Miles Teller is an American actor well known for his roles as pilot Lt. Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw in Top Gun: Maverick and jazz drummer Andrew Neiman in Whiplash.
Who is Miles Teller
Miles Teller was born February 20, 1987 in Downingtown, Pennsylvania to parents Michael, a nuclear power plant engineer, and Merry, a real estate agent. He has two older sisters, Erin and Dana. Miles’ ancestry includes English and Irish forebearers.
Teller gained recognition in 2010 after making his feature film debut. He was best known for his starring role in the 2013 coming-of-age film The Spectacular Now and the Divergent film trilogy (2014-2016). He showcased his versatility with roles in the 2014 Academy Award-winning drama Whiplash, which earned him wide acclaim. Thereafter, Teller starred in several films, including the Fantastic Four (2015), War Dogs (2016), Bleed for This (2016), and Thank You for Your Service among others.
Early Life and Education
Teller spent his early years in Delaware and Pennsylvania. At the age of twelve, his family moved to Citrus County, Florida. He enjoyed playing baseball and he taught himself guitar and drums. Teller’s passion for acting surfaced during his sophomore year at Lecanto High School. Initially drawn in by the “hot” drama teacher, Teller found himself thriving under her tutelage. He eventually became the president of his high school’s drama club, and played alto saxophone, guitar, piano, and drums.
After graduating from Lecanto High School in Lecanto, Florida, Teller attended the New York University Tisch School of the Arts where he studied screen acting with Stonestreet Studios and method acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, until earning his degree in 2009.
Car Accident and Scars
In 2007, Teller was a passenger in a car that lost control at 80 mph (130 km/hr). Teller and two friends were speeding home from a music festival when their car lost control and flipped eight times. The three were thrown more than 30 feet from the vehicle. As a result, Teller underwent several months of painful laser surgeries to smooth over the gashes on his face and neck. He has multiple scars on his face from the crash.
Career
After graduating from Tisch School of the Arts in 2009, Nicole Kidman handpicked Teller for a role in the 2010 film Rabbit Hole. Before then, Teller had appeared in several short films between 2004 and 2010. Teller starred in the 2011 remake of Footloose, the 2013 21 & Over, and The Spectacular Now, opposite Shailene Woodley.
Teller played a drummer who tries to impress his abusive jazz teacher J.K. Simmons in Damien Chazelle’s second film Whiplash (2014). The film earned him nominations for the BAFTA Rising Star Award, the Satellite Award for Best Actor, and the Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Actor.
Teller made several other feature film debuts in 2014 for playing Peter Hayes in Divergent. He also appeared in the film’s sequels, Insurgent (2015) and Allegiant (2016). In 2015, Teller was cast as Mister Fantastic in the reboot film Fantastic Four and as arms dealer David Packouz in War Dogs in 2016. He played the role of biopic boxer Vinny Paz in the film Bleed for This (2016), which he trained for 5 months to get in shape for the role.
Teller played in two biopic films; Only the Brave and Thank You for Your Service in 2017. In November 2020, Teller starred in a political satire called The Fence and played producer Albert S. Ruddy in the film The Godfather, which was temporarily halted due to COVID-19 concerns. Teller appeared in Taylor Swift’s music video “I Bet You Think About Me” directed by Blake Lively in November 2021.
In 2022, Teller starred in Top Gun: Maverick alongside Tom Cruise. In regard to the popularity and support, Teller stated that the experience regarding the film has “been awesome” and that “I’ve never really experienced something like this in my life.”
Personal Life
Teller has been dating model Keleigh Sperry since 2013 when the two met at a party for the Black Keys. Four years later, Teller proposed to her by way of a rose and a note tied to a tree while they were at the Molori Safari Lodge in the Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa, on August 20, 2017. They were married on September 1, 2019, in Maui, Hawaii.