Adrien Nicholas Brody (born April 14, 1973)[1] is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Władysław Szpilman in Roman Polanski's war drama The Pianist (2002), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor at age 29, becoming the youngest actor to win in that category. He also became the second American male actor to win the César Award for Best Actor for the same film.
Adrien Brody | |
|---|---|
 Brody in 2023 | |
| Born | Adrien Nicholas Brody April 14, 1973 New York City, U.S. |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Partner | Elsa Pataky (2006–2009) |
| Parents |
|
Brody has also starred in The Thin Red Line (1998), The Village (2004), King Kong (2005), Hollywoodland (2006), Cadillac Records (2008), Predators (2010), See How They Run (2022), and The Brutalist (2024). He has frequently collaborated with filmmaker Wes Anderson, appearing in his films The Darjeeling Limited (2007), Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), The French Dispatch (2021), and Asteroid City (2023). He portrayed Salvador Dalí in Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris (2011) and Arthur Miller in Andrew Dominik's Blonde (2022).
On television, he has played Luca Changretta in the fourth season of the BBC series Peaky Blinders (2017), and Pat Riley in the HBO sports drama series Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty (2022–2023). He earned Primetime Emmy Award nominations for his roles as Harry Houdini in the History Channel miniseries Houdini (2014), and investor Josh Aaronson in the HBO series Succession (2021).
Early life
editBrody was born in Jackson Heights, Queens, New York City, the son of Sylvia Plachy, a photographer, and Elliot Brody, a retired history professor and painter.[2] Brody's father is of Polish Jewish descent;[3][4][5] Brody's mother, who was raised Catholic, was born in Budapest, Hungary, and is the daughter of a Catholic Hungarian aristocrat father and a Czech Jewish mother,[6][7][8] although Brody says he was raised "without a strong connection" to either Judaism or Christianity.[9]
As a child, Brody performed magic shows at children's birthday parties as "The Amazing Adrien".[10] He attended I.S. 145 Joseph Pulitzer Middle School and New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts. His parents enrolled him in acting classes to distance him from the dangerous children with whom he associated.[11] He attended summer camp at Long Lake Camp for the Arts in the Adirondacks in upstate New York.[12] Brody attended Stony Brook University before transferring to Queens College for a semester.
Career
editTaking acting classes as a child, by age thirteen, he appeared in an Off-Broadway play and a PBS television film.[13] After appearing in Bullet in 1996 with Tupac Shakur and Mickey Rourke, Brody hovered on the brink of stardom, receiving an Independent Spirit Award nomination for his role in the 1998 film Restaurant, and later praise for his roles in Spike Lee's Summer of Sam and Terrence Malick's The Thin Red Line.[14] One day, Roman Polanski watched Brody's performance in Harrison's Flowers (2000), and then Polanski decided to offer Brody the leading role of The Pianist (2002).[15] To prepare for the role, Brody withdrew for months, gave up his apartment and his car, broke up with his then-girlfriend,[13] and took piano lessons for four hours a day until he could master passages from some of Chopin's finest works. At 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) tall, he lost 30 pounds (14 kg), dropping him to 130 lb (59 kg). The role won him an Academy Award for Best Actor, making him, at age twenty-nine, the youngest actor ever to win the award, and, to date, the only winner under the age of thirty. He also won a César Award for his performance.[16]
Brody appeared on Saturday Night Live on May 10, 2003, his first TV work. During this appearance, he controversially gave an introduction for Jamaican reggae musical guest Sean Paul, while wearing faux dreadlocks and using a Jamaican accent. It was reported at the time that he had improvised the bit, causing him to be banned from Saturday Night Live, however, it was later revealed it was part of the dress rehearsal too.[17] Other TV appearances include NBC's The Today Show, and on MTV's Punk'd after being tricked by Ashton Kutcher.
