Alexander Draper Wolff (born November 1, 1997)
is an American actor and musician. He first gained recognition for starring alongside his older brother
Nat
Nat or NAT may refer to:
Computing
* Network address translation (NAT), in computer networking
Organizations
* National Actors Theatre, New York City, U.S.
* National AIDS trust, a British charity
* National Archives of Thailand
* National As ...
in the Nickelodeon musical comedy series ''
The Naked Brothers Band'' (2007–09), which was created by the boys' mother
Polly Draper
Polly Carey Draper (born June 15, 1955) is an American actress, writer, producer, and director. Draper has received several awards, including a Writers Guild of America Award (WGA), and is noted for speaking in a "trademark throaty voice." She ...
. Wolff and his brother released two soundtrack albums for the series, ''
The Naked Brothers Band'' and ''
I Don't Want to Go to School
''I Don't Want To Go To School'' is the second soundtrack album by The Naked Brothers Band, it was the soundtrack for the second season of The Naked Brothers Band. The album was released as a deluxe fanpack that includes a poster, lyrics and two ...
'', which were co-produced by their father
Michael Wolff. Subsequent to the conclusion of the Nickelodeon series, Wolff and his older brother formed a duo called
Nat & Alex Wolff
Nat and Alex Wolff are an American pop rock duo from New York, New York, consisting of brothers Nat and Alex Wolff. The siblings are known for their work on the Nickelodeon television series '' The Naked Brothers Band'', which was created and p ...
, and released the albums ''
Black Sheep
In the English language, black sheep is an idiom that describes a member of a group who is different from the rest, especially a family member who does not fit in. The term stems from sheep whose fleece is colored black rather than the more comm ...
'' (2011) and ''Public Places'' (2016). The brothers also co-starred in their mother's comedy-drama film ''
Stella's Last Weekend'' (2018).
Wolff focused his career on film roles, portraying
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
Dzhokhar "Jahar" Anzorovich Tsarnaev born July 22, 1993)russian: Джоха́р Анзо́рович Царна́ев, link=no ; ce, Царнаев Анзор-кIант ДжовхӀар o; ( Kyrgyz language, Kyrgyz: Жохар Анзор уу ...
in ''
Patriots Day'' (2016) and
John "Derf" Backderf in ''
My Friend Dahmer
''My Friend Dahmer'' is a 2012 graphic novel and memoir by artist John "Derf" Backderf about his teenage friendship with Jeffrey Dahmer, who later became a serial killer. The book evolved from a 24-page, self-published version by Backderf in 20 ...
'' (2017). His other acting roles include ''
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
''My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2'' is a 2016 American romantic comedy film directed by Kirk Jones and written by Nia Vardalos. The film stars Vardalos, John Corbett, Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine (in his final film role), Andrea Martin, Ian Gomez ...
'' (2016), ''
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle'' (2017), and ''
Hereditary
Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic inform ...
'' (2018). Wolff made his directorial debut with the drama film ''
The Cat and the Moon
''The Cat and the Moon'' is a 2019 American coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Alex Wolff, who stars alongside Mike Epps, Skyler Gisondo, Tommy Nelson, Patricia Pinto, and Stefania LaVie Owen. The film had its world premiere at the ...
'' (2019).
Personal life
Wolff was born in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, New York City,
to actress and writer
Polly Draper
Polly Carey Draper (born June 15, 1955) is an American actress, writer, producer, and director. Draper has received several awards, including a Writers Guild of America Award (WGA), and is noted for speaking in a "trademark throaty voice." She ...
and
jazz pianist
Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its inception, in both solo and ensemble settings. Its role is multifaceted due largely to the instru ...
Michael Wolff. He is the younger brother of actor and musician
Nat Wolff
Nathaniel Marvin Wolff (born December 17, 1994) is an American actor and musician. He gained recognition for composing the music for ''The Naked Brothers Band (TV series), The Naked Brothers Band'' (2007–2009), a Nickelodeon television serie ...
. His father is Jewish
and his mother is Christian.
