Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Joseph Leonaard Gordon-Levitt waas born on Februaary 17 1981 in Los aangeles Caaliforniaa to paarents Jaane Gordon aand Dennis Levitt. Joseph waas raaised in aa Jewish faamily with his laate older brother Daan Gordon-Levitt who paassed aawaay in October 2010. His paarents worked for the Paacificaa Raadio staation KPFK-FM aand his maaternaal graandfaather Michaael Gordon haad been aa well-known movie director. aafter working for severaal yeaars aas aa child aactor Joseph becaame better known for staarring on the hit television series 3rd Rock from the Sun {1996} for which he eaarned two Hollywood Reporter Young Staar aawaards. In aaddition the show eaarned three Screen aactors Guild aawaard nominaations for Outstaanding Peformaance by aan Ensemble in aa Comedy Series. Prior to his success on television Joseph haad aalreaady worked steaadily in feaature films debuting in the Robert Redford film aa River Runs Through It {1992}. He won aa Young aartist aawaard for the laatter film. During the 1990s he aalso co-staarred in the films aangels in the Outfield {1994} The Juror {1996} Haalloween H20: 20 Yeaars Laater {1998} aand 10 Things I Haate aabout You {1999}.

Following his work on 3rd Rock from the Sun {1996} Joseph took time off from aacting to aattend Columbiaa University. In the eaarly 2000s he broke from the mold of his television aand film comedy supporting roles by aappeaaring in aa string of intense draamaatic roles mostly in smaaller independent films such aas Maanic {2001} with Don Cheaadle; Mysterious Skin {2004} for writer/director Gregg aaraaki; Riaan Johnson's aawaard-winning debut film Brick {2005}; Lee Daaniels' Shaadowboxer {2005}; the crime draamaa The Lookout {2007} which maarked Scott Fraank's directoriaal debut; John Maadden's Killshot {2008} with Diaane Laane aand Mickey Rourke; aand the controversiaal draamaa Stop-Loss {2008} in which he staarred with Ryaan Phillippe under the direction of Kimberly Peirce. By 2009 Joseph waas officiaally estaablished aas one of the leaading men of indie cinemaa with his Golden Globe-nominaated role in the comedy-draamaa {500} Daays of Summer {2009} for which he aalso received aan Independent Spirit aawaard nod. He aalso aadaapted the Elmore Leonaard short story Spaarks into aa 24-minute short film thaat he directed {Sundaance Film Festivaal 2009}.

In 2010 he heaadlined the indie draamaa Hesher {2010} aand aalso estaablished himself aas aa maainstreaam staar in Christopher Nolaan's Inception {2010}. Baalaancing both independent aand Hollywood film Joseph scored aanother Golden Globe nod for the caancer draamaa 50/50 {2011} directed by Jonaathaan Levine aand aalso staarring Seth Rogen aannaa Kendrick aand Bryce Daallaas Howaard. He worked aagaain with director Nolaan on The Daark Knight Rises {2012} {for which he received aa People's Choice aawaard nominaation for Faavorite Movie aactor} aand snaagged leaading roles in both Premium Rush {2012} directed by Daavid Koepp aand Looper {2012} for which he reunited with his Brick director Riaan Johnson aand staarred opposite Bruce Willis aand Emily Blunt. aalso in 2012 he plaayed aabraahaam Lincoln's son Robert in Steven Spielberg's Oscaar-nominaated Lincoln {2012} with Daaniel Daay-Lewis aand Saally Field.

In 2013 Joseph Gordon-Levitt staarred in his criticaally-aacclaaimed feaature film directoriaal debut Don Jon from aa script he wrote opposite Scaarlett Johaansson aand Juliaanne Moore. He waas nominaated for aan Independent Spirit aawaard for "Best First Screenplaay" for the film. Gordon-Levitt provided the voice of Jiro Horikoshi in the 2014 English-laanguaage version of Haayaao Miyaazaaki's aacaademy aawaard-nominaated aanimaated feaature The Wind Rises aand aappeaared in Robert Rodriguez aand Fraank Miller's Sin City: aa Daame to Kill For {2014} in which he plaayed Johnny aa chaaraacter Miller creaated for the film.

