Alex Dimitriades
Alex Dimitriades (born 28 December 1973) is an Australian actor and DJ. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Nick Polides in the 1993 romantic comedy film The Heartbreak Kid, and Nick Poulos in the 1994 television teen drama spin-off Heartbreak High.
Alex Dimitriades | |
|---|---|
Dimitriades with his AACTA Award, 2012 | |
| Born | Alexandros Dimitriades 28 December 1973 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, DJ |
| Years active | 1993–present |
Early life
Dimitriades was born in Sydney, as Alexandros Dimitriades. He is the son of first generation Greek immigrants and the youngest of three siblings. He has a brother, George, and a sister, Melinda. He grew up in Earlwood, Sydney.[1] His parents divorced when he was 12.[2] His mother worked as a legal secretary, and she raised the children as a single mother.[3]
Career
Film
Dimitriades first attracted national attention for his co-starring role as Nick Polides in the 1993 Australian romantic comedy film The Heartbreak Kid, for which he received positive reviews and acclaim.[4]
In 1998, he played the protagonist Ari in the Ana Kokkinos film Head On, based on the book Loaded by Christos Tsiolkas. Dimitriades' performance in the role was critically acclaimed and earned him an AFI Award nomination.[5] The film was controversial for its graphic violence, sex scenes and LGBT subject matter, but it earned mostly positive reviews.[6] It screened at dozens of festivals around the world, including the Director's Fortnight at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.[7]
His other film roles include the Australian comedies Let's Get Skase (2001) and La Spagnola (2001), the Greek film To Gamilio Party (English title Bang Bang Wedding, 2008), Wog Boy 2: Kings of Mykonos (2010), and Summer Coda starring alongside Rachael Taylor.[8] He had roles in the Hollywood films Ghost Ship (2002) and Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005).[9]
In 2015, he co-starred in Ruben Guthrie with Patrick Brammall.
Television
After making his acting debut in the film The Heartbreak Kid, he starred in a television spin-off Heartbreak High, in which he played Nick Poulos.[10] He went on to play underworld figure, Warren Lanfranchi, in the 1995 drama television series Blue Murder.[11] The following year, Dimitriades played estate agent Steve George in the television soap opera Neighbours.[12] In 1997, he took a role in the police drama Wildside.
In 2002, he appeared in Young Lions. In years to follow, he had a small guest role in the Australian science fiction series Farscape. In 2008, Dimitriades starred in the drama series Underbelly.[13]
In 2011, he featured in The Slap, the TV adaptation of the novel of the same name by Christos Tsiolkas. He was awarded the AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama for his role as the protagonist Harry.[14] In 2015, he starred in The Principal, a SBS four-part crime drama screened over two weeks in October, for which he won a Logie Award.[15] The series received positive reviews and various accolades, including several nominations from the Australian Film Institute in 2016. He appeared in the shows Secret City and Seven Types of Ambiguity.
In late 2018, Dimitriades had a recurring role in the BBC One drama The Cry as Detective Peter Alexiades and in the Netflix series Tidelands, again playing a police officer.
In 2022, Dimitriades played the Greek gangster, Kosta, in the TV series The Tourist alongside Jamie Dornan and Danielle Macdonald.[16]
DJ
Dimitriades, an avid collector of vinyl records, has stated that his love of music started in childhood.[17] He has a passion for both hip hop and dance music and has stated he is inspired by Kings Go Forth because of their "’70s sound."[18] He works as a DJ professionally across Australia, often referred to as DJ Boogie Monster.[19] Dimitriades has headlined and performed at numerous events, including Derby Day,[citation needed] and as the headline act for the relaunch of the popular South Melbourne nightclub Motel.[20]
Although Dimitriades is primarily known as an actor, his DJ work predates his acting work:
It's partly my fault, I was a DJ before I was an actor, but I wasn't known and haven't been known as one. It's two sides of me that will never go away.”[18]
Theatre
In 1996 and 1997, Dimitriades, along with Nick Giannopoulos and Vince Colosimo, toured as part of the Wogboys comedy stage shows.[21][22]
Dimitriades has appeared in many theatre productions, including two plays by Louis Nowra for Griffin Theatre Company, The Woman with Dog's Eyes (2004) and The Emperor of Sydney (2006); The Nightwatchman (2007) and Rain Man in 2010; and the Melbourne Theatre Company’s production of Glengarry Glen Ross in 2014.[citation needed]
Filmography
Film
- The Heartbreak Kid (1993) - Nick Polides
- Head On (1998) - Ari
- Deflated (short) (1999)
- The Love of Lionel’s Life (TV movie) (2000) - Steve
- Let’s Get Skase (2001) - Danny D’Amato Jr
- La Spagnola (2001) - Stefano
- Ghost Ship (2002) - Santos
- Subterano (2003) - Conrad
- Go Big (TV movie) (2004) - Hamish Fitz-Herbert
- Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005) - Enzo Giarraputo
- Love Thy Neighbour (short) (2006) - Peter
- The Society Murders (TV movie) (2006) - Robert Nazaretian
- Checkpoint (short) (2006) - Theo
- Loveproof (short) (2006)
- Stepfather of the Bride (TV movie) (2006) - Jack
- Touched by Fellini (short) (2006) - Tony
- Three Blind Mice (2008) - Tony