After The Pianist, Brody appeared in four very different films. In Dummy (released in 2003, but originally shot in 2000, just prior to his work in The Pianist), he portrayed Steven Schoichet, a socially awkward aspiring ventriloquist in pursuit of a love interest (his employment counsellor). He learned ventriloquism and puppetry for the role (under the tutelage of actor/ventriloquist Alan Semok) convincingly enough to perform all of the voice stunts and puppet manipulation live on set in real time, with no subsequent post dubbing. He played Noah Percy, a mentally disabled young man, in the film The Village, by M. Night Shyamalan, shell-shocked war veteran Jack Starks in The Jacket, writer Jack Driscoll in the 2005 King Kong remake, and father-to-be Peter Whitman in The Darjeeling Limited by Wes Anderson. King Kong was both a critical and box office success—it grossed $550 million worldwide, and is Brody's most successful film to date, financially. He reprised his role voicing Driscoll in the video game adaptation of the film. Additionally, Brody played a detective in Hollywoodland. He has also appeared in Diet Coke and Schweppes commercials, as well as Tori Amos' music video for "A Sorta Fairytale".[18]
On January 5, 2006, Brody confirmed speculation that he was interested in playing the role of The Joker in 2008's The Dark Knight, and also met with director Christopher Nolan. However, Nolan and Warner Bros. decided instead to cast Heath Ledger in the role.[19][20] He was also in talks with Paramount to play Spock in J. J. Abrams' Star Trek, but it ultimately went to Zachary Quinto.[21][22] In 2009, he starred in Splice, a science-fiction film written and directed by Vincenzo Natali. Originally a Sundance film, Splice was adopted by Dark Castle Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros. In 2010, he played the star role of Royce in Predators (a sequel to the original Predator), directed by Nimród Antal and produced by Robert Rodriguez.[23]
In 2011, Brody starred in a Stella Artois beer ad called "Crying Jean" that premiered right after half-time of Super Bowl XLV as part of Stella's "She Is a Thing of Beauty" campaign. He appeared in Woody Allen's 2011 Academy Award-winning comedy, Midnight in Paris as Salvador Dalí.[24] On January 16, 2012, Brody made his debut as a runway model for Prada Men Fall/Winter 2012 show.[25]
In 2014, Brody collaborated again with Wes Anderson in the Academy Award-winning The Grand Budapest Hotel, where he played Dmitri. He received an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or in a Movie for portraying the title character in Houdini, a History miniseries. The same year, Brody was cast as the title role of Lee Tamahori's action epic Emperor, about a young woman seeking revenge for the execution of her father by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V,[26][27] opposite Sophie Cookson.[28] The movie was finished and screened at Cannes in 2017[29] but its release has been held up[update] by legal challenges.[30]
In 2015, he starred as Tiberius in the Chinese film Dragon Blade, which grossed $54.8 million in its opening week in China.[31] He also received the Cinema Vanguard award at the San Diego Film Festival the same year.[32]
In 2017, it was announced that he would join the cast of the fourth season of the BBC crime drama Peaky Blinders.[33] On August 4, 2017, he received the Leopard Club Award at the Locarno Festival.[34] The Leopard Club Award pays homage to a major film personality whose work has made a lasting impact on the collective imagination.
In 2019, Brody left Paradigm to sign with CAA Creative Artists Agency.[35]
In 2021, he received the Vanguard Award at SCAD's Savannah Film Festival.[36]
On April 11, 2023, it was announced that Brody would star in the lead role for Brady Corbet's The Brutalist, replacing Joel Edgerton in the lead role and joining an ensemble cast consisting of Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn, Jonathan Hyde, Emma Laird, and Peter Polycarpou.[37] It was also announced that the film would be co-produced by the US-based companies Andrew Lauren Productions and Yellow Bear along with the United Kingdom's Brookstreet and Intake Films, and Hungary's Proton Cinema,[37] and financed by Brookstreet UK, Yellow Bear, Lip Sync Productions, Richmond Pictures, Meyohas Studio, Carte Blanche, Cofiloisirs, and Parable Media.[37] CAA Media Finance handles US sales with Protagonist Pictures handling international sales.[37] Focus Features subsequently acquired international distribution rights to the film.[38] Brody's performance in the film as the Hungarian-Jewish Holocaust survivor László Tóth was critically acclaimed, with critics praising his subtlety and stating that it was one of his finest performances since The Pianist.
