Michael Stuhlbarg
Introduction '''Michael Stuhlbarg''' ( ; born July 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known as a character actor having portrayed a variety of roles in film, television and theatre. He has received several awards including two Screen Actors Guild Awards as well as nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a Golden Globe Award.He rose to prominence as troubled university professor Larry Gopnik in the 2009 dark comedy film ''A Serious Man'', directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Stuhlbarg has since become known as a character actor and has appeared in numerous films and television series portraying real life figures, such as George Yeaman in ''Lincoln'' (2012), Lew Wasserman in ''Hitchcock'' (2012), Andy Hertzfeld in ''Steve Jobs'' (2015), Edward G. Robinson in ''Trumbo'' (2015), Abe Rosenthal in ''The Post'' (2017), and Stanley Edgar Hyman in ''Shirley'' (2020). His other supporting roles include ''Hugo'' (2011), ''Men in Black 3'' (2012), ''Blue Jasmine'' (2013), ''Pawn Sacrifice'' (2014), ''Arrival'' (2016), ''Call Me by Your Name'', and ''The Shape of Water'' (both 2017). He joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe appearing as Nicodemus West in ''Doctor Strange'' (2016) and ''Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness'' (2022).Stuhlbarg's most notable roles in television include his performances as Arnold Rothstein in HBO's ''Boardwalk Empire'' (2010–2013), Richard A. Clarke in ''The Looming Tower'' (2018), and Richard Sackler in ''Dopesick'' (2021), receiving Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie nominations for the latter two. His other television appearances include FX's ''Fargo'' (2017), Showtime's ''Your Honor'' (2020–2023), and HBO's ''The Staircase'' (2022). On stage, Stuhlbarg has acted in numerous productions including the 2005 debut of Martin McDonagh's ''The Pillowman'' on Broadway, for which he won a Drama Desk Award and received a Tony Award nomination.
Early life Stuhlbarg was born in Long Beach, California, the son of Susan and Mort Stuhlbarg, philanthropists. His father had been a salesman, becoming a successful manufacturer of security products. He was raised as a Reform Jew. He has said, "It's more of a spiritual resonance as opposed to particularly of Judaism." Stuhlbarg trained at The Juilliard School in New York City, where he was a member of the Drama Division's Group 21 (1988–1992). He graduated from Juilliard with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1992.Stuhlbarg also studied acting at the University of California, Los Angeles, the Vilnius Conservatory in Lithuania, the British American Drama Academy at Oxford, and the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain at the University of London. He also studied mime with Marcel Marceau. Stuhlbarg is married to Mai-Linh Lofgren.
Career ===1993–2005===Stuhlbarg began his career appearing in stage productions. In a 1993 production of ''Saint Joan'', Stuhlbarg portrayed Charles VII of France; however, UPI critic Frederick M. Winship thought that Stuhlbarg was miscast in the production. The following year, he portrayed the title character in a production of ''Richard II''. Writing for ''The New York Times'', theater critic David Richards dubbed Stuhlbarg a "promising young actor", yet felt his portrayal of Richard came across as a "blend of Rasputin and an odious rent collector is altogether unavoidable, but I'd like to believe it's not his fault." He starred in the two character play ''Old Wicked Songs'' throughout late 1995.For his role in the 1996 production of the Eugene O'Neill play ''Long Day's Journey into Night'', Stuhlbarg won the Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Actor in a large company production. In a 1997 production of ''Henry VIII'', Stuhlbarg played multiple roles, including Thomas Cranmer.Stuhlbarg made his film debut in the 1998 drama ''A Price Above Rubies'', which starred Renée Zellweger. In the 1999 Studio 54 production of the musical ''Cabaret'', Stuhlbarg played Ernst Ludwig, a German who in the course of the production is revealed to be a Nazi. Stuhlbarg played the dual role of both Time and Clown in a 2000 production of William Shakespeare's ''The Winter's