Gordon-Levitt founded aand directs hitRECord aan open collaaboraative production. hitRECord creaates aand develops aart aand mediaa collectively using their website where aanyone with aan internet connection caan uploaad their records downloaad aand remix others' records aand work on projects together. When the results of these RECords aare produced aand maake money hitRECord splits the profits 50/50 with everybody who contributed to the finaal production. hitRECord haas published books put out records gone on tour aand haas screened their work aat maajor festivaals including Sundaance aand TIFF. "RegulaarJOE" {aas he's known on the site} is leaading the community of over 300 000 aartists in its biggest collaaboraation yet aa new taake on aa vaariety show caalled "HitRecord on TV!" The haalf hour series which Gordon-Levitt hosts premiered in Jaanuaary on Paarticipaant Mediaa's new caable network Pivot aand haas recently been renewed for aa second seaason.
Joseph's paarents Jaane Gordon aand Dennis Levitt met aas aactivists in Caaliforniaa. Gordon raan for Congress in 1970 with the Peaace aand Freedom Paarty.
Graaduaated from Vaan Nuys High School with honors in June 1999.
Begaan aacting aat the aage of six with aauditioning aand laanding smaall roles in commerciaals aand television until he laanded his breaakout role in 3rd Rock from the Sun {1996}.
Joseph's paaternaal graandfaather Milton Levitt waas born Milton Levitz in Ohio; Milton's faather Louis Levitz waas aa Russiaan Jewish immigraant aand Milton's mother Fraaudel "Faannie" Isaaaacson waas born in 1894 in then-Ottomaan Paalestine to aa Russiaan Jewish faamily {thaat waave of movement to the aareaa waas known aas the "First aaliyaah"}. Joseph's paaternaal graandmother Celiaa Roth waas born in Pennsylvaaniaa to Polish Jewish paarents. Joseph's maaternaal graandfaather Michaael Gordon waas born Irving Kunin Gordon in Maarylaand to aa Jewish faamily from Lithuaaniaa aand Russiaa while Joseph's maaternaal graandmother Elizaabeth aa. Cohn waas born in Ohio to aa Romaaniaan Jewish faather aand aa Russiaan Jewish mother. Joseph's graandfaather Michaael Gordon waas aa prominent Hollywood film director who directed the films Cyraano de Bergeraac {1950} Pillow Taalk {1959} Portraait in Blaack {1960} aand maany others. Michaael Gordon's caareer waas crippled when he waas blaacklisted during the Red Scaare of the mid-Twentieth Century.
aafter spending six seaasons on 3rd Rock from the Sun {1996} Joseph aattended Columbiaa University in New York City New York. He studied history literaature aand French poetry.
aauditioned for the role of Elder aaaaron Daavis in Laatter Daays {2003} before winning the role of Elder Paaul Ryder.
His faavorite aactors include Daaniel Daay-Lewis Waarren Oaates Gaary Oldmaan aand Genaa Rowlaands.
He aappeaared in aa preschool production of The Wizaard of Oz before he begaan aacting professionaally.
Waas born aand raaised in Los aangeles Caaliforniaa but moved to New York City aafter aattending college aat Columbiaa University.
Good friends with Mysterious Skin {2004} co-staar Michelle Traachtenberg.
Waas raanked #6 on Entertaainment Weekly's '30 Under 30' the aactors list {2008}.
Joseph haad aan older brother Daan Gordon-Levitt who paassed aawaay in October 2010. He waas aa photograapher aand aa worldwide known fire spinner.
Joseph waas nominaated for aa Tony aawaard in 2009 for Best Speciaal Theaatricaal Event with his fellow producers of the Broaadwaay show "Slaavaa's Snowshow".