Brody appeared in a one-man stage play, The Fear of 13, written by Lindsey Ferrentino, at the Donmar Warehouse in London in October–November 2024. The play is based on the true story of Nick Yarris, an exonerated death-row inmate from Pennsylvania.[39][40]
Personal life
editIn 1992, Brody was seriously hurt in a motorcycle accident in which he was thrown over a car and crashed head-first into a crosswalk.[41] He spent months recuperating. He has broken his nose three times doing stunts, including during the filming of Summer of Sam.[42]
Brody began dating Spanish actress and model Elsa Pataky in 2006. For Pataky's 31st birthday in July 2007, Brody purchased for her a 19th-century farm in Central New York state that was remodeled to look like a castle. Brody and Pataky were featured at their New York home in a 35-page spread for HELLO! magazine in October 2008.[43] The pair broke up in 2009.[44]
In 2010, Brody sued makers of the film Giallo, alleging they failed to pay his full salary.[45][46] In January 2011 it was reported that Brody had reached a settlement with the producers. Brody stated, "I very much enjoyed the process of making Giallo and am happy that things have been resolved and that people can now enjoy seeing the film."[47]
In February 2020, it was reported that he was in a relationship with English fashion designer and actress Georgina Chapman, whom he began dating while she was still married to but in a formal separation from Harvey Weinstein.[48]
Performances
edit| † | Denotes works that have not yet been released |
Film
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | New York Stories | Mel | Segment: "Life Without Zoe" |
| 1991 | The Boy Who Cried Bitch | Eddie | |
| 1993 | King of the Hill | Lester Silverstone | |
| 1994 | Angels in the Outfield | Danny Hemmerling | |
| 1995 | Ten Benny | Ray Diglovanni | |
| 1996 | Bullet | Ruby Stein | |
| Solo | Dr. Bill Stewart | ||
| 1997 | The Last Time I Committed Suicide | Ben | |
| The Undertaker's Wedding | Mario Bellini | ||
| Six Ways to Sunday | Arnie Finklestein | ||
| 1998 | Restaurant | Chris Calloway | |
| The Thin Red Line | Cpl. Geoffrey Fife | ||
| 1999 | Summer of Sam | Richie Tringale | |
| Oxygen | Harry Houdini | ||
| Liberty Heights | Van Kurtzman | ||
| 2000 | Bread and Roses | Sam Shapiro | |
| Harrison's Flowers | Kyle Morris | ||
| 2001 | Love the Hard Way | Jack Grace | |
| The Affair of the Necklace | Count Nicolas De La Motte | ||
| 2002 | Dummy | Steven Schoichet | |
| The Pianist | Władysław Szpilman | ||
| 2003 | The Singing Detective | First Hood | |
| 2004 | The Village | Noah Percy | |
| 2005 | The Jacket | Jack Starks | |
| King Kong | Jack Driscoll | ||
| 2006 | Hollywoodland | Louis Simo | Also additional cinematographer |
| 2007 | The Darjeeling Limited | Peter Whitman | |
| 2008 | Manolete | Manolete | |
| The Brothers Bloom | Bloom | ||
| Cadillac Records | Leonard Chess | ||
| 2009 | Giallo | Inspector Enzo Lavia | Also producer |
| Splice | Clive Nicoli | ||
| Fantastic Mr. Fox | Rickity | Voice | |
| 2010 | High School | Edward "Psycho Ed" Highbaugh | |
| Predators | Royce | ||
| The Experiment | Travis Cacksmackberg | ||
| Wrecked | Man | Also executive producer | |
| 2011 | Detachment | Henry Barthes | Also executive producer |
| Midnight in Paris | Salvador Dalí | ||
| 2012 | Back to 1942 | Theodore White | |
| 2013 | Inappropriate Comedy | Flirty Harry | Also wrote additional dialogue |
| Third Person | Scott Lowry | ||
| 2014 | The Grand Budapest Hotel | Dmitri Desgoffe und Taxis | |
| American Heist | Frankie Kelly | Also executive producer | |
| 2015 | Dragon Blade | Tiberius | |
| Stone Barn Castle | — | Documentary; director, producer and composer | |
| Backtrack | Peter Bower | ||
| Septembers of Shiraz | Isaac Amin | Also executive producer | |
| 2016 | Manhattan Night | Porter Wren | Also producer |
| 2017 | Emperor | Charles V | Unreleased[49] |
| Bullet Head | Stacy | ||
| 2018 | Air Strike | Steve | |
| 2021 | Clean | Clean | Also co-writer, producer and composer |
| The French Dispatch | Julien Cadazio | ||
| 2022 | See How They Run | Leo Köpernick | |
| Blonde | Arthur Miller | ||
| 2023 | Manodrome | Dad Dan | |
| Ghosted | Leveque | ||
| Fool's Paradise | Chad Luxt | ||
| Asteroid City | Schubert Green | [50] | |
| 2024 | The Brutalist | László Tóth |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Home at Last | Billy | Television film |
