Chris O’Donnell is an actor from Illinois, U.S. who started his career by appearing in commercials as a teenager. He is known to many people for playing G. Callen in the NCIS: Los Angeles. The actor’s initial income was invested into stocks to secure his future.
Sun Sign
Cancer
Residence
- Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, Calfornia, USA
- Owns the early 1900s renovated house on an island near Camden in Maine, U.S. where he likes to spend his summers with his family.
- Frequently visits Chicago, Illinois because a lot of his family members live there.
Nationality
Education
His entire education was acquired in Roman Catholic institutions. Chris graduated from Loyola Academy in Wilmette, Illinois in 1988.
Thereafter, he studied for a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in Marketing and Finance at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.
At the age of 13, Chris started auditioning for commercials and acting roles.
Initially wait-listed for admission to Boston College, Chris was eventually offered enrollment in the following January term as opposed to the September session.
His college graduation was delayed by a few years since he was juggling his acting jobs alongside studying which included a role in the Batman movie franchise. He graduated in the mid-90s after taking night classes while working full time.
Family
- Father – William Charles O’Donnell Sr. (Former General Manager of a Radio Station) (Died 2010)
- Mother – Julie Ann Rohs von Brecht
- Siblings –
- Julie Murphy (Oldest Sister)
- Sally O’Donnell (Older Sister) (Realtor / Broker at Coldwell Banker Winnetka)
- Libby Berner (Older Sister)
- William aka Bill O’Donnell Jr. (Oldest Brother) (Commercial Farm Owner)
- John O’Donnell (Older Brother) (Founder / Owner of Johnnie-O Apparel)
- Angela Howenstein (Older Sister) (Former Employee of )
- Others
- John Joseph O’Donnell (Paternal Grandfather)
- Sarah Regina McCabe (Paternal Grandmother)
- Karle Hermann / Herman Rohs (Maternal Grandfather)
- Gertrude Elizabeth Hummel (Maternal Grandmother)
- Jim Murphy (Brother-in-law) (CEO of Diversified Distribution Systems)
- James David Murphy (Nephew)
- Matt Murphy (Nephew)
- Julie Murphy (Niece)
- Rob Berner (Brother-in-law)
- Robby Berner (Nephew)
- Billy Berner (Nephew)
- Clare Berner (Niece)
- Tory Berner (Niece)
- Lulu Berner (Niece)
- Amy Anderson (Sister-in-law) (Elementary School Teacher)
- Bing Howenstein (Brother-in-law) (Co-CEO at Bonfire Enterprises LLC)
- Has 6 other nephews and 4 other nieces
Manager
Untitled Entertainment, Beverly Hills, California
Girlfriend / Spouse
Chris has dated –
- (1993) – Chris met actress Reese Witherspoon around the time of his fourth movie’s release, Scent of a Woman (1992). Reese was a young 17-year-old who had recently moved to Los Angeles to find a foothold in Hollywood. She was the only actress Chris O’Donnell ever dated. Their relationship did not last beyond a few months. According to Chris, there were too many differences and it wasn’t a serious relationship. Prior to dating Reese, Chris dated several girls in college without committing himself to an exclusive relationship. In 1996, a female journalist kept pestering Chris during an interview about the impossibility that he never got involved with any of his co-stars. The actor cracked a joke in sarcasm about asking out and being turned down by her which was misconstrued by the media as a fact.
- Caroline Fentress (1996–Present) – advised Chris to never date an actress which he subconsciously took to heart. Caroline is the younger sister of Chris’s former Boston college roommate, Andrew Fentress and the daughter of a former sports agent, Lee Fentress. The Fentress family knew Chris for 6 years when he decided to propose marriage to Caroline in 1996 after dating her for 3 years. Caroline was working as a kindergarten teacher in Washington when the couple got engaged. Chris admitted he never intended to marry early but knew in his heart, Caroline was the right person for him. The couple got married in a traditional Catholic ceremony at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Washington, D.C followed by a reception at National Museum of Women in the Arts. They spent two weeks on a private yacht sailing around the Caribbean Islands for their honeymoon. Caroline continues to work as an elementary school teacher and together, the couple has five children; daughter Lilly Ann (b. September 1999), sons Christopher Eugene (b. October 2000), Charles McHugh (b. July 2003), Finley (b. March 2006), and Maeve Frances (b. December 2007).
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Known for the boy next door good looks for the first two decades of his career
- Sharp blue deep-set eyes
Brand Endorsements
- At the age of 13/14, Chris was cast in a McDonald’s commercial where he served breakfast to .
- Thereafter, he was cast in several other TV commercials till the age of 17. The list of brand names is not confirmed.
- He served as the Play Positive brand ambassador of Liberty Mutual Insurance (2014).
Best Known For
- Playing the following movie roles;
- Charlie Simms in Scent of a Woman (1982)
- Dick Grayson / Robin in Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997)
- Peter Garrett in a commercially successful survival thriller, Vertical Limit (2000)
- Playing the character of Special Agent G. Callen on the television crime drama, NCIS: Los Angeles.
First Film
Chris played a supporting role of a character named Chris Macauley in the comedy-drama called Men Don’t Leave (1990) starring Jessica Lange in the lead role.
First TV Show
Chris had his first TV show appearance in 1 episode guest role of a character named Evan in drama show Jack and Mike in 1986.
Personal Trainer
- Being a hands-on father of 5 children while juggling rigorous 12 hours a day shooting of a network show and frequent traveling leaves hardly any time for Chris to put in dedicated hours in the gym.
- Last time, the actor showed off an was for the cover of Men’s Fitness cover at Iron Man Gym in Santa Monica, California. He achieved his transformation with the help of personal trainer, James Bolden.
