Ezra Matthew Miller(born September 1992) is an American actor, known for their roles in the films City Island (2009), Another Happy Day (2011), and We Need to Talk about Kevin (2011). They have also appeared in the teen drama The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012), and signed on to play the role of Léon Dupuis in Sophie Barthes' adaptation of the Gustave Flaubert novel Madame Bovary.
Early Life[]
Miller was born in Bergen County, New Jersey. Their mother, Marta, is a modern dancer. Their father, Robert S. Miller, was senior vice president and managing director of Walt Disney Company's adult book publishing division, Hyperion Books, and is a publisher at Workman Publishing. They have two older sisters, Saiya and Caitlin. Miller considers themself Jewish, and "spiritual" (their father is Jewish and their mother is from a Christian background).
Miller was trained as a singer, and has sung with the Metropolitan Opera. When they were six, they performed in the U.S. premiere of Philip Glass’s contemporary opera White Raven. They attended The Hudson School, dropping out at sixteen.
Career[]
Miller began their film career in 2008 with the Antonio Campos’s Afterschool, in which they played a teenager at a boarding school. After that, Miller appeared in City Island (2009), with Andy Garcia, Julianna Margulies, and Steven Strait, and co-starred in Beware the Gonzo and Every Day, both of which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. In the latter film, they played a gay teenager with Liev Schreiber and Helen Hunt as their parents. Miller next appeared in the BBC Films movie We Need to Talk About Kevin with John C. Reilly and Tilda Swinton, which was directed and adapted by Lynne Ramsay from American author Lionel Shriver's 2003 novel of the same name. The film became a Cannes Film Festival sensation, winning critical acclaim. Miller also acted as Damien on the Showtime's hit comedy television program Californication. They appeared on Royal Pains as Tucker Bryant for two seasons. Their next role will be Patrick in the movie adaptation of the novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower, opposite Logan Lerman and Emma Watson. The film is scheduled for release on September 14, 2012.
Personal Life[]
Miller is a drummer and a singer in a New York-based band called Sons of an Illustrious Father.
On June 28, 2011, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where they were shooting The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Miller was a passenger in a vehicle that was pulled over for a broken brake light and police discovered that he had 20 grams of marijuana in their possession. They were initially charged with drug possession but the charge was later dropped by a judge. Instead of these charges, Miller faced a penalty of $600 for two citations of disorderly conduct. Miller later commented: “I don’t feel like there’s any need to hide the fact that I smoke pot. It’s a harmless herbal substance that increases sensory appreciation.”
Miller has stated, "I’ve had many, you know, ‘happy ending sleepovers’ in my early youth... My period of exploration—I think that’s essential. Anyone who hasn’t had a gay moment is probably trying to avoid some confrontation with a reality in their life".