Tale''; ''The New York Press'' critic Jonathan Kalb praised his "endearing stutter and hopping gait". In the Tim Blake Nelson-directed war drama ''The Grey Zone'' (2001), Stuhlbarg played a Jewish Hungarian who becomes a ''Sonderkommando'' in the Nazi Germany Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp. Stuhlbarg had previously appeared in the play of the same by Nelson in 1996.Following appearances in productions of ''Cymbeline'', ''Twelfth Night'', and ''The Persians'', Stuhlbarg gave a critically acclaimed performance in the 2005 Broadway production of the Martin McDonagh play ''The Pillowman''. He played Michal, a mentally damaged man who has suffered years of abuse from his parents, and gained 50 pounds for the role. Ben Brantley of ''The New York Times'' praised Stuhlbarg for "boldly and expertly" capturing "both the innocence and ugliness of Michal". Stuhlbarg won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play and received his first Tony Award nomination for his performance.===2006–2013===In 2006, Stuhlbarg appeared in the plays ''Measure for Pleasure'' and ''The Voysey Inheritance''. He played a recurring role on Aaron Sorkin's television series ''Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip'' from 2006 to 2007, which aired for one season. His first film appearance of 2008 was the independent drama ''Afterschool'', in which he played a "sanctimonious" high school principal and he had a one-line scene in Ridley Scott's ''Body of Lies'' as a lawyer. Also in 2008, Stuhlbarg portrayed Prince Hamlet in Oskar Eustis' production of William Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'' at the Delacorte Theater. In August of that year, Stuhlbarg was cast as the lead character in the Coen brothers film ''A Serious Man''. The dark comedy, in which he portrayed troubled Jewish university professor Larry Gopnik, was released in October 2009.In his review of the film, ''Chicago Sun-Times'' critic Roger Ebert felt that "Much of the success of ''A Serious Man'' comes from the way Michael Stuhlbarg plays the role. He doesn't play Gopnik as a sad-sack or a loser, a whiner or a depressive, but as a hopeful man who can't believe what's happening to him. He was nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his performance in the film. ''Cold Souls'', his other release of 2009, featured Stuhlbarg in a smaller role as a hedge fund consultant, and he also guest starred in the episode "There's No Place Like Mode" of the comedy series ''Ugly Betty''.Beginning in September 2010, Stuhlbarg portrayed organized crime boss Arnold Rothstein in Terence Winter's HBO crime drama series ''Boardwalk Empire''. The character was written off after the show's fourth season in 2013.Martin Scorsese directed the pilot episode of the show, after having previously directed Stuhlbarg in the short film ''The Key to Reserva'' (2007). In Scorsese's historical adventure film ''Hugo'' (2011), Stuhlbarg played René Tabard, a film historian. Stuhlbarg appeared in the science fiction comedy sequel ''Men in Black 3'' (2012) as Griffin, an alien with clairvoyant abilities who helps Agent J (played by Will Smith) and K (played by Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin) on their mission. The film's director, Barry Sonnenfeld, said that after seeing Stuhlbarg's script and notebook filled with "tiny scribbles, notes, diagrams" that “It made me suspect that perhaps I had actually cast an alien. To Michael, all his little notations made sense. To me, they were scary and indecipherable.” Later in the year, Stuhlbarg briefly appeared as a hitman alongside his ''Boardwalk Empire'' co-star Michael Pitt in the opening scene of Martin McDonagh's dark comedy ''Seven Psychopaths''. His third release of 2012 was the historical drama ''Lincoln'', directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Daniel Day-Lewis as President Abraham Lincoln. In the film, he portrayed Democratic Congressman George Yeaman, representative of Kentucky. The Alfred Hitchcock biopic ''Hitchcock'' was his final release of the year, with Stuhlbarg portraying talent agent and studio executive Lew Wasserman. In Woody Allen's comedy-drama ''Blue Jasmine'' (2013), starring Cate Blanchett, Stuhlbarg appeared as a dentist who makes unwanted sexual advances to Blanchett's character.