Name: Vin Diesel

Birth Name: Mark Vincent

Birthdate: July 18, 1967

Birthplace: New York, NY

Is he black? Is he white? Who knows … who cares. The multi-racial Diesel has made a career out of keeping his specific origins a secret. His first attempt at filmmaking was a short called Multi-Facial a film about (say what?) a multi-racial struggling actor. The 1994 flick debuted at Cannes in 1995 and grabbed director Steven Spielberg's attention. Spielberg then cast him in Saving Private Ryan (1998), and Vin's career was launched. Big bad tough-guy roles in Pitch Black, The Fast and the Furious and xXx made him a bankable (and bank-rollin') star.


1. Yea, he's ecclectic: Diesel was raised by his astrologer/psychologist mother and adoptive father in an artist's housing project in New York's Greenwich Village.
2. Vin adopted the moniker "Vin Diesel" while working as a bouncer at New York City nightclubs.
3. He's not bald, Vin shaves his head.
4. He has a fraternal twin brother, who's a film editor.
5. Geek alert: Vin is a devoted Dungeons and Dragons player.


On his somewhat unrealistic backup career: "If you had asked me back in grade school what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would have said my first choice was an actor, but if I couldn't be that, I'd want to be a superhero."

Brothers: Paul Vincent, twin; younger brother, unknown
Sister: younger, unknown

 

FILMS

Find Me Guilty - (2006) - Actor, Producer
The Pacifier - (2005) - Actor
The Chronicles of Riddick - Dark Fury - (2004) - Voice
The Chronicles of Riddick - (2004) - Actor, Producer
A Man Apart - (2003) - Actor
xXx - (2002) - Actor, Executive Producer
Knockaround Guys - (2002) - Actor
The Fast and the Furious - (2001) - Actor
Fast and the Furious/Bring it On - (2001) - Actor
Pitch Black - (2000) - Actor
Boiler Room - (2000) - Actor
The Iron Giant - (1999) - Voice
Saving Private Ryan - (1998) - Actor