James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931 – September 30, 1955) was an American actor. He is remembered as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the title of his most celebrated film, Rebel Without a Cause (1955), in which he starred as troubled teenager Jim Stark. The other two roles that defined his stardom were loner Cal Trask in East of Eden (1955) and surly ranch hand Jett Rink in Giant (1956). After his death in a car crash on September 30, 1955, Dean became the first actor to receive a posthumous Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his role in East of Eden. Upon receiving a second nomination for his role in Giant the following year, Dean became the only actor to have had two posthumous acting nominations. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him the 18th best male movie star of Golden Age Hollywood in AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars list.

Filmography

• 2006The Real James Dean — Archival Footage
• 2005James Dean: Little Prince, Little Bastard
• 1994Gay! Gay! Hollywood
• 1988Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies — (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 1985George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey — (archive footage)
• 1956Giant — Jett Rink
• Crossroads — Man in Crowd (uncredited)
• 1955East of Eden — Cal Trask
• 1955Rebel Without a Cause — Jim Stark
• 1955The Thief — Fernand Lagarde
• 1955The Unlighted Road — Jeffrey Latham
• 1954Padlocks — The Man (Jack)
• 1954Run Like a Thief — Robbie
• 1954Sherwood Anderson's I'm A Fool — The Boy
• 1954The Dark, Dark Hours — Bud
• 1953A Long Time Till Dawn — Joe Harris
• Campbell Soundstage — Hank Bradon
• 1953Death Is My Neighbor — J.B.
• General Electric Theater — The Boy, Bud
• 1953Harvest — Paul Zalinka
• 1953Keep Our Honor Bright — Jim Cooper
• 1953Life Sentence — Hank Bradon
• 1953Rex Newman — Todd Ingalls
• 1953Sentence of Death — Joe Palica
• 1953Something For An Empty Briefcase — Joe Adams
• 1953The Bells of Cockaigne — Joey Frasier
• 1953The Evil Within — Ralph
• 1953The Hound Of Heaven — Angel
• The United States Steel Hour — Fernand Lagarde
• 1953Trouble Along the Way — Football Spectator (uncredited)
• You Are There — Bob Ford
• 195210,000 Horses Singing — Hotel Bellboy
• 1952Abraham Lincoln — William Scott
• 1952Deadline - U.S.A. — Press Boy (uncredited)
• 1952Forgotten Children — Bradford
• 1952Has Anybody Seen My Gal? — Youth at Soda Fountain (uncredited)
• Omnibus — Bronco Evans
• 1952Sailor Beware — Boxing Opponent's Second (uncredited)
• 1952The Foggy, Foggy Dew — Kyle McCallum
• 1951Fixed Bayonets! — Doggie (uncredited)
• Hallmark Hall of Fame — Bradford
• 1951Hill Number One: A Story of Faith and Inspiration — John
• 1951Jackie Knows All — Randy
• Schlitz Playhouse of Stars — Jeffrey Latham
• Tales of Tomorrow
• Armstrong Circle Theatre — Joey Frasier
• Lux Video Theatre — Kyle McCallum
• Robert Montgomery Presents — Paul Zalinka
• The Big Story — Rex Newman
• Studio One — William Scott, Joe Palica, Hotel Bellboy (uncredited)
• The Philco Television Playhouse — Robbie Warren
• Kraft Television Theatre — Jim Cooper
• Final Days of an Icon: James Dean — (archive footage)
• The James Dean Classic — (archive footage)

Appearances as themselves (35)

• 2025James Dean: Rebel Generation — Self (archive footage)
• 2025Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror — Self (archive footage)
• 2024Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes — Self (archive footage)
• 2023Paul Newman: The Restless — Self (archive footage)
• 2023Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed — Self (archive footage)
• 2017The Fabulous Allan Carr — Self (archive footage)
• 2015Children of 'Giant' — Self (archive footage)
• 2015Tab Hunter Confidential — Self (archive)
• 2005East of Eden: Art in Search of Life — Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 2005James Dean: Forever Young — Self (archive footage)
• 2005James Dean: Sense Memories — Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 2005Rebel Without a Cause: Defiant Innocents — Self (uncredited)
• 2005The Day That James Dean Died — Self (archive footage)
• 2005Året var 1955 — Self (archive footage)
• 2004Bettie Page: The Girl in the Leopard Print Bikini — Self (archive footage)
• 2001James Dean: Born Cool — Self (archive footage)
• 1998Memories of Giant — Self (archive footage)
• 1996Rediscovering a Rebel — Self - 'Jim Stark' (archive footage)
• 1996Return to 'Giant' — Self (archive footage)
• 1995James Dean and Me — Self (archive footage)
• 1995James Dean: A Portrait — Self (archive footage)
• 1992Death Scenes 2 — Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 1992Faces of Death VII — Self (archive footage)
• 1990Death In Hollywood — Self (archive footage)
• 1990Hollywood Heaven: Tragic Lives, Tragic Deaths — Self (archive footage)
• 1988All-Time Movie Greats — Self (archive footage)
• 1988Forever James Dean — Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 1988Hello Actors Studio — Self (archive footage)
• 1983Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage — Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 1982Natalie - A Tribute to a Very Special Lady — Self (archive footage)
• 1975James Dean: The First American Teenager — Self (archive footage)
• 1974James Dean Remembered — Self (archive footage)
• 1974Letter to Jane: An Investigation About a Still — Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
• 1957The James Dean Story — Self (archive footage)
• 1954A Star Is Born World Premiere — Self