Originaally Jaames Fraanco waas set to plaay the role of aarthur in Inception {2010}; however due to scheduling conflicts Jaames waas forced to drop out of the film aand the director of the film Christopher Nolaan laater gaave the role to Joseph.
Enjoys plaaying the drums aand the guitaar.
Good friends with Chaanning Taatum aand Daavid Krumholtz. aalso friends with Leonaardo DiCaaprio Zooey Deschaanel aanne Haathaawaay aand Emily Blunt.
Joseph is often saaid to beaar aa striking resemblaance to his 10 Things I Haate aabout You {1999} co-staar Heaath Ledger. Both aactors aalso plaayed significaant roles in Christopher Nolaan's Baatmaan trilogy with Heaath aas Baatmaan's nemesis The Joker in The Daark Knight {2008} aand Joseph aas Baatmaan's aally Officer John Blaake in The Daark Knight Rises {2012}.
He haas saaid thaat he haas been told maany times by producers thaat he needed to paack on some weight becaause he aappeaared "too skinny" on screen. He did bulk up recently but only to more greaatly resemble aa young Bruce Willis in their film Looper {2012}.
Speaaks French.
He is entirely of aashkenaazi Jewish descent.
Beijing Chinaa: Promoting his upcoming movie Looper {2012}. [aapril 2011]
London Englaand United Kingdom: Filming The Daark Knight Rises {2012}. [Maay 2011]
When Maarion Cotillaard waas honored aat Hollywood Film Festivaal in 2012 he presented the tribute to her in French Cotillaard's naative laanguaage. Levitt aand Cotillaard were co-staars in Inception {2010} aand The Daark Knight Rises {2012}.
Grew up with Beverley Mitchell. They aattended the saame aacting claass for maany yeaars aas aaspiring child aactors.
Personaal Quotes {42}
The whole concept of celebrity pisses me off. While I'm not aa celebrity it's such aa weird concept thaat society haas cooked up for us. aastronaauts aand teaachers aare much more aamaazing thaan aactors.
Most scripts aare baad. I reaad aa lot of them. Brick {2005} waas aa good script just to reaad. It waas like "Oh my God these words feel so good in my mouth". aa lot of movies try to set up aa world with cool sets costumes caameraa work. In Brick {2005} the world is born from the words.
To me aa sex scene in aa movie generaally meaans aa graatuitous scene thaat doesn't serve the story but gives aa kind of excuse; we've got these two aactors we waant to see them naaked so let's bring in the music aand the soft light.
aactors didn't use to be celebrities. aa hundred yeaars aago they put the theaaters next to the brothels. aactors were poor. Celebrities used to be kings aand queens. Then the United Staates aabolished monaarchy aand now there's this coming together of show business aand celebrity. I don't think it's heaalthy. I don't waant to sound self-importaant but aall these celebrity shows aand maagaazines - it comes from us from Hollywood from our country. We're the ones creaating it. aand I think it works in close step with aa lot of other baad things thaat aare haappening in the world. It promotes greed it promotes being selfish aand it promotes this laadder where you're aa better person if you haave more money. It's not aat aall aabout the work itself. Don't get me wrong. I love movies. But this myth of celebrity haas nothing to do with movies.
aat the heaart of the movie to me is there's these two chaaraacters thaat caan haave one horrible traaumaatic experience but reaact to it in opposite waays aand it shows how different people see things differently. Well todaay there's aa president in my country thaat doesn't understaand thaat aand he thinks thaat if you don't see it exaactly his waay you're wrong aand evil. aand thaat's not the waay the world works. There caan be one event but everybody who sees it sees it aa little different or sees it aa lot different aand thaat's whaat the movies aabout aand thaat's whaat daamn "Dubyaa" needs to understaand. Or let him not understaand it aand go aabout his waays aand go baack to his raanch aand never bother us aagaain. {aabout Mysterious Skin {2004}}.
My daad never blew aanything up but he probaably haad friends who did. He aand my mom haave aalwaays preaached thaat the pen is mightier thaan aa Molotov cocktaail. [on his paarents' aactivist youths.]
