Born in Cupertino, California, Aaron Eckhart is the son of Martha Eckhart, a writer, artist and poet and James Conard Eckhart, a computer executive. His father has a German descent and his mother has Scottish, English, German and Irish lineage. The youngest of the three brothers, Eckhart was raised as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Lattery-day Saints and he served a two-year LDS mission in Switzerland and France.

In 1981, Eckhart`s family moved to Surrey, South East England after his father got a job there in IT. While living in England, Eckhart went to American Community School, which is now known as ACS International School. It was here that he was introduced to acting as he starred in a school production where he played the role of Charlie Brown. After living in England for four years, the actor moved to Sydney in 1985 where he attended American International School of Sydney for his high school senior year. There he polished his acting skills and appeared in productions like Waiting for Godot. In his own words, Eckhart gave a `terrible` performance. While in his senior year, Eckhart dropped out of school to take up a job at the Warringah Mall movie theater.

The actor eventually earned his diploma through an adult education course. During this time, the actor traveled to Hawaii, France, and Switzerland where he enjoying surfing in the coast water as well as went to Switzerland to ski in the Alps. In 1988, the actor returned to the United States of America and enrolled at the Brigham Young University, Hawaii and later was transferred to Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah where the graduated with a degree in Fine Arts. While studying at BYU, Eckhart made his maiden professional appearance in the Mormon-themed film titled Godly Sorrow.

After completing his graduation from BYU, Eckhart moved to New York City and took various odd jobs like bartending, construction work and bus driving. He got his first major breakthrough in 1994 when he was cast an extra on the TV drama series, Beverly Hills, 90210.

Personal Life
Aaron Eckhart was engaged to actress, Emily Cline whom he had met on the sets of In the Company of Men in 1997. After dating for about a year, the two separated in 1998. After separating from Cline, Eckhart dated Kristyn Osborn, a country music songwriter and a member of the SHeDAISY, an American country music group from 2006 to 2007. While the two were together, Eckhart appeared in one of the group`s video, I`m Taking the Wheel. The actor is known to be a person who is reluctant to talk or reveal anything about his relationships.

Movie Career
As an Actor
After having worked in the school productions and college plays, the actor got his first major breakthrough on the silver screen in 1992 as he got a small role in Double Jeopardy directed by Lawrence Schiller. The film, co-starring Rachel Ward and Bruce Boxleitner did not get him any attention but it paved way for him to get more offers in films. After his debut film, the actor worked in the TV industry and made his comeback on the big screen only 1997. His comeback film, a Canadian-American black comedy film titled In the Company of Men, he won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance and Satellite Award for Outstanding New Talent. The film based on a play written by LaBute marked the directorial debut for Neil LaBute and it was based on the two male co-workers who have malicious intent to hurt the emotions of a deaf female subordinate.

Following his success with In the Company of Men, the actor starred in Your Friends and Neighbors and Thursday in 1998. Whilst the first film received mixed critical reviews, the latter won wide appreciation from the critics as well as won a Special Jury Prize at the Cognac Festival. The actor`s next major successful film was " Erin Brokovich, which released in March 2000. The biographical film directed by Steven Soderbergh received wide critical acclaim and emerged to be a box office hit. The film, which is noted for Academy Award winning performance by Julia Roberts was also nominated for Best Picture at the 73rd Academy Awards. Eckhart`s other release of 2000 was Nurse Betty and Tumble.

In his solitary release of 2001, the actor starred in The Pledge, an American mystery drama film directed by Sean Penn. The film features an ensemble cast including Jack Nicholson, Helen Mirren, Vanessa Redgrave, and Robin Wright Penn was based on the 1958 novel, The Pledge: Requiem for the Detective by Friedrich Durrenmatt. Although the film received positive reviews from the critics it failed at the box office. For the next few years, between 2002 and 2004, the actor appeared in five films, viz. Possession (2002), The Core (2003), The Missing (2003), Paycheck (2003) and Suspect Zero (2004).

The year 2006 turned out to be one of the most successful years in Eckhart`s career as he won several nominations including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead and St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor for his outstanding performance in Thank Your Smoking. The film based on the 1994 satirical novel of the same name by Christopher Buckley featured an ensemble cast including Maria Bello, Cameron Bright, Sam Elliot, Katie Holmes, David Koechner and Adam Brody in pivotal roles. His 2019 release includes Midway.