Attended Harand Theater Camp in Elkhart Lake, WI as a teenager. He played Bernardo in West Side Story there.
Son of Byrne Piven and Joyce Hiller Piven.
Parents ran a theatre school in Chicago which John Cusack, Joan Cusack and Ann Cusack attended.
Frequently acts in movies with John Cusack, such as: Bob Roberts (1992), Elvis Stories (1989), Floundering (1994), The Grifters (1990), Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), One Crazy Summer (1986), The Player (1992), Say Anything... (1989), Serendipity (2001).
Brother of Shira Piven
Brother in-law of Adam McKay.
He was also supposed to star alongside his best pal John Cusack in High Fidelity (2000), but had to pull out due to other commitments.
Attended Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. While in school he performed in plays such as "Julius Caeser".
Shares a birthday with Kevin Spacey, Sandra Bullock and Kate Beckinsale.
He got malaria while filming PCU and had to be rushed to the hospital.
Was considered for the role of Dolarhyde in Red Dragon (2002).
Jeremy Piven Detailed Biography
Born to Jewish American parents Byrne Piven and Joyce Hiller, Jeremy grew up in Evanston, Illinois and graduated from Evanston Township High School before attending Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. He has worked for the Piven Theatre Workshop, which was founded by his parents, Byrne (deceased) and Joyce Hiller Piven. He has appeared in a number of films with close friend John Cusack, who is an alumnus of the Piven Theatre Workshop (as are Cusack's sisters Joan and Ann).
He is currently playing Hollywood agent Ari Gold in the HBO series Entourage, and received an Emmy nomination for this role in 2005. Piven was also the star of the short-lived ABC dramedy series Cupid, and was a supporting cast member on the last three seasons of the sitcom Ellen.
Piven says, of Chicago: "I have a place in Chicago and I get there as much as I can. ... The city is so unbelievably beautiful. It's one of the greatest cities on the planet. My heart beats differently when I'm in Chicago. It slows down and I feel more at ease." He also insisted that Cupid be filmed in Chicago.