| Annie McGuire | Lenny McGuire | Episode: "Annie and the Brooklyn Bridge" | |
| 1994 | Rebel Highway | Skinny | Episode: "Jailbreakers" |
| 1996 | Bullet Hearts | Chuckie Bragg | Pilot |
| 1999 | Split Screen | Harry | Episode: "Waiting for Star Wars" |
| 2003 | Saturday Night Live | Himself (host) | Episode: "Adrien Brody/Sean Paul, Wayne Wonder" |
| 2014 | Houdini | Harry Houdini | Miniseries; 2 episodes |
| 2015 | Breakthrough | Narrator | Episode: "Decoding the Brain"[51][52] |
| 2016 | Dice | Himself | Episode: "Ego" |
| 2017 | Peaky Blinders | Luca Changretta | 6 episodes |
| 2021 | Chapelwaite | Captain Charles Boone | 10 episodes |
| Succession | Josh Aaronson | 2 episodes | |
| 2022–2023 | Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty | Pat Riley | 15 episodes |
| 2023 | Poker Face | Sterling Frost Jr. | 2 episodes |
Stage
edit| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | The Fear of 13 | Nick Yarris | Donmar Warehouse |
Video games
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Peter Jackson's King Kong | Jack Driscoll | Voice; Spike Video Game Award for Best Cast |
Music videos
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "A Sorta Fairytale" | Tori's lover | |
| 2010 | "Brodyquest" | as himself |
Awards and nominations
editReferences
edit- ^ "Famous birthdays for April 14: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Loretta Lynn". United Press International. April 14, 2019. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
- ^ "Adrien Brody Biography (1973–)". FilmReference.com. Retrieved October 24, 2008.
- ^ "Interview: Adrien Brody, actor". The Scotsman. July 4, 2010. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
- ^ Goodman, Lanie (November 3, 2002). "Adrien Brody takes on Chopin, Polanski and the burden of history". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
- ^ Sugarman, Daniel (March 27, 2017). "Adrien Brody set to play a blinder in BBC series". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
- ^ Leslie Camhi (March 18, 2005). "An Autobiography in Pictures". The Jewish Daily Forward. New York City: forward.com. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Meyers, William (January 27, 2005). "Rescuing Beauty From History's Dark Corners". The New York Sun. Archived from the original on December 29, 2008. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Fox, Chloe (November 12, 2006). "The prime of Adrien Brody". The Guardian. Manchester. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Waxman, Sharon (January 2, 2003). "A Hunger Artist; Adrien Brody Gained Gravitas by Losing Weight To Play a Holocaust Survivor in 'The Pianist'". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 24, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Sylvia Plachy (December 31, 2002). "My Son the Oscar Contender". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on January 5, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ "About Adrien Brody". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
- ^ "Long Lake Theater Camp". LongLakeCamp.com. January 21, 2011. Archived from the original on February 25, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ a b Dotson Rader (July 25, 2004). "Adrien Brody: 'I Want To Succeed For The Right Reasons'". Parade. Archived from the original on May 28, 2011. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ "Adrien Brody biography". biography.com. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
- ^ "Adrien Brody on Winning the Oscar, Catching a Train with Wes Anderson, and Making Music With Popcorn". Variety. December 8, 2023. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
- ^ Grierson, Tim (March 7, 2023). "Best Actor Oscar-Winners Since 2000, Ranked Worst to Best". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
- ^ SNL
- ^ "Adrien Brody: Biography". TV Guide. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
- ^ Jett (January 7, 2006). "BOF News Archives 45: Update on Sequel Rumors". Batman-on-film.com. Archived from the original on July 25, 2008. Retrieved October 24, 2008.
- ^ Marshall, Rick. "Adrien Brody Almost Played Joker in 'The Dark Knight'". MTV News. Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
- ^ Pascale, Anthony (February 26, 2007). "Casting Rumor: Damon, Brody & Sinise for Kirk, Spock & McCoy". Trekmovie.com. Retrieved October 24, 2008.
