Over the years Aaron Eckhart has built up an impressive portfolio of work in the theatre as well as on the big screen moving between drama, blockbusters, comedy and romance.
And it's romance on the agenda for the actor this week as he teams up with Jennifer Aniston for Love Happens.
Eckhart was born in California before moving to England in the early eighties. It was here, whilst attending an American Community School, that he was introduced to acting. By the middle of the decade they were on the move again this time to Sydney.
But he attended University back in America at the Brigham University - Hawaii, before transferring to Utah, eventually graduating with a Fine Art degree.
While at university the young Eckhart made his theatre debut as he struck up a friendship with director Neil LaBute. After he graduated, and with the desire to act, he moved to New York.
His first TV work came in commercials before appearing as an extra. However his patience was rewarded as he burst onto the movie scene in In The Company of Men, which saw him reunite with LaBute.
The film follows a a pair of thirtysomething white-collar businessmen, embittered by their shallow lives and bad experiences with women, target and romance a beautiful deaf secretary solely for the purpose of dumping her and thus gaining revenge on her sex.
The movie was a critical success and Eckhart's performance was met well by the critics and he won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance, at last he had arrived.
Over the next year or so the actor work steadily as he appeared in Any Given Sunday and Your Friends & Neighbours.
But it was his role as George in 2000's Erin Brockovich that cemented him as a talent to keep an eye on.
Starring alongside Julia Roberts, who won the Oscar for her performance, the movie was a box office hit grossing $256 at the global box office. He then moved onto Nurse Betty and The Pledge, both of which went on to do well.
However the next couple of movies for the actor were a little up and down with The Core, The Missing and Paycheck, although it showed a range of his acting ability and his comfort in any genre.
During this time he also moved into television as he appeared in Frasier before moving onto the critically successful Suspect Zero.
In recent years the actor has been more selective about his roles, gaining major recognition for them. First up was Jason Reitman's Thank You For Smoking, based on the book by Christopher Buckley.
Eckhart took on the role of Nick Naylor, a tobacco lobbyist who researched the link between smoking cigarettes and lung cancer. For his performance, Eckhart received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.
Up next was drama Conversations with Other Women and crime movie The Black Dahlia before teaming up with Catherine Zeta Jones for No Reservations.
But the actor's big role came last year when he took on the part of Harvey Dent/Two Face in the Batman sequel The Dark Knight.
The movie was a huge critical and commercial hit, going on to gross over $1 billion at the global box office.
But it's a change of pace again for the actor this week as he stars in rom-com Love Happens as Burke Ryan, a self-help author in Seattle to teach a sold-out seminar. But he unexpectedly meets the one person who might finally be able to help him help himself.
On the horizon for Eckhart include The Rum Diary, alongside Johnny Depp, based on the novel The Rum Diary by Hunter S. Thompson.
Rabbit Hole, which sees him star with Nicole Kidman, is also in post production. He is currently filming Battle: Los Angeles.
Love Happens is released 9th October
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
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