Jason Lee is not one of those Hollywood actors who do not leave the screens and receive one award after another. He managed to break through and achieve some success, but rather in narrower circles. Nevertheless, it is difficult not to note his outstanding talent and a charming smile. He masterfully transforms into both losers and villains, and is able to create any image on the screen. If you have not heard about it, now is the time to catch up.
Biography and Skateboarding
Jason Lee was born in hot California in the spring of 1970. Almost nothing is known about his childhood, except that his mother Carol was a housewife, and his father's name was Greg Lee. The family lived in the city of Orange, where Jason was born, who received the middle name Michael. From an early age, Lee was fond of skateboarding, which over time grew into a real passion. As a teenager, he actively participated in various competitions in board skating, and at the age of 18 he reached professional skill in this field.
His name was familiar to everyone in the relevant circles due to the fact that the guy knew how to do unique tricks. In parallel with participating in competitions, he, together with a friend, opens his own company engaged in the production of skateboards, which is called the Stereo Sound Agency and is one of the main ones on the market to this day.
Beginning of an acting career
As an actor, Jason Lee made his debut in the 90s of the last century. He started with filming in music videos, and in 1993 appeared in a cameo role in the film “My Crazy Life”. His next film comes out 2 years later, and in it Lee already has more significant significance than the supporting actor. He played in one of Kevin Smith's first comedies, “Party People from the Supermarket,” which also has an alternative name, Lobotryasy. He perfectly embodied the image of a loser who roams around the mall for days, plays video games and reads comics. However, for this you have to pay the relationship with the girl, which he throughout the film is trying to renew. Acquaintance with the director dramatically changed the life of the actor, whose career immediately went uphill.
Kevin Smith
After “Supermarket Party People,” Jason Lee certainly appears in every new Kevin Smith painting. The director makes films not so often, but all of them are very popular among lovers of independent cinema. In 1996, the image of the animator Banky Edwards performed by Lee, who becomes his second character, appearing in more than two full-length films, is born on the screens. One of Smith’s few dramatic films, Chasing Amy, revealed new facets of actor’s talent in 1999.
He again collaborates with his beloved director three years later, represented in the guise of Azrael in Dogma. Here he plays the villain, which he does just brilliantly. In 2001, he returns to his character, Banky Edwards, who is visited by the main characters of the comedy “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back”, and the audience again sees him here as Brody. He appears in small episodes of The Jersey Girl, Clerks 2, and Double Kopets, which is currently the last of Kevin Smith's films to star in Jason Lee.
"My name is Earl"
In 2005, a comedy series entitled “My Name is Earl” begins to be released on NBC. It was Jason Lee who got the main role in it. His filmography until this moment consisted of a couple of series, but participation in them went unnoticed. But immediately after the release of the story of a former criminal who learned about karma and decided to correct all his bad deeds, his popularity skyrocketed. He was loved by the audience thanks to his charming facial expressions and chic mustache. It is noteworthy that Ethan Sapley became his partner in the series, with whom they several times starred with Kevin Smith. Here they composed a wonderful fraternal duet. The series itself was very positively received by critics and viewers, which led to its four-year existence. Unfortunately, over time, ratings began to fail, as a result of which the last season came out in 2009, and the storyline was never completed. But Lee was awarded for the role of Earl of two nominations for the Golden Globe.
Other work and future plans
In addition to the above projects, there were many others where Jason Lee took an important part. Films with him began to be actively released in the late 90s, the most famous of which were “Enemy of the State” and “Place in the Sun.” But the true success for the actor was highlighted in the early 2000s, when he plays in the melodrama "Heartbreakers". His character falls in love with the main character played by Jennifer Love Hewitt. The film itself has become very popular. In 2001, the cult picture “Vanilla Sky” was released, where the friend of the character of Tom Cruise is played by Jason Lee. The photo below perfectly demonstrates the fact that the actor is equally well given both serious and comedic roles.
The career of a former skateboarder in the movie was developing rapidly at that time, and every year new films came out with his participation, including in the foreground, for example, in the "Bachelor Party". Lee also tries his hand at voicing cartoons, including The Incredibles and The Monster House. He also starred in three parts of the animated film "Alvin and the Chipmunks." Jason now has 2 projects planned: “That Side” and “Party People from the Supermarket 2”, however, the exact release dates are still unknown.
Personal life
Jason Lee was married twice, but both ended in divorce. His wives are also actresses, and both bore him children. Lee has as many as two from Carmen Llaivelin, and one son from Beth Risgraph. In 2008, he married again, this time on the model Serena Alkak. The couple kept the marriage a secret for a long time, but it was not possible to hide the truth. In 2012, Jason had another son, Sonny. The actor is an excellent family man, which he perfectly manages to combine with active professional activity.