Born:
July 18, 1967
in
New York
Best Known For:
Being an action hero.
Early-life:
Born Mark Sinclair Vincent on July 18, 1967, in New York. He has two sisters and a twin brother, Paul, who's a film editor. He never knew his biological father, and was raised in an artists' housing project in Greenwich Village by his astrologer mother and stepfather, a drama teacher. He began acting at the age of seven, after being persuaded by a woman to stop vandalising a theatre with friends and attend it instead. After high school, he became a bouncer and gained more theatre acting experience. He dropped out of university to go to Hollywood.
Career:
Diesel found getting acting jobs difficult until his mother gave him a book about making low-budget films. That led him to write, direct and star in short film Multi-Facial in 1994, which was well-received at the Cannes Film Festival. His first feature film, Strays, wasn't as well appraised, but Steven Spielberg was impressed enough to cast him in Saving Private Ryan. Diesel went on to voice The Iron Giant before tackling his first lead role in 2000's modest sci-fi hit Pitch Black. That made casting directors take notice, and he has since appeared in such blockbusters as The Fast and the Furious and xXx, as well as their sequels. Other films include The Pacifier, Find Me Guilty and Guardians of the Galaxy.
Quote:
"I've worked out for years. For a long time it was my only sense of gratification."
Trivia:
He took the name Vin from his real surname, and added Diesel because it was a nickname given to him by friends, who described him as "running on diesel".