Famous People From North Carolina

Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished and talented actresses of her generation, Julianne Moore was included in Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world list in 2015. One of the most decorated actresses, Moore specializes in playing emotionally troubled women. A campaigner for gun control and gay rights, she has also written several children's books.

Chris Paul is a professional basketball player and one of the highest-paid sportspersons in the world. Apart from earning from his career as a basketball player, he also earns by signing endorsement deals with companies like State Farm and Air Jordan. A religious person, Chris Paul attends church whenever possible.

Ava Gardner was one of the top stars of the 1950s. She was also considered one of the leading Hollywood actresses of her time. In 1999, she was ranked 25th in the greatest female screen legends list issued by The American Film Institute. A truly international figure, a statue of Gardner has been erected in Tossa de Mar, Spain.

Dale Earnhardt was an American stock car driver who raced in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series from 1975 to 2001. Considered one of the greatest drivers in the history of NASCAR, Earnhardt won 76 Winston Cup races and seven Winston Cup championships in an illustrious career spanning 40 years. In 2010, he was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

US comedian Zach Galifianakis is best known as Alan Garner from the movie The Hangover and has been mostly cast as weird and deranged characters. He is equally adept at stand-up comedy and is known for his charity work, too. He was nominated for an Emmy in the series Baskets.

Jeff Hardy is a professional wrestler. Best known for his tag team partnership with real-life brother Matt in WWE, Hardy has also achieved success as a singles wrestler. He is popular for his daredevil stunts and is often described as a death-defying and high-flying performer. Also a musician, Jeff Hardy is credited with forming a rock band called PeroxWhy?gen.

Sugar Ray Leonard is a former boxer and motivational speaker. Having won world titles in five different weight divisions during his boxing career, Leonard is widely considered one of the greatest boxers ever. Leonard was part of a group of boxers dubbed The Fabulous Four, which is credited with popularizing the lower weight classes in the post-Muhammad Ali era.

Mr Beast is a YouTuber and entrepreneur who began posting videos to YouTube in 2011 but didn’t gain popularity until after a few years. He posts videos on a wide range of topics and is best known for sharing expensive challenge videos. He is also a philanthropist.

One of the few personalities known for his disdain of self-promotion, Thomas Sowell is an important American social theorist and economist. Over the years, he has played a prominent role working as a faculty member of many prestigious universities, such as the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Cornell University. 

A promising young actress, model and LGBT rights activist, Hunter Schafer found fame with her debut role - Jules - in the HBO series Euphoria. Before this, she made a name for herself in the modelling industry working for famous designers and brands. A proud transgender woman, she has been fighting for the rights of LGBTQ since a long time.

Zion Williamson is an American basketball player who plays in the power forward position for the New Orleans Pelicans of the NBA. Also a humanitarian, Zion Williamson promised to pay for the salaries of the Smoothie King Center employees for 30 days as the 2019–20 NBA season was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Films like Sky High, Black Christmas, Death Proof, Grindhouse and Live Free or Die Hard established Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the movie world in the 2000s. Though she’s had her share of setbacks along the way, she received critical acclaim for films like Smashed and Birds of Prey. She has been also commended for her performance in television series like The Returned and Fargo. 

Widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Nina Simone was a pioneering recording artist whose career was characterized by improvisational genius and fits of outrage. Nina continues to be an important musician and has influenced several artists like Elton John, Adele, David Bowie, Madonna, and Aretha Franklin. She was also a civil rights activist.

Matt Hardy is an American wrestler best known for his appearances in WWE where he was part of the famous tag team, The Hardy Boyz, with his real-life brother Jeff. One of the most popular WWE wrestlers of all time, Hardy has held various championships, such as the United States Championship and Tag Team Championship.

The 17th president of the United States, Andrew Johnson assumed the presidency while serving as the vice president when Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. Born in poverty, Andrew Johnson did not attend school. However, he worked his way up to become a prominent politician—an inspiring story indeed!

A Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee who came into the limelight after leaking confidential information from the National Security Agency (NSA) in 2013, Edward Snowden has been variously called a “hero", “whistle-blower", and “traitor". A controversial figure in USA, he was granted asylum in Russia, where he now lives with his wife.

Vincent Kennedy McMahon is a professional wrestling promoter, currently serving as WWE's chairman and CEO. Often regarded as the most influential person in the history of professional wrestling, McMahon is credited with popularizing WWE. Also a well-known philanthropist, McMahon donated more than $8 million in 2008, giving grants to the Sacred Heart University, Fishburne Military School, and East Carolina University.

Luke Combs is an American singer-songwriter. The two studio albums, which he has released so far, have produced nine number-one songs on Billboard's Country Airplay chart. In his relatively short country music career so far, Luke Combs has had a major impact by winning prestigious awards, such as Country Music Association Awards and Academy of Country Music Awards.

Widely regarded as the first female action star of cinema, American actress Pam Grier achieved popularity for playing important roles in a string of blaxploitation, action, and women-in-prison movies throughout the 1970s. She also serves as an inspiration to those suffering from cancer; she made a recovery after she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 1988.

Jaime Pressly is an American actress who won a Primetime Emmy Award for playing Joy Turner on the sitcom My Name Is Earl. Also known for her appearance and good looks, Pressly is often named in the world's sexiest or beautiful women lists. She has also appeared on the covers of popular magazines, such as Playboy and Maxim.

Braun Strowman is a professional wrestler currently signed to WWE. An influential wrestler, Strowman was ranked sixth in the PWI 500 list published in 2018. A former strongman, Strowman depends on brute strength to gain an upper hand against his opponents. During his strongman career, Strowman had won the 2012 Arnold Strongman Classic.

The 11th president of the United States, James K. Polk was an advocate of Jacksonian democracy. He is credited with extending the territory of the US during the Mexican–American War. During his presidency, the US annexed the Mexican Cession, the Oregon Territory, and the Republic of Texas.

Apart from being a celebrated race-car driver and the JR Motorsports team owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. also made it to the Forbes list of the world’s highest-paid athletes in 2017. The two-time Daytona 500 winner, also known as the Pied Piper of Daytona, is the son of motor-racing legend Dale Earnhardt Sr.

Afeni Shakur was a political activist best known as the mother of legendary rapper Tupac Shakur. Afeni Shakur was an important member of the popular political organization Black Panther Party where she mentored new members like Jamal Joseph, Dhoruba Bin-Wahad, and Cleo Silvers.

Singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, Charlie Daniels, is remembered for his contributions to Southern rock, country, and bluegrass music. He had an extensive career that spanned over half a century and was inducted into the Cheyenne Frontier Days Hall of Fame and the Country Music Hall of Fame. He had also appeared in a few films.

Emily Procter is an American actress best known for playing Calleigh Duquesne in the popular police procedural TV series, CSI: Miami. A multi-talented personality, Procter has taken part in several marathons and triathlons and at least one celebrity poker tournament. Also known for her skills as an interior designer, Emily Procter is credited with decorating Kenny Chesney's Malibu home.