Initially a teenage heartthrob on TV, Ashton Kutcher has developed a reputable career in movies. Born in 1978 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, he dropped out of his Biochemical Engineering Course at the University of Iowa and took advantage of his good looks to start a modeling career in New York. What Ashton Kutcher really wanted to do was act, and his first break came when he got a lead part in the TV series That ‘70’s Show. It was a hit and launched him and his other unknown colleagues to fame. The story concerned a group of teenage friends, played by Kutcher, Laura Prepon, Topher Grace, Danny Masterson, and Mila Kunis. His best friend, Wilmer Valderrama, also appeared in the show.
From television, Ashton Kutcher moved into films. He starred in the successful comedy Dude, Where’s My Car? in 2000, directed by Danny Leiner and co-starring Seann William Scott and Jennifer Garner. Texas Rangers followed the next year, directed by Steve Miner and featuring James Van Der Beek and veteran Tom Skerritt. Kutcher made an impression in a mature role in the thriller, The Butterfly Effect, which also starred Melora Walters and Amy Smart, and was directed by Eric Bress. Ashton Kutcher joined the cast in 2006 to do the voice for a deer called Eliot in the animated movie Open Season, directed by Roger Allers and Jill Culton. Other characters were voiced by Billy Connolly and Debra Messing.
Not content with just acting, Ashton Kutcher has also worked as a producer, notably on the cult MTV show Punk’d, which he co-created with his friend Jason Goldberg. Kutcher also co-hosted many of the episodes. Ashton Kutcher has gainted major celebrity status and has done the round of the top chat shows, with guest spots on the Late Show with David Letterman and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He has also played himself, with appearances on The Andy Dick Show and The Rosie ODonnell Show.
This showbiz status Ashton Kutcher enjoys has been helped along by interest in his love life, which has included a relationship with actress Brittany Murphy. The surprise relationship however, was with Hollywood star Demi Moore. The two got married in a ceremony attended by actress Lucy Liu and Moore’s ex-husband Bruce Willis.
The year 2006 brought more film projects for Ashton Kutcher. The Guardian, which is Kutcher’s most recent project to date, is directed by Andrew Davis and features Kevin Costner. There has also been much interest in Bobby, which is about the assassination of Senator Robert F Kennedy, and is written and directed by Emilio Estevez. It has an all-star cast that includes Anthony Hopkins, Demi Moore, Sharon Stone, and Elijah Wood.