It is rare that an actor will take the show business world by storm before the release of his film debut, but Edward Norton did just that. Norton not only wowed the Hollywood with his film debut, he also wowed the producers of that said film "Primal Fear". Prior to casting Norton as the major supporting actor, Norton was an unknown. His acting career consisted of off-off Broadway plays and some College work. Norton, a Yale graduate with a history major, has been acting since the age of eight in local productions in his home state, Maryland. During his college days he continued to feed his acting bug by trying out for College plays. Upon graduation he moved to New York and it wasn't long before he joined the New York Signature Company. Meanwhile producers and directors of "Primal Fear" in Hollywood were having difficulty filling the role of the Appalachian choirboy accused of murdering a Chicago archbishop. They had offered the role to DiCaprio who turned them down. As a result a casting call with over 2100 hopefuls was held. Norton took their breath away and saved the film from demise. Not only that, Norton has been hailed as the saving grace of the film with his Oscar Nomination performance.

Little is known about Norton's personal life. He believes that his personal life is something he has the right to keep private and is very strict about what he reveals. His reasoning is that the less that is known about him leaves more to the imagination of the viewers and hence allows his acting to bring a character alive rather than his personality. There is no doubt that Norton can act, and as a result his views on his personal life seem to be respected by the critics.

Norton is the oldest of three children of Robin and Edward Norton, Sr. He has a brother, James and a sister, Molly. Norton was born August 18, 1969 in Columbia, Maryland and attended Yale. Norton's film success began in 1996 prior to the release of "Primal Fear". (He had two more bookings before the film was released, but eventually had to withdraw from one due to scheduling conflicts.) His success came at an unfortunate time during his personal life. His grandfather, famed architect James Rouse, died in April of 1996 and a year later his mother died of cancer. As a result, his overnight fame was bitter sweet.