Early Life
Eckhart was born in Cupertino, California, the son of Mary Martha Eckhart (née Lawrence), a poet and children's author, and James Conrad Eckhart, a computer executive. He is the youngest of three brothers. Eckhart is of paternal German and German-Russian descent and his mother has English and Scottish ancestry. He was raised as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Mormon) church, and served a two-year LDS mission in France and Switzerland.
Eckhart's family relocated to England in 1981, following his father's job in information technology. The family resided in Surrey, South East England, first in Walton-on-Thames, later moving to Cobham. While living in England Eckhart attended American Community School, now known as ACS International Schools, where he was first introduced to acting, starring in a school production as Charlie Brown. In 1985 he moved to Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, where he attended American International School of Sydney for his high school senior year; he further developed his acting skills in productions like Waiting for Godot, where he admits that he did a "terrible" production. In the fall of his senior year Eckhart left the school in order to take a job working at a mall movie theater. He eventually earned his diploma through an adult education course. This also allowed Eckhart time to enjoy a year of surfing and skiing in Hawaii and the coastal waters of France. In 1988, Eckhart returned to the United States and enrolled as a film major at Brigham Young University–Hawaii, but later transferred to Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. He graduated in 1994 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
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