Biography
By his own admission, actor Mark Wahlberg went from a jailed Boston street thug to a respected, legitimate actor in less than a decade, with attention-grabbing stops as a rapper and underwear model along the way. He received his first acting kudos for his starring role as ambitious porn star Dirk Diggler in "Boogie Nights" (1997), but proving he was no one-hit-wonder, went on to deliver memorable performances in "Three Kings" (1999), "Four …
Mark Wahlberg SlideShow
1 - 4 of 59
Career Milestones
1984 | Started breakdancing on Boston streets |
1985 | He and brother Donnie became the first two members of the teen vocal group New Kids on the Block |
1986 | Unwilling to take singing lessons, quit New Kids on the Block after six months |
1988 | Arrested for assault and jailed for 45 days |
1991 | Released debut rap album Music for the People, recorded with his band The Funky Bunch; album went platinum |
1992 | Signed a two-year contract as Calvin Klein underwear model |
1993 | Made guest appearance on "The Ben Stiller Show" (Fox) |
1993 | TV-movie acting debut, "The Substitute" (USA Network) |
1994 | Made film debut with a featured acting role in "Renaissance Man" |
1995 | Breakthrough role as the hot-tempered best friend of Leonardo DiCaprio's Jim Carroll in "The Basketball Diaries" |
1996 | Starred in the teen thriller "Fear" as the violently obsessive boyfriend of Reese Witherspoon |
1997 | Earned positive reviews as 1970s porn star 'Dirk Diggler' in Paul Thomas Anderson's "Boogie Nights" |
1997 | Landed a starring role of an Irish con man in the little-seen independent "Traveller" |
1999 | Played an idealistic NYPD recruit opposite Chow Yun Fat's veteran cop in the crime thriller "The Corruptor" |
1999 | Teamed with George Clooney and Ice Cube in David O Russell's acclaimed Gulf War chronicle "Three Kings" |
2000 | Reunited with Clooney as co-stars of Wolfgang Petersen's gripping fact-based sea thriller "The Perfect Storm" |
2000 | Starred in the New York City-set crime drama feature "The Yards" |
2001 | Played a salesman who becomes a heavy metal singer in "Rock Star"; Clooney was one of the film's producers |
2001 | Starred in Tim Burton's remake of "Planet of the Apes" |
2002 | Co-starred in Jonathan Demme's remake of "Charade" titled "The Truth About Charlie" |
2003 | Co-starred with Charlize Theron in F. Gary Gray's remake of the heist film "The Italian Job" |
2004 | Executive produced the HBO series "Entourage" which followed young Hollywood star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his close circle of friends; earned Emmy (2004, 2005) nominations for Best Comedy series |
2004 | Starred opposite Jude Law and Naomi Watts in "I Heart Huckabees"; re-teamed with director, David O. Russell |
2005 | Starred in John Singleton's "Four Brothers" as one of four brothers out to avenge his mother's murder |
2006 | Cast in Martin Scorsese's mob drama "The Departed", a remake of the popular Hong Kong crime thriller "Infernal Affairs"; received Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actor |
2007 | Co-starred with Joaquin Phoenix and Robert Duvall in "We Own the Night" |
2008 | Co-starred in M. Night Shyamalan's "The Happening" |
2008 | Played the titular role in the film version of the video game "Max Payne" |
2009 | Played the father of a murdered young girl in the film adaptation of Alice Sebold's bestseller "The Lovely Bones" |
2010 | Co-starred with Steve Carell and Tina Fey in the comedy "Date Night" |
2010 | Co-starred with Will Ferrell in the action comedy "The Other Guys," about two mismatched New York City detectives |
2010 | Executive produced the HBO series "Boardwalk Empire" and "How to Make It in America" |
2010 | Portrayed professional boxer 'Irish' Micky Ward in David O. Russell's "The Fighter" |
2010 | Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame |
2011 | Nominated for the 2011 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama |
2011 | Nominated for the 2011 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama ("The Fighter") |
2012 | Starred as a former criminal who gets forced back into a life of crime after his family is threatened in the action thriller "Contraband"; also produced film |
2012 | Starred in the comedy "Ted," directed by Seth MacFarlane |
Awards
1997 | MTV Movie Award for Best Villain in Fear |
1998 | MTV Movie Award for Best Dance Sequence in Boogie Nights |
1998 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in Boogie Nights |
2006 | Academy Award for Actor In a Supporting Role in The Departed |
2006 | Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor in The Departed |
2006 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture in The Departed |
2006 | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor in The Departed |
2007 | MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss in Invincible |
2007 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in Entourage |
2007 | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture in The Departed |
2008 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in Entourage |
2009 | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in Entourage |
2010 | Academy Award for Best Picture in The Fighter |
2010 | Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama in The Fighter |
2012 | Critics' Choice Award for Best Actor in a Comedy in Ted |