Benjamin A. Foster (born October 29, 1980) is an American actor. His films include The Punisher (2004), X-Men: The Last Stand and Alpha Dog (both 2006), 30 Days of Night and 3:10 to Yuma (both 2007), The Messenger and Pandorum (both 2009), The Mechanic (2011), Contraband (2012), Kill Your Darlings and Lone Survivor (both 2013), The Program (2015), Warcraft (2016), and Leave No Trace (2018). He has won an Independent Spirit Award for portraying Tanner Howard in Hell or High Water (2016). He also had a recurring role as Russell Corwin in Six Feet Under (2003–05).
Foster has often received praise from critics for his "intense" and "unhinged" performances in numerous films. Film critic Matt Zoller Seitz described Foster in 2016 as "one of those actors who makes even a bad film worth seeing. Sometimes he suggests the film you'd rather be watching."
Early life Foster was born in Boston on October 29, 1980, the son of Steven and Gillian Foster ( Kirwan), both restaurant owners. He has described his parents as "free-spirited, Vietnam-protesting hippies". He has a younger brother, Jon, who is also an actor. In 1984, the Foster family relocated to Fairfield, Iowa, when their Boston home was broken into by robbers while they were present.
Foster's father is Jewish and his mother is Irish. Foster was raised in his father's faith. His paternal grandparents were Celia (née Segal) and Abraham Foster, who was a prominent judge and politician in Boston; their families were of Romanian Jewish and Ukrainian Jewish origins and had emigrated from the Russian Empire. As a youth he attended Interlochen Arts Camp and studied theatre there.
Career
Foster began working as an actor when he was 14 years old. From 1995 to 1997, he starred in the Disney Channel television series Flash Forward. His first major film role was in the 1999 Barry Levinson film, Liberty Heights, which Todd McCarthy described as an "outstanding bigscreen debut."
In 2001, he acted in the film Get Over It. Foster also had a recurring role as Russell Corwin (22 episodes) in the HBO original series, Six Feet Under. After appearing in the films 11:14 and The Punisher, Foster appeared in Hostage with Bruce Willis, Kevin Pollak, and Michelle Horn. In 2006, Foster appeared in X-Men: The Last Stand as the comic-book hero Angel / Warren Worthington III. In the crime thriller Alpha Dog, he played the character Jake Mazursky and added glaucoma drops to his eyes to simulate the appearance of a drug addict in the film.
In 2007, he played cold-blooded killer and outlaw Charlie Prince in the Western film 3:10 to Yuma. In February 2013, he was cast to replace Shia LaBeouf in the Broadway play Orphans as his first theater performance. In May 2014, it was announced that he would star opposite Gillian Anderson and Vanessa Kirby in Benedict Andrews' new production of A Streetcar Named Desire at the Young Vic in London. The same production closed on September 19, 2014 and transferred to New York in 2016, opening at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn.
Foster played Lance Armstrong in the biopic The Program, and co-starred in the fantasy adventure Warcraft, released in June 2016. Also in 2016, Foster appeared in Hell or High Water as the dangerous Tanner Howard, opposite Chris Pine and Jeff Bridges. He reunited with director Barry Levinson to make The Survivor in 2021. In 2025, Foster played James V. Martin, the coach and abusive husband of boxer Christy Martin, in the biopic Christy. Sonia Rao of The Washington Post wrote that Foster "tries his best" to provide a nuanced portrayal of Martin but that his "efforts are thwarted by an uninspired script".
He is next set to play Evel Knievel in The Stunt Driver.
Personal life Foster was in a relationship with German actress Antje Traue, his co-star in the movie Pandorum. Traue moved to Los Angeles and lived with Foster until their relationship ended around 2010. In early 2012, Foster began a relationship with actress Robin Wright. They became engaged in early 2014, but called off their engagement in November 2014. Foster and Wright reconciled in early 2015. In August 2015, they announced they were ending their second engagement.
In October 2016, Foster announced his engagement to actress Laura Prepon. Prepon gave birth to their first child, a daughter, Ella, in August 2017. Foster and Prepon married in June 2018. Their son was born in February 2020. Foster filed for divorce from Prepon on November 12, 2024, citing “irreconcilable differences”.
