Timothy Hutton Bio
Timothy Hutton (born August 16, 1960) is an American actor and film director whose career has spanned more than four decades across feature films, television, and stage. He first gained worldwide recognition at age 20, when he became the youngest recipient of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the drama Ordinary People (1980). Since that early triumph, he has built a versatile résumé that includes the military drama Taps (1981), the Cold War thriller The Falcon and the Snowman (1985), the Stephen King adaptation The Dark Half (1993), and a long run of leading television roles.
Beyond acting, Hutton has worked as a director on independent films, television episodes, and music videos, including the celebrated 1984 video for The Cars’ single “Drive.” He has remained a familiar presence on both the big and small screens, balancing character-driven independent work with network and cable television.
Early Life and Background
Timothy Hutton was born in Malibu, California, the son of actor Jim Hutton and teacher Maryline Adams. His parents divorced when he was three, and his mother moved him and his older sister Heidi first to Boston and then to her hometown of Harwinton, Connecticut. The family later returned to California when Timothy was about 12, eventually settling in the Berkeley area so the children could experience a broader world beyond a small New England town.
Although his father was a working Hollywood actor, Hutton has noted that his upbringing was shaped far more by his mother’s academic and creative pursuits than by the film industry. He attended Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, where a school production of Guys and Dolls, in which he played Nathan Detroit, sparked his ambition to act professionally. With encouragement from both parents, he began auditioning for television work while still a teenager.
His father, Jim Hutton, died of liver cancer on June 2, 1979, two days after his 45th birthday. Timothy was 18 at the time and would thank his father publicly during his Academy Award acceptance speech two years later.
Path to Acting
Hutton’s professional career began with a string of television movies in the late 1970s. His early credits include the 1979 ABC drama Friendly Fire, the NBC film The Best Place to Be opposite Donna Reed, and two 1980 CBS productions, Young Love, First Love and Father Figure. These small-screen roles gave him the experience and visibility needed to land his first major theatrical feature.
The breakthrough came when director Robert Redford cast him as Conrad Jarrett in Ordinary People (1980), a quiet domestic drama about a family coping with grief. The performance earned Hutton both the Academy Award and the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor, as well as the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture – Male. He was only 20 years old, making him the youngest competitive winner in the Best Supporting Actor category.
Buoyed by that success, Hutton quickly pivoted to bigger studio projects, including Taps (1981), in which he starred alongside George C. Scott, Sean Penn, and Tom Cruise. Although his subsequent theatrical films of the 1980s, such as Iceman, Daniel, Turk 182, Made in Heaven, and Q&A, struggled at the box office, The Falcon and the Snowman (1985), re-teaming him with Sean Penn, proved to be a substantial commercial and critical hit.
Timothy Hutton Career
Early Career (1979–1985)
During his first years in the industry, Hutton balanced television movies with a rapid ascent in feature films. His early TV work on Friendly Fire and The Best Place to Be established him as a serious young performer, while Ordinary People instantly elevated him to award-winning status. He followed his Oscar win with the ABC telefilm A Long Way Home (1981), co-starring Brenda Vaccaro, further demonstrating his comfort on the small screen.
On the big screen, Taps and The Falcon and the Snowman cemented his standing as a leading young actor of the early 1980s. Even as some of his mid-decade features underperformed, he continued to land prominent parts and laid the foundation for a long career in Hollywood.
Breakthrough (1980–1985)
Hutton’s defining breakthrough arrived with Ordinary People, where his portrayal of a guilt-ridden teenager struggling in the wake of his brother’s death earned him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He remains the youngest actor ever to win that award, a record that has come to define the first chapter of his career.
Building on that momentum, he starred as a cadet in conflict with authority in Taps, then played a young man who sells secrets to the Soviets in The Falcon and the Snowman. By his mid-20s, Hutton had worked with major directors and a slate of future stars, including Tom Cruise and Sean Penn.
Notable Works and Milestones
Among Hutton’s most recognized films are the horror adaptation The Dark Half (1993), based on the Stephen King novel, and the ensemble drama Beautiful Girls (1996), in which he appeared opposite a young Natalie Portman. His television résumé has grown equally significant, anchored by starring turns in A Nero Wolfe Mystery (2001–2002) on A&E and the long-running TNT series Leverage (2008–2012), where he played former insurance investigator Nate Ford, leader of a team of modern-day Robin Hoods.
Timothy Hutton Award Nominations
Timothy Hutton’s career has been marked by consistent recognition from major awards bodies, beginning with his Academy Award and Golden Globe wins for Ordinary People (1980). Over the following decades, his performances in both film and television continued to draw nominations and honors from industry organizations.
Timothy Hutton Awards Won
Hutton’s most celebrated achievement remains his 1981 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Ordinary People, an honor that made him, at age 20, the youngest winner ever in that category. He also won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for the same role and the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture – Male.
| Award | Wins | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards (Best Supporting Actor) | 1 | 1981 |
| Golden Globe (Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture) | 1 | 1981 |
| Golden Globe (New Star of the Year – Male) | 1 | 1981 |
Timothy Hutton Family
Timothy Hutton is the son of actor Jim Hutton and teacher Maryline Adams. His older sister, Heidi, was born during his parents’ marriage, and the family experienced several relocations before settling in California during Timothy’s teenage years.
Hutton has a son born in 1987 from his first marriage, and a second son born in 2001 in Paris during his marriage to Aurore Giscard d’Estaing. His family life has often been split between the United States and France.
Personal Life
Hutton has been married twice. His first marriage, to actress Debra Winger, lasted from 1986 to 1990, and the couple had a son together in 1987. In 2000, he married French illustrator Aurore Giscard d’Estaing, niece of former French president Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, and the pair welcomed a son the following year before separating in 2009.
Outside of acting, Hutton has pursued a number of side interests. He is one of the owners of the New York City restaurant and bar P. J. Clarke’s and served as president of the New York actors’ club Players from 2003 until 2008. He has also directed music videos, including The Cars’ “Drive” (1984) and Christian Kane’s “The House Rules” (2010), along with several episodes of A Nero Wolfe Mystery.
