As the older brother of A-listers Luke and Owen Wilson, one could have assumed at first glance that actor-director Andrew Wilson simply rode the coattails of his famous surname to make his way in Hollywood. Nothing, however, could be farther from the truth. Not a “Johnny-come-lately,” Wilson was actually the first of the prolific acting clan to come out to L.A. in 1994, with younger brother Owen joining him a year later, in time for both to enjoy the success of their first Wilson-centric film and cult classic, “Bottle Rocket” (1996). Known primarily for appearing in his brothers’ films, however, the eldest Wilson seemed to have trouble stepping out from under his more famous siblings’ shadows. Luckily, his effort to carve out an individual career for himself got a boost in 2007 with the release of “The Wendell Baker Story” (2005) – a film he co-directed with his brother, Luke.
A native of Texas, Andrew Cunningham Wilson was born on Aug.22, 1964, the oldest son of Robert Wilson, a PBS advertising executive, and his photographer wife, Laura. Coming to Los Angeles in 1994, Wilson initially struggled to find acting work before striking pay dirt with his big-screen acting debut in director and family friend Wes Anderson’s “Bottle Rocket” (1996). Based on a 1994 short of the same name, “Bottle Rocket” was co-written by Anderson and Owen Wilson while the two were in college. Cast as the obnoxious and bullying John Mapplethorpe (a.k.a. “Future Man”), Wilson ended up creating a sadistic “big brother from hell” personality that evoked memories of Bill Paxton’s horrid character, Chet, from the 1980’s adolescent comedy-fantasy, “Weird Science” (1985).
Staying close to filmmakers he knew, Andrew Wilson next turned up in a small, but memorable turn as Coach Beck in Wes Anderson’s “Rushmore” (1998) and appeared as the corner man of Derek Zoolander’s arch-nemesis, male model Hansel (played by brother, Owen), in Stiller’s male modeling spoof, “Zoolander” (2001). The vast majority of Wilson’s credits, however, were for generally more minor parts in movies that starred either of his brothers, such as “Charlie’s Angels” (2000), “The Royal Tenenbaums” (2001),“The Big Bounce” (2004)” and the Mike Judge-directed cult comedy, “Idiocracy” (2006).
In 2005, Wilson took on his most demanding role to date – stepping behind the camera to direct brother Luke’s performance in “The Wendell Baker Story.” Originally premiered at the 2005 South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, the project proved to be a true family affair, written by and starring kid brother, Luke and co-starring middle brother Owen in a supporting role. The story of an ex-con (Luke) working in a retirement home, the film was shot on location in Austin, TX and co-starred Eva Mendes as Wendell’s love-interest, Eddie Griffin, Kris Kristofferson and a cameo by Will Ferrell. Financed without studio funding, “The Wendell Baker Story” sat on the shelf for over a year before it was picked up by Franchise Pictures for distribution in 2007.