Kevin Costner

Birthday: 18 January 1955, Lynwood, California, USA

Birth Name: Kevin Michael Costner

Height: 185 cm

Kevin Michael Costner was born on January 18, 1955 in Lynwood, California, the third child of Bill Costner, a ditch digger and ultimately an electric line servicer for Southern California Edison, and Sharon Costner (née Tedrick), a welfare worker. His older brother, Dan, was born in 1950. A middle brother died at birth in 1953. His father's job required him to move regularly, which caused Kevin to feel like an Army kid, always the new kid at school, which led to him being a daydreamer. As a teen, he sang in the Baptist church choir, wrote poetry, and took writing classes. At 18, he built his own canoe and paddled his way down the rivers that Lewis & Clark followed to the Pacific. Despite his present height, he was only 5'2" when he graduated high school. Nonetheless, he still managed to be a basketball, football and baseball star. In 1973, he enrolled at California State University at Fullerton, where he majored in business. During that period, Kevin decided to take acting lessons five nights a week. He graduated with a business degree in 1978 and married his college sweetheart, Cindy Costner. He initially took a marketing job in Orange County. Everything changed when he accidentally met Richard Burton on a flight from Mexico. Burton advised him to go completely after acting if that is what he wanted. He quit his job and moved to Hollywood soon after. He drove a truck, worked on a deep sea fishing boat, and gave bus tours to stars' homes before finally making his own way into the films. After making one soft core sex film, he vowed to not work again if that was the only work he could do. He didn't work for nearly six years, while he waited for a proper break. That break came with The Big Chill (1983), even though his scenes ended up on the cutting room floor -- he was remembered by director Lawrence Kasdan when he decided to make Silverado (1985). Costner's career took off after that. Show less «

[on the Iraq war] I don't want to turn my back on that [Bush] family. They've been gracious to me. W...Show more »

[on the Iraq war] I don't want to turn my back on that [Bush] family. They've been gracious to me. We're supposed to evolve from frontier justice. I think that the old west mythology is a good thing to have in your spine. But it shouldn't operate your brain. It's nice to know that you are willing to fight, but it's good to know how smart you are about not fighting. Show less «

My movies are isolated. They all sit by themselves a little bit. I don't have three movies coming al...Show more »

My movies are isolated. They all sit by themselves a little bit. I don't have three movies coming along behind each other just in case one of them doesn't work. I haven't tried to manipulate my career. I wouldn't really know how to do that. That doesn't seem very heroic to me! Meaning it feels kinda chicken. That's kinda chickenshit. Show less «

I can't say I really see much difference between my son and daughters except that my girls will occa...Show more »

I can't say I really see much difference between my son and daughters except that my girls will occasionally make me a sandwich and my son won't. Show less «

[at Whitney Houston's funeral] I urge us all, inside and outside, across the nation and around the w...Show more »

[at Whitney Houston's funeral] I urge us all, inside and outside, across the nation and around the world, to dry our tears, suspend our sorrow and perhaps our anger just long enough, just long enough to remember the sweet miracle of Whitney. Show less «

My first introduction to English football was in 1990 when I was over here making Robin Hood and I g...Show more »

My first introduction to English football was in 1990 when I was over here making Robin Hood and I got invited to an Arsenal game. Having watched sports all my life in America, there was no comparison in terms of the emotion that was in the stadium that day. And I really never forgot it. - on being an Arsenal fan. Show less «

[on Dances with Wolves (1990)] "This is a bonding film for all. You could put it anywhere in history...Show more »

[on Dances with Wolves (1990)] "This is a bonding film for all. You could put it anywhere in history--the Berlin Wall, Kuwait". Show less «

I'm really aware of my disappointments, what movies I didn't like when I was done. I'm not so sure t...Show more »

I'm really aware of my disappointments, what movies I didn't like when I was done. I'm not so sure they line up with public or critical disappointments. But if I have to reduce my life to the box office, I can see what the up-and-down thing is. Popularity now is cultural achievement. If you can be popular, you actually can make a living out of being popular. It's not my way. Other actors might have made "Bull Durham 2","Tin Cup 2","Dances 2" and "Bodyguard 2". But I don't think repeating yourself is very good. Show less «