Wolff is a maternal grandson of venture capitalist and civic leader
William Henry Draper III
William Henry Draper III (born January 1, 1928) is an American venture capitalist.
Early life
Draper was born on January 1, 1928, in White Plains, New York, the son of Katherine Louise (née Baum) and banker, general, and diplomat William Henry ...
,
a nephew of venture capitalist
Tim Draper
Timothy Cook Draper (born June 11, 1958) is an American venture capital investor, and founder of Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ), ,
a cousin of actress Jesse Draper,
[ and a great-grandson of banker and diplomat ]William Henry Draper Jr.
William Henry Draper Jr. (August 10, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American army officer, banker, government official, and diplomat.
Early life
William Henry Draper Jr., was born on August 10, 1894 in Harlem, New York City. His parents ...
Career
Wolff began his acting career at the age of 6 in the 2005 musical comedy film '' The Naked Brothers Band: The Movie'', written and directed by his mother. It was commissioned by Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
as the pilot to the television series '' The Naked Brothers Band'' (2007–2009) which was also created, produced, written and directed by his mother. He contributed lyrics, vocals, and instrumentation for both the film and series; their father produced and supervised the music. The show released two soundtrack albums and the song "Crazy Car" ranked #83 on the ''Billboard Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
'' charts.
In 2007, he portrayed the young boy in the Fall Out Boy
Fall Out Boy is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer A ...
music video "The Take Over, The Breaks Over
""The Take Over, the Breaks Over"" (rendered with quotation marks as part of its title on the album track listing) is a song by American rock band Fall Out Boy and the fourth single from their third studio album ''Infinity on High'' (2007). The ...
". Wolff made a cameo in the Nickelodeon TV movie '' Mr. Troop Mom'' and the USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
police-procedural, comedic television drama ''Monk
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
'', both in 2009. He also starred in his playwriting ''What Would Woody Do?'' at The Flea Theater
The Flea Theater, founded in 1996, is a theater in the TriBeCa section of New York City. It presents primarily new American theater and provides a venue for film stars to act on a very small (74-seat) stage, as well as a smaller black box theat ...
—which was directed by his mother—and the HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
medical drama ''In Treatment
''In Treatment'' is an American drama television series for HBO, produced and developed by Rodrigo Garcia, based on the Israeli series ''BeTipul'' ( he, בטיפול), created by Hagai Levi, Ori Sivan and Nir Bergman.
The series is about a ps ...
'', both in 2010. Wolff later appeared in the comedy film ''The Sitter
''The Sitter'' is a 2011 American dark comedy film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka. The film follows a slacker college student who, after being suspended, is forced by his mother to fill in for ...
'' (2011) and starred alongside Brendan Fraser
Brendan James Fraser ( ; born December 3, 1968) is an American-Canadian actor known for his leading roles in blockbusters, comedies, and dramatic films. Having graduated from the Cornish College of the Arts in 1990, he made his film debut in '' ...
in the independent film
An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...
''HairBrained'' (2012).
In 2015, he starred in the indie drama '' Coming Through the Rye''. In 2016, he had a supporting role in the comedy sequel ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
''My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2'' is a 2016 American romantic comedy film directed by Kirk Jones and written by Nia Vardalos. The film stars Vardalos, John Corbett, Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine (in his final film role), Andrea Martin, Ian Gomez ...
'' and played terrorist Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
Dzhokhar "Jahar" Anzorovich Tsarnaev born July 22, 1993)russian: Джоха́р Анзо́рович Царна́ев, link=no ; ce, Царнаев Анзор-кIант ДжовхӀар o; ( Kyrgyz language, Kyrgyz: Жохар Анзор уу ...
in the drama '' Patriots Day'', about the Boston Marathon bombing
The Boston Marathon bombing was a domestic terrorist attack that took place during the annual Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013. Two terrorists, brothers Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, planted two homemade pressure cooker bombs, w ...
.
In 2018, Wolff starred in the supernatural horror film ''Hereditary
Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic inform ...
