--- description: In 2013, TIME looked back at the life of the Navy SEAL title: Who Was 'American Sniper' Chris Kyle? image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt94891c5e65ecb4eb/69877ac5e53aba77b24d71f4/kyle.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [History](/section/history/) ## History Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Who Was _American Sniper_ Chris Kyle?  by [Lily Rothman](/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Jan 20, 2015 5:24 PM CUT  Chris Kyle on NBC's 'Stars Earn Stripes' in 2012 Chris Kyle on NBC's 'Stars Earn Stripes' in 2012Chris Haston—NBC  by [Lily Rothman](/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Jan 20, 2015 5:24 PM CUT This week, Chris Kyle is in the news because _American Sniper_, the new movie based on his memoir, has[ broken January box-office records](http://time.com/3673046/american-sniper-bradley-cooper-box-office-record/?utm%5Fsource=feedburner&utm%5Fmedium=feed&utm%5Fcampaign=Feed%3A+time%2Fentertainment+%28TIME%3A+Entertainment%29 "undefined") and been nominated for a half-dozen Oscars. About two years ago, however, the late Navy SEAL made news for a much more tragic reason: on Feb. 2, 2013, he had been killed at a shooting range in Texas. TIME’s Mark Thompson profiled the famous gunman shortly after, and the piece provides a slew of answers for any _American Sniper_ viewers curious about the man behind the movie. Though his tale is now common knowledge, it’s not necessarily an easy story to wrap one’s mind around. Kyle was, as Thompson points out, a man of contradictions. He hated water, but joined the Navy; he didn’t want to glorify himself, but his memoir was a best-seller; he was an expert killer, but he also wanted to help people. --- > “” --- **_Read the full story from the Feb. 18, 2013, issue of TIME:_** [Killer. Healer. Victim.](http://nation.time.com/2013/02/07/killer-healer-victim/ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3674570/2013-chris-kyle-american-sniper-profile/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3674570/2013-chris-kyle-american-sniper-profile/"},"headline":"Who Was American Sniper Chris Kyle?","datePublished":"2015-01-20T17:24:42.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T03:42:39.937Z","description":"In 2013, TIME looked back at the life of the Navy SEAL","url":"https://time.com/3674570/2013-chris-kyle-american-sniper-profile/","keywords":["movies","People","American Sniper"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt94891c5e65ecb4eb/69877ac5e53aba77b24d71f4/kyle.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lily Rothman","jobTitle":"Rothman is managing editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/"}],"articleSection":"History","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt94891c5e65ecb4eb/69877ac5e53aba77b24d71f4/kyle.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Stars Earn Stripes","caption":"Stars Earn Stripes - Season 1","creditText":"Chris Haston—NBC","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/history/","name":"History"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3674570/2013-chris-kyle-american-sniper-profile/","name":"Who Was American Sniper Chris Kyle?"}}]}] ```