Timothy Olyphant is an American actor and producer best known for his roles in the television series ‘Justified,’ ‘Deadwood,’ and the film ‘Hitman.’ Timothy was dubbed “Olyphantastic” as a child because of his many talents.
From sports to the arts to acting, the actor has had a diverse range of experiences. Timothy earned his first role in a pilot for a television series after several auditions, and he then began his career in theatre.
Later in his career, he landed a slew of prestigious projects, including a few voice roles. Timothy has received numerous nominations and four awards for his work on the big screen.
Timothy Olyphant: Childhood
Timothy was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on May 20, 1968, to JV Bevan Olyphant, former vice president of production at ‘Gallo Winery,’ and Katherine. Timothy moved to Modesto, California, when he was two years old, where he grew up with his older brother, Andrew, and younger brother, Matthew.
When Timothy’s parents divorced, he was a teenager. They both remarried later in life. Timothy is of English, German, Scottish, Dutch, Irish, and Russian Jewish ancestry, and is a descendant of New York’s Vanderbilt family.
Timothy attended the ‘Fred C. Beyer High School’ in Modesto. He was always interested in art and drawing as a child. Timothy, a competitive swimmer, advanced to the finals of the 1986 ‘Nationals’ in the 200-meter individual medley event.
Timothy was recruited by the ‘University of Southern California’s’ athletic team, the ‘USC Trojans,’ to the university’s swim team, which was coached by Peter Daland.
Timothy considered studying architecture for his higher education but ultimately chose fine arts because juggling architecture and swimming seemed difficult at the time.
Timothy earned a bachelor’s degree in fine arts in 1990. He thought about pursuing a career in commercial art, but he was unsure. As a result, he applied for a master’s degree in fine arts at the ‘University of California, Irvine,’ while also becoming the swimming coach of ‘Irvine’s swim team, ‘Novaquatics.’ Timothy then relocated to New York to pursue other career opportunities.
Timothy did stand-up comedy for six months, which influenced his decision to pursue acting. He soon decided to pursue a career as an actor.
He later studied the craft as an elective subject in his final year at ‘UC Irvine,’ and found it “really enjoyable.” Timothy then went on to complete a two-year acting programme at New York’s ‘William Esper Studio.’
Timothy Olyphant: Career
Timothy’s first role was in a ‘WB’ TV pilot based on the ‘ABC’ private detective series ’77 Sunset Strip’ in 1995. Later that year, he made his stage debut in ‘The Monogamist,’ a production of ‘Playwrights Horizons.’ Timothy won the ‘Theatre World Award’ for his performance as ‘Tim Hapgood’ in the ‘off-Broadway’ play.
Timothy made his feature film debut in 1996 with the comedy ‘The First Wives Club,’ based on Olivia Goldsmith’s novel of the same name. The following year, he made his television debut as ‘Scooby’ in an episode of CBS’ crime drama ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith.’
Timothy starred in the ‘HBO’ western series ‘Deadwood’ from 2004 to 2006. He was cast as the late Canadian– American Western sheriff, hardware store owner, and US Marshal ‘Seth Bullock.’
Timothy starred as ‘Agent 47,’ a protagonist- turned- antagonist in the 2007 action thriller ‘Hitman.’ His character was a genetically engineered assassin clone created by fusing the DNA of the world’s most dangerous criminals.
Timothy appeared in the Canadian film ‘High Life’ in 2009 as ‘Dick,’ a hospital caretaker- turned-ATM robber. His performance earned him a nomination for a ‘Genie Award.’
He got his first voice role in ‘Turok,’ a first-person shooter video game, where he played a cowboy. Later, Timothy voiced characters in two animated films, ‘Rango’ and ‘Missing Link.’
Timothy’s most notable TV role was as ‘Raylan Givens,’ a Deputy US Marshal on the ‘FX’ crime drama ‘Justified.’ He first played the character in 2010 and continued to do so until 2015, appearing in 78 episodes.
He won the ‘Satellite Award’ for ‘Best Actor’ in 2011 and was nominated again in 2012.
Timothy received a ‘Critics’ Choice Television Award’ in 2016 for his portrayal of ‘Rake Grinder,’ a fictionalised version of himself, in the ‘Fox’ single-camera legal comedy ‘The Grinder.’
Timothy can also be seen in the ‘Netflix’ horror–comedy ‘Santa Clarita Diet’ as ‘Joel Hammond,’ opposite Drew Barrymore (as his wife, ‘Sheila Hammond.’ He is also an executive producer on some of the show’s episodes.
Timothy Olyphant: Personal Life
Since 1991, Timothy has been married to his college sweetheart, Alexis Knief. Grace Katherine, Henry, and Vivian are their three children.
Timothy worked as a radio sports reporter for Joe Escalante’s morning radio show, which aired on Los Angeles’ ‘Indie 103.1’ from 2006 to late 2008.
Timothy is an avid tennis player who has competed in numerous pro-celebrity tournaments.
Timothy Olyphant: Net Worth
Timothy Olyphant is a $20 million net worth American actor. Although Timothy began his career as an off-Broadway stage actor, he eventually became known for a diverse range of film appearances, earning a reputation for playing villains.
His most well-known roles include those in the HBO series “Deadwood” and the FX series “Justified.” Olyphant has received numerous awards and nominations throughout his career.
