Max Minghella
Max Giorgio Choa Minghella (born 16 September 1985)[1] is an English actor. He is known for his roles in the films Syriana (2005), Art School Confidential (2006), Elvis and Anabelle (2007), The Social Network (2010), The Ides of March (2011), The Internship (2013), Horns (2013), and Spiral (2021), as well as his role as Nick Blaine in the television series The Handmaid's Tale (2017–present), which earned him a Primetime Emmy Award nomination in 2021.
Max Minghella | |
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Minghella in 2017 | |
| Born | Max Giorgio Choa Minghella 16 September 1985 |
| Education | Columbia University (BA) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Parents |
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| Relatives |
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Early life and education edit
Minghella was born in Hampstead, London, the son of director Anthony Minghella (1954–2008) and dancer and choreographer Carolyn Jane Choa.[2] His father was born in Ryde, Isle of Wight, and was of Italian descent, and his mother was born in Hong Kong.
While Minghella was growing up he spent time on his father's film sets. He has said that he has "fond memories" of them and that he felt "no pressure" from his father to succeed in the entertainment industry.[3] He was educated at St Anthony's Preparatory School and University College School in Hampstead. He then attended Columbia University, which he considered his "first priority", and studied history,[4] graduating in 2009. He was a resident of John Jay Hall during his studies at Columbia.[5] He typically worked on films only during his summer breaks. He has said that he felt like "an English boy at an American school", that he kept to himself, and that most of his fellow students did not know that he was an actor.[6][7]
Heritage edit
Minghella's father was born on the Isle of Wight, and was of Italian descent. His mother, who was from Hong Kong, is from a family of multiple heritage. His maternal grandfather George Choa was of three-quarters Chinese and one-quarter Jewish descent, and his maternal grandmother Maisie Nora (née Kotewall)[8][6] was of Indian Parsi, English, Irish, Swedish and Chinese ancestry.
Sir Robert Kotewall is his great-grandfather.[α] Olympic swimmer Robyn Lamsam is his second cousin through the Kotewalls.
Career edit
Minghella was inspired to become an actor during his young years, after seeing a production of the play This Is Our Youth in London's West End; he subsequently dropped out of the University College School to pursue an acting career, and attended the National Youth Theatre.[4] He did not always want to become an actor. He said: "I thought it was sort of embarrassing to say you wanted to be an actor – it was, like, uncool. And growing up I was massively concerned with seeming cool. I thought up until about age 16 that I was going to be a music video director."[14]
Minghella had an uncredited appearance as an extra in his father's film Cold Mountain.[15] His first professional role was in Bee Season, playing the son of a dysfunctional Jewish American family. The film was released in November 2005 to mostly mixed reviews and low box office, grossing only $1 million in its limited release,[16][17] although critics remarked that Minghella was "a talented young actor to watch, delivering a strong performance".[18]
Minghella's other November 2005 role was the political thriller Syriana in which he played the son of George Clooney's CIA agent character. In 2006, he starred in the Daniel Clowes adaptation Art School Confidential, a comedy directed by Terry Zwigoff. He got the part after meeting Zwigoff when he visited the set of Bee Season.[6] His film Elvis and Anabelle, a dark romantic drama in which he plays an undertaker's son, premiered at the South by Southwest film festival in 2007. He described it as "a really sweet film".[6] He was to play Art Bechstein in the film version of writer Michael Chabon's novel The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, but dropped out of the project due to his university schedule.[19]
The press reported in 2007 that Minghella was cast in Beeban Kidron's Hippie Hippie Shake, a film about writer Richard Neville set in 1960s London.[20] In March 2008, it was announced that he would star in Alejandro Amenábar's second English language film, Agora.[21] The film is set in 4th century Egypt and revolves around Hypatia of Alexandria. Later in 2008, Minghella played a pompous film director in How to Lose Friends & Alienate People, and was seen in a segment of the dark comedy Brief Interviews with Hideous Men.[22]
In David Fincher's The Social Network, the 2010 film about the origins of Facebook,[23] he plays Divya Narendra, one of the Harvard upperclassmen who sues Mark Zuckerberg for stealing the idea behind Facebook. In June 2010, Minghella was cast in the Russian science-fiction film The Darkest Hour, released in December 2011.[24] He appeared in the ensemble dramedy 10 Years (2012). The following year, he had a supporting role as Graham Hawtrey in the comedy The Internship.
In November 2013, it was announced that Minghella would be playing Richie Castellano in the second season of the Fox sitcom The Mindy Project.[25] In 2013, he appeared in the music video for "Shot at the Night" by The Killers.[26]
Minghella has been playing the role of Nick Blaine, an Eye in the Republic of Gilead and the love interest of June Osborne, in the Hulu dystopian series The Handmaid's Tale since 2017. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the role in 2021.[27]
Minghella made his directorial debut with 2018's Teen Spirit, a musical, from his own screenplay.[28]
Minghella starred in the 2022 film Babylon.[29] He currently lives in Los Angeles.
