Chuck Norris was an action legend for decades. After building his career as a martial artist, Chuck stepped into the movie world in the ’70s, starring alongside other film icons like Bruce Lee in the classic The Way of the Dragon. Throughout the ’80s, he appeared in many more popular flicks before landing a role on the TV show Walker, Texas Ranger from 1993 to 2001.
Chuck had two long-term marriages throughout his life. He tied the knot with his high school sweetheart, Dianne Kay Holechek, in 1958, and the pair had two kids. During the ’60s, he fathered a daughter during an extramarital relationship. Almost 10 years after they divorced in 1989, Chuck wed his second wife, Gena O’Kelley, in 1998, and they stayed together through the end of his life. The couple share a set of twins.
Chuck’s children will carry out his legacy. Find out everything you need to know about his kids here.
Mike Norris
Chuck’s eldest son Mike, was born in 1962. Mike was clearly influenced by his dad as an action star, and he followed him into the business. He got his first role as a teen when he was cast in a small role in his dad’s 1979 movie A Force of One. A few years after his first time on the big screen, Mike began taking on stunt work for a variety of movies, including some major movies like Rush Hour 3. He’s been cast in dozens of movies and TV shows, including a few episodes of Walker, Texas Ranger, alongside his dad. He’s also done some work behind the camera, including writing and directing. He wrote, directed and starred in the 2019 movie The End of Days: Global Catastrophe.
Aside from acting, Mike has been married to his wife , Valerie since 1992, and the couple have three kids. The actor also shared his conservative polticial beliefs, including posting a photo in front of New York’s Trump Tower on his Instagram, with the hashtag “MAGA,” which is an abbreviation for former President Donald Trump’s slogan “Make America Great Again.”
Dina Norris
While Chuck was married to Dianne, he did have a relationship with another woman named Johanna, and she also had a child named Dina with him. The late Breaker! Breaker! actor opened up about the affair in his memoir Against All Odds. “To my shame, I never told Johanna that I was married,” he wrote, per Women Working. Chuck did admit that he immediately accepted his daughter once he found out about her. “I didn’t need DNA or blood tests. I went to her, wrapped my arms around her, and we both started crying. At that moment, it was as if I had known her all my life,” he wrote.
Chuck and Dina remained close. The actor shared photos of him with his daughter, along with her husband Damien and their two kids, while on family vacations to his Facebook page.
Eric Norris
Chuck and his first wife had their second son, Eric, in 1964. Like his dad and brother, Eric has done a bunch of movie work. While he’s dabbled in acting work in films like Invaders from Mars and The Delta Force as well as TV shows such as Prison Break and Star Trek: Enterprise, Eric has mostly done stunt work! He has over 100 stunt credits to his name, and he’s been on a number of big-budget projects like The Town, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and Sons of Anarchy.
Aside from his acting, Eric is also a competitive racecar driver. He’s competed in 87 events, winning three, according to Driver Database. As the years have gone by, his races have been more sporadic, but he did compete for the first time in a decade in 2022. Eric is also married to his wife Stephanie, and the couple have four kids.
Dakota Alan Norris
After Chuck and Dianne divorced in 1989, he tied the knot with Gena O’Kelley in 1998. The couple welcomed a set of twins, Dakota and Danilee, in August 2001. While it’s not clear if Dakota has any plans to follow his dad into movies or TV, he was clearly inspired to get into martial arts. His Instagram bio boasts that he’s a fifth-degree black belt and a UFAF champion.
Danilee Kelly Norris
Chuck’s younger daughter, Danilee, is not in the spotlight. As a youngster, she did dabble a little bit in entertainment, playing Angela Walker in her dad’s movie Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial By Fire in 2005. Similar to her twin brother, though, she also practiced martial arts and has received a black belt. Her dad congratulated the twins when they earned their second-degree black belt in 2015 with a Facebook post. “After almost 8 years of training, our twins Danilee and Dakota, tested for and received their 2nd degree black belt,” he wrote.