I had to make a big decision to become an actor, and when you decide to become an actor, there's a h...Show more »

I had to make a big decision to become an actor, and when you decide to become an actor, there's a huge amount of doubt about what it means to those around you. Stuff like "How's he going to do that?" and "What makes him think he can do that?". But I think doubt is not a bad thing to have, because it means you keep asking yourself questions. And if you're going to ask yourself questions, you have to come out swinging harder. You push harder. And everything that's happened to me in acting has been a fundamental of work and being associated with really good people. [2009] Show less «

You know, the Kennedys have endured such a large amount of tabloidism over the last twenty years. Bu...Show more »

You know, the Kennedys have endured such a large amount of tabloidism over the last twenty years. But my feeling is that no matter what anybody thinks about the Kennedys, in those thirteen days they were absolutely golden. And if other individuals had been in that position, I think the legacy we would have been sharing in the year 2000 - instead of all the bright lights and parties when we hit the Millennium - would be 150 million people dead. It would make the Vietnam War pale in comparison. And if other men had been in power, they would have swallowed hook, line and sinker the recommendations of the military. -- Interview with David Giammarco, Cigar Aficionado Magazine, Nov/Dec. 2000. Show less «

[on playing dress-up] I'm not a guy who likes Halloween. So I'm a little at odds with what I've chos...Show more »

[on playing dress-up] I'm not a guy who likes Halloween. So I'm a little at odds with what I've chosen to do with my life. I never liked going to a party dressed as a pirate because when you get past that initial "Ooh, you're a pirate!", you feel a little silly for threat of the party. Putting on the guns, letting the beard go and getting a pipe? That is fun. You look at everybody and wink and say, "Man, I have one of the great jobs in the world.". Show less «

[on Death of a President (2006)] It's awfully hard if you're his children, his wife, his mother, his...Show more »

[on Death of a President (2006)] It's awfully hard if you're his children, his wife, his mother, his dad; there's a certain thing we can't lose as human beings, which is empathy for maybe the hardest job in the world. Whether we think it's being performed right or not we can't, like, wish... or think that's even cute. Show less «

Real heroes are men who fall and fail and are flawed, but win out in the end because they've stayed ...Show more »

Real heroes are men who fall and fail and are flawed, but win out in the end because they've stayed true to their ideals and beliefs and commitments. -- Interview with David Giammarco, Cigar Aficionado Magazine, Nov/Dec 2000. Show less «

I don't prefer to be known as a conservative. I'm not a Republican. I basically was raised in a hous...Show more »

I don't prefer to be known as a conservative. I'm not a Republican. I basically was raised in a house that was a Republican house. My politics came out my kitchen table, listening to my parents. I thought the people that protested against the Vietnam war were unpatriotic because my brother was fighting over in Vietnam. I was only 14 years old. As I got time and distance I realized it was just a difference of opinion and their opinion wasn't necessarily wrong. As a person evolves they begin to have their own voice and their own way of thinking. I wasn't ahead of my time. Show less «

There's so much about The Postman (1997) that I love. I probably made a mistake with Postman: I shou...Show more »

There's so much about The Postman (1997) that I love. I probably made a mistake with Postman: I should've started it with, "Once upon a time," because it's a modern-day fairytale. It wraps itself up with a storybook ending with the statue. I liked it very much. Show less «

I'm a hunter, I hunt but I think there should be gun laws. I think there should be a lot of gun laws...Show more »

I'm a hunter, I hunt but I think there should be gun laws. I think there should be a lot of gun laws. I don't want to lose my shotgun but there's a real good reason why I use my shotgun. It came from my grandpa. His cheek was on it. My dad's cheek was on it and I go out and hunt with my dogs. My gun's an heirloom to me and my son, one day, when I'm gone, is gonna know, "Your dad hunted with that." But even though with the connection that I have to my gun, can I look at the NRA and say, "I think you're out of line?". I can say that. Show less «

The fact that I was 5 foot 2 as a sophomore didn't help. I'm 6 foot 1 now but still relate to those ...Show more »

