Crudup, Billy (1968– )

US actor. Known for both his intense portrayals of characters in emotional turmoil and his chiselled good looks, he has performed on stage as well as in both Hollywood and indie films. He earned wide critical acclaim for his role as a rock star in Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous (2000) and went on to appear in the comedy adventure Big Fish (2003) and period drama Stage Beauty (2004).

On the New York stage, he starred on Broadway in Tom Stoppard's Arcadia (1995; Outer Critics Circle Outstanding Newcomer Award), as well as The Elephant Man (2002), The Pillowman (2005), and Stoppard's The Coast of Utopia (2007; Tony Award). Off-Broadway he acted in Bus Stop (1996) and Oedipus (1997). His first feature film was the indie drama Grind, shot in 1994 but not released until 1997. He followed with the drama Sleepers (1996), opposite Brad Pitt.

He was born in Manhasset, on Long Island, New York, and grew up in New York, Texas, and Florida. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master's degree in fine arts from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University in 1994. Other films include Woody Allen's comedy Everyone Says I Love You (1996), the romantic drama Inventing the Abbotts (1997), the runner Steve Prefontaine biopic Without Limits (1998), the thrillers Waking the Dead and Jesus' Son (both 2000), and the CIA drama The Good Shepherd (2006).