Owen Cunningham Wilson was born on November 18th, 1968, in Dallas, Texas. His mother, Laura Cunningham, was a photographer, and his father, Robert Andrew Wilson, a PBS advertising executive. Owen's two brothers, Andrew and Luke, also went on to become actors.

Andrew Wilson appeared in Zoolander (with Ben Stiller and Milla Jovovich) and The Big Bounce (with Charlie Sheehan). Luke Wilson has starred in such films as The X Files (with David Duchovney and Gillian Anderson), Legally Blonde (with Reese Witherspoon and Selma Blair) and Charlie's Angels (with Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu). In their childhood, all three boys were known for mischievous behavior, but Owen admits he was the worst, getting expelled from school after stealing a book from a teacher. He completed his high school studies at the New Mexico Military Institute and went on to the University of Texas in Austin.

Though he dropped out before completing his degree, it was there that he met Wes Anderson, the man who would direct his early films.

Wilson wrote his début film, Bottle Rocket, in 1993. Directed by Wes Anderson, it received critical acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival and led to a full length version executive produced by James L Brooks, who made Jerry Maguire with Tom Cruise and Renée Zellweger. Although the film was not a commercial success, it became a cult favourite and helped Wilson to win a part in The Cable Guy alongside Jim Carrey. On set, he befriended director Ben Stiller, with whom he went on to make several more films. Wilson enjoyed minor roles in big budget features like Armageddon and The Haunting before getting his big break opposite Jackie Chan in Shanghai Noon. The film was a huge success and established him in the buddy comedies which have been his mainstay ever since.

Despite his success as an actor, Wilson did not abandon his writing career. His semi-autobiographical Rushmore, starring Bill Murray and Brian Cox, was a moderate success, and his third film, The Royal Tenenbaums, which also starred his brothers and was directed by Wes Anderson, won critical acclaim and a Best Original Screenplay Oscar. It featured strong performances from Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston and Gwyneth Paltrow. Hackman also starred with Wilson in Behind Enemy Lines, the only big budget film which saw the younger actor step outside the bounds of his preferred genre.

Throughout his career, Wilson has maintained an interest in independent movies. It was on the set of thriller The Minus Man that he met singer Sheryl Crow, whom he dated for a year, though their relationship was notoriously rocky. He has since been romantically linked with designer Donatella Versace's niece Francesca.

Wilson's acting career has been nothing if not prolific. In 2004 alone he appeared in five successful films, including the big screen version of Starsky and Hutch (with Ben Stiller, Snoop Dogg and Juliette Lewis) and critical success The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (also starring Bill Murray and Cate Blanchett and featuring a soundtrack by David Bowie).

In August of 2007, amidst rumours of dehydration, Owen was rushed to hospital when his brother Luke found him with cuts to his wrists and and empty pill bottle in his home in Santa Monica, California. Owen's condition was described as serious, but later upgraded to good condition whereupon he issued a statement to the press requesting that they respect his privacy and leave him to heal  and recieve medical help in privacy and with only his family around him.