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Actor Timothy Olyphant has enjoyed a captivating journey long before securing career-defining parts in Deadwood and Justified.

He's subsequently bagged roles in blockbuster productions including The Mandalorian, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and Daisy Jones and the Six in recent years.

Nevertheless, his upcoming turn in Noah Hawley's chilling precursor to the Alien franchise, Alien: Earth, might prove his most remarkable performance to date.

Olyphant takes on the role of another of the series' notoriously unsettling androids, Kirsh, working alongside an exceptional ensemble cast featuring emerging talent Sydney Chandler, Alex Lawther, Essie Davis and Babou Ceesay.

Yet what details can we uncover about the actor's existence beyond the cameras? Continue reading to learn more.

Birth and connection to mega-rich family

Olyphant, 57, was born in Honolulu, Hawaii though he and his family relocated to Modesto, California when he was two.

The performer recently disclosed he's a descendant of the affluent Vanderbilt dynasty of New York, and consequently also connected to CNN presenter Anderson Cooper.

When questioned about the relationship by the Hollywood Reporter, he joked: "You're goddamn right I am, and somebody owes me money."

His fourth great-grandfather on his father's side was business tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt.

Nevertheless, Olyphant doesn't appear to have inherited much from the family tie and confesses he hasn't encountered his cousin, Cooper.

"It's on my to-do list to head to upstate New York and see if I can get the keys to the house," he added. "I've never met Anderson. I assume that's just because I keep missing the family reunions due to work and the kids. But now that I'm an empty-nester, I hope we'll be having drinks soon."

Marriage to college sweetheart

Olyphant didn't just wed his university girlfriend, Alexis Knief, back in 1991, but the pair have remained together ever since across more than thirty years.

The couple have also brought three children into the world during this time, including daughter Vivian who played his Justified character Raylan Givens's daughter Willa in the follow-up miniseries Justified: City Primeval.

Alexis has backed her husband's professional journey by bringing up their family out of the public eye.

Revealing the key to their enduring relationship, Olyphant told Women's Health back in 2011: "You have to be with the right person, and you both have to be willing to do the work, day in and day out, to make it happen."

He has also praised her for keeping his feet on the ground and regularly highlights her witty sense of humour during interviews.

Other careers

Before establishing himself as a performer, Olyphant pursued a few vastly different careers that might shock certain admirers.

Following competitive swimming throughout his youth, he took on a role as a swimming instructor at Irvine Novaquatics.

Nevertheless, he shortly chose to relocate to New York to pursue fresh opportunities, including a short period as a stand-up performer. Regrettably, his unique style didn't resonate with the audience and he found the comedians' "awful" schedules challenging.

"I'd always heard that you're just going to bomb for a while," he confessed to Marc Maron on the WTF podcast.

"I felt like I had a couple of shows right out of the gate where I was like, 'This is easy. This is great.' And then the bombing started."

In addition to acting, Olyphant has pursued his love for sport. From 2006 to 2008, he contributed unconventional sports reports to Joe Escalante's morning radio show in Los Angeles via phone-ins.

Interestingly, director David Lynch served as the station's weatherman.

He has also participated in several celebrity tennis tournaments.

Alien: Earth continues Wednesdays on Disney+.

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