Big was born in Birmingham, Alabama on June 15th, 1964. She is the youngest of four children. Courteney and her mother had a usual mother-daughter relationship, but she was closest with her father who was a building contractor. At the age of ten, her parents divorced after 19 years of marriage, while Courteney, her brother and two other sisters stayed with the mother as a result.

Courteney went to Mountain Brook High, a public school in Birmingham, and worked her afternoons at the local pool supply store. Courteney also took place in the usual teenage activities like tennis, swimming, and cheerleading.

In 1982, Courteney graduated from high school and then began to study architecture at Mt. Vernon College in Washington. In her last year of college, Courteney met Ian Copeland, her stepfather's nephew. The two of them worked together for a New York City music agent. Even though there was an age difference of fifteen years, a romance formed between them. Copeland encouraged Courteney to pursue her dream of modeling, but he also suggested that she try acting.

Courteney's first roles included ads for Noxzema and Maybelline. She then moved on to a small soap role on As the World Turns. As Courteney's career started to take off, Copeland and Cox decided to end the relationship.

In 1984, Courteney gained national attention when director, Brian DePalma selected Courteney from a swarm of over three hundred contenders to star as the girl Bruce Springsteen pulled on stage to dance with at the end of his Dancing in the Dark video.

In 1985, Courteney appeared in the NBC series Misfits of Science, which was dropped four months later. In the same year, she also landed the role as Lauren, Michael J. Fox's girlfriend on Family Ties. The end of Family Ties brought a standstill to her career.

After Family Ties ended, Courteney tried to build a career in film industry. She went through the same treatment encountered by most new actors. Some of the movies she starred in were Cocoon: The Return, Mr. Destiny, Blue Desert, Shaking the Tree, and The Opposite Sex and How To Live With Them. Cox explains that one of the reasons her career didn't take off back then, was because of her relationship with Michael Keaton was too time-consuming.

Courteney got her next big break in 1994 where she was cast as Jim Carrey's boss in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Soon after the success of the movie, Courteney landed the part of Monica Geller on the NBC comedy sitcom Friends. Courteney's success with Friends led her to move on to the big screen where she played all three parts of the Scream trilogy of edge of your seat thrillers.

On a more personal note, Courteney married her Scream co-star, David Arquette in June 1999. Her family, friends, and co-workers attest to her ability to tackle any task, to solve any problem. Courteney is a perfection-seeking ranging from her relationship to her career.