Oliver Cooper (born December 2, 1989) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Costa in the 2012 comedy film '' Project X'', as Levon on the comedy-drama series ''

Californication Californication may refer to: *Californication (word) ''Californication'' is a portmanteau of California and fornication, appearing in ''Time'' on May 6, 1966 and written about on August 21, 1972, additionally seen on bumper stickers in the U.S. ...

'', as Wheeler on the cult

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

series ''

Red Oaks The genus ''Quercus'' contains about 500 species, some of which are listed here. The genus, as is the case with many large genera, is divided into subgenera and sections. Traditionally, the genus ''Quercus'' was divided into the two subgenera ''C ...

'' and as

David Berkowitz David Richard Berkowitz (born Richard David Falco, June 1, 1953), also known as the Son of Sam and .44 Caliber Killer, is an American serial killer who pleaded guilty to eight shootings that began in New York City on July 29, 1976. Berkowitz ...

(a.k.a. "

The Son of Sam David Richard Berkowitz (born Richard David Falco, June 1, 1953), also known as the Son of Sam and .44 Caliber Killer, is an American serial killer who pleaded guilty to eight shootings that began in New York City on July 29, 1976. Berkowitz ...

") on the critically-acclaimed

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

series '' Mindhunter''.

Early life

Cooper was born in Sylvania Township, Ohio, where he attended Sylvania Northview High School. He grew up with his parents, Wendy and Mike, and two older siblings, a brother (Jason) and a sister (Nikki). At age 17, Cooper performed stand up comedy in

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

. After high school, he attended

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

for one year. He then dropped out of college to pursue his acting career in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Cooper is

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Career

At the age of 20, Cooper was offered one of the lead roles in the film '' Project X.'' He,

Thomas Mann Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novella ...

and

Jonathan Daniel Brown Jonathan Daniel Brown is an American actor and director. He is the star of ''Kid Cannabis'' and got his start with the role of J. B. in '' Project X''. Career Brown was offered one of the lead roles in the film '' Project X'' after a national op ...

were three unknown actors when cast in the film. However, Mann had a role in the indie film ''

It's Kind of a Funny Story ''It's Kind of a Funny Story'' is a 2006 novel by American author Ned Vizzini. The book was inspired by Vizzini's own brief hospitalization for depression in November 2004. Ned Vizzini later died by suicide on December 19, 2013. The book recei ...

.'' Cooper got the audition because of his friend,

Shaun Weiss Shaun Herman Weiss (born August 27, 1978) is an American actor, well known for his roles in '' The Mighty Ducks'' movies. Early life Weiss was born and raised in Montvale, New Jersey, and attended Pascack Hills High School. He is of Jewish de ...

. In addition, for his role in ''Project X'', he was nominated for two MTV awards. In 2013, he appeared in the film '' Runner, Runner''. In 2019 he appeared in the second season of the Netflix series ''Mindhunter'' as serial killer

Personal life

Cooper's inspirations are

Bill Murray William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his deadpan delivery. He rose to fame on ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' (1973–1974) before becoming a national presence on ''Saturday Nigh ...

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

and

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, an ...

. Cooper lived with his aunt and her four dogs in Encino when he moved to LA. Cooper is 5’7”.

Filmography

Film

Television

Web series

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Oliver Living people 20th-century American Jews American male film actors 21st-century American Jews Jewish American male actors Male actors from Toledo, Ohio 1989 births 21st-century American actors Male actors from Ohio