===2014–present===30th Artios Awards in 2016Stuhlbarg played chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer's manager, Paul Marshall, in the 2014 film ''Pawn Sacrifice'', starring Tobey Maguire as Fischer. In Danny Boyle's 2015 ''Steve Jobs'' biopic, Stuhlbarg portrayed computer scientist Andy Hertzfeld, who was a member of the original Mac team. He appeared in two more biographical films in that year – ''Trumbo'', based on the life of screenwriter Dalton Trumbo (played by Bryan Cranston), featured Stuhlbarg portraying actor Edward G. Robinson, who was accused of having ties to the Communist Party during the Hollywood blacklist, and Stuhlbarg played a supporting role in Don Cheadle's ''Miles Ahead'', based on the life of Miles Davis. Stuhlbarg played a CIA agent in the science fiction drama ''Arrival'' (2016), appearing alongside Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Forest Whitaker as they attempt to translate communications from an extraterrestrial craft. In the same month, Stuhlbarg played Nicodemus West, colleague and rival to the titular character (played by Benedict Cumberbatch) in the superhero film ''Doctor Strange''. In his final release of the year, the political thriller ''Miss Sloane'', Stuhlbarg featured as an Irish lobbying firm head battling against gun control. Brian Truitt of ''USA Today'' praised his "superb" performance and declared him "One of the best in Hollywood right now".In the third season of the crime anthology television series ''Fargo'', Stuhlbarg played Sy Feltz, loyal and dedicated business partner to Ewan McGregor's character Emmit Stussy. The season premiered in April 2017.In November, Stuhlbarg co-starred as Samuel Perlman, an archaeology professor, whose son Elio (played by Timothée Chalamet) develops a relationship with his father's assistant (played by Armie Hammer), in the romantic drama ''Call Me by Your Name''. Stuhlbarg was moved by Perlman's "sense of generosity and love and understanding" and director Luca Guadagnino said he cast Stuhlbarg because he wanted "someone who could carry a sort of softness and warmth and at the same time communicate a great knowledge and great culture". Perlman's consoling speech given to his son in the film was described by ''Huffington Post'' writer Nell Minow as being "one of the most moving scenes ever filmed." For Guillermo del Toro's fantasy drama ''The Shape of Water'', released in December 2017 to critical and box office success, Stuhlbarg was required to speak Russian to play Dr. Robert Hoffstetler, a Soviet spy. His final performance of 2017 and second release of December, was as ''The New York Times'' executive editor A. M. Rosenthal, in Steven Spielberg's political thriller ''The Post'', which starred Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep and depicts the publishing of the ''Pentagon Papers'' by journalists from ''The Washington Post'' and ''The Times''. With his performances in ''Call Me By Your Name'', ''The Shape of Water'', and ''The Post'', he became the sixth actor to appear in three films nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture in the same year.Stuhlbarg was due to appear as Gore Vidal's domestic partner Howard Austen in the biopic ''Gore'', starring Kevin Spacey as Vidal, but the film was withdrawn from release during post-production amid ongoing sexual misconduct allegations against Spacey. He appeared in the 2018 miniseries ''The Looming Tower'' as counter-terrorism czar Richard A. Clarke, for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. He received a second Primetime Emmy Award nomination for his role as Richard Sackler in the 2021 miniseries ''Dopesick''. In the television series ''Your Honor'' (2020–2023), Stuhlbarg played Jimmy Baxter, the mob boss of a prominent organized crime family in the city of New Orleans. In 2024 Stuhlbarg will return to Broadway portraying Boris Berezovsky in the transfer of Peter Morgan's play ''Patriot'' at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre starting in April.