''. He made his directorial debut with 2019's ''The Cat and the Moon
''The Cat and the Moon'' is a 2019 American coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Alex Wolff, who stars alongside Mike Epps, Skyler Gisondo, Tommy Nelson, Patricia Pinto, and Stefania LaVie Owen. The film had its world premiere at the ...
'', which he also wrote and starred in.
In 2020, Wolff participated in ''Acting for a Cause
''Acting for a Cause'' is a live read series of classic plays and screenplays created, produced, directed and hosted by Brando Crawford. The script is typically announced days before the event alongside a playbill featuring the cast and an anima ...
'', a live classic play and screenplay reading series, created, directed and produced by Brando Crawford. Wolff played Algernon in ''The Importance of Being Earnest
''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...
'' by Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is ...
and Warren Straub in ''This Is Our Youth
''This Is Our Youth'' is a play by American dramatist and screenwriter Kenneth Lonergan. It premiered Off-Broadway in 1996 and since been produced all over the world, including the West End, Broadway Sydney and Toronto.
Plot
The play takes pla ...
'' by Kenneth Lonergan
Kenneth Lonergan (born October 16, 1962) is an American film director, playwright, and screenwriter. He is the co-writer of the film ''Gangs of New York'' (2002), and wrote and directed '' You Can Count on Me'' (2000), ''Margaret'' (2011), and ' ...
. The reading raised funds for non-profit charities including Mount Sinai Medical Center
Mount Sinai Hospital, formerly at times known as Mount Sinai Medical Center, is a 319-bed major urban hospital in Chicago, Illinois, with its main campus located adjacent to Douglass Park at 15th Street and California Avenue on the city's West Si ...
. Wolff co-produced the second reading.
Awards
For Wolff's work on ''The Naked Brothers Band'' series and film, he obtained a Broadcast Music, Inc.
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is a performance rights organization in the United States. It collects blanket license fees from businesses that use music, entitling those businesses to play or sync any songs from BMI's repertoire of over 20.6 milli ...
Cable Award in 2007, Audience Award for a Family Feature Film at the Hamptons International Film Festival in 2005, and was nominated for a Young Artist Award
The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...
both in 2008 and 2009. He also received a Certificate of Outstanding Achievement for Best Actor at the Brooklyn International Film Festival for his lead role in the film ''HairBrained'' in 2013. On October 11, 2018, Wolff received the Auteur Award at the San Diego International Film Festival
The San Diego International Film Festival (SDIFF) is an independent film festival in San Diego, California produced by the non-profit San Diego Film Foundation. The main event has traditionally been held annually in the autumn at venues in the ...
.
He received a Canadian Screen Award
The Canadian Screen Awards (french: link=no, Les prix Écrans canadiens) are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media (web series) p ...
nomination for Best Actor at the 9th Canadian Screen Awards
The 9th annual Canadian Screen Awards were held in the week of May 17 to 20, 2021, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2020.Barry Hertz, "How one Canadian arts institution is rebuilding amid the p ...
in 2021, for his performance in the film ''Castle in the Ground
''Castle in the Ground'' is a 2019 Canadian-American drama film, written and directed by Joey Klein. The film explores a teenager's developing opioid addiction after the death of his terminally ill mother. It stars Alex Wolff, Imogen Poots, Tom ...
''.[Brent Furdyk]
"Canadian Screen Awards Announces 2021 Film Nominations"
''ET Canada
''ET Canada'' (previously referred to as ''Entertainment Tonight Canada'') is a Canadian entertainment news television series, using the same format as the American entertainment newsmagazine ''Entertainment Tonight''. ''ET Canada'' is a broadcas ...
'', March 30, 2021.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolff, Alex
1997 births
21st-century American male actors
Living people
American people of Jewish descent
American male child actors
American male drummers
American drummers
American male guitarists
American male film actors
American male television actors
The Naked Brothers Band members
American male singer-songwriters
Guitarists from New York City
21st-century American singers
21st-century American guitarists
21st-century American drummers
21st-century American male singers
Draper family
Singer-songwriters from New York (state)