Peter Berg (born March 11, 1962) is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is known for directing films such as Friday Night Lights, The Kingdom, The Rundown, Hancock and Battleship. He also developed the television series Friday Night Lights, which was adapted from the film he directed. As an actor he is best known for his role as Dr. Billy Kronk on the CBS medical drama Chicago Hope. Berg was born in New York City, New York. He is the son of Sally and Laurence "Larry" Berg. Berg's father was Jewish and his mother Christian. He is the cousin of writer H. G. Bissinger, whose book Friday Night Lights provides the basis for the film and TV series of the same name. His mother co-founded a youth group named Catalog for Giving and worked at a psychiatric hospital when Berg was growing up. He has a younger sister, Mary. After graduating high school from The Taft School in 1980, Berg attended Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he majored in theater arts and theater history. He graduated in 1984, and in 1985 moved to Los Angeles to pursue his film career.