After filming of the movie Here ended, five members of the cast and crew, including Foster, got tattooed with the letters T.I.A., which stand for "This is Armenia". Foster practices Transcendental Meditation.
Acting credits Film Year Title Role Notes 1996 Kounterfeit Travis 1999 Liberty Heights Ben Kurtzman 2001 Get Over It Berke Landers Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice Chemistry (shared with Kirsten Dunst)2002 The Laramie Project Aaron Kreifels Big Trouble Matt Arnold Phone Booth Big Q Uncredited2003 Northfork Cod 11:14 Eddie2004 The Punisher Spacker Dave The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things Fleshy Boy 2005 Hostage Marshall "Mars" Krupcheck2006 Alpha Dog Jake MazurskyYoung Hollywood Award for Breakthrough Performance—Male X-Men: The Last Stand Warren Worthington III / Angel2007 3:10 to Yuma Charlie PrinceBoston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor (2nd place)Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor (2nd place)Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Supporting ActorNominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting ActorNominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture 30 Days of Night The Stranger 2008 Birds of America Jay2009 The Messenger Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery Women Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActorNominated—San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best ActorNominated—St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best ActorNominated—Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Actor Blink AJ Short film Pandorum Bower2011 The Mechanic Steve McKenna Here Will Shepard 360 Tyler Rampart Terry Also producer 2012 Contraband Sebastian Abney2013 North of South, West of East Cass Kill Your Darlings William S. Burroughs Ain't Them Bodies Saints Patrick Wheeler Lone Survivor Matthew "Axe" Axelson 2015 The Program Lance Armstrong Limited release2016 The Finest Hours Seaman Richard Livesey Hell or High Water Tanner Howard Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting MaleSan Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting ActorWashington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best EnsembleNominated—Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Acting EnsembleNominated—Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Supporting ActorNominated—Houston Film Critics Society for Best Supporting ActorNominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Warcraft Medivh Inferno Bertrand Zobrist 2017 Rock'n Roll Ben Foster Hostiles Sergeant Charles Wills2018 Leave No Trace Will Galveston Roy Cady 2021The SurvivorHarry Haft2022 The Contractor Mike Hustle Vince Merrick Medieval Jan Žižka Emancipation Fassel 2023 Finestkind Tom Eldridge 2024 Sharp Corner Josh McCall King Ivory George 'Smiley' Greene 2025 Long Day's Journey into Night Jamie Tyrone Andreas Wiseman, Jessica Lange & Ed Harris Wrap New Movie Version Of 'Long Day's Journey Into Night' Christy James V. Martin Motor CityReynolds 2026 The Stunt Driver Evel Knievel rowspan="3" Post-production; also executive producer Cowboy’ Rodeo Drama Film Starring Ben Foster, Rudy Pankow And Gabriel Basso Starts Production Under Range’s Paint Horse Pictures Post-production Post-production
Television Year Title Role Notes 1996–1997 Flash Forward Tucker "Tuck" James Lead role; 26 episodesNominated—Gemini Award for Best Performance in a Children's or Youth Program or Series (1997, 1998)1998 You Wish Earl Episode: "Future Shock" I've Been Waiting for You Charlie Television film Breakfast with Einstein Ryan Television film 1999–2000 Freaks and Geeks Eli 2 episodes 2000 Family Law Jason Nelson Episode: "A Mother's Son" 2001–2002 Boston Public Max Warner 2 episodes 2002 Bang Bang You're Dead Trevor Adams Television filmDaytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming 2003–2005 Six Feet Under Russell Corwin 22 episodes (1 uncredited)Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2004)Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2005) 2005 Darren Foldes Episode: "The Last Goodbye" 2007 My Name Is Earl Glenn 2 episodes 2012 Robot Chicken Orville Redenbacher /Man from the Vegetarian Future Voice; episode: "Executed by the State" 2021 The Survivor Harry Haft Television film; also executive producerNominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie TBA Discretion Upcoming series
Stage Year Title Role Venue Notes 2013 Orphans Treat Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre Broadway 2014 A Streetcar Named Desire Stanley Kowalski Young Vic References
External links