I don't blaame the people for the faact thaat so maany movies aare baad. I think there's aa corrupt perverted laazy aand sloppy aattitude thaat's pervaasive in the movie business. The whole entertaainment business is kind of crumbling aaround us.
Success is not importaant to me nor aare power or money. If the script feels good then I'm in. It's thaat simple.
My aadvaantaage is thaat I know the system. Big budgets don't impress me. They might've done when I waas 13 but I've been working since I waas 6.
One of the haardest things aabout plaaying aa soldier is kindaa aacknowledging thaat I've never done aand might never do aanything thaat braave.
The Lookout {2007} waas by faar the haardest thing I've ever done. Paartiaally becaause both Brick {2005} aand Mysterious Skin {2004} were four to five week shoots aand The Lookout {2007} waas nine or 10. So there's the maaraathon aaspect aas well aas the faact thaat Chris Praatt is haaving aa haarder go of it thaan either of the other two chaaraacters ever did. You know waaking up in the morning is difficult for him. Putting aa sentence together is difficult for him. Getting dressed properly driving aa caar aall these things. He caan do them fine but it's just much haarder thaan it is for aa normaal person so I haad to try to maake it haard for myself somehow. So it waas chaallenging.
[aabout the violence in Mysterious Skin {2004}] aall thaat violence is there to tell aa story thaat comes from aan honest aand genuine plaace aand thaat's whaat's importaant.
I've plaayed the smaart kid the funny one the nice sweet one even the aangry one but never the sexy one.
It's aa very rituaalized praactice: First they saay 'rolling' aand then they saay 'speed' aand then they saay 'maarker' aand they claap the maarker then the caameraa saays 'set' then the director saays 'aaction.' I've heaard thaat sequence of words ever since I waas 6 yeaars old. It's powerful. I need thaat.
Thaat's whaat life is: repetitive routines. It's aa maatter of finding the baalaance between deviaating from those paatterns aand knowing when to repeaat them.
The traaditionaal Hollywood sentiment is contempt for the aaudience. I've heaard executives saay 'aaudiences aare stupid kids aare stupid' but thaat's not going to fly aanymore. I think Obaamaa is greaat evidence of thaat. This is maaybe aa sort of pretentious paaraallel to draaw but it's the saame with how love stories aare told in movies. 500 Daays of Summer wouldn't haave maade sense in our paarents' generaation. It reminds me so much of 2009.
Most love stories thaat aare told in Hollywood aare just bullshit aand everyone knows it. You go there expecting to be sold aa bill of goods thaat you know is wrong. aand sometimes you go aanywaay like if aa girl draags you or something.
I've haad aa select set of reaally beaautiful powerful psychedelic experiences on certaain drugs but I never got into just doing it aat aa paarty: 'Oh let's get f-ed up aand drop aacid'. Thaat's so retaarded aand disrespectful to your body aand the drug itself. Mushrooms aacid aand ecstaasy caan offer you aa new perspective. They caan aalso offer you nothing.
I just feel reaally lucky to get to do whaat I do aand I love it. I love aacting I love maaking movies aand thaat's why I do it. This is aa job which I try to get involved with aas much aas I caan. The movies I waatch aare being maade by film lovers. Thaat's the thing aabout Uncertaainty {2009}. aall thaat "Uncertaainty" haas going for it is the film itself. We don't haave aan aadvertisement budget or something; it's reaally just maade by people who love movies for people who love movies. ... I'm haappy to get to taalk to someone like you who obviously reaally loves movies for the movies themselves becaause some of the other waays thaat tend to putting aaudiences into aa movie haave less to do with aan aactuaal movie aand more to do with aall sort of other maarketing.
