Vin Diesel
From bouncer at the Tunnel to global icon: the voice of Groot and Dom Toretto.
Mark Sinclair Vincent, known professionally as Vin Diesel, is an American actor and filmmaker who rose to prominence in the late 1990s. He gained global stardom for portraying Dominic "Dom" Toretto in the Fast & Furious franchise, becoming one of the world's highest-grossing actors. Beyond acting, Diesel is a multi-faceted creator who wrote, directed, and produced his own early works like Multi-Facial (1995) and Strays (1997). His career trajectory shifted after Steven Spielberg noticed him in Multi-Facial and cast him as a soldier in Saving Private Ryan (1998), marking his first major Hollywood role. Since then, he has headlined numerous franchises including XXX and The Chronicles of Riddick.
Quick Facts
- Birth name
- Mark Sinclair Vincent
- Born
- 18 July 1967
- Occupation
- Actor
- producer
- writer
- director
- Years active
- 1990–present
- Partner
- Paloma Jimenez (2007–present)
- Children
- 3
Lore & Background
Vin Diesel's journey began in New York City, where he attended Hunter College studying creative writing before dropping out to pursue acting. He started his career as an uncredited extra in Awakenings (1990) but struggled for years until he funded and created the short film Multi-Facial (1995). This semi-autobiographical work, which followed a struggling multiracial actor at auditions, was selected for the 1995 Cannes Film Festival. His breakthrough came when director Steven Spielberg cast him in Saving Private Ryan (1998) after seeing his short film. Following this, Diesel secured funds to make his debut feature, Strays (1997), an urban drama about a gang leader trying to change his ways, which competed at the 1997 Sundance Festival. His voice acting career also began early with The Iron Giant in 1999.
Reader's Guide
Vin Diesel founded One Race Films to produce his star vehicles, along with Racetrack Records and Tigon Studios. At Tigon, he provided voice and motion capture for all releases, including The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (2004) and Assault on Dark Athena (2009). In 2013, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His career has seen both massive successes like The Pacifier (2005) and box office failures such as Babylon A.D. (2008) and Find Me Guilty (2006), which grossed only $2 million against a $13 million budget. In September 2020, he ventured into music with the Kygo-produced single "Feel Like I Do." Looking ahead, Diesel is set to star in Riddick: Furya, announced in February 2023.
Did You Know?
- Vin Diesel started his stage career at age seven in Dinosaur Door after breaking into a theater with friends to vandalize it.
- He chose his stage name while working as a bouncer: 'Vin' from his mother's married surname Vincent, and 'Diesel' because friends called him that for being energetic.
- He turned down roles in 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) and XXX: State of the Union (2005) to focus on The Chronicles of Riddick (2004).
- Diesel voiced Groot in six superhero films, starting with Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), and continued in animated shorts through 2023.
Related in Fast and Furious
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Elsewhere in Fast and Furious
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