Jason Mewes

Born: 1974
Where: New Jersey, USA

An actor who has made a career of playing a character he describes as "85 to 90 percent me", Mewes turned his long-haired, marijuana-addled Jay into an icon.

Making his debut in Kevin Smith's widely-acclaimed, low-budget breakout Clerks, he won fans and big laughs as the trash-talking, drug-dealing, breakdancing Jay.

As if to ram home the authenticity of the role he was caught in possession of heroin in 1999 and was later in trouble for allegedly violating his probation.

When Clerks hit it big, Jay and Silent Bob became cult heroes and fans were happy to see them return with larger roles in Smith's follow up Mallrats.

Now a fixture in the Smith creative universe known as View Askew, the actor appeared in nearly every film produced by the company, including 1996's Drawing Flies and the features Vulgar and Big Helium Dog.

When Smith bounced back from Mallrats with the well-received Chasing Amy in 1997, Mewes was along once again bringing Jay to life.

A featured role in Smith's Dogma in 1999 further cemented his alliance with the filmmaker, and the character of Jay had become such a part of the popular cultural fabric that he even merited a cameo in the horror spoof Scream 3.

Smith's highly-publicized dissatisfaction with ABC's handling of his very short-lived animated series Clerks didn't slow down production for long.

In 2001 he returned to form with Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, a Hollywood parody that follows the duo on a quest to reclaim their likenesses from Miramax, which plans to release the derivative comedy Bluntman & Chronic based on their alter egos.