William George Zane, professionally known as Billy Zane, was born on February 24, 1966, in Chicago, Illinois, to Thalia (Colovos) and William Zane, both of Greek ancestry. His parents, amateur actors themselves, managed a medical technical school. Billy has an older sister, actress and singer Lisa Zane.
Billy's interest in acting began at a young age. He attended Harand Camp of the Theater Arts in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, during his early teens. In 1982, he spent a year at the American School in Switzerland. His high school years were spent at Francis Parker High School in Chicago, Illinois, where he shared the same alma mater with actresses Daryl Hannah and Jennifer Beals.
After graduating from high school, Billy decided to pursue his acting dreams in California. Within three weeks of his arrival, he landed his first major film role in Back to the Future (1985),playing the character of Match, one of Biff Tannen's thugs. He later reprised this role in the sequel Back to the Future Part II (1989). Following a small role in the science fiction horror film Critters (1986),Billy landed starring roles in several television films.
Billy's breakthrough role came when he played the villainous Hughie Warriner in the Australian thriller film Dead Calm (1989),where he met his future wife, Lisa Collins. He co-starred in Memphis Belle (1990),a film adaptation of a 1944 documentary about a World War II bomber. In 1991, he appeared in several episodes of David Lynch's television series Twin Peaks (1990) as John Justice Wheeler.
Billy has also starred in notable films such as The Phantom (1996),where he played the titular superhero, and Titanic (1997),where he played the role of Caledon Hockley. He later starred in the television movie Cleopatra (1999),where he met his soon-to-be fiancée, actress Leonor Varela, whom he subsequently separated from.
In 2005, Billy had a recurring role as the poetry-loving ex-demon Drake on the television series Charmed (1998).
