Dennis Quaid bio, wife, son, age, relationships, young, brother, height 2025

Dennis Quaid Biography

Throughout his career, Dennis Quaid has successfully shed the label of being "Harrison Ford's double" and established himself as an independent actor with his own devoted following. However, his life wasn't without struggles and addictions that could have derailed not only his career but threatened his very survival.

Early Years

Dennis Quaid was born in Houston, Texas, on April 9, 1954. He was the second son in the family – his brother Randy was already 4 years old when Dennis arrived. Their father was an electrician, while their mother worked as a commercial real estate agent.

Both sons developed an interest in the arts from an early age. Dennis remembered how his older brother would lock himself in a room when their parents left for work, rehearsing comedy skits alone with a tape recorder. Randy went on to become an Oscar-nominated actor and Golden Globe winner.

Dennis spent his youth playing guitar, and though he didn't consider himself a virtuoso, he still tried his hand at songwriting. At school, which Quaid started attending in 1961, he was an average student who took dance lessons and studied Chinese.

Dennis Quaid Explains Why He Pursued Acting Over Music

Dennis was devastated by his parents' divorce during his high school years. He became withdrawn and was rarely home, eventually moving into a University of Houston dormitory in 1972 to study drama. But the young man quickly grew restless with his studies and dropped out, making the move from Texas to Los Angeles.

Early Roles

The vibrant, bustling city captivated Dennis after quiet Houston. He never gave up on his acting dream, hitting audition after audition, but success remained elusive. Quaid survived on unemployment benefits and odd jobs – everything from entertaining kids as a clown at the local amusement park to waiting tables.

His luck changed in 1975 when he first stepped onto a movie set. In the action comedy "Crazy Mama," Quaid landed a tiny role lasting just a few minutes – so small he didn't even get credited. But he took it as a promising start.

Over the next four years, he nabbed several minor roles, but his first major break came with the 1979 film "Breaking Away." The sports drama, where Dennis played one of four main characters, won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and finally put Quaid on producers' radars.

The Rise of His Career

In 1981, he appeared in the comedy "Caveman" alongside Ringo Starr and Barbara Bach. Two years later, he dove into horror with "Jaws 3-D," taking on the lead role.

Dennis looked strikingly similar to Harrison Ford, earning him the nickname "Han Solo's younger brother." From 1984 onward, Quaid threw himself into science fiction.

Dennis has long been called 'Harrison Ford's doppelganger'

In "Dreamscape," he played a psychic who could enter people's dreams. The following year brought "Enemy Mine," a drama about humanity's encounter with an alien civilization. And in 1986, Dennis starred in the adventure sci-fi "Innerspace," which also featured Martin Short and Meg Ryan.

On the set of the movie 'Innerspace' with Meg Ryan

That same year, however, the actor broke away from his "intergalactic rescuer" image and tried something different with "The Big Easy," playing a cop in a drug-ridden city. For his work, Quaid received the Independent Spirit Award.

Dennis Quaid in the movie 'The Big Easy'

The film was a hit with both audiences and critics, but success came with a dark side. While filming "The Big Easy," Quaid developed a cocaine addiction. He later called this his "biggest cocaine period."

The actor slept one hour a day and 'was like a squirrel in a wheel': 'I woke up, snorted a line and swore that was it for the day. But by four o'clock, it would happen all over again...'.

Finally, in 1988, Dennis checked into rehab, and when he got out, he discovered that no one wanted to hire him.

Dennis Quaid Says Faith Saved Him After Addiction

Sunset and Return

By the early 1990s, Dennis Quaid's career had hit a rough patch. He'd pop up in the occasional film, like 1994's western "Wyatt Earp" alongside Kevin Costner and 1995's romantic drama "Something to Talk About" with Julia Roberts. But he was barely managing one project a year.

Quaid dabbled in different genres – fantasy with "Dragonheart" (1996), crime action in "Switchback" (1997), and family comedy with "The Parent Trap" (1998). The latter became the debut for young Lindsay Lohan, who played twin girls in the movie.

With young Lindsay Lohan in 'The Parent Trap'

Dennis made a real comeback in 2002 with the period drama "Far from Heaven." The film tackled complex racial and gender issues, with Quaid playing a 1950s businessman questioning his sexual orientation. Both his character and his wife, played by Julianne Moore, had to confront these new realities. Dennis received several film critics' awards and was nominated for a Golden Globe.

