1994–1999: Early films and breakthrough Wilson made his film debut acting in the
Wes Anderson short film
Bottle Rocket (1994), which was later expanded into the feature-length film
Bottle Rocket (1996). Wilson co-wrote the screenplay with Anderson, and acted opposite his brother
Luke Wilson. David Hunter of
The Hollywood Reporter praised the film, saying, "A marvelous debut film for its director, writer and lead actors,
Bottle Rocket is propelled by a fresh approach to the caper genre". That same year, he had a supporting role in the
black comedy The Cable Guy (1996), starring
Jim Carrey and directed by
Ben Stiller, an early admirer of
Bottle Rocket. Wilson played
Leslie Mann's date in the film. In 1997, he had a role in the adventure thriller
Anaconda and executive produced the
James L. Brooks comedy
As Good as It Gets. In 1998, Wilson had roles in the
science fiction disaster film
Armageddon and the independent drama film
Permanent Midnight. He also reunited with Anderson, co-writing the script for his next two films,
Rushmore and
The Royal Tenenbaums, which Anderson directed. The pair garnered an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay for 'Tenenbaums'. Wilson did not act in
Rushmore, but was shown briefly in a photograph in the film. After appearing in supporting roles in 1999, he acted in horror film
The Haunting, and
The Minus Man. His future girlfriend, singer
Sheryl Crow, was a co-star in the latter film.
2000–2006: Film stardom Wilson starred in the 2000 comedy action film
Shanghai Noon alongside
Jackie Chan. The film grossed nearly $100 million worldwide. His fame continued to rise after starring alongside
Ben Stiller and
Will Ferrell in the 2001 film
Zoolander.
Gene Hackman reportedly took notice of Wilson's performance in
Shanghai Noon and recommended the actor to co-star in the 2001 action film
Behind Enemy Lines. Also in 2001, Wilson and Anderson collaborated on their third film,
The Royal Tenenbaums, a financial and critical success. The film earned the writing team an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. Wilson returned to the buddy-comedy genre in 2002 with the action comedy
I Spy, co-starring
Eddie Murphy. The big-screen remake of the same-named television series did not perform well at the box office. He made a cameo appearance in the
Girl Skateboards video
Yeah Right! in 2003. He then reunited with Chan to make
Shanghai Knights (2003), and co-starred in the film remake of the 1970s television series
Starsky & Hutch (2004). Due to his busy schedule as an actor and an ongoing sinus condition, Wilson was unavailable to collaborate on the script for Wes Anderson's fourth feature film,
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. The 2004 film was ultimately co-written by filmmaker
Noah Baumbach. However, Wilson did star in the film as Bill Murray's would-be son, Ned Plimpton; it was a role written specifically for him. In 2004, he and his brother Luke played the
Wright brothers in the 2004 film
Around the World in 80 Days. Wilson is said to be attached to a sequel to
Shanghai Knights, marking his third collaboration with
Jackie Chan. premiere of
You, Me and Dupree in 2006 Wilson partnered with
Vince Vaughn in the 2005 comedy film
Wedding Crashers, which grossed over $200 million in the United States alone. Also in 2005, Owen collaborated with his brothers in
The Wendell Baker Story, written by Luke and directed by Luke and Andrew. In 2006, Wilson voiced Lightning McQueen in the
Disney/
Pixar film
Cars, starred in
You, Me and Dupree with
Kate Hudson, and appeared with Stiller in
Night at the Museum as cowboy Jedediah. During this time, Wilson gained a reputation for frequently exclaiming "Wow!" in his roles, becoming something of a
meme, as well as his
trademark.
2007–2015: Established career Wilson appeared in another Wes Anderson film,
The Darjeeling Limited, which screened at the 45th annual
New York Film Festival, the
Venice Film Festival, and opened September 30, 2007. It co-stars
Jason Schwartzman and
Adrien Brody.
The Darjeeling Limited was selected for a DVD and Blu-ray release by The Criterion Collection in October 2010. Wilson next starred in the
Judd Apatow comedy,
Drillbit Taylor which was released in March 2008. He appeared in a film adaptation of
John Grogan's best-selling memoir,
Marley & Me (2008), co-starring
Jennifer Aniston. He provided the voice for the Whackbat Coach Skip in Wes Anderson's stop motion animated film
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009). Wilson is a member of the comedic acting brotherhood colloquially known as the
Frat Pack. Wilson made a guest appearance on the NBC comedy
Community with fellow Frat Pack member
Jack Black. at the
Cannes Film Festival premiere of
Midnight in Paris in 2011 In 2011, Wilson starred as a nostalgia-seized writer in the romantic comedy
Midnight in Paris, written and directed by
Woody Allen. The film premiered at the
64th Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim. The film became Allen's highest grossing thus far, and was also well received by critics.
Roger Ebert wrote of Wilson's performance, "[He] is a key to the movie's appeal". Peter Debruge of
Variety also praised Wilson, writing "Wilson makes the role endearingly his own". For his performance, Wilson earned a nomination for the
Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. That same year, he starred in the film
The Big Year (2011) an adaptation of Mark Obmascik's book
The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession. The film was released in October 2011 by
20th Century Fox, and co-starred
Jack Black,
JoBeth Williams,
Steve Martin and
Rashida Jones. The same year, Wilson returned to voice McQueen in
Cars 2. In March 2012, Wilson was signed to star in the
John Erick Dowdle thriller
The Coup, later renamed "No Escape", in which he played the role of the father of an American family that moves to Southeast Asia, only to find itself swept up in a wave of rebel violence that is overwhelming the city. The film was not released until 2015, and was Wilson's return to the action genre for the first time since
Behind Enemy Lines in 2001. He also voiced turkey Reggie in
Reel FX's first animated film,
Free Birds. In 2014, Wilson appeared in Wes Anderson's acclaimed ensemble comedy
The Grand Budapest Hotel and in
Paul Thomas Anderson's book adaptation of
Inherent Vice. In 2015, he starred with
Jennifer Aniston in
Peter Bogdanovich's film ''
She's Funny That Way, and in the action thriller film No Escape'' alongside
Lake Bell and
Pierce Brosnan. Wilson's films have grossed more than 2.25 billion domestically (United States and Canada), with an average of 75 million per film.
2017–present In 2017, Wilson again voiced Lightning McQueen in
Cars 3, played a suburban father in the drama
Wonder, and co-starred with
Ed Helms in the comedy
Father Figures. In November 2017, Wilson became the face of a new £20 million advertising campaign for the
UK sofa retailer
Sofology. He returned to work with Sofology in 2019 for a second advertising campaign. In 2021, Wilson starred in the comedy film
Bliss, directed by
Mike Cahill opposite
Salma Hayek for
Amazon Studios. In 2021, Wilson also reunited with
Wes Anderson for
The French Dispatch, which premiered at the 2021
Cannes Film Festival. and
Marry Me alongside
Jennifer Lopez and directed by
Kat Coiro for
Universal Pictures. From 2021 to 2023, Wilson starred in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe series
Loki opposite
Tom Hiddleston on
Disney+ as
Mobius M. Mobius, a role he reprised in the 2023 film
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. == Personal life ==