Bill Heck is an American actor who has appeared on Broadway and in television shows, such as '' The Leftovers'' and '' The Old Man'', and films, including in the role of Billy Knapp in the

Coen Brothers Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...

' western ''

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs ''The Ballad of Buster Scruggs'' is a 2018 American Western anthology film written, directed, and produced by the Coen brothers. It had a limited theatrical release, being primarily intended for Netflix television. It stars Tim Blake Nelson, ...

''.

Early life and education

Heck was born in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1,608,139 residents as of 2020. It is the fifth-most populous city in the United States, and the on ...

, but moved to Libertyville, Illinois, a suburb of

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, as a child. He graduated from the

University of Evansville The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton College, in Grantham, England. UE offers more than 80 differ ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

and went to N.Y.U. to gain a graduate degree in acting.

Career

Heck took his first Broadway leading role in the ''

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining o ...

'' revival in 2014. Off-Broadway, Heck starred in

Horton Foote Albert Horton Foote Jr. (March 14, 1916March 4, 2009) was an American playwright and screenwriter. He received Academy Awards for his screenplays for the 1962 film ''To Kill a Mockingbird'', which was adapted from the 1960 novel of the same name ...

's epic ''

The Orphans' Home Cycle ''The Orphans' Home Cycle'' is a 3-play drama written by Horton Foote. Each of the three plays in the trilogy comprises three one-act plays. They are ''The Story of a Childhood'' (Part 1), ''The Story of a Marriage'' (Part 2), and ''The Story of a ...

'', ''

Angels in America ''Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes'' is a two-part play by American playwright Tony Kushner. The work won numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Tony Award for Best Play, and the Drama Desk Award f ...

'' with ''Buster Scruggs'' co-star

Zoe Kazan Zoe Swicord Kazan (; born September 9, 1983) is an American actress, playwright, and screenwriter. She made her acting debut in the film ''Swordswallowers and Thin Men'' (2003) and later appeared in films such as '' The Savages'' (2007), ''Revol ...

, as well as '' Water by the Spoonful''. On television, Heck had a guest role in ''

The Alienist ''The Alienist'' is a crime novel by Caleb Carr first published in 1994 and is the first book in the Kreizler series. It takes place in New York City in 1896, and includes appearances by many famous figures of New York society in that era, inc ...

'' and appeared in ''The Leftovers''. At L.A. Outfest in 2013, Heck won the Grand Jury Award for Best Actor for his role in ''

Pit Stop In motorsports, a pit stop is a pause for refuelling, new tyres, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, as a penalty, or any combination of the above. These stops occur in an area called the pits, most commonly accessed via a pit lan ...

''. Heck appeared as Billy Knapp in the vignette "The Gal Who Got Rattled", one of six separate stories of the American Wild West in the

-directed ''

''. To prepare for the role, Heck read '' The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey'' by Rinker Buck.

Personal life

Heck married Broadway co-star Maggie Lacey in 2011.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heck, Bill 21st-century American male actors Living people American people of German descent Year of birth missing (living people) People from Libertyville, Illinois University of Evansville alumni People from Phoenix, Arizona American male stage actors American male television actors New York University alumni Theatre World Award winners