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IMDbPro

Ben Mendelsohn(I)

  • Actor
  • Producer
  • Script and Continuity Department
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 5,00081
Ben Mendelsohn
Ben Mendelsohn has made a name for himself playing villains in films like 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story', 'Animal Kingdom', and as Talos in 'Captain Marvel'. "No Small Parts" takes a look at his acting career, from his early days as a bumbling teenager to "bad guy" fame to his lead role in HBO's "The Outsider."
Play video3:26
Ben Mendelsohn of "The Outsider": "No Small Parts"
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Despite his prominence in Hollywood as a character actor known for playing villains and criminals, Ben Mendelsohn has been a leading man in Australia since starting acting as a teenager.

Paul Benjamin Mendelsohn was born in Melbourne, Australia, to Carole Ann (Ferguson), a nurse, and Frederick Arthur Oscar Mendelsohn, a medical researcher. Getting his start in television, including The Henderson Kids and the long running soap opera Neighbours, Mendelsohn broke out with his performance as an ill-fated juvenile delinquent in the acclaimed coming of age film The Year My Voice Broke. Mendelsohn won the best supporting actor award from the Australian Film Institute, his first of eight nominations.

Mendelsohn went onto to become one of the most popular teen/young adult stars in Australia cinema, often rivaling other emerging talents of his generation, including Russell Crowe, Noah Taylor, and Guy Pearce, leading the Australian tabloid to nickname them "the Mouse Pack" in reference to the Rat Pack in America and Brit Pack in the UK, emerging at the same time. Among his peers, Mendelsohn seemed to corner the market on troubled, angry young men, thanks to his roles in Idiot Box, Metal Skin, and Nirvana Street Murder. But Mendelsohn also proved he was capable of being a romantic lead, starring in the comedies The Big Steal, Cosi, Spotswood, and Amy.

In the 1990s, Mendelsohn appeared in just one "Hollywood" film, the action film Vertical Limit, as one of two daredevil climbers on a rescue mission, often providing the film's comic relief. The film failed to find an audience and Mendelsohn returned to Australia, where he primarily worked in theater and television, despite earning best actor nominations from the Australian Film Institute and Australian Film Critics Circle for the drama Mullet, as a prodigal son returning to his small town. He also took steps to work in more international films such as The New World, Knowing and Australia. Mendelsohn has acknowledged that there was a period of almost two years that he had so little work, he considered leaving the acting profession entirely.

In 2009, Mendelsohn experienced a bit of a comeback with the role in the independent Australian films Beautiful Kate, as troubled man forced to reunite with his dying father and come to terms with the death of his twin sister, with whom he had a complicated relationship. He was nominated for Australian Film Institute and Australian Film Critics Circle Best Actor in 2009. A year later, he appeared as Pope in Animal Kingdom, the most terrifying and violent member of a crime family. In 2010, he won Best Actor from the Australian Film Institute, Independent Film Award, and Australian Film Critics Circle.

Since 2010, Mendelsohn has become a major player in Hollywood as a character actor in both blockbuster films (The Dark Knight Rises) and critically acclaimed films such as Killing Them Softly and Place Beyond the Pines. In 2013 he appeared in the UK Starred Up, which earned him a Best Supporting Actor Award from the British Independent Film Awards. He received high praise for his performance as gambling addict in 2015's Mississippi Grind (earning an independent spirit award nomination for best actor). The same year he began a two season run on Netflix's Bloodline as Danny Rayburn, the black sheep in a well respected family in the Florida Keys (he was considered a guest actor in the third and final season). In 2016 his career took another leap forward, appearing as the main villain in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and winning the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. He missed the ceremony, as he was filming Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One.
BornApril 3, 1969
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornApril 3, 1969
IMDbProStarmeter
Top 5,00081
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
  • Won 1 Primetime Emmy

Photos270

Ben Mendelsohn in Secret Invasion (2023)
Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn
Ben Mendelsohn in Love My Way (2004)
Mare Winningham, Marc Menchaca, Ben Mendelsohn, and Julianne Nicholson in The Outsider (2020)
Marc Menchaca and Ben Mendelsohn in The Outsider (2020)
Ben Mendelsohn in The Outsider (2020)
Mare Winningham and Ben Mendelsohn in The Outsider (2020)
Ben Mendelsohn and Cynthia Erivo in The Outsider (2020)
Ben Mendelsohn and Yul Vazquez in The Outsider (2020)
Mare Winningham and Ben Mendelsohn in The Outsider (2020)
Claudia Karvan and Ben Mendelsohn in Love My Way (2004)
Ben Mendelsohn and Anna Torv in The Secret Life of Us (2001)

Known for

James Earl Jones, Forest Whitaker, Wen Jiang, Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Alan Tudyk, Donnie Yen, Riz Ahmed, and Abrey Steve in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
7.8
  • Orson Krennic
  • 2016
Joel Edgerton, Ben Mendelsohn, Jacki Weaver, and James Frecheville in Animal Kingdom (2010)
Animal Kingdom
7.3
  • Andrew 'Pope' Cody
  • 2010
Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Matthew Modine, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotillard, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
The Dark Knight Rises
8.4
  • Daggett
  • 2012
Steven Spielberg, Ben Mendelsohn, George Michael, Simon Pegg, Mark Rylance, Perdita Weeks, Kamara Benjamin Barnett, Mandy June Turpin, T.J. Miller, Lena Waithe, Stephen Mitchell, Neet Mohan, Win Morisaki, Elliot Barnes-Worrell, Kae Alexander, Sarah Sharman, Robert Gilbert, Raed Abbas, Letitia Wright, Tye Sheridan, Asan N'Jie, Hannah John-Kamen, Cara Theobold, Olivia Cooke, Alphonso Austin, Amy Clare Beales, Jane Leaney, Kathryn Wilder, and Philip Zhao in Ready Player One (2018)
Ready Player One
7.4
  • Sorrento
  • 2018