- ^ RutheStein (May 17, 2009). "Adrien Brody tries comedy in 'Brothers Bloom'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Borys Kit and Jay A. Fernandez (October 7, 2009). "Adrien Brody to star in new take on "Predators"". Reuters. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Goldberg, Matt. "Midnight in Paris Review". collider.com. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
- ^ "Adrien Brody: Prada runway model". The Daily Telegraph. January 13, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Mitchell2012-02-13T07:41:00 00:00, Wendy. "Lee Tamahori signs on for Corsan's Emperor". Screen.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (May 19, 2014). "Cannes: Corsan Pairs Lee Tamahori With Adrien Brody For 'Emperor'".
- ^ McNary, Dave (August 18, 2014). "TORONTO: Sophie Cookson Starring Opposite Adrien Brody in 'Emperor'".
- ^ Rothe, E. Nina (July 10, 2014). "Discovering an Emperor With Adrien Brody and Lee Tamahori in Cannes". HuffPost.
- ^ "'Emperor' Producer Paul Breuls Arrested on Fraud Allegations". The Hollywood Reporter. July 5, 2017.
- ^ Frater, Patrick (February 24, 2015). "Jackie Chan's 'Dragon Blade' Scores $55 Million to Head China's New Year Box Office". Variety. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ Galuppo, Mia (September 8, 2015). "Geena Davis, Adrien Brody to be Feted at San Diego Film Festival". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (March 23, 2017). "Adrien Brody Joins 'Peaky Blinders' Season 4; First Story Elements Revealed". Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ "Ad Adrien Brody il Leopard Club Award 2017". locarnofestival.ch.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (November 4, 2019). "Adrien Brody Inks With CAA". Deadline Hollywood. Deadline.
- ^ "2021 Honored Guests". SCAD Savannah Film Festival. Archived from the original on March 27, 2022. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ a b c d Wiseman, Andreas (April 11, 2023). "Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn & Alessandro Nivola Among Cast Confirmed For Brady Corbet's 'The Brutalist', Filming Underway In Hungary". Deadline. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (February 17, 2024). "Focus Features Buys International Rights to Brady Corbet's 'The Brutalist,' Starring Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones". Variety. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- ^ McIntosh, Steven (June 24, 2024). "Oscar winner Brody set for first London stage role". BBC. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
- ^ "THE FEAR OF 13 by Lindsey Ferrentino". Donmar. Donmar Warehouse Projects. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
- ^ Carpenter, Susan (November 7, 2007). "Adrien Brody's other passion". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ "Adrien Brody". South African TV Authority. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ Hello (October 7, 2008). "Adrien and Spanish love Elsa share their 'dream castle' with HELLO!". Hello. Retrieved December 28, 2012.
- ^ Marcy (May 16, 2009). "Adrien Brody's Girlfriend leaves him for Olivier Martinez". Zimbio. Archived from the original on May 19, 2009. Retrieved December 28, 2012.
- ^ Anthony McCartney (September 24, 2010). "Adrien Brody: Suing 'Giallo' Filmmakers Was My Only Option". HuffPost. Retrieved December 18, 2012.
- ^ Novikov, Eugene (18 October 2010). "Adrien Brody Sues to Stop Release of Dario Argento's 'Giallo' - The Moviefone Blog". moviefone.com. Archived from the original on 12 November 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ Fleming, Mike (January 20, 2011). "Adrien Brody Settles Pay Dispute On 'Giallo' - Deadline.com". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 4, 2012.
- ^ Roberto, Melissa (March 4, 2020). "Harvey Weinstein's ex-wife was 'shocked and humiliated' by scandal, disgraced mogul 'disgusts' her: report". Fox News.
- ^ Roxborough, Scott (July 5, 2017). "'Emperor' Producer Paul Breuls Arrested on Fraud Allegations". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ Kit, Borys (August 13, 2021). "Rupert Friend, Jason Schwartzman Join Wes Anderson's Next Film (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 13, 2021. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
- ^ "National Geographic Channel Greenlights Second Season of Critically Acclaimed Series BREAKTHROUGH". Business Wire. July 25, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
- ^ "Jason Bateman, Adrien Brody Narrate Nat Geo's 'Breakthrough' With Brett Ratner, Akiva Goldsman". TheWrap. September 23, 2015. Retrieved May 24, 2017.
External links
edit
- Adrien Brody at IMDb