Ever wonder what famous people have Tampa ties? Well, here are a few celebs that have called Tampa Bay their home at one point in their lives.

John Cena Even if you can’t see him (because his time is now), John Cena is a Land O’ Lakes resident and has been spotted at several spots throughout Tampa, including Ocean Prime. Cena is mostly known for his wrestling career, but he has become quite active in the movies, with major roles in movies such as Trainwreck and a role in the upcoming Suicide Squad sequel. Photo via wwe.com
Angela Bassett Even though Bassett was born in New York City, the Black Panther star attended Boca Ciega high school in Gulfport after moving to St. Pete. Bassett’s most recognized role is when she played Tina Turner in the biopic “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” where Bassett was the first African-American to win the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Photo by David Shankbone via Wikimedia Commons
Owen Teague A graduate of Blake High School, Blake Teague is mostly known for his role as Patrick Hockstetter in It: Chapter Two, as well as a role in the episode “Arkangel” in the hit Netflix series Black Mirror. Teague was even a member of the orchestra at Blake, as well as being a member of the thespian club. Screengrab via YouTube
Ray Charles Although he may have Georgia on his mind, Ray Charles lived in Tampa for a short time in his life before he became known for his work as a piano player. Charles spent his time in Tampa playing for Charlie Brantley’s “Original Honey Dippers,” a local legendary R&B group. Photo by Victor Diaz Lamich via Wikimedia Commons
Jimmy Wales One of the founders of Wikipedia, Jimmy Wales lived in St. Pete from 2002 until he moved to London in 2012. Wales claims to be the sole founder of Wikipedia, but “co-founders” of the website such as Larry Sanger, dispute this claim. Photo Joi Ito via Wikimedia Commons
Sarah Paulson The American Horror Story star was born in Tampa and lived here until age five, when her parents got divorced. She spent summers here with her father, but went to school in New York City. Photo by Gage Skidmore via Wikimedia Commons
Channing Tatum The star of Magic Mike, which was filmed around Tampa, is a graduate of Tampa Catholic and attended Gaither before transferring to the private school. Tatum has starred in other movies such as the 21 Jump Street series and Step Up. Photo by Gage Skidmore via Wikimedia Commons
Dwight Gooden Dwight Gooden may mostly be known for his sick curveball (nicknamed “Lord Charles.” Badass, right?), but the former New York Met and NL Rookie of the Year is a Tampa native. He played for Hillsborough High’s baseball team his final two years of high school, and was drafted fifth overall in the 1982 MLB draft. Photo by Jeff Marquis via Wikimedia Commons
Rhonda Shear One of the Fonz’ girlfriends in the hit show Happy Days, Rhonda Shear, is currently a resident of St. Pete. Shear lives here with her husband, Van Fagen, and was Miss Louisiana in 1975. Photo by Rhonda Shear via Wikimedia Commons
Shock G If you ever find yourself around HCC or Chamberlain High, do the humpty dance, because Shock G was a student at both schools. He may have been born in New York City, but he moved to Tampa in middle school. He dropped out of Chamberlain, but he studied music theory at HCC. Photo by Gregory E. Jacobs via Wikimedia Commons
Derek Jeter While he was born in New Jersey, “The Captain” resides in Tampa on Davis Islands in that extravagantly big house of his. He was the shortstop for the New York Yankees and has over 3,000 hits in his career (his 3,000th coming off of David Price, who was pitching for the Rays at the time. How fitting). He is currently running the Miami Marlins as their CEO. Photo by Keith Allison via Wikimedia Commons
Dreama Walker One of the co-stars of the short-lived TV series “Doubt,” Dreama Walker was born and raised in Tampa, having graduated from Plant High School. Her roles also include Connie Stevens in the recent Quentin Tarantino film “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” Photo by Chohyeri via Wikimedia Commons
Al Downing Not to be confused with the Al Downing that gave up Hank Aaron’s record-breaking 715th home run, Tampa’s Al Downing was a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, and eventually became the first African-American to perform in the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra. Downing passed away in 2000 from heart failure. Photo Jpieniazek via Wikimedia Commons
Jack Kerouac Considered a pioneer of the “Beat Generation,” Jack Kerouac spent the later part of his life in the St. Pete area, as he passed away at St. Anthony’s Hospital. His work as a writer includes “On the Road,” “The Dharma Bums,” and “Big Sur.” Photo Tom Palumbo via Wikimedia Commons
