Meet the late Hollywood actor Bill Paxton’s son James Paxton, who’s in Twisters with Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones to honour his father – and has just released his first single

Jul 21 , 2024

James Paxton is the son of late Hollywood actor Bill Paxton. Photo: @thisisjamespaxton/Instagram

Bill Paxton was the lead in iconic 1996 natural disaster film Twister – now his son James is making a cameo in the sequel, Twisters, to honour his dad’s presence in the original

Though James had initially planned for a different career – and his father discouraged him from working in film – the younger Paxton was drawn to Hollywood, and is pursuing music too

Twister, one of the most iconic disaster films of the 90s, is officially getting a “stand-alone sequel”. And while the late Bill Paxton – who played storm chaser and weather reporter Bill Harding in the original – is no longer around to reprise his role, his son James is set to make a cameo in this year’s Twisters, which stars Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones.

James Paxton has been appearing in films and on television for the last two decades since making his debut in 2003’s Spy Kids 3: Game Over. Despite having grown up around the industry, James didn’t set out to be in films. However, after initially pursuing a different career, he found himself working both in front of the camera and behind the scenes: he was a producer on 2018’s Boogeyman Pop and 2019’s The Orchard Girl.

James Paxton, left, appears alongside his Twisters co-stars, including Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell, at the film’s Los Angeles premiere. Photo: Getty Images

From a career pivot to following in his father’s footsteps, here’s what we know about James Paxton and why he’s now adamant about becoming an actor.

He didn’t always want to be an actor

James Paxton was suited and booted for the premiere of his film, Twisters, in Los Angeles last week. Photo: @thisisjamespaxton/Instagram

While he scored his first on-screen cameo aged nine in the film Spy Kids 3: Game Over, James actually had his heart set on becoming a broadcast journalist, according to an interview he gave Vestal. But he ultimately decided to shift focus and pursue a career in the film industry. It was during this time that he worked on the set of his dad’s 2014 film Nightcrawler as a property production assistant.

Per People, he then studied acting and dedicated two years to auditioning full-time before landing a lead role as one of the cast of 2016 show Eyewitness, playing the part of Lukas Waldenbeck in 10 episodes.

His father was ‘reticent’ about James’ acting career …

James Paxton shared a throwback photo of himself at an event with his father to mark Bill Paxton’s birthday in May. Photo: @thisisjamespaxton/Instagram

James revealed in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly that his father was “reticent” about his acting ambitions and tried to convince him to stay away from the film industry. Bill advised his son to focus and develop his other passions instead. “He knows this is a very tough path and there’s a lot of ups and downs and adversity that you go through just trying to build a career of longevity in acting and filmmaking,” he said.