- However, the actor admitted that he often eats anything he wants without discrimination, much to his wife’s surprise because she thinks his eating habits are bound to ensure an obese body type.
- Chris stated that before turning 40, he could easily get in shape within a month for any movie or TV role, but that is not possible anymore.
- He often hires the services of Derek Johnson nutrition for a metabolism cleanse.
- Prior history of a herniated disc while performing a stunt in the 1990s, keeps the actor mindful of maintaining a strong core.
- Hence, he is a regular visitor of Yoga Hop studio based in Santa Monica owned by . Chris ensures booking at least two sessions a week because Yoga retains his overall mobility and helps him stay relatively pain-free.
- He lifts weights in the gym but prefers light weight, high repetition full body and core strengthening circuits.
- Chris is also a self-proclaimed Golf fanatic and frequently plays in celebrity tournaments. His handicap varies from 7 to 9, although at the peak of his game, he was also able to reach a handicap of 4.
Chris O’Donnell Favorite Things
- TV Channel – HGTV
- Sport / Physical Activity – Golf
- Golfers – Ernie Els, Freddie Couples,
- Golf Courses – Cypress Point Club, Pebble Beach Golf Links
- Video Game – Tetris
- Mind Game – Sudoku
- TV Show – Seinfeld
- Season – Autumn / Fall
- Live Show – Band at the Hollywood Bowl
- Reality Shows – Survivor, American Pickers
- Guilty Pleasure – P.J Clarke’s cheeseburger, Oysters with a cold beer
- Actor To Play Batman – Adam West
- Movie – It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
- Sports Teams – Chicago Bears (Football), Chicago Cubs (Baseball), Chicago Bulls (Basketball)
- Columnist / Writer – Thomas Friedman
- Tech Brand – Apple
- Musicians – , , Dave Matthews Band
Source – , Fore Magazine, ,
Chris O’Donnell Facts
- Physically, he was a late bloomer. At the age of 16, Chris was merely 5 ft 1 inch tall and weighed 95 pounds. Hence, he usually auditioned for the roles of a 12-year-old and bagged them as well because he was a lot more mature than an actual 12-year-old, he had to compete against.
- In school, he participated in all the sports he could such as baseball, basketball, football, golf, hockey, and swimming but he hardly got to play in team sports and spent most of the time on the bench due to his small build.
- All the money Chris earned during his teenage years was invested in stocks for financial security.
- As a kid, his initial aspiration was to become an architect.
- By the age of 17, he was ready to quit modeling and acting and did not want to audition for any more roles. His mother convinced him to go for the next audition with the promise that she would buy him a new car if he went and thereafter, Chris bagged his first film called Men Don’t Leave (1990).
- As a young man, Chris dreamt of playing in the top 100 golf courses in the world. By 2013, the actor shared that he had done well for himself by actually playing in 60 of those courses.
- He has always deemed himself as a collector. In his childhood, he collected baseball cards while as an adult, he likes to collect Golf books and Wine.
- Chris likes to annually host an Oktoberfest feast with an oompah band which is a family tradition.
- The actor ate a banana for the first time at the age of 20.
- Chris was originally cast to play ’s son in The Prince of Tides (1991) but at the last minute, the actress decided she wanted her own son, Jason Gould to play that role. Barbra called up at Chris’s dormitory to apologize which shocked his roommate because he had not told anybody at the college that he was an actor.
- Although not much of a cook, he claims to be really good at speed carving pumpkins and prepares a sterling glass of Bloody Mary cocktail.
- He beat several talented actors who are modern day stars to bag the role of Dick Grayson / Robin in Batman Forever (1995). The roster included , , and .
- He lost the role of Jack Dawson in Titanic (1997) to Leonardo DiCaprio.
- Chris was considered for the lead role in Spiderman (2002) which eventually went to .
- Chris was the producers’ original choice to play James Darrell Edwards III/Agent J in Men in Black (1997) but the director of the movie, Barry Sonnenfeld badly wanted to cast . He convinced Chris that the role might be too similar to Batman and Robin (1997) which bombed massively at the box office and hence influenced him into turning down the role.
- He co-owns a pizza joint called Pizzana in Los Angeles.
- The actor is terribly afraid of heights but executed all his stunts in Vertical Limit (2000) which was his comeback film after a series of box office bombs.
- His wife gave birth to their first child in New Zealand where Vertical Limit was being filmed. That was also a difficult time for Chris because he hates the sight of blood, needles, and the hospital environment. His daughter, Lily Anne became a New Zealand citizen by virtue of birth.
- The actor was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6681 Hollywood Boulevard in March 2015.
- Jim McConnell is the actor’s personal stuntman since 1996.
- Chris formerly trained under the tutelage of an acting coach, Peter Kelley.
- Follow him on and .
Featured Image by Glenn Francis, www.PacificProDigital.com / Listal / CC BY-SA 3.0
Facts of Christopher Eugene O’Donnell
- Gender Male
- full nameChristopher Eugene O’Donnell
- middle nameEugene
- nicknamesChris, O.D.
- birthplaceWinnetka, Illinois, United States
- Date of Birth June 26, 1970
- Age 54 years 2 months
- Horoscope Cancer
- Lucky Number 4
- Lucky Stone Moonstone
- Lucky Color Silver
- Best Match for Marriage Taurus, Pisces, Scorpio
- ethnicity / ethnic backgroundCaucasian
- nationalityAmerican
- religionRoman Catholicism
- net worth$25 million
- professionActor, Former Model, Executive Producer, Entrepreneur
- weight75 kg or 165.5 lbs
- height5 ft 10 in or 178 cm
- hair colorBlonde
- eye colorBlue
- body type / buildAverage
- collegeBoston College
- motherJulie Ann Rohs von Brecht
- fatherWilliam Charles O’Donnell Sr.
- favorite tv showSeinfeld