Filmography edit
Film edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Toy Boys | Danny | Short film |
| Let the Good Times Roll | Boy with dog | Short film | |
| 2005 | Bee Season | Aaron Naumann | |
| Syriana | Robby Barnes | ||
| 2006 | Art School Confidential | Jerome Platz | |
| 2007 | Elvis and Anabelle | Elvis | |
| 2008 | How to Lose Friends & Alienate People | Vincent Lepak | |
| 2009 | Brief Interviews with Hideous Men | Kevin (Subject No. 28) | |
| Agora | Davus | ||
| 2010 | The Social Network | Divya Narendra | Hollywood Film Festival for Ensemble of the Year Palm Springs International Film Festival Ensemble Cast Award Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Nominated—Central Ohio Film Critics Association for Best Ensemble Nominated—San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Ensemble Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble |
| 2011 | The Ides of March | Ben Harpen | Nominated—Central Ohio Film Critics Association for Best Ensemble |
| 10 Years | AJ | ||
| The Darkest Hour | Ben | ||
| 2013 | The Internship | Graham Hawtrey | |
| Horns | Lee Tourneau | ||
| 2014 | About Alex | Isaac | |
| Not Safe for Work | Thomas Miller | ||
| 2015 | Into the Forest | Eli | |
| Just a Minute | The Voice | Short film | |
| 2016 | The 9th Life of Louis Drax | Nurse | Uncredited; also screenwriter and producer |
| Fluffy | Mark Mason | Short film | |
| 2018 | Teen Spirit | Director and screenwriter | |
| 2021 | Spiral | William Schenk / William Emmerson | |
| 2022 | Babylon | Irving Thalberg | Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
| 2023 | Maximum Truth | Antonio Kelly-Zhang | |
| TBA | Shell | Post-production; Director |
Television edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013– 2017 | The Mindy Project | Richie Castellano | 8 episodes |
| 2017– present | The Handmaid's Tale | Nick Blaine | Main role Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (2021) Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2018–19, 2022) |
Notes edit
- ^ Minghella's maternal great-grandfather and great-grandmother were Hong Kong legislator Sir Robert Kotewall (half-Indian Parsi and half-Chinese) and Edith Kotewall (née Lowcock)[9] (her father George Lowcock was half-English and half-Irish, and her mother, née Jönsson/Johnsford, was half-Swedish),[10][11] and his maternal great-great-grandfather was Calcutta-born Italian Jewish businessman Emanuel Raphael Belilios (through Belilios' daughter Maria Felicie, mother of George Choa).[12][13]
References edit
- ^ "Max Minghella". TVGuide.com. from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
- ^ Roy, Donald (27 November 2015). "Minghella, Anthony (1954–2008), playwright, screenwriter, and film director". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/100058. ISBN 978-0-19-861411-1. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.) (subscription required)
- ^ Pearlman, Cindy. "Film director's son makes his own busy career". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 30 April 2006.[dead link]
- ^ a b Ghorbani, Liza (14 May 2006). "The Talented History Student". The New York Times. from the original on 11 January 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ Ghorbani, Liza (14 May 2006). "The Talented History Student". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on 29 April 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
- ^ a b c d Roman, Julian (8 May 2006). . MovieWeb. Archived from the original on 9 December 2008. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ Day, Elizabeth (23 October 2011). "Max Minghella: "At first it was difficult to be taken seriously"". The Guardian. from the original on 14 December 2014. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
- ^ "Webb-site Who's Who: Choa, Maisie Nora 羅璇基". from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- ^ "Edith Kotewall". 22 November 1889. from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- ^ "Johnsford". 25 October 1838. from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "Lowcock". from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
- ^ "Webb-site Who's Who: Belilios, Emanuel Raphael". from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- ^ "Maria Felicie (Felicie) Choa". 17 March 1885. from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- ^ Cerula, Erica. "The Social Network's Max Minghella". Details (October 2010). United States. from the original on 9 July 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
- ^ Petruzzi, Elissa (20 November 2005). "The Max Factor". USA Weekend. Archived from the original on 27 November 2009. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ "Bee Season". The Numbers. from the original on 6 January 2010. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ "Bee Season (2005)". Rotten Tomatoes. from the original on 25 January 2010. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ Douglas, Edward. . ComingSoon.net. Archived from the original on 10 June 2010. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ . Pajiba. 5 July 2006. Archived from the original on 19 January 2010. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ Dawtrey, Adam (2 May 2007). . Variety. Archived from the original on 7 February 2009. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ Max Minghella Prepares for Earth's 'Darkest Hour' 24 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ McLovin/Red Mist Becomes Evil Ed in 'Fright Night' Redo!! 24 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Rich, Katey (20 October 2009). . Cinema Blend. Archived from the original on 17 November 2009. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
- ^ Home Max Minghella Set for The Darkest Hour 10 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Mindy Project Scoop: Social Network Actor Max Minghella to Play Danny's Bro". TVLine. 28 October 2013. from the original on 12 November 2013. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
- ^ Coulehan, Erin (27 September 2013). "The Killers Give Lovers a Chance in 'Shot at the Night'". Rolling Stone. from the original on 13 January 2016. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
- ^ Barlow, Eve. "Interview: Max Minghella, who plays Nick in the Handmaid's Tale, is the enigmatic Brit in LA about to make his directorial debut". from the original on 20 August 2019. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
- ^ Lodderhose, Diana (30 January 2017). "Max Minghella Teams With 'La La Land' Producer For Directorial Debut 'Teen Spirit' – Berlin". from the original on 11 February 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
- ^ Kit, Borys (2 June 2021). "Max Minghella, Flea, Samara Weaving Join Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie in 'Babylon'". The Hollywood Reporter. from the original on 18 June 2021. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
External links edit
- Media related to Max Minghella at Wikimedia Commons
- Max Minghella at IMDb