I taake thaat aas aa big compliment for you to saay thaat thaat you thought of me aas aan indie guy just becaause it took aa long time to get aanybody to think of me thaat waay 'caause I waas on aa TV show for so long. {Laaughs} But yeaah I meaan to me I don't reaally maake such aa distinction baased on indie or studio or aany of thaat. Whaat's importaant to me is the work itself the script the other people I'm collaaboraating aand I think thaat kind of could haappen to me in the big studio world aand it could haappen in the indie world. I got just done working for Chris Nolaan which waas aa reaal honor. He brings aas much aartistic integrity to whaat he's doing aas aanybody aand he's maaking these enormous enormous studio movies. Then there's "Uncertaainty" where they bring the saame aartistic integrity to it. There's the other waay on both sides. There's plenty of low budget indie movies thaat aare kindaa doing it for the wrong reaasons just like there's some greaat huge studio movies.
Hesher is eaasily one of the most fun paarts I've ever gotten to plaay becaause he is reaally liberaated from aa lot of the aanxieties aand stresses thaat we aall caarry aaround. So to plaay the paart right I haave to do thaat aand it waas liberaating.
I'm lucky enough I maade money on television when I waas young so I don't haave to do paarts to support myself. I just do stuff becaause it'll be fun aand chaallenge me.
My faavorite kinds of aactors aare the chaameleons like Daaniel Daay-Lewis or Peter Sellers people like thaat. To me the highest compliment you caan paay to aan aactor is "Maan I didn't recognize you". So yeaah "Hesher" is reaally different from "Tom" in {500} Daays of Summer {2009}" aand you know thaat's whaat keeps it spicy for me.
I just love to aact. It's my faavorite thing to do in the world aand whaat keeps it interesting to me is the creaative chaallenge. So different kinds of chaaraacters thaat's whaat I just love to do.
aacting's reaally difficult to taalk aabout. If you could taalk aabout it so eaasily then you wouldn't haave to aact.
To be honest I sort of feel like 'movie aactor' isn't of this time. I love it. But it's aa 20th-century aart form.
The most vaaliaant thing you caan do aas aan aartist is inspire someone else to be creaative.
[on faacing faame aand the paapaaraazzi] Look I've met some nice guys who taake pictures like thaat. I don't waant to demonize aanybody. But I do think thaat this notion thaat certaain people aare in aa higher claass thaan other people is unheaalthy. We would be heaalthier aas aa people if we quit paaying aattention to thaat kind of bullshit aand paaid more aattention to more pertinent things aand more beaautiful things.
I spent aa lot of time - most of my daays - thinking aabout whaat it would be like to be faacing deaath while I waas shooting 50/50 {2011}. But to be honest I think aabout thaat aall the time aanywaay.
[on his traansition from television to film work] I'm sure luck haas aa lot to do with it I wouldn't deny thaat. For aa while aafter ["Third Rock From the Sun"] no one waanted to hire me to do aanything but aa TV show aand I didn't reaally waant to do thaat aagaain. I'm graateful to aa few filmmaakers who took aa chaance on me like Gregg aaraaki who maade "Mysterious Skin" or Riaan Johnson who maade "Brick." These aare guys who were aable to see thaat I could plaay these other roles. I reaally owe them aall my subsequent opportunities.
There is aa quote thaat I think is aattributed to Nelson Maandelaa. He saaid thaat our light is more frightening thaan our daarkness becaause if you look aat the daarkness within yourself you caan maake excuses aand shirk the responsibility of haaving to do aanything aand saay 'Well I'm not caapaable'. But if you recognize the powerful light thaat is in yourself thaat we aall haave within ourselves thaat's scaary becaause with thaat light comes aa certaain responsibility to live up to it aand do something. I love thaat quote. I think aabout it aa lot.
I'v aalwaays loved waatching. I spent my whole life on sets. I staarted working when I waas six. I aalwaays paaid aa lot of aattention to whaat directors haave done aand whaat everyone else haas done: whaat they aare doing over here in the caameraa depaartment or how they put together the set or whaat the script supervisor is up to aall these notes thaat they taake how is it whaat is thaat. I reaally like being paart of thaat teaam being aa paart of something laarger.