The fact that I was 5 foot 2 as a sophomore didn't help. I'm 6 foot 1 now but still relate to those feelings. I didn't date in high school and didn't get my growth until college. I never got over being short. Show less «

[on press criticism of him in the mid-1990s] I saw what was happening. I knew why. It was like the p...Show more »

[on press criticism of him in the mid-1990s] I saw what was happening. I knew why. It was like the planets had lined up for me. I had gotten a divorce and maybe people thought that that was because my head was too big or something with all the success. That simply wasn't what it was. If I was going to go crazy, I'd have gone crazy with the first hit, the second hit, the third, the fourth. It was much more complicated than that. It wasn't about fame. It wasn't about that at all. And I think maybe people were disappointed because they had seen me have a life. Was I the last hope for men and women? "If they can't make it, no-one can!" But we never projected ourselves in the press as a perfect couple. I didn't want that mantle, but when people project it on you and see it all dissolve....You see it. I don't know if people beg for it and then they can't get rid of it. I don't know what it is. I didn't court it. I never courted the press on any level except to promote a movie. You never saw me do press outside the lines of a movie. Twice in my career - and people don't know this - I took a year off. If you look at my filmography, I probably have fewer movies than anybody else in my category. If you did the math on movies, I think you'd be shocked that mine might be a third of what other people do. Show less «

I registered as a Republican when I was twenty-one. My parents were Republicans. But as I've gotten ...Show more »

I registered as a Republican when I was twenty-one. My parents were Republicans. But as I've gotten older I've questioned my whole conservative background... I think you should be fair about how you treat people. Show less «

I don't mind Hollywood. After all, I don't make movies that are like avant garde or not understandab...Show more »

I don't mind Hollywood. After all, I don't make movies that are like avant garde or not understandable. I just like to make a mainstream movie with all the edges that existed in the writing and I don't like to see it flattened out in order to cater to audiences. I don't really give a shit what people think about my movie after watching it and giving it a test score, but I really care about what you think about it when you see it in its purity, because I don't feel like I'm going to lose you. I don't feel like my movies are going to be for everyone because they're not, because sometimes they're more adult and that eliminates kids. Show less «

The opening weekend is a hard one for me. Especially when you take a lot of time with a movie. I don...Show more »

The opening weekend is a hard one for me. Especially when you take a lot of time with a movie. I don't know how it is with other people's movies. It's like, you don't know how other people make love because you've only made love yourself and so unless you've watched them, how do you know if you're doing it right? I know how I try to make a movie; I know how I lose sleep over it; I know how I deliberate for hours over the difference between saying 'She went over there' or saying 'She's gone'. And people will ask say, "What's the difference, Kevin?" Well, it's a big difference to me, to find that exactly right line. And when you work hard on things like that, it's frustrating to me that a movie can be dismissed so easily. These movies for me are like the same kind of pictures my Mom put up on the refrigerator. I'm really proud of them and if they get dismissed, and even though you're not eight years old anymore, it hurts. Show less «

[on funding Black or White (2014) himself] Mike Binder sent me Black or White, and it reminded me of...Show more »

[on funding Black or White (2014) himself] Mike Binder sent me Black or White, and it reminded me of everything that I like about screenplays. It was very similar to Field of Dreams (1989), it was very similar to Silverado (1985) - it was quality, just quality writing. To me, it's the same movie as Dances with Wolves (1990). I think it's a powerful movie, I think it's very commercial. I think it smells like everything that studios want, which is money - and that's not bad. I don't think artistic and financial things are mutually exclusive. I couldn't get anybody to see what I saw in it. I literally walked into my own den and looked at my wife and said, 'I think I'm gonna pay for this movie', and she said 'Really?' and then she said 'If you think that's what you should do, then that's what you should do'. And I do feel that it's a movie to be seen, and a movie to be talked about - without trying. It doesn't preach, but it's quite humorous and ultimately very poignant. The studios are making the kinds of movies they want to make. They understand their business, but I have to equally understand my business of what I choose to do, and this has as much value as anything that I could imagine doing. I couldn't minimize it, and I wouldn't allow it to be minimized. The studios didn't fail; I would have failed if I didn't toughen up and just figure out how to do it. I think it would've been a sad thing if people didn't get to see this movie. That's how much I actually believed in it. Show less «

