Jack Black's Real Name: Thomas Jacob Black

Quick answer: Jack Black's real name is Thomas Jacob Black. LOC records him as Thomas Jacob "Jack" Black, and Jack is a familiar form of his middle name, Jacob. He was born on August 28, 1969, in Santa Monica, California. He is known for High Fidelity (2000), School of Rock (2003), and voicing Po in Kung Fu Panda, and he fronts the Grammy-winning comedy rock duo Tenacious D (Britannica; Library of Congress).

Real name and early life

Britannica's quick facts give his name in full as Thomas Jacob Black. The Library of Congress name authority, filed as "Black, Jack, 1969-," cites: "Thomas Jacob 'Jack' Black was born on August 28, 1969 in Santa Monica, California; actor."

Britannica says his parents, Judith Love Cohen and Thomas Black, were both satellite engineers. He told Newsweek in 2003, "They're rocket scientists. I'm a rock scientist." His parents divorced when he was 10, which left him seeking attention and approval. At 13 he appeared in a TV commercial for the Activision game Pitfall!, which he said "gave me the hunger" to act. He attended UCLA but dropped out as a sophomore. In 1987 he joined Tim Robbins's Actors' Gang troupe, where he met Kyle Gass and John Cusack.

Career highlights

After small parts, including Robbins's Bob Roberts (1992) and the sketch series Mr. Show with Bob and David, Black broke out as record-store clerk Barry in High Fidelity, opposite Cusack. Mike White, then his neighbor, wrote Richard Linklater's School of Rock (2003) for him. The film earned $131.1 million against a $35 million budget. White also co-wrote Nacho Libre (2006). Black played a film director in Peter Jackson's King Kong (2005) and starred in The Holiday (2006) and Tropic Thunder (2008).

He has voiced Po in four Kung Fu Panda films (2008–24) and lent his voice to Ice Age (2002), Shark Tale (2004), Goosebumps (2015), and The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023). He starred in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017) and A Minecraft Movie (2025), and headlined Anaconda (2025) with Paul Rudd.

Gass taught Black guitar, and in 1994 they formed Tenacious D. Their HBO series ran from 1997 to 2000, followed by albums, the film Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny (2006), and the song "Tribute." The duo won a 2014 Grammy for best metal performance with Dio's "The Last in Line." Black married musician Tanya Haden in 2006, and they have two sons.

Name notes for searchers

Thomas, his first name, is shared with his father. Jacob, his middle name, is the source of "Jack." Black is his family surname. Credits use Jack Black.