Ethan Green Hawke was born on November 6, 1970, in Austin, Texas, United States, as the son of Leslie Carole and James Steven Hawke. When Ethan was born, both of his parents were students at the University of Texas. His parents divorced in 1974 when he was five years old. After they remarried in 1981, the family moved to New Jersey.

Between 1984 and 1986, Ethan Hawke attended West Windsor–Plainsboro High School. He later enrolled at The Hun School of Princeton, where he began taking acting classes at the McCarter Theatre on campus. He graduated from high school in 1988. He briefly attended Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh for five months and later continued his education for one year at Brooklyn Packer Collegiate Institute in New York.

Hawke entered the world of cinema in 1985 with Explorers. During his early education years, he actively participated in numerous school theater productions. After enrolling in the acting program at Carnegie Mellon University, he made a decisive shift toward cinema when he was cast by Peter Weir in Dead Poets Society, leading him to leave school before completing his studies.

In 1989, he appeared alongside Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society, a performance that brought him international recognition. Beyond acting, Hawke explored various creative fields, including theater direction and music video directing. He later worked actively in New York University’s English program but eventually chose to return fully to cinema. Disturbed by repeatedly leaving formal education unfinished, he turned to self-education, focusing intensely on reading and writing.

In 1996, his debut novel The Hottest State was published and generated approximately $400,000 in revenue, marking his emergence as a literary figure alongside his acting career.

In 1994, Ethan Hawke starred opposite Winona Ryder in Reality Bites, becoming a defining figure of Generation X cinema. He continued to collaborate with prominent actors, appearing with Uma Thurman in Gattaca in 1997. The same period saw him working with Gwyneth Paltrow in Great Expectations, a modern adaptation of the novel by Charles Dickens, and later in the Western The Newton Boys.

He went on to star in Joe the King alongside Val Kilmer and played the lead role in Snow Falling on Cedars, adapted from the bestselling novel by David Guterson. In 2001, he shared the lead role with Denzel Washington in Training Day, one of the most critically acclaimed performances of his career. In 2002, he appeared in Tape alongside his then-wife Uma Thurman.

Marriages

1st wife: On May 1, 1998, he married actress Uma Thurman. The couple divorced on July 20, 2004. They have two children: Maya Hawke (born 1998) and Levon Roan Hawke (born 2002).

2nd wife: On June 21, 2008, he married Ryan Shawhughes. They have two children: Clementine Jane Hawke (born 2008) and Indiana Hawke (born 2011).

Filmography

Director

2018 - Blaze
2014 - Seymour: An Introduction
2006 - The Hottest State
2001 - Chelsea Walls

Screenwriter

2018 - Blaze
2013 - Before Midnight
2006 - The Hottest State
2004 - Before Sunset

Producer

2018 - Blaze

Actor

2019 - The Truth
2018 - Tonight at Noon (Lefty)
2018 - Stockholm
2018 - First Reformed (Toller)
2017 - 24 Hours to Live
2017 - Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (Jolly the Pimp)
2016 - The Phenom (Hopper Sr.)
2016 - The Magnificent Seven
2016 - Maudie
2015 - In a Valley of Violence (Paul)
2015 - Regression (Bruce Kenner)
2015 - Boyhood (Father)
2014 - Predestination
2014 - Good Kill
2014 - Cymbeline (Iachimo)
2014 - 21 Years: Richard Linklater
2013 - Getaway (Brent Magna)
2013 - Before Midnight (Jesse)
2013 - The Purge
2012 - Shoedog (Constantine)
2012 - Sinister (Ellison)
2012 - Total Recall
2011 - Anonymous (Tom Ricks)
2010 - Daybreakers (Edward Dalton)
2009 - Staten Island
2009 - Brooklyn's Finest (Sal)
2008 - What Doesn't Kill You (Paulie McDougan)
2008 - New York, I Love You (Writer)
2008 - Chelsea on the Rocks (Himself)
2007 - Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (Hank)
2006 - Fast Food Nation (Pete)
2006 - The Hottest State (Vince)
2005 - Assault on Precinct 13 (Jake Roenick)
2005 - Lord of War (Jack Valentine)
2004 - Taking Lives (Costa)
2004 - Before Sunset (Jesse)
2003 - Tape (Vince)
2001 - Training Day (Jake)
2001 - The Jimmy Show (Ray)
2001 - Waking Life (Jesse – voice)
1999 - Snow Falling on Cedars (Ishmael Chambers)
1998 - The Newton Boys (Jess Newton)
1998 - Great Expectations (Finn)
1997 - Gattaca (Vincent Freeman)
1995 - Search and Destroy (Roger)
1995 - Before Sunrise (Jesse)
1994 - Reality Bites (Troy Dyer)
1993 - Alive (Nando Parrado)
1993 - Rich in Love (Wayne Frobiness)
1992 - Waterland (Matthew Price)
1992 - A Midnight Clear (Will Knott)
1991 - White Fang (Jack Conroy)
1991 - Mystery Date (Tom McHugh)
1989 - Dead Poets Society (Todd Anderson)
1989 - Dad (Billy Tremont)
1985 - Explorers (Ben Crandall)

Source: Biyografiler.com