John Corbett
Birthdate: May 9, 1961
Birthplace: Wheeling, West Virginia, USA
John Corbett (birthname: John Joseph Corbett Jr.) is a durable actor who has played in largely supporting roles on the big screen (while also known for his long-running recurring roles on the hit TV series Northern Exposure (1990-1995), Sex and the City (2000-2003), United States of Tara (2009-2011) and Parenthood (2011-2015), performing in small supporting roles for his first decade (1991-2001) in such movies as Flight of the Intruder (1991), Tombstone (1993), Volcano (1997) and Dinner Rush (2000). Corbett’s first significant supporting role was in the Peter Chelsom-directed romcom, Serendipity (2001), starring John Cusack, Kate Beckinsale, Molly Shannon, Jeremy Piven, Bridget Moynahan, and Eugene Levy and grossing a solid $77.5 million for Miramax Films after premiering at the Toronto Film Festival.
Corbett’s breakthrough role was as co-star to star-writer Nia Vardalos of the smash hit, My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), with Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine, Gia Carides and Louis Mandylor under Joel Zwick’s direction, and earning an astounding $368.7 million on $5 million costs for producers Rita Wilson, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman and distributor IFC Films. Corbett was cast for a co-starring role by director Garry Marshall for another romcom, Raising Helen (2004), starring Kate Hudson, Joan Cusack, Hayden Panettiere and Helen Mirren, released to poor box office by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, and then reunited with director Zwick playing an Elvis impersonator in the Lionsgate comedy, Elvis Has Left the Building (2004), with Kim Basinger, Annie Potts, Sean Astin and Hanks.
John Corbett took on a co-starring role in his first horror movie, The Messengers (2007), co-starring Kristen Stewart, Dylan McDermott and Penelope Ann Miller under the direction of The Pang Brothers with lead producer Sam Raimi, and earning a $55 million take (against $16 million costs) for Columbia Pictures/Screen Gems/Sony Pictures Releasing. Corbett was in a smaller supporting role in director David Ayer’s and writer James Ellroy’s LAPD thriller, Street Kings (2008), starring Keanu Reeves, Forest Whitaker, Hugh Laurie, Chris Evans, and Common, returning a profit for Regency/3 Arts and Fox Searchlight Pictures with $66.5 million box office.
Corbett was cast by screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga in his directorial debut, The Burning Plain (2008), with Charlize Theron, Kim Basinger, and Jennifer Lawrence, and was then picked to co-star with Heather Graham and Jerry O’Connell in Screen Media’s disastrous comedy, Baby on Board (2009). Corbett and co-star Nia Vardalos (who also directed and wrote) tried to re-create the same Big Fat Greek Wedding magic with the romcom, I Hate Valentine’s Day (2009), but which lost money for IFC Films, and then Corbett took his character of Aidan Shaw to the big screen for director/writer/producer Michael Patrick King’s Sex and the City 2 (2010), starring Sarah Jessica Parker (who also lead produced), with Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon and Chris Noth, and earning a robust $294.7 million for Warner Bros.
John Corbett played support to co-stars Joey King and Selena Gomez in the 20th Century Fox/Fox 2000 Pictures family comedy, Ramona and Beezus (2010), and then Corbett was cast in a major role in his first successful studio release in five years with the Rob Cohen-directed psychological thriller, The Boy Next Door (2015), produced by Jason Blum and co-starring Jennifer Lopez and Ryan Guzman, and earning Universal Pictures a highly profitable $52.4 million on $4 million costs. Corbett co-starred in his second Universal hit in a row in his return as co-star with star-writer Nia Vardalos in the sequel, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016), reuniting the original cast under Kirk Jones’s direction and delivering a terrific $90.6 million (against $18 million expenses).
Corbett appeared in several minor releases and streaming movies, with a supporting role in director/co-writer Johannes Roberts’s survival thriller sequel, 47 Meters Down: Uncaged (2019), with Sophie Nelisse, Corinne Fox, and Brianne Tju, and grossing a fine $47.6 million for distributor Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures. Corbett reunited again with star/director/writer Nia Vardalos for a fourth feature and third in the series, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 (2023), again reuniting the original cast but delivering a disappointing $39 million box office for Focus Features/Universal Pictures.