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actor

  • Misanthrope
    • Post-production
  • Freaky Tales
    • Post-production
  • The New Look
    • In Production
  • Squadron 42
    • In Production
  • The Marsh King's Daughter
    • Post-production
  • Secret Invasion
    • Post-production
  • Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett, and Kelvin Harrison Jr. in Cyrano (2021)
    Cyrano
  • The Outsider (2020)
    The Outsider
  • Ernie Hudson, Jeremy Crutchley, Ashley Johnson, and Owen Dennis in Infinity Train (2019)
    Infinity Train
    • (voice)
  • Will Smith, Rashida Jones, Ben Mendelsohn, DJ Khaled, Karen Gillan, and Tom Holland in Spies in Disguise (2019)
    Spies in Disguise
    • (voice)
  • Eliza Scanlen in Babyteeth (2019)
    Babyteeth
  • Timothée Chalamet in The King (2019)
    The King
  • Spider-Man: Far from Home (2019)
    Spider-Man: Far from Home
    • (uncredited)
  • Brie Larson in Captain Marvel (2019)
    Captain Marvel
  • Jamie Foxx, Ben Mendelsohn, Jamie Dornan, Eve Hewson, and Taron Egerton in Robin Hood (2018)
    Robin Hood
  • Ben Mendelsohn in The Land of Steady Habits (2018)
    The Land of Steady Habits
  • Billy Crystal, Ben Mendelsohn, Alice Eve, Jamie Dornan, Jemima Kirke, and Lola Kirke in Untogether (2018)
    Untogether
  • Steven Spielberg, Ben Mendelsohn, George Michael, Simon Pegg, Mark Rylance, Perdita Weeks, Kamara Benjamin Barnett, Mandy June Turpin, T.J. Miller, Lena Waithe, Stephen Mitchell, Neet Mohan, Win Morisaki, Elliot Barnes-Worrell, Kae Alexander, Sarah Sharman, Robert Gilbert, Raed Abbas, Letitia Wright, Tye Sheridan, Asan N'Jie, Hannah John-Kamen, Cara Theobold, Olivia Cooke, Alphonso Austin, Amy Clare Beales, Jane Leaney, Kathryn Wilder, and Philip Zhao in Ready Player One (2018)
    Ready Player One
  • Gary Oldman in Darkest Hour (2017)
    Darkest Hour
  • Sissy Spacek, Linda Cardellini, Norbert Leo Butz, and Kyle Chandler in Bloodline (2015)
    Bloodline
  • James Earl Jones, Forest Whitaker, Wen Jiang, Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Alan Tudyk, Donnie Yen, Riz Ahmed, and Abrey Steve in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
    Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Producer

  • The Outsider (2020)
    The Outsider
  • Sellebrity Sellection

Script and Continuity Department

  • He Died with a Felafel in His Hand (2001)
    He Died with a Felafel in His Hand

Videos102

Bowl Cuts, Wild Accents, & an Epic Mud Battle: What to Watch After 'The King'
Clip 4:17
Bowl Cuts, Wild Accents, & an Epic Mud Battle: What to Watch After 'The King'
MotherFlerken 'Captain Marvel' Credits Scenes Spoilers!
Clip 2:54
MotherFlerken 'Captain Marvel' Credits Scenes Spoilers!
IMDbrief: Kree, Skrull & Fury's Killer Kitty: 'Captain Marvel' Trailer Breakdown
Clip 2:40
IMDbrief: Kree, Skrull & Fury's Killer Kitty: 'Captain Marvel' Trailer Breakdown
Lost River
Clip 1:01
Lost River
Lost River
Clip 0:45
Lost River
Starred Up
Clip 1:11
Starred Up
Killing Them Softly
Clip 0:36
Killing Them Softly
Killing Them Softly
Clip 0:52
Killing Them Softly
Animal Kingdom
Clip 0:58
Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom
Clip 1:23
Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom
Clip 1:44
Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom
Clip 1:54
Animal Kingdom

Personal details

Edit
    • Twitter
    • April 3, 1969
    • Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
    • Emma ForrestJune 3, 2012 - December 2016 (divorced, 1 child)
    • (Sibling)
  • Other works
    Acted in the music video "Full Moon Dirty Hearts" (INXS) in 1993
  • Publicity listings
    • 6 Interviews
    • 1 Pictorial

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    A passionate animal lover, while filming Adore, he halted filming to make sure a stray cat made it across the street safely.
  • Quotes
    For me, it's very important to feel relaxed in the environment, so I will do things to ensure that occurs. And if there is someone vibing me out, I will either attack or flee.
    • Often plays arrogant, unlikeable and borderline sociopathic characters who are never as clever as they think they are

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