K-PAX is a 2001 American science fiction and mystery film directed by Iain Softley and starring Kevin Spacey, Jeff Bridges, Mary McCormack and Alfre Woodard. The screenplay, written by Gene Brewer and Charles Leavitt, is based on a novel of the same name by Brewer about a psychiatric patient who claims to be an alien from the planet K-PAX. During his treatment, the patient demonstrates an outlook on life that ultimately proves inspirational for his fellow patients and especially for his psychiatrist. It was distributed by Universal Pictures in the United States and Pathé shared the UK rights with FilmFour.

After claiming he is an an extraterrestrial from the planet 'K-PAX', 1,000 light years away, in the Lyra constellation, prot (uncapitalized and rhyming with "goat", played by Kevin Spacey) is committed to the Psychiatric Institute of Manhattan. There psychiatrist Mark Powell (Jeff Bridges) evaluates him to find if he is delusional. However, prot is unwavering in his ability to provide cogent answers to questions about himself, K-PAX and its civilization. Dr. Powell introduces him to a group of astrophysicists, where prot claims to have journeyed to Earth by means of "light-travel" and goes on to display a level of knowledge that puzzles them.

K-PAX is the name of the first novel in the K-PAX series by Gene Brewer and a film based on the series:

The books deal with the experiences on Earth of a man named "prot" (rhymes with "goat"). Although fictional, the story is presented as based on real events. It is written in the first person from the point of view of prot's psychiatrist, who shares his name with the author; the psychiatrist's wife is Karen, the name of the author's wife.

The 2001 film K-PAX was directed by Iain Softley and is based on the first book in this series. Kevin Spacey portrays Prot, and Jeff Bridges plays the psychiatrist. There are some significant differences between the film and the book.

K-PAX has also been made into a stage play, also written by Gene Brewer, and has been performed at the Lion and Unicorn Theatre, directed by Victor Sobchak. and more recently the play made its North American debut at The Geneva Underground Playhouse in Geneva, Illinois directed by Eric Peter Schwartz and featured in the cast:

Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is an American actor, musician, producer, photographer, cartoonist, storyteller, and occasional vintner. He comes from a well-known acting family and began his first televised acting in 1958 as child with his father, Lloyd Bridges, and brother Beau on television's Sea Hunt. Some of his best-known major motion films include: Tron (and its sequel) , Fearless, Iron Man, Contender, TheThe Contender, Starman, The Fabulous Baker Boys, Jagged Edge, Against All Odds, Fisher King, TheThe Fisher King, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, Seabiscuit, and The Big Lebowski. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Otis "Bad" Blake in the 2009 film Crazy Heart and earned his sixth Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Rooster Cogburn in 2010's True Grit.

Jeffrey Leon Bridges was born in Los Angeles, California on December 4, 1949. He is son of showbiz parents, actor Lloyd Bridges. and actress and writer Dorothy Bridges (née Simpson). His older brother, Beau Bridges, is also an actor. He has a younger sister, Lucinda, and had another brother, Garrett, who died of sudden infant death syndrome in 1948. Growing up, Bridges shared a close relationship with his brother Beau, who acted as a surrogate father when their father was working. Bridges and his siblings were raised in the Holmby Hills section of Los Angeles. He graduated from University High School (Los Angeles, California) in 1967. At age fourteen, Jeff toured with his father in a stage production of Anniversary Waltz.

Edward Shearmur (sometimes known as Ed Shearmur) (Born 28 February 1966) is a British film composer. Born in London, England, at age 7 he sang in the boys' choir at Westminster Cathedral. Educated at Eton College, he studied at the Royal College of Music and went on to a scholarship at Pembroke College at the University of Cambridge. He further honed his craft as assistant to Michael Kamen (on such films as Licence to Kill, Die Hard, Lethal Weapon and the acclaimed Don Juan de Marco), orchestrating and conducting before scoring his first full-length feature film The Cement Garden which won the director's prize at the Berlin Film Festival. Coming to prominence in his own right with The Wings of the Dove in 1997, he has since proven both his strength and his versatility scoring for a diverse range of immensely popular films including the likes of both Charlie's Angels outings, Cruel Intentions, Species II, and K-PAX.

In addition to his film work, Shearmur has always had a deep love of rock 'n' roll, having collaborated as both a keyboardist and an arranger with a number of top performers including Eric Clapton, Annie Lennox, Pink Floyd, Marianne Faithfull, Bryan Adams, Echo & the Bunnymen, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant.

Kevin Spacey, CBE (born Kevin Spacey Fowler; July 26, 1959) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television. He gained critical acclaim in the early 1990s, culminating in his first Academy Award for The Usual Suspects (Best Supporting Actor), followed by a Best Actor Academy Award win for American Beauty (1999). His other starring roles in Hollywood include Seven, L.A. Confidential, Pay It Forward, K-PAX, and Superman Returns in a career which has earned him several Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. Since 2003, he has been artistic director of the Old Vic theatre in London.

Spacey was born in South Orange, New Jersey, the son of Kathleen Ann (née Knutson; December 5, 1931 – March 19, 2003), a secretary, and Thomas Geoffrey Fowler (June 4, 1924 – December 24, 1992), a technical writer and data consultant. He has two older siblings: a sister, Julie, and a brother, Randy. He attended Northridge Military Academy, Canoga Park High School (in tenth and eleventh grades), and then Chatsworth High School in Chatsworth, Los Angeles, where he graduated valedictorian of his class. At Chatsworth High, he starred in the school's senior production of The Sound of Music, playing the part of Captain Georg von Trapp, opposite Mare Winningham's character, Maria.