Bob Roberts, a pseudo-documentary satirizing right-wing politics. Two years later, Robbins had a watershed year, with starring roles in no fewer than four major films, including the romantic comedy I.Q. with Meg Ryan and the prison drama The Shawshank Redemption, with Morgan Freeman. He garnered an Oscar nomination for his work as director of 1995's Dead Man Walking, a film which demonstrated his strong views of social responsibility.

Following a three-year hiatus from acting, Robbins got back in front of the camera for 1997's Nothing To Lose opposite Martin Lawrence. He returned to the screen in 1999 with a cameo in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and with a starring turn alongside Jeff Bridges in the thriller Arlington Road. As for his work behind the camera, Robbins produced, directed, and scripted a film based on a play first staged by Orson Welles and John Housman in 1937, Cradle Will Rock. Boasting a suberb ensemble cast that included Sarandon, Joan Cusack, John Cusack, Bill Murray, John Turturro and Hank Azaria, it was released to critical acclaim in late 1999. In 2004, Robbins received not only a Golden Globe award, but an Oscar for Supporting Actor for playing the emotionally fragile Dave Boyle in Clint Eastwood's Mystic River (2003).

Robbins has continued to make appearances in more recent films, such as 2011's The Green Lantern, and 2012's Thanks for Sharing and Back to 1942. More recently, he starred in Welcome to Me (2015).

Robbins and Sarandon, who is twelve years his senior, have two sons. Unfortunately in 2009, they announced that their relationship had ended.

Filmography:

Welcome to Me (2015)
Life of Crime (2014)
Thanks for Sharing (2013)
Top Gun 3D (2013)
Back to 1942 (2012)
Thanks for Sharing (2012)
Green Lantern (2011)
Buried (2010)
Paper Man (2009)
The Proposal (I) (2009)
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
Adventureland (2009)
Fireflies in the Garden (2008)
Definitely, Maybe (2008)
Chaos Theory (2008)
The Nines (2007)
Smokin' Aces (2006)
Just Friends (2005)
Waiting... (2005)
The Amityville Horror (2005)
Blade: Trinity (2004)
Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)
Foolproof (2003)
The In-Laws (2003)
Buying the Cow (2002)
Van Wilder (2002)
Finder's Fee (2001)
Dick (1999)
Coming Soon (1999)
Life During Wartime (1997)