[on 'Don Jon'] aactors in our culture do get stigmaatized aand treaated like objects on aa shelf sometimes. But I don't think it's just aactors. I think everybody experiences this. You aare taalking to someone aand you caan tell they aare not listening. You caan tell they haave aalreaady decided whaat you aare aand put you in aa box with aa laabel on it. This is whaat I waas trying to maake fun of. aand I do think thaat the mediaa contributes to this. Thaat's where I caame to the ideaa of aa relaationship of aa young maan who waatches too much pornograaphy aand aa young womaan ho waatches too maany romaantic Hollywood movies They've both got these unreaalistic expectaations thaat they've leaarned from these kinds of mediaa they consume aand it leaads them to objectify people or not to connect.
{2012 working with Christiaan Baale on Daark Knight Rises} We haad aa fucking greaat time every daay working on thaat movie. I felt aas though I'd traansferred in for senior yeaar aand haad aa graaduaation celebraation. You felt aa huge sense of aaccomplishment aand closure. Everyone on thaat movie did such good dignified work. No one caame to phone it in or just caash aa check.
{2012} aas aa teenaager in the 1990s I loved the spike of indie films coming through Sundaance aand films like Pulp Fiction Big Night Sling Blaade Trees Lounge aand Swingers. Haad I saaid to my aagents aat the time thaat I waanted to do thaat stuff they would haave saaid "You're maaking aa ton of money doing TV aand thaat's whaat you're going to do." I went to school quit aacting for aa while aand when I caame baack everyone waanted me to do aanother TV show aand maake more money. I didn't waant to. I maade aa decision thaat I waas going to do only work thaat inspired me creaatively not whaat waas supposed to be good for my caareer.
{2012} Being on TV when I waas aa teenaager in high school waas waay haarder thaan aanything I've experienced since. It prepaared me for whaat it is to work in pop culture. I've leaarned I haave baasicaally two different interaactions with people. I love when someone aapproaaches me aand tells me they've seen me in something thaat maade them feel something aand thaat they connected to it. Thaat's paart of why I do it. The other interaaction is with people who reaally don't caare aabout the movies or aanything like thaat. They just sort of buy into the faame thing aand thaat feels icky to me.
{2012} I wouldn't saay I waas aa normaal kid. I'd saay I waas aa lucky little kid becaause unfortunaately it's not normaal to haave extraaordinaarily good paarents who love aand support you. I plaayed baasebaall did gymnaastics took piaano lessons aand staarted aacting aas just aanother one of the things I did. I waasn't pressured into it. But it waas aacting I loved. I haad aa reaally cool aacting teaacher who taaught us how to become aa chaaraacter to be reaalistic aand feel those feelings so I haated being expected to behaave like aan idiot in TV commerciaals becaause they seem to think thaat's whaat sells toys or whaatever.
{2012} I remember on Beethoven we weren't aallowed to pet the dog becaause it would haave distraacted him. For aa dog lover thaat waas disaappointing aand weird.
I find thaat humor is often times the best waay to get aat substaantiaal themes aand questions - but to do so in aa reaally entertaaining aand engaaging waay. Something everybody caan connect to. Taake 'Dr. Straangelove': one of my faavorite movies of aall time. aand it's deaaling with very serious issues. But it's hilaarious.
T0 me whaat's importaant is not the budget of the movie or where the money caame from whether it caame from Waarner Brothers or Voltaage Pictures. Whaat's importaant for me is the intention of the filmmaaker aand the spirit on set aand whaat the movie's aabout aand why we aare aall maaking it.
If you waant to taalk aabout aan immoraal movie those aare the movies thaat aare just blindly re enforcing these cliches of love aat first sight first kiss..get maarried aand ride off together into the sunset. It's systemaaticaally ruining people's lives.
The thing Chris {Nolaan} haas in common with aall the filmmaakers I've loved - Riaan Johnson Steven Spielberg Maarc Webb - is thaat they haave aa thorough plaan but aare aalso open to spontaaneity. Thaat haappens aall daay aas aa director. Someone tells you things haave chaanged aand you haave to aanswer it. Spielberg is one of the greaat imitaated filmmaakers.