While many actors have fascinating backstories, actor Woody Harrelson’s is among the most intriguing. The actor recently made waves when he suggested that Matthew McConaughey, his co-star in True Detective, might be his half-brother. The actor’s name may have been trending on Twitter a while back when many of his fans discovered that he is the son of an organized crime boss and convicted hitman.
In 1979, there was a rumor that Woody’s father, Charles Voyde Harrelson, had killed federal Judge John H. Wood, Jr., a.k.a. “Maximum John.” While Judge Wood was stooping to change a flat tire in San Antonio, Texas, a murder occurred. This hit happened because Harrelson Sr. received $250,000 from drug lord Jimmy Chagra in exchange for getting rid of the tough judge.
Bullet fragments from his wife’s 240 Weatherby Mark V rifle struck Harrelson Sr. Judge Wood became the first federal judge to face assassination in the 20th century. Following this, authorities accused Harrelson Sr. of the crime and found him guilty.
This came after the elder Harrelson served five years in prison for the 1968 murder-for-hire assassination of a man in Texas. After serving the extra sentence, Harrelson Sr. received two life sentences. Woody Harrelson paid the fees for Alan Dershowitz, the very controversial attorney. His father’s story had garnered some news coverage and was widely known when Woody Harrelson made his breakthrough in the 1980s with his breakthrough performance in Cheers. But that not-so-fun detail about the Harrelson family has faded considerably over time.
This was probably because Harrelson became well-known thanks to his acting career, which included hits like Indecent Proposal, Zombieland, Natural Born Killers, and his Oscar-winning role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. However, Harrelson’s celebrity status eventually led to people discovering his family background again. Revised on June 11, 2023: This article now includes additional details on Woody Harrelson, his father, and more recent family revelations.
A few of their followers began tweeting in 2021 about how they had learned about Harrelson’s fascinating family tree. Although the exact cause of the incident remains unknown, the actor made a comeback to the spotlight in 2021 with his roles in Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Kate, a Netflix feature, where he played the character of Cletus Kassidy, also known as Carnage. Here are a few of the responses at the time.
In that particular instance, Woody, for one, is not nearly so sure that his father is guilty. Barbara Walters questioned the veteran actor about his father’s circumstances in a previous interview; a video of the exchange has surfaced on YouTube. As shown in the video, Woody says he thinks his father is innocent and mentions that he didn’t get a fair trial.
“Well, he is in prison right now for the killing of a federal judge,” the Cheers cast member remarked. Considering that a subsequent trial found the person my father allegedly hired to carry out the murder not guilty, I believe the trial was unfair. Though I don’t claim to be a saint, I believe my father is innocent of that.
Walters then probed Harrelson further on the matter, inquiring as to whether he had made any attempts to have the case reopened to assist in his father’s release. In response, the Cheers actor says he “hasn’t given up hope,” but he doesn’t elaborate. In a similar vein, Harrelson restates his assertions that his father was a CIA operative while withholding specifics.
Woody answered, “Yes, he was [with the CIA].” “I shouldn’t be thinking about this right now.” We are going to run into problems here. It is accurate. Does it matter that the CIA trained him? Indeed, I believe that it has an impact.”
At the time of his incarceration, Charles Voyde Harrelson had separated from Woody and hadn’t spoken to him in a long time. Following the conviction, their relationship changed as Woody often visited his father in prison. Woody had made fruitless attempts to get the conviction reversed, and the elder Harrison passed away in the Colorado Supermax prison in 2007 at the age of 68 from cardiac failure. Despite its peculiar story, it explains why so many individuals found themselves captivated by it
