The most famous celebrities who grew up in Colorado typically grew up to be actors, but there’s a notable golf personality, a perennial NFL Pro Bowler, a big-time animator and catcher of criminals in the mix as well.
At BetColorado.com, we wanted to see what celebrities raised in the state were being discussed the most in the past year (March 2023-March 2024).
BetColorado.com took a break from covering Colorado sportsbooks and utilized a weighted system between AhRefs.com, Keywords Explorer and Google Trends to look at the most searched Colorado celebrities over the past 12 months. Once finding both statistics, they were averaged to determine the Top 15.
A Colorado celebrity was defined as a person who resided in Colorado in their formative childhood and teenage years for over five years. Celebrity was broken down to include only living actors/actresses, singer/songwriters, athletes, TV personalities, comedians, dancers and social media influencers. You won't find any of these celebrities on Colorado betting apps but you are likely to find them on your TV screen.
Douglas Pils contributed to this article.
15 Most Popular Colorado Celebrities Ranked
| Celebrity Name | Hometown | Search Volume in Past Year |
| 1. Paige Spiranac, Internet Personality | Wheat Ridge | 710k |
| 2. Christian McCaffrey, NFL Player | Castle Rock | 603k |
| 3. Jessica Biel, Actress | Boulder | 541k |
| 4. Amy Adams, Actress | Castle Rock | 488k |
| 5. Tim Allen, Actor | Denver | 335k |
| 6. Mikaela Shiffrin, Alpine Skier | Vail | 316k |
| 7. Steve Howey, Actor | Lakewood | 281k |
| 8. Ross Lynch, Actor/Singer-Songwriter | Littleton | 258k |
| 9. Sommer Ray, Internet Personality | Denver | 247k |
| 10. Dog the Bounty Hunter, TV Personality | Denver | 233k |
| 11. Melissa Benoist, Actress | Denver | 215k |
| 12. AnnaSophia Robb, Actress | Denver | 207k |
| 13. Don Cheadle, Actor | Denver | 180k |
| 14. Trey Parker, TV Producer & Director | Conifer | 136k |
| 15. Kristen Schaal, Actress | Boulder | 131k |
If you aren’t into celebrities, you can always count on BetColorado.com for Denver Broncos Super Bowl odds.
Paige Spiranac Tops Most Famous Celebs From Colorado List
1. Paige Spiranac, Internet personality, Wheat Ridge. Search volume: 710k. In a bit of a stunning upset, Paige Spiranac takes the title for most famous current celebrity from Colorado over the past year. Who is Paige Spiranac you may be thinking? Well, the 31-year-old from Wheat Ridge first made a name for herself on the state's junior golf circuit, eventually earning a golf scholarship to the University of Arizona. After failing to make it on the LPGA circuit post-college, Spiranac has smartly positioned herself as arguably the top golf media influencer, writing articles for publications such as Golf Digest, while also providing betting picks and other content on her social platforms. In June 2022, Spiranac was named 'Sexiest Woman Alive' in the Maxim's 2022 Hot 100 list.
2. Christian McCaffrey, NFL player, Castle Rock. Search volume: 603k. While McCaffrey lost out on the No. 1 spot to Spiranac, he can claim to be the most famous current athlete from Colorado. The 3-time Pro Bowler just went to the Super Bowl with his San Francisco 49ers, just narrowly coming up short to Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs. At just 27 years old, the Castle Rock native has a chance to be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton with a few more All-Pro seasons.
3. Jessica Biel, Actress, Boulder. Search volume: 541k. The search volume for Biel, who grew up in Boulder, nearly reached 550k. The actress and producer has been married to singer and actor Justin Timberlake since 2012 and the couple have two children. Biel, 42, has appeared in many films, including the “The A-Team,” “Hitchcock,” “Playing for Keeps” and most of her recent work has been in independent film. She also starred in the hit USA series "The Sinner."
4. Amy Adams, Actress, Castle Rock. Search volume: 488k. Adams, 49, has been in quite a few big movies since her first role in 1999. She was in “Catch Me If You Can,” “Enchanted,” “The Wedding Date,” “Talladega Nights,” “The Fighter,” and she’s had the recurring role as Lois Lane in the Superman films “Man of Steel,” “Batman v Superman” and “Justice League.” Adams, who was born in Italy and grew up in Castle Rock after the age of 8, has been with her husband, Darren Le Gallo, since 2002. They have a daughter.
Tim Allen Among Most Recognizable Colorado Celebrities
5. Tim Allen, Actor, Denver. Search volume: 335k. Comedian and actor Tim Allen, who grew up in Denver until moving to Michigan when he was 11, comes in at No. 5 on the list. He’s had many roles on television and in the movies, but he started his career as a comedian. From 1991-98, Allen became a household name by playing Tim “The Toolman” Taylor on the show “Home Improvement” on ABC. That helped boost Allen, 70, into the movies, where he voiced Buzz Lightyear in the “Toy Story” films, played Santa Claus in the “Santa Clause” franchise and many other memorable roles.