Filmography +Key Denotes works that have not yet been released===Film=== Year Title Role Director Notes 1998 '''' Young Hassid Boaz Yakin 2001 '''' Cohen Tim Blake Nelson2008 ''Afterschool'' Mr. Burke Antonio Campos ''Body of Lies'' Ferris' Attorney Ridley Scott2009 ''Cold Souls'' Hedge Fund Consultant Sophie Barthes '''' Larry Gopnik Coen Brothers 2011 ''Hugo'' Prof. René Tabard Martin Scorsese2012 ''Men in Black 3'' Griffin Barry Sonnenfeld ''Seven Psychopaths'' Tommy Martin McDonagh ''Lincoln'' George Yeaman Steven Spielberg ''Hitchcock'' Lew Wasserman Sacha Gervasi 2013 ''Blue Jasmine'' Dr. Flicker Woody Allen2014 ''Cut Bank'' Derby Milton Matt Shakman ''Pawn Sacrifice'' Paul Marshall Edward Zwick2015 ''Steve Jobs'' Andy Hertzfeld Danny Boyle ''Trumbo'' Edward G. Robinson Jay Roach ''Miles Ahead'' Harper Hamilton Don Cheadle2016 ''Arrival'' Agent Halpern Denis Villeneuve ''Doctor Strange'' Nicodemus West Scott Derrickson ''Miss Sloane'' Pat Connors John Madden2017 ''Call Me by Your Name'' Prof. Samuel Perlman Luca Guadagnino ''The Shape of Water'' Dr. Robert Hoffstetler/Dimitri Mosenkov Guillermo del Toro ''The Post'' Abe Rosenthal Steven Spielberg2020 ''Shirley'' Stanley Edgar Hyman Josephine Decker ''Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams'' Narrator (voice) Luca Guadagnino Documentary 2021 ''Beckett'' Robert "Bob" Hanson Ferdinando Cito Filomarino2022''Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness''  Nicodemus West Sam Raimi ''Bones and All'' Jake Luca Guadagnino  ''The Instigators''  Doug Liman Post-production===Television=== Year Title Role Notes 1999 ''The Hunley'' Wicks Television film 2006 ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' Marcel Costas 1 episode 2006–2007 ''Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip'' Jerry 2 episodes 2006–2010 '''' Various Characters 4 episodes 2007 ''Damages'' Dr. Bernard Herschenfeld 1 episode 2008 ''Law & Order'' Timothy Pace 1 episode 2009 ''Ugly Betty'' Heinrich 1 episode 2010–2013 ''Boardwalk Empire'' Arnold Rothstein Main role, 32 episodes 2015–2016 ''Transparent'' Chaim 2 episodes 2017 ''Fargo'' Sy Feltz Recurring role, 9 episodes 2018 ''The Looming Tower'' Richard Clarke Miniseries, 8 episodes 2019 ''Traitors'' Rowe Miniseries, 5 episodes 2020–2023 ''Your Honor'' Jimmy Baxter Main role, 20 episodes 2021 ''Dopesick'' Richard Sackler Miniseries, 8 episodes 2022 ''The Staircase'' David Rudolf Miniseries, 8 episodes===Theater=== Year Title Role Notes 1992 ''Woyzeck'' Barker / Soldier / Apprentice The Public Theatre, off-Broadway 1993 ''All's Well That Ends Well'' Gentleman Delacorte Theatre, off-Broadway 1993 ''Saint Joan'' Dauphin, Charles VII Lyceum Theatre, Broadway 1993 ''Three Men on a Horse'' Al / Radio Announcer Lyceum Theatre, Broadway 1993 ''Timon of Athens'' The Old Athenian / Bandit Lyceum Theatre, Broadway 1993–1994 ''The Government Inspector'' Ivan Shpekin Lyceum Theatre, Broadway 1994''Richard II''King Richard IIAnspacher Theater, off-Broadway 1995 ''Old Wicked Songs'' Stephen Hoffman Playhouse 91, off-Broadway1996''The Grey Zone''HoffmanMCC Theater, off-Broadway 1996 ''Taking Sides'' Lieutenant David Wills Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway 1997 ''Henry VIII'' Surveyor for Buckingham / Cranmer /Archbishop of Canterbury Delacorte Theatre, off-Broadway 1997 ''The Dybbuk'' Khonen The Public Theatre, off-Broadway 1999 ''Cabaret'' Ernst Ludwig Studio 54, Broadway 2000 ''The Winter's Tale'' Time / Clown Delacorte Theatre, off-Broadway 2001 ''The Invention of Love'' Alfred W. Pollard Lyceum Theatre, Broadway 2002 ''Cymbeline'' Posthumus Leonatus Lucille Lortel Theatre, off-Broadway 2002 ''Twelfth Night'' Sir Andrew Aguecheek Delacorte Theatre, off-Broadway 2003 ''The Persians'' Xerxes I National Actors Theatre, off-Broadway 2004 ''The Mysteries'' Jesus/Issac/Lucifer CSC Theatre, off-Broadway 2004–2005 ''Belle Epoque'' Francois Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre, off-Broadway 2005 ''The Pillowman'' Michal Booth Theatre, Broadway 2006 ''Measure for Pleasure'' Will Blunt Anspacher Theatre, off-Broadway 2006 ''The Voysey Inheritance'' Edward Voysey Linda Gross Theatre, off-Broadway 2008 ''Hamlet'' Hamlet Delacorte Theatre, off-Broadway 2019 ''Socrates'' Socrates The Public Theater, off-Broadway2024''Patriots''Boris BerezovskyEthel Barrymore Theatre, Broadway
Awards and nominations
References
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