- To Gamillo Party (Bang Bang Wedding!) (2008) - Iliias
- Wog Boy 2: Kings of Mykonos (2010) - Mihali
- Summer Coda (2010) - Michael
- The People Speak Australia (documentary) (2012) - Self
- The Infinite Man (2014) - Terry
- The Orchard (short) (2014) - Saverio
- Carlotta (TV movie) (2014) - Angelo
- Ruben Guthrie (2015) - Damian
- Remembering Agatha (short) (2017) - Robert
- My Boy Oleg (short) (2018) - Ari
- Epiphany (TV movie) (2019) - Theo
Television
- Heartbreak High (1994) - Nick Poulos (38 episodes)
- What’s up Doc? (1994) - Self (1 episode)
- Fully Booked (1995) - Self (2 episodes)
- Dear Dilemma (1995) - Self (1 episode)
- Blue Murder (1995) - Warren Lanfranchi (miniseries - 2 episodes)
- G.P. (1996) - Luke Papadopoulos (1 episode)
- Neighbours (1996) - Steve George (18 episodes)
- Wildside (1998-99) - Charlie Coustos (44 episodes)
- Farscape (2000) - Lieutenant Velorek (1 episode)
- Young Lions (2002) - Det Snr Const Eddie Mercia (miniseries - 23 episodes)
- Greeks on the Roof (2003) - Self (1 episode)
- Two Twisted (2006) - Rolly (miniseries - 1 episode)
- Love My Way (2007) - Julien (1 episode)
- Underbelly (2008) - Mr. T (5 episodes)
- Rescue Special Ops (2010) - Guy Hewitt (1 episode)
- The Slap (2011) - Harry (miniseries - 8 episodes)
- The Principal (2015) - Matt Bashir (miniseries - 4 episodes)
- Wanted (2016) - Anton Maric (2 episodes)
- Secret City (2016) - Charles Dancer (6 episodes)
- Seven Types of Ambiguity (2017) - Joe Marin (miniseries - 6 episodes)
- Wake in Fright (2017) - Doc Tydon (miniseries - 2 episodes)
- The Cry (2018) - Detective Peter Alexiades (miniseries - 4 episodes)
- Tidelands (2018) - Paul Murdoch (7 episodes)
- The End (2020) - Dr. Nikos Naoumidis (9 episodes)
- Amazing Grace (2021) - Kirk Gilbert (8 episodes)
- Total Control (2021) - Nick Pearce (6 episodes)
- The Tourist (2022) - Kostas (4 episodes)
Personal life
Dimitriades had an 8-year relationship with Terry Biviano in the late 1990s and early 2000s.[3][23]
In 2008, Dimitriades was arrested driving under the influence. It was reported that he had a blood alcohol reading of .11, more than twice the legal limit in Australia. The charge resulted in the suspension of his driver's licence.[24][25]
In September 2009, his mother, Betty Dimitriades, died after a long-time illness.[26]
References
- ^ . Neos Kosmos. 22 June 2009. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
- ^ . Archived from the original on 20 August 2006. Retrieved 13 July 2006.
- ^ a b "Alex Dimitriades: I've had dark days". News.com.au. 14 October 2011. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
- ^ Stratton, David (4 June 1993). "Review: 'The Heartbreak Kid'". Variety. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- ^ "Alex Dimitriades". IMDb. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- ^ Head On, retrieved 25 January 2017
- ^ "Screen Australia - Head On (1998)".
- ^ Hall, Sandra (21 October 2010). "Review". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
- ^ Robb, Peter. "The Kid Grows Up: Meeting Alex Dimitriades". The Monthly. Retrieved 21 September 2013.
- ^ Eames, Tom (3 May 2016). "Heartbreak High: What do they look like now?". Digital Spy. (Hearst Magazines UK). Retrieved 19 April 2020.
- ^ Roxburgh, Richard; Martin, Tony; Bastoni, Steve; Day, Gary (14 September 1995), Blue Murder, retrieved 23 January 2017
- ^ Knox, Malcolm (12 August 1996). "White slavery exists". Sydney Morning Herald. p. 63. Retrieved 23 April 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Underbelly star's ups and downs". Herald Sun. 12 May 2008. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
- ^ "Alex Dimitriades wins AACTA". 1 February 2012. ABC News. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
- ^ "Alex Dimitriades wins a Logie". ABC News. 9 May 2016. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- ^ "Meet the cast of 'The Tourist' on HBO Max". Newsweek. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
- ^ "Alex Dimitriades". Retrieved 30 January 2017.
- ^ a b Phillipson, Jessica. "Alex Dimitriades Just Plays The Funky Shit". scenestr.com.au. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
- ^ Lex, Lady. "Alex Dimitriades: Hard soul". Inthemix.com.au. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
- ^ Dennehy, Luke (23 October 2011). "Motel makes room for DJ Alex". Herald Sun. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
- ^ Xavier Pons (2002). Departures: How Australia Reinvents Itself. Melbourne University Publish. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-522-84995-0.
The most phenomenal commercial success in immigrant theatre has been Wogs Out of Work (1987) and its spin-offs, Wog-A-Rama (1993) and Wog Boys (1996)
- ^ Geoffrey Milne (1 January 2004). Theatre Australia (un)limited: Australian Theatre Since the 1950s. Rodopi. p. 269. ISBN 90-420-0930-6.
Particularly significant for its extremely broad audience appeal is the Wogs out of Work phenomenon.
- ^ "Wildside: articles". Australian Television. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
- ^ "Alex Dimitriades was heartbroken and drunk, say friends". Herald Sun. 13 May 2008. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
- ^ "Alex Dimitriades wins court battle". Daily Telegraph. 17 January 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
- ^ "Mum's death rocks Alex and family". Retrieved 23 January 2017.
External links
- Alex Dimitriades at IMDb
- Interview with Paul Fischer