Robin Zander The lead singer and guitarist of the band Cheap Trick, Robin Zander, is currently a resident of Safety Harbor. Zander was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 with the other members of Cheap Trick. Photo by Matt Becker via Wikimedia Commons
Stephen Stills Saint Leo gets a shoutout here, as one of the members of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young went to the liberal arts school before his music career took off. He also attended Admiral Farragut Academy in St. Pete. Photo by Eva Rinaldi via Wikimedia Commons
Billy Mays Remember that guy from all those OxiClean commercials? Yeah, Billy Mays actually passed away in Tampa from heart disease. There were complications in the autopsy though, as the medical examiner determined that cocaine was a contributing factor to Mays’ death. Mays’ family disputes this claim, and criticized the medical examiner for revealing the information. Photo by Sharese Ann Frederick via Wikimedia Commons
Tom Cruise “Jerry Maguire” star and known Scientologist Tom Cruise owns a penthouse in Clearwater near the Scientology Headquarters in the downtown area. Cruise is also known for his roles in the Mission Impossible movies. Photo Gage Skidmore via Wikimedia Commons
Brian Johnson Brian Johnson, better known as the lead singer of AC/DC, owns a home on Bird Key in Sarasota. The British singer was actually the third lead singer of the band, and he followed Bon Scott after Scott’s death in 1980. Photo by Matt Becker via Wikimedia Commons
Gary Shefflied That dude with the crazy batting stance, Gary Sheffield, was an alumnus of Hillsborough High. There was recently a viral video of the slugger hitting bombs while casually smoking a cigar with his son throwing batting practice. Pretty dope. Photo by UCinterntational via Wikimedia Commons
Randy Savage Randall Mario Poffo, also known as his wrestling name Macho Man Randy Savage, passed away in Seminole in 2011. The wrestler was originally a baseball player, having been drafted out of high school by the St. Louis Cardinals as a catcher. Photo by Rob DiCaterino via Wikimedia Commons
Brutus The Beefcake Barber A graduate of Robinson High School, Brutus The Beefcake Barber has mostly been known for his wrestling career alongside fellow Tampa native Hulk Hogan. Brutus was inducted to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2019. Photo Swiftwj via Wikimedia Commons
Hulk Hogan Owner of “Hogan’s Beach Shop,” Hulk Hogan was born in Augusta, Georgia but grew up in Tampa. He graduated from Robinson High School and has been a wrestling legend, despite being recruited out of high school as a baseball player before an injury derailed his career. Photo Simon Q via Wikimedia Commons
Sean Waltman Having grown up in the Tampa/St. Pete area, Waltman (better known as 1,2,3, kid aka X-Pac) has had a successful wrestling career and now has his own wrestling podcast. Waltman also appeared in the drama Crossing the Bridge alongside David Schwimmer (Ross from Friends). Photo Luigi Novi via Wikimedia Commons
Bishop Bullwinkle Bishop Bullwinkle, whose real name is Bernard Thomas, is most famous for his song-turned-meme “Hell To Da Naw Naw Naw,” but he’s also from Tampa. He passed away at age 70 in June of this year. Screengrab via YouTube
Joe Buck Yeah, that boring guy who broadcasts all the Thursday Night Football games (and seemingly every other major sporting event) was born in St. Pete. The son of another famous sportscaster, Jack Buck, Joe is currently working for FOX as their play-by-play guy with Troy Aikman for both Thursday Night Football and “America’s Game of the Week” on Sundays. Screengrab via YouTube
Nick and Aaron Carter The Backstreet Boys started in Orlando, and two of their members are from Tampa. The younger Aaron was born at Tampa General Hospital, and both of the boys grew up in Ruskin. Screengrab via YouTube
Bertie Higgins The artist behind that romantic ballad “Key Largo” is from Tarpon Springs. He graduated from Tarpon Springs High School and attended St. Petersburg college, where he studied journalism and fine art until he dropped out of the program. Screengrab via YouTube
Hank Green You know that guy that wrote that tear-jerker of a book that turned into a movie “The Fault in our Stars” John Green? Well, he has a brother, Hank, and Hank went to Eckerd College. Hank helps his brother with their creation, VidCon, the largest conference about online videos in the world. Photo by User of the Vlogbrothers YouTube channel via Wikimedia Commons
George Steinbrenner Yeah, this is the guy that the high school in Lutz is named after. While he was born in Ohio, Steinbrenner spent much of his life in the Tampa area. He is most known for having owned the New York Yankees, with his enthusiasm and interesting relationship with manager Billy Martin making Steinbrenner one of the more unique owners in baseball history. Screengrab via YouTube