John Corbett co-starred with Joel Courtney in the drama, Soul on Fire (2025), based on John O’Leary’s memoir, and with William H. Macy, Devon Franklin, and Stephanie Szostak under Sean McNamara’s direction and released by Sony Pictures Releasing.
John Corbett Photos and Videos
Personal life
John Corbett was born and raised in Wheeling, West Virginia, by his mother, Sandy, and stepfather. Corbett attended Wheeling Central Catholic High School and graduated in 1979. Corbett later studied hairdressing and theater at Cerritos College in the Los Angeles suburb of Norwalk, after failing exams for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Corbett has been married to actor Bo Derek since 2020, after being in a relationship since 2002, when they met on a blind date. The couple lives on a ranch in Santa Ynez, California (north of Santa Barbara). Corbett’s height is 6’ 5”. Corbett’s estimated net worth is $9.5 million.
Known For
John Corbett Movies
actor
Previous (30)
- 2025 |
Soul on Fire
asDenny O'Leary
In 1987, nine-year-old John O'Leary survives a terrible accident and grows into a man who show us what it means to truly live.
- 2023 |
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3
asIan
After the death of the family's patriarch, Toula attempts to locate her father's childhood friends in Greece for a family reunion.
- 2021 | To All the Boys: Always and Foreveras Dr. Covey
- 2021 |
- 2019 | The Silenceas Glenn
- 2019 |
47 Meters Down: Uncaged
asGrant
Two sisters diving in a ruined underwater city quickly learn they've entered the territory of the deadliest shark species in the claustrophobic labyrinth of submerged caves.
- 2018 | Celebrity Fight Night in Italy
- 2018 |
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
asDr. Covey
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
A teenage girl's secret love letters are exposed and wreak havoc on her love life.
- 2018 |
God’s Not Dead: A Light in Darkness
asPearce Hill
God’s Not Dead: A Light in Darkness
Now the late 2010s, an aging Reverend Dave faces cultural and social backlash, including having his church burned down during a protest, and he is antagonized by atheists, leftists, liberal college students, the school board, and rioters.
- 2017 |
All Saints
asMichael Spurlock
When a group of Burmese refugees join the congregation, the pastor of a failing Anglican church attempts to aid them by planting crops and enlisting the help of the community.
- 2016 | My Dead Boyfriendas Primo Schultz
- 2016 |
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
asIan
A Portokalos family secret brings the beloved characters back together for an even bigger and Greeker wedding.
- 2015 |
The Boy Next Door
asGarrett Peterson
A woman, separated from her unfaithful husband, falls for a younger man who has moved in next door, but their torrid affair soon takes a dangerous turn.
- 2014 | Kiss Meas Chance
- 2014 | The Lookalikeas Bobby
- 2010 | Ramona and Beezusas Robert Quimby
- 2009 | Baby on Boardas Danny Chambers
- 2008 | The Burning Plainas John
- 2009 | I Hate Valentine's Dayas Greg Gatlin
- 2007 | The Messengersas Burwell
- 2006 | Dreamlandas Henry
- 2005 | Bigger Than the Skyas Michael Degan
- 2004 | Elvis Has Left the Buildingas Miles Taylor
- 2004 | Raise Your Voiceas Mr. Torvald
- 2004 | Raising Helenas Pastor Dan Parker
- 2002 | My Big Fat Greek Weddingas Ian Miller
- 2002 |
My Big Fat Greek Wedding
asIan Miller
A young Greek woman falls in love with a non-Greek and struggles to get her family to accept him while she comes to terms with her heritage and cultural identity.
- 1999 | Desperate But Not Seriousas Jonathan
- 1996 | Wedding Bell Bluesas Cary Maynard Philco
- 1997 | Volcanoas Norman Calder
Facts About John Corbett
Working Man: John Corbett worked as a hydrotester at Kaiser Steel’s operations in Fontana, California, for six years, until Corbett injured his back.
Licensed: Corbett has a hairdresser’s license, following his training.
Musician: John Corbett is also a musician-singer and can play piano and guitar, and has said that “acting may be how I’ve made my living, but music has always been my passion.”
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