Today's celebrity birthdays: May 17, 2026

Happy birthday to entertainers like Grace Zabriskie, Sugar Ray Leonard, and Nikki Reed! Keep on reading to see who else is celebrating their birthday and some career highlights!

Celebrity birthday highlights for May 17 2026:

Actress Grace Zabriskie (1941) earned early attention in "An Officer and a Gentleman" before rising to cult fame as Sarah Palmer on "Twin Peaks" and appearing in "Wild at Heart" the same year. She reprised the “Twin Peaks” role for Showtime's 2017 revival, played Lois Henrickson on HBO's "Big Love," and added later credits in "The Grudge" and "Inland Empire."

Boxer Sugar Ray Leonard (1956) captured Olympic gold at the 1976 Montreal Games and turned pro the following year. He won world titles in five weight classes, became the only fighter to defeat Roberto Durán, Thomas Hearns, and Marvin Hagler during boxing's "Four Kings" era of the 1980s, and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Comedian Craig Ferguson (1962) broke through in the U.S. as Nigel Wick on ABC's "The Drew Carey Show" before hosting "The Late Late Show" on CBS, where he won a Peabody Award for his interview with Desmond Tutu. He picked up two Daytime Emmys for "Celebrity Name Game," voiced Gobber across the "How to Train Your Dragon" film series, and currently hosts "Scrabble" on The CW.

Singer Kandi Burruss (1976) first hit it big with the R&B group Xscape on hits like "Just Kickin' It" and "Understanding," then took home the Grammy for Best R&B Song for co-writing TLC's "No Scrubs." She became the longest-tenured cast member in the history of Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" and won "The Masked Singer" season three as the Night Angel.

Dancer Derek Hough (1985) racked up a record six "Dancing with the Stars" trophies as a professional partner before returning to the show as a judge. He has won four Primetime Emmys for Outstanding Choreography, played Corny Collins on NBC's "Hairspray Live!," and currently hosts "Extra."

Actor Tahj Mowry (1986) got his start in a recurring run as Teddy on ABC's "Full House" before headlining WB's "Smart Guy" as boy-genius T.J. Henderson. He voiced tech wiz Wade Load on Disney Channel's "Kim Possible" and played Tucker Dobbs on ABC Family's "Baby Daddy."

Actress Nikki Reed (1988) co-wrote "Thirteen" at age 13 and starred in the semi-autobiographical drama based on her own teenage experience. She joined the "Twilight" saga as vampire Rosalie Hale and later joined Fox's "Sleepy Hollow" as a series regular playing Betsy Ross.

Other celebs celebrating birthdays today:

Actor Peter Gerety (1940), Singer Taj Mahal (1942), Drummer Bill Bruford of Yes (1949), Journalist Kathleen Sullivan (1953), Singer Enya (1961), Keyboardist Page McConnell of Phish (1963), Actor David Eigenberg (1964), Musician Trent Reznor (1965), Actress Paige Turco (1965), Actor Hill Harper (1966), Basketball player Danny Manning (1966), TV personality Thom Filicia (1969), Singer Jordan Knight of New Kids on the Block (1970), Basketball player Hubert Davis (1970), Politician Gina Raimondo (1971), Singer Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age (1973), Singer Andrea Corr of The Corrs (1974), Actor Sendhil Ramamurthy (1974), Basketball player Tony Parker (1982), Singer Passenger (1984), Football player Matt Ryan (1985), Figure skater Tessa Virtue (1989), Actress Leven Rambin (1990)