Jack Alexander Huston (born 7 December 1982) is an English actor and director. He is best known for his role as Richard Harrow in the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

television drama series ''

Boardwalk Empire ''Boardwalk Empire'' is an American period crime drama television series created by Terence Winter for the premium cable channel HBO. The series is set chiefly in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era of the 1920s. The series sta ...

''. He also had a supporting role in the 2013 film ''

American Hustle ''American Hustle'' is a 2013 American black comedy crime film directed by David O. Russell. It was written by Eric Warren Singer and Russell and inspired by the FBI Abscam operation of the late 1970s and early 1980s. It stars Christian Ba ...

'', portrayed the eponymous ''

Ben-Hur Ben-Hur or Ben Hur may refer to: Fiction *'' Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'', an 1880 novel by American general and author Lew Wallace ** ''Ben-Hur'' (play), a play that debuted on Broadway in 1899 ** ''Ben Hur'' (1907 film), a one-reel silent ...

'' in the 2016 historical drama, and appeared as one of the main characters in the fourth season of the FX anthology series '' Fargo'' (2020). In 2023, he starred in the supernatural television series '' Mayfair Witches''.

Early life and ancestry

Huston was born on 7 December 1982 in

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is north-east of Peterborough, north-north-east of Cambridg ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, the son of Margot Lavinia (''née'' Cholmondeley) and actor, assistant director and writer Tony Huston. Huston decided to become an actor at the age of 6, after playing the title role in a school production of ''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythical ...

''. He later attended Hurtwood House, a drama institute. His mother is English and his father is American. His paternal aunt is actress

Anjelica Huston Anjelica Huston ( ; born July 8, 1951) is an American actress, director and model. She is best known for playing Morticia Addams in the ''The Addams Family'' and '' The Addams Family Values'', as well as often portraying eccentric and distincti ...

, and his paternal half-uncle is actor

Danny Huston Daniel Sallis Huston (born May 14, 1962) is an American-British actor, director and screenwriter. A member of the Huston family of filmmakers, he is the son of director John Huston and half-brother of actress Anjelica Huston. He is known for ...

. His paternal grandparents were American director

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics. He rec ...

(who became an Irish citizen) and model/dancer

Enrica Soma Enrica Georgia Soma (May 9, 1929 – January 29, 1969) was an American socialite, model, and prima ballerina. She was also the wife of director John Huston and mother of their three children. Life and career Soma was born in Manhattan, New York ...

, and his maternal grandparents were The 6th Marquess of Cholmondeley and Lavinia Margaret (''née'' Leslie). Huston is the nephew of The 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley. On his father's side, he has Italian, Irish, Scottish, Scotch-Irish, Welsh, and English ancestry, and is a great-grandson of Canadian actor

Walter Huston Walter Thomas Huston ( ; April 6, 1883 or 1884 – April 7, 1950) was a Canadian actor and singer. Huston won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in '' The Treasure of the Sierra Madre'', directed by his son John Huston. He ...

. Through his maternal grandfather's father, The 5th Marquess of Cholmondeley, Huston is descended from

Sir Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (; 26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745), known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British Whig statesman who is generally regarded as the ''de facto'' first Prime Minister of Great Britain, ser ...

, the first

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

of the

Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain, also known as the Kingdom of Great Britain, was a sovereign state in Western Europe from 1707 to the end of 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the Kingd ...

. Jack's maternal grandfather's mother, Sybil, Marchioness of Cholmondeley, was from a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family (from

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

); through Sybil, Jack is descended from both David Sassoon, the Treasurer of Baghdad, and

Mayer Amschel Rothschild Mayer Amschel Rothschild (23 February 1744 – 19 September 1812; also spelled ''Anschel'') was a German-Jewish banker and the founder of the Rothschild family, Rothschild banking dynasty. Referred to as a "founding father of international fin ...

, who founded the

Rothschild family The Rothschild family ( , ) is a wealthy Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi Jewish noble banking family originally from Frankfurt. The family's documented history starts in 16th-century Frankfurt; its name is derived from the family house, Rothschild, ...

international banking dynasty.

Career

Huston started his film career with a small screen adaptation of ''

Spartacus Spartacus (; ) was a Thracians, Thracian gladiator (Thraex) who was one of the Slavery in ancient Rome, escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major Slave rebellion, slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Historical accounts o ...

