An electric supporting player who adds unbridled intensity to even the smallest of roles, Michael Shannon was born in Lexington, Ky., on Aug. 7, 1974, but raised in Chicago, where he became an active member of the city's thriving theater community.

As a founding member of A Red Orchid Theatre, Shannon performed some of the most noteworthy roles of his career, drawing critical raves for his portrayal of a paranoid drifter in "Bug" and later starring in the film version with Ashley Judd. He also made his mark onstage with well-established Chicagoland companies such as the Steppenwolf Theatre and the Northlights Theatre.

Shannon made his film debut with a minor role in the Harold Ramis comedy Groundhog Dag (1993). Many movies later, he made it onto Hollywood's A-list for good with an Oscar-nominated turn as a perceptive psychiatric patient in Sam Mendes's Revolutionary Road (2008).