Kevin Delaney Kline, born on October 24, 1947, in St. Louis, Missouri, is an American actor celebrated for his distinguished career spanning stage, film, and television, marked by an Academy Award and three Tony Awards.

Raised in a family with his father owning several stores and his mother of Irish ancestry, he attended Indiana University before training at the Juilliard School, where he became a founding member of John Houseman's The Acting Company in 1972.

His early Broadway successes included Tony-winning performances as featured actor in the 1978 musical On the Twentieth Century and as the Pirate King in the 1981 revival of The Pirates of Penzance, establishing him as a versatile leading man in classical and musical theater.​

Kevin Kline transitioned to film with a supporting role as Nathan Landau in Sophie's Choice in 1982 opposite Meryl Streep, followed by the lead in the screen adaptation of The Pirates of Penzance in 1983.

His breakthrough came with the 1988 comedy A Fish Called Wanda, earning him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of the dim-witted neo-Nazi Otto West.

Subsequent films showcased his range in roles such as Dave Kovic standing in for the president in Dave (1993), Howard Brackett in the satirical In & Out (1997), and Artemus Gordon in Wild Wild West (1999), alongside dramatic turns in Silverado (1985), Cry Freedom (1987), and Chaplin (1992).​

Returning to the stage, he won additional Tony Awards for Best Actor in a Play for the 2017 revival of Present Laughter and earlier accolades for Henry IV in 2003.

His voice work includes Captain Phoebus in Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) and Tulio in The Road to El Dorado (2000), while recent films feature Maurice in Beauty and the Beast (2017), Dr. Larry Fine in The Starling (2021), and the miniseries Disclaimer (2024).

Kevin Kline married actress Phoebe Cates in 1989, with whom he has two children, and continues to embody low-key intensity in both comedic and dramatic roles.​