Simon Baker Biography

Biography

Birth Name
Simon Baker-Denny
Date of birth (location)
30 July 1969
Launceston, Tasmania, Australia

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A handsome, blondish Australian actor, Simon Baker (also known as Simon Baker-Denny) became a star in his native land on soap operas before breaking into US films as the doomed gay actor Matt Reynolds in the acclaimed modern noir "L.A. Confidential" (1997). As a teen, Baker had been a competitive surfer and water polo player, but he eventually drifted before the cameras with appearances in music videos.

His first notable role was opposite his real-life wife, actress Rebecca Riggs, in the Australian serial "E Street" and he solidified his status as a Down Under sex symbol on "Heartbreak High" in 1995. A year later, he and Riggs decided to try their luck stateside, and almost immediately, Baker landed a supporting role in a CBS pilot, "The Last Best Place". While that 1996 effort fizzled, the attractive performer soon landed several roles in independent and studio features. After garnering attention with his brief but memorable part in "L.A. Confidential", Baker turned up as a self-centered actor and romantic rival to Adrien Brody in "Restaurant" (1998) and as a sex-crazed kidnaper in "Judas Kiss", which aired on Cinemax in 1999 in lieu of a theatrical release.

Baker landed his biggest role to that point as George Clyde, one of the four Bushwackers at the center of Ang Lee's diffuse drama "Ride With the Devil" (1999). While virtually unrecognizable beneath much facial hair and a Southern accent, the actor managed to transcend the film's problems to offer a complex portrayal of a paradoxical Civil War veteran. While espousing Dixie values, Baker's Clyde was progressive enough to have freed a slave (played by Jeffrey Wright) who saved his life.

The actor was next cast as an album cover photographer in the little-seen "Sunset Strip" and was part of the first manned mission to Mars in "Red Planet" (both 2000) before once again competing romantically against Adrien Brody, this time for Hilary Swank, in the period drama "Affair of the Necklace" (2001). While his film career appeared to be on the rise, Baker opted for the steady paycheck that that the small screen can guarantee by accepting the leading role in the CBS 2001 fall drama series "The Guardian". Here he was cast as Nick Fallin, a hotshot lawyer caught with drugs. As part of his plea bargain, Fallin agrees to community service wherein he serves as a child advocate at Legal Aid Services. Despite the somewhat far-fetched plot, Baker managed to invest the character with sympathy.