6. Mikaela Shiffrin, Alpine Skier, Vail. Search volume: 316k. Shiffrin, now 29, has the most World Cup wins of any alpine skier in history (men or women), and also has won two Olympic Gold Medals. Not too shabby for the Vail native who was also named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023.
7. Steve Howey, Actor, Lakewood. Search volume: 281k. Howey, now 46, is best know to TV audiences as the lovable Kevin Ball on the Showtime series "Shameless," on which he was a regular for 11 seasons and 134 episodes.
8. Ross Lynch, Actor/Singer-Songwriter, Littleton. Search volume: 258k. One-time Disney actor Ross Lynch comes in at No. 8, and he’s the second youngest on the list at 28. The Littleton native got his break as Austin Moon on the Disney Channel’s “Austin & Ally” from 2011-16. The show ran for four seasons and 87 episodes. From 2018-20, he played the main role of Harvey Kinkle on the Netflix show “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.”
9. Sommer Ray, Internet Personality, Denver. Search volume: 247k. Ray, a 27-year-old from Denver, is a fitness model who has garnered a significant following across Instagram and TikTok in recent years. She also hosts a podcast called OHoney.
10. Dog the Bounty Hunter, TV Personality, Denver. Search volume: 233k. Dog the Bounty Hunter, whose real name is Duane Chapman, comes in on the list at No. 10. He was raised in Denver.
Other Famous People From Colorado Include Melissa Benoist, Trey Parker
11. Melissa Benoist, Actress, Denver. Search volume: 215k. At No. 11, Benoist is most famous for role in the “Supergirl” series from 2015-21. Recently, she became a mother in 2020 with husband Chris Wood, and she began work as a producer.
12. AnnaSophia Robb, Actress, Denver. Search volume: 207k. Robb, who was born in Denver, played Violet Beauregarde in Tim Burton’s remake of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” in 2005 and from 2013-14 she played Carrie Bradshaw in “The Carrie Diaries.” From 2016-17, she had a starring role in the PBS Civil War drama “Mercy Street,” and she’s been active in many movie roles since graduating from New York University in 2018.
13. Don Cheadle, Actor, Denver. Search volume: 180k. One of Hollywood's go-to character actors, Cheadle has been in too many notable films to count, but is probably best known for "Ocean's Eleven," "Hotel Rwanda," "The Avengers" films, and 2005 Best Picture winner "Crash."
14. Trey Parker, TV Producer/Director, Conifer. Search volume: 136k. Animator and filmmaker Trey Parker of “South Park” fame comes in at No. 14, Parker grew up in Conifer and graduated from high school in Evergreen.
15. Kristen Schaal, Actress, Boulder. Search volume: 131k. Schaal, a regular voice on Fox' "Bob's Burgers," grew up on a ranch near Boulder.
If interested, check out all the available Colorado sportsbook promos running for top sporting events across the country.
Famous Colorado People FAQs
After failing to make it on the LPGA circuit post-college, Spiranac has become arguably the top golf media influencer, writing articles for publications such as Golf Digest, while also providing betting picks and other content on her social platforms.
The most famous person from Colorado is Paige Spiranac. In June 2022, Spiranac was named 'Sexiest Woman Alive' in the Maxim's 2022 Hot 100 list.
Yes, Actor Tim Allen was born in Denver, CO on June 13, 1953. Allen spent the first 13 years of his life in Colorado before his mother remarried and moved the family to Birmingham, Michigan. He's most famous for his time as Tim the Toolman in the TV show Home Improvement. Allen also starred in The Santa Clause.
Yes, Jessica Biel spent most of her childhood growing up in Boulder, Colorado. Biel was actually born in Ely, Minnesota before moving around to other states such as Texas and Illinois before settling in Colorado.
Trey Parker, famous for co-creating South Park with partner Matt Stone, was born in Conifer, Colorado. Parker grew up in Colorado and attended the University of Colorado Boulder which is where he met Stone. Like Parker, Stone is also from Colorado, growing up in Littleton.
Yes, Dog the Bounty Hunter is from Denver, Colorado. Duane "Dog" Chapman time as the star on the famous A&E TV show lasted from 2004-2012. Chapman has stayed in the spotlight over the years, spending time in his home state of Colorado and Hawaii.
Author
Thomas Leary is a news editor and writer for BetColorado.com. He previously spent six years at Sports Business Journal, where he helped identify emerging sectors across sports business, such as legalized gambling, and helped launch a digital newsletter division. Thomas lives in Charlotte, N.C., with his wife Emmie and their dog, Pickles.
