The tattooed, eccentric actor/screenwriter was born in 1955 in Arkansas. He first earned critical acclaim when her wrote, directed and starred in the independent film, Sling Blade in 1996. Following this success, he appeared in several major films, including Armageddon and Monster's Ball. Thornton is also a singer-songwriter, and he released his first album titled Private Radio in 2001, followed by two more.

The talent, who suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder--has been married five times, most notably to Angelina Jolie. The duo was known for their unusual behavior, including wearing a vile of each other's blood around their necks. Thornton is the biological child of four children and was granted "parenting-time" with Jolie's adopted son Maddox.