The role in the drama 'Far from Heaven' helped Dennis regain popularity

Though Quaid lost the coveted award to Chris Cooper that year, he was suddenly in demand again. In 2004, he starred in Roland Emmerich's disaster epic "The Day After Tomorrow," playing the father of Jake Gyllenhaal's character.

Dennis Quaid in the movie 'The Day After Tomorrow'

Four years later, Dennis paired up with Sarah Jessica Parker for the comedy "Smart People." In 2009, he suited up as General Hawk in the action flick "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra." Alongside him in the action film were Channing Tatum, Brendan Fraser, and Sienna Miller.

Photos from the filming of 'G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra'

In 2012, Dennis kept busy with several films – the comedy "Playing for Keeps" with Gerard Butler and the drama "The Words" with Bradley Cooper. And in 2017, Quaid played one of his fan-favorite roles: in Lasse Hallström's film "A Dog's Purpose," he portrayed the owner of a dog named Bailey.

The Personal Life of Dennis Quaid

Dennis Quaid's personal life has been a constant source of tabloid drama and media fascination. In 1978, he married actress P.J. Soles. The couple appeared in several films together, but everything changed when Quaid signed on for the thriller "Jaws 3-D." On set, Quaid fell hard for co-star Lea Thompson, and by 1983, he'd left his wife to be with her.

Dennis and Lea's romance burned bright for three years, but they never made it to the altar. Thompson grew frustrated with Quaid's spiral into drugs and alcohol as his career took off.

But Quaid's personal demons didn't keep him from finding love again on the "Innerspace" set in 1987. Meg Ryan was instantly smitten, completely unaware of his struggles. When the truth came out, Ryan stuck by him and convinced him to get clean. They married in 1991, and their son Jack (now also an actor, known for the series "The Boys") was born the following year.

Meg and Dennis quickly became Hollywood's golden couple. Ryan stood by her husband through everything, including when he developed anorexia in the mid-90s after extreme weight loss for "Wyatt Earp."

Their fairy tale ended in 2001 when Ryan's affair with Russell Crowe hit the headlines.

In 2003, during a trip to Texas, Dennis met young real estate agent Kimberly Buffington. Despite their 18-year age gap, Quaid swept her off her feet. The couple tied the knot just one year later. In November 2007, a surrogate mother gave birth to their twins, Thomas and Zoe.

Dennis with his third wife Kimberly Buffington

What should have been pure joy nearly became tragedy when hospital staff accidentally gave the newborn twins a medication overdose. The twins survived, but Quaid was determined to fight back. He sued the pharmaceutical company, arguing that similar packaging for different drug strengths was dangerously confusing.

Since then, Dennis has become an advocate for patient safety and has produced several documentaries about preventable medical errors.

Meanwhile, Quaid and Buffington's marriage became a wild ride of breakups and makeups. In 2012, Kimberly filed for divorce, only to change her mind a month later. She tried again that November, but once more they patched things up. Finally, in 2016, Dennis and Kimberly called it quits for good.

The divorce proceedings dragged on for two years, leaving the actor single by 2018. During this time, he was in a relationship with the young model and aspiring actress Santa Auzina.

In 2020, Dennis married for the fourth time. His new wife was Laura Savoie, a charming blonde graduate student. She was 39 years younger than her husband - in fact, Quaid's eldest son Jack was actually a year older than his new stepmother. The age gap didn't faze the actor though - he said faith in God and love brought him and Laura together.

The fourth wife is 39 years younger than Dennis

When he wasn't acting, Quaid pursued his longtime passions. Since the '80s, Dennis has played guitar in his band "The Sharks," which has created soundtracks for several of his films. He's also been a lifelong golf enthusiast and was even named the best golfer among actors in 2005.

Dennis Quaid & The Sharks - Live at Gruene Hall 5/13/17

Dennis Quaid Now

Since his comeback in the early 2000s, Dennis has been consistently delivering new performances for audiences. In 2019, he returned for "A Dog's Journey," reprising his role from the original film.

Dennis Quaid on Faith, Addiction and The Parent Trap

In 2021, he starred in the sports drama "Born a Champion" and in the biographical film "Blue Miracle." Around the same time, he began filming a Ronald Reagan biopic, taking on the lead role as the former president. The film was originally set for a late 2021 release but has been delayed indefinitely.

Interesting Facts

In 2020, Dennis Quaid launched a podcast all about pets. During one episode, he shared how he'd seen a Virginia news story about a shelter cat. The cat had been named after him. Quaid knew he had to adopt his feline namesake and immediately reached out to the shelter. Soon enough, six-year-old black cat Dennis Quaid had made himself at home in the actor's office.