The American actor Michael Stuhlbarg, best known for his role as Professor Larry Gopnik in the dark comedy A Serious Man, directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and shot in 2009, has also starred in blockbusters such as Men in Black III and Hitchcock.
Michael Stuhlbarg Biography
Stuhlbarg was born on July 5, 1968, in Long Beach, California, the son of philanthropists Susan and Mort Stuhlbarg.
He became interested in acting at the age of 11 after he took part in the co-production Bye Bye Bye Birdie, where he was a member of the crew and choir team.
After high school, he completed two years of training at the University of California, Los Angeles’ School of Theater, Film, and Television before moving to the Juilliard School in New York, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1992.
Stuhlbarg further developed his talent by studying at the British American Drama Academy in Oxford and at the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain at the University of London. He also studied pantomime with Marcel Marceau.
Michael Stuhlbarg Career
Michael Stuhlbarg began his career first as a stage actor and appeared in several classical and modern dramas directed by the National Actors Theatre. He had his first stage appearance in Saint Joan where he played Charles VII of France, the year after he played the title role in Richard II.
For his role in the 1996 production of Long Day’s Journey into Night, directed by Eugene O’Neill, Stuhlbarg won the Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Actor in a major ensemble production. He has played the leading role in many other stage dramas, including George Bernard Shaw’s Saint Joan and Shakespeare’s Timon of Athens.
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The actor received a Tony nomination in 2005 for his outstanding portrayal of a mentally disabled man in Pillowman.
He made his first film appearance in 1998 in the drama Ein Preis über Rubine, in which he played the leading role alongside Renée Zellweger. In 1999 he played Ernst Ludwig (a German who turns out to be a Nazi during the production) in Studio 54’s Cabaret. In 2000 he played a double role in William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale.
He received positive recognition for his performance in Tom Stoppard’s The Invention of Love in 2001. Stuhlbarg played the lead role in several other films including Macbeth in Manhattan, Cold Souls, Body of Lies, Hugo, Men in Black III, Call Me By Your Name, The Shape of Water, and others.
His television films include Damages, Law and Order, The American Experience, Prey, The Hunley, Transparent, and most recently The Looming Tower.
Wife, Family
The actor of the serious man is seriously in love with his wife Mai-Linh Lofgren. The couple married in August 2013 and have remained together ever since.
Awards And Nominations
Stuhlbarg has made a name for himself in Hollywood and has been nominated for several awards and has won some too.
For his role in the 2009 movie A Serious Man he was nominated for the following awards
- Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor.
- Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.
- Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Cast.
- London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year.
- San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Ensemble.
In 2012, he was nominated for the Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Cast and San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble Performance for his role in Seven Psychopaths.
He was also nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture for playing Edward G. Robinson in the 2015 Motion Picture movie Trumbo.
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For his role in the 2016 movie, Call Me By Your Name, he got the following nominations
- Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor.
- Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Supporting Actor.
- San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor.
- Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor.
- Detroit Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor.
- National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor.
For The Shape Of Water directed by Guillermo del Toro, Stuhlbarg was nominated for the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor, and for his role in The Post directed by Steven Spielberg, he got nominated for the Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Acting Ensemble, National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor, San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble, Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble.
Awards won;
- Michael Stuhlbarg won the Independent Spirit Awards – Robert Altman Award.
- Santa Barbara International Film Festival – Virtuoso Award,
- San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Body of Work,
- Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or
- Comedy and Screen Actors Guild Award for his role in Boardwalk Empire.
