Harrison Ford was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, and he attended Ripon College in Wisconsin. Acting gigs for him started out as minor roles, and he supplemented his income with carpentry before landing the parts that got him into the entertainment industry full time like director George Lucas’ first film American Graffiti (1973). He then appeared in The Conversation (1974) and Apocalypse Now (1979) after director Francis Ford Coppola saw him in Lucas’ first film, which Coppola produced.

Ford’s first role that cemented him in pop cultural and film canon was that of Han Solo in George Lucas’ Star Wars (1977). Sequel appearances for the actor included The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983). The next franchise that made his face camous were Steve Spielberg’s Indiana Jones films — Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), The Temple of Doom (1984) and The Last Crusade (1984). Two more sequels starred Ford — The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) and The Dial of Destiny (2022).

Most recently, Ford is known for roles like Dr. Paul Rhodes in Apple TV+’s Shrinking, which has begun production on its third season, and Jacob Dutton, brother to Tim McGraw’s James Dutton, in Taylor Sheridan's Yellowstone prequel series 1923, the second season of which just launched. Ford was nominated for an Oscar in 1986 for Best Actor in a Leading Role for Witness in which he played John Book. He also just appeared as President Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, taking over for the late William Hurt, in Marvel's Captain America: Brave New World (2025).