'', where he played Flavius. He then went on to having more prominent roles in such films as '' Factory Girl'', playing the American poet Gerard Malanga, the horror film '' Shrooms'', '' Outlander'' and '' Shrink''. In 2010, he played the minor role of Royce King in '' The Twilight Saga: Eclipse''. He appeared in HBO's ''

'' as Richard Harrow, a severely disfigured

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

marksman turned gangster. On 16 December 2010, it was announced Huston would be made a series regular after appearing in five episodes of the first season. After this he went on to be directed by

Al Pacino Alfredo James Pacino ( ; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Known for his intense performances on stage and screen, Pacino is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. His career spans more than five decades, duri ...

in the 2011 film '' Wilde Salomé'' and to having starring roles in '' Not Fade Away'', '' Two Jacks'' and '' Night Train to Lisbon''. In 2012, he played the part of narrator on avant-garde musician

John Zorn John Zorn (born September 2, 1953) is an American composer, conducting, conductor, saxophonist, arrangement, arranger and record producer, producer who "deliberately resists category". His Avant-garde music, avant-garde and experimental music, ex ...

's album '' A Vision in Blakelight'', an homage to

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...

. In 2013, he appeared in David O. Russell's comedy-drama ''

'', as Pete Musane. Later that year, Huston played Charles Bruno in '' Strangers on a Train'' at London's

Gielgud Theatre The Gielgud Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, at the corner of Rupert Street, in the City of Westminster, London. The house currently has 994 seats on three levels. The theatre was designed by W. G. R. Sprague and ...

. In 2015 he appeared as Ira Levinson in Nicholas Sparks' '' The Longest Ride''. In 2019 Huston played Bobby Kennedy in the

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

film '' The Irishman''. In 2020, he had a supporting role in the fourth season of the FX

black comedy Black comedy, also known as black humor, bleak comedy, dark comedy, dark humor, gallows humor or morbid humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally ...

crime drama Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

'' Fargo'' as Odis Weff, a corrupt Kansas City police detective with severe OCD. In 2023, Huston made his directorial debut with ''Day of the Fight'', starring

Michael Pitt Michael Carmen Pitt (born April 10, 1981) is an American actor, model, and musician. In film, he has appeared in ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch (film), Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' (2001), ''Bully (2001 film), Bully'' (2001), ''Murder by Numbers'' ...

as a once renowned boxer who has since fallen on hard times. The film had its premiere out of competition in the Orizzonti Extra section of the 80th Venice International Film Festival. In September 2024, he was cast in a recurring role on the upcoming superhero series '' Spider-Noir''. In March 2025, Huston was announced as the director of ''Joseph Merrick'', a feature film from Phoenix Pictures about the historical figure known as the

Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890) was an English man known for his severe physical deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "The Elephant Man", and then went to live at the London Hospital, ...

. Scheduled to begin production in 2025, the film will focus on Merrick’s final months, exploring his personal journey and the relationships he formed. The producers of the film are Kate Cohen,

Mike Medavoy Morris Mike Medavoy (born January 21, 1941) is an American film producer and business executive. He co-founded Orion Pictures and currently serves as chairman and CEO of Phoenix Pictures. He previously held leadership roles at TriStar Pictures a ...

, David Dobkin, and Huston, with additional executive producers attached.

Personal life

Huston began dating American model Shannan Click in 2011;Baby on the Way for Jack Huston and Shannan Click
''

People The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...

'', 9 October 2012 the two married in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

in March 2022. They have two children: a daughter and a son.Jack Huston and Shannan Click Welcome Son Cypress Night
, ''

'', 19 January 2016

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* *
Interview with Jack Huston
in '' Details'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Huston, Jack 1982 births Living people 21st-century English male actors British expatriate male actors in the United States English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors category:English male voice actors English people of American descent English people of Canadian descent English people of Irish descent English people of Italian descent English people of Scottish descent English people of Ulster-Scottish descent British people of Iraqi-Jewish descent English people of Welsh descent British people of German-Jewish descent British people of Indian-Jewish descent Male actors from London Male actors from Norfolk Actors educated at Hurtwood House People educated at Millfield Preparatory School Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award winners Jack Actors from King's Lynn