I think you have to look at screenwriting as an art form because it's not all that easy to do. Not a...Show more »

I think you have to look at screenwriting as an art form because it's not all that easy to do. Not all that many people can do it. So you have to go out and find the material, or develop it from scratch, and I'm one of the handful or people who actually spends his own money on developing and producing projects I like. Show less «

[on A Perfect World (1993)] I read it; I thought that the writer....the muse was working perfectly o...Show more »

[on A Perfect World (1993)] I read it; I thought that the writer....the muse was working perfectly on his shoulder. I was really happy to be in that movie and play that character and say those words. I learned a lot from Clint and Clint was able to understand that I had some stuff to do, playing a very flawed character. Show less «

You know, Waterworld (1995) could probably be re-released based on my travelling around the world, a...Show more »

You know, Waterworld (1995) could probably be re-released based on my travelling around the world, and could make a lot of money again, because it's a lot of people's favorite movie. That's not bullshit. That's real. It's a movie that people talk to me about around the world. There'll be a moment in time when people will maybe see what really happened with Waterworld, and maybe take a more thoughtful look at it and maybe see the heroism of everything. I know forensically everything about that movie, what happened. I know all of it and I've never seen anybody really get it right. But that's okay. I wouldn't write the book. But if somebody wrote a book, I would know if they got it right. It's an amazing movie. I'm proud of this movie for a variety of reasons. I like my performance in it. I thought that Kevin Reynolds has a great vision and some of the scenes he did are scenes that are really unforgettable. It's a flawed movie and almost every movie I've ever worked on is a flawed movie. I think it's a movie that really stands, myself. Show less «

Everyone feels like they could have done things differently in life. But I'm happy about the things ...Show more »

Everyone feels like they could have done things differently in life. But I'm happy about the things I've done. Not always happy about the results, but happy about the decisions, because I made them myself. And I think that's an important way to go through life. -- Interview with David Giammarco, Cigar Aficionado Magazine, Nov/Dec. 2000. Show less «

[on going bald] I'm not into plugs, rugs or drugs to correct this problem and would rather just shav...Show more »

[on going bald] I'm not into plugs, rugs or drugs to correct this problem and would rather just shave it off. Show less «

I'm happy about the things I've done. Not always happy about the results, but happy about the decisi...Show more »

I'm happy about the things I've done. Not always happy about the results, but happy about the decisions, because I made them myself. And I think that's an important way to go through life. -- Interview with David Giammarco, Cigar Aficionado Magazine, Nov/Dec. 2000. Show less «

[on gaining weight for The Upside of Anger (2005)] I put on 20 pounds for the film. I drank whole mi...Show more »

[on gaining weight for The Upside of Anger (2005)] I put on 20 pounds for the film. I drank whole milk with sugar, bananas and ice cream. And chocolate and cookies. Show less «

I've always known what a good movie is. I've not often known what a hit is. I think The War (1994) i...Show more »

I've always known what a good movie is. I've not often known what a hit is. I think The War (1994) is a good movie, but it's not a hit. I think A Perfect World (1993) is a good movie, but it's not a hit. And so what should I have done? Should I have turned my back on those movies? I can't do that, I just can't. If I can be in a good movie, then I can feel okay about it. I can feel okay about The Upside of Anger (2005), I can feel good about Open Range (2003), I can feel good about Mr. Brooks (2007). Is it a hit? It's not a hit, but it will make money. Am I proud of it? I am proud of it. No Way Out (1987) was a movie that was in turnaround. It was not going to be made. Bull Durham (1988) was not going to be made. We went to every studio twice. So when people want to look at my career in retrospect and go, "Hit, hit, those movies were hits..." Well those movies weren't going to be hits unless we forced them onto the screen. Show less «

Kevin Costner

Kevin Costner's FILMOGRAPHY

Kevin Costner'S roles

Feedback about this page?