Scott Wilson

Scott Wilson was born in 1942 in Altanta, Georgia U.S.A. Wilson graduated from Thomas High School and was awarded a basketball scholarship at Georgia’s Southern Tech University to study architecture. Becoming an Architect was more of his father’s idea than his and so when an injury forced him to leave College, Wilson (19) hitchhiked across the country to Los Angeles, seeing a good bit of "local colour" on the way.

Wilson fell into acting, literally, falling down drunk and landing in an acting class with a newfound pal who announced "here’s a star". The next day, feeling very embarrassed about his condition, he returned to the class to apologise. The acting teacher gave him the monologue from LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT to read and he became intrigued and stayed on in the class, later being cast in THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST his first play Wilson made his motion picture debut in a supporting role of Director Norman Jewison’s IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT starring Rod Steiger. His second breakthrough film was IN COLD BLOOD in which he played his first leading role, as real life murderer Dick Hickok. This movie was based on Truman Capote’s famous book of two wandering gunmen (Robert Blake played the other real life murderer Perry Smith) who slaughter an entire, innocent mid western family after robbing their house.

One of Wilson’s memorable roles was as the garage owner in GREAT GATSBY, who shoots Gatsby (Robert Redford) dead in his swimming pool at the end of the movie and GRISSOM GANG,directed by Robert Aldrich in which Wilson plays lecherous psychopath Slim Grissom.

One of his more intriguing credits was with the first US-Polish film YEAR OF THE QUIET SUN, in which he played the romantic lead of an American GI who doesn’t speak Polish and a Polish woman who doesn’t speak English. This film won the Golden Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival and got great reviews in the United States.

A film that Wilson is most proud of is OUR GOD’S BROTHER in which he portrayed Adam Chmielowski (Saint Brother Albert), based on a story written by Karol Wojtyla (Pope John Paul II) before he became the Pontiff. The filming of this movie took Wilson and his Wife, Heavenly, an attorney and also a professional painter and sculptor who he met in 1974 after filming GREAT GATSBY to Rome, Italy where they personally met the Pontiff. His other feature film roles include Sydney Pollack’s CASTLE KEEP starring Burt Lancaster, Richard Fleisher’s NEW CENTURIONS, starring George C. Scott and ON THE LINE a US-Spanish co-production for which he was Best Actor cowinner at the Cartagena Film Festival.

Some of Wilson’s more recent and dramatic movies have included JOHNNY HANDSOME starring Mickey Rourke, YOUNG GUNS II starring Lou diamond phillips and Emilio Estevez, GERONIMO: AN AMERICAN LEGEND starring Gene Hackman, FLESH and BONE starring Dennis Quaid, Tim Robbins’ DEAD MAN WALKING starring Sean Penn, JUDGE DREDD starring Sylvester Stallone and G.I. JANE starring Demi Moore.

Also in 1997 Wilson was remembered by Rod Steiger for his considerable talent IN the HEAT OF THE NIGHT and felt that he would be perfect to play Judd Travers in the family film SHILOH. This is a story about a courageous boy, who through compassion, touches the heart of a man filled with hate (Wilson). Then in 1999 SHILOH 2: SHILOH SEASON (1999) was made with Wilson again appearing as Judd Travers, who by the end of the movie has found that through the power of kindness, he could learn not to hate.

Wilson was seen a very memorable Joe in the Oscar-winning film MONSTER starring Charlize Theron and as Ambassador Swanbeck in the epic Ed Zwick feature THE LAST SAMURAI with Tom Cruise.

Sony Pictures Classics