Alex Wolff

This article is about the actor. For Alex Woolf, the medieval historian, see Alex Woolf. For the sportswriter, see Alexander Wolff.

Alex Wolff
Wolff in 2019
Born
Alexander Draper Wolff

(1997-11-01) November 1, 1997 (age 27)
New York City, U.S.
Occupations
  • Actor
  • musician
Years active2005–present
Parents
Relatives
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • drums
  • guitar
  • keyboards
Labels
Member ofNat & Alex Wolff
Formerly ofThe Naked Brothers Band

Alexander Draper Wolff (born November 1, 1997)[1] is an American actor and musician. He first gained recognition for starring alongside his older brother Nat in the Nickelodeon musical comedy series The Naked Brothers Band (2007–2009), which was created by the boys' mother Polly Draper. Wolff and his brother released two soundtrack albums for the series, The Naked Brothers Band and I Don't Want to Go to School, which were co-produced by their father Michael Wolff. After the series ended, the brothers formed a duo called Nat & Alex Wolff, and released the albums Black Sheep (2011), Public Places (2016) and Table for Two (2023).

Wolff focused his career on film roles, portraying Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in Patriots Day (2016) and John "Derf" Backderf in My Friend Dahmer (2017). He made his directorial debut with the drama film The Cat and the Moon (2019). His other acting roles include My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016), Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017), Hereditary (2018), Pig (2021), Old (2021), and A Quiet Place: Day One (2024).

Early and personal life

Wolff was born in Manhattan, New York City,[1] to actress and writer Polly Draper and jazz pianist Michael Wolff. He is the younger brother of actor and musician Nat Wolff. His father is Jewish[2][3][4] and his mother is Christian.[5] Wolff is a maternal grandson of venture capitalist and civic leader William Henry Draper III,[6] a nephew of venture capitalist Tim Draper,[7] a cousin of actress Jesse Draper,[8] and a great-grandson of banker and diplomat William Henry Draper Jr.[9][10]

Wolff has Tourette's syndrome, which he inherited from his father.[11]

Career

Wolff began his acting career at the age of 6 in the 2005 musical comedy film The Naked Brothers Band: The Movie, written and directed by his mother. It was commissioned by Nickelodeon as the pilot to the television series The Naked Brothers Band (2007–2009) which was also created, showran, written and directed by his mother.[8][12] He contributed lyrics, vocals, and instrumentation for both the film and series; their father produced and supervised the music. The show released two soundtrack albums and the song "Crazy Car" ranked #83 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

In 2007, he portrayed the young boy in the Fall Out Boy music video "The Take Over, the Breaks Over". Wolff made a cameo in the Nickelodeon TV movie Mr. Troop Mom and the USA police-procedural, comedic television drama Monk, both in 2009. He also starred in his playwriting What Would Woody Do? at The Flea Theater—which was directed by his mother—and the HBO medical drama In Treatment, both in 2010. Wolff later appeared in the comedy film The Sitter (2011) and starred alongside Brendan Fraser in the independent film HairBrained (2012).[13]

In 2015, he starred in the indie drama Coming Through the Rye. In 2016, he had a supporting role in the comedy sequel My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 and played terrorist Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in the drama Patriots Day, about the Boston Marathon bombing.

In 2018, Wolff starred in the supernatural horror film Hereditary. He made his directorial debut with 2019's The Cat and the Moon, which he also wrote and starred in.[14]

In 2020, Wolff participated in Acting for a Cause, a live classic play and screenplay reading series, created, directed and produced by Brando Crawford. Wolff played Algernon in The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde and Warren Straub in This Is Our Youth by Kenneth Lonergan. The reading raised funds for non-profit charities including Mount Sinai Medical Center. Wolff co-produced the second reading.[15][16]

Awards

For Wolff's work on The Naked Brothers Band series and film, he obtained a Broadcast Music, Inc. Cable Award in 2007, Audience Award for a Family Feature Film at the Hamptons International Film Festival in 2005,[17] and was nominated for a Young Artist Award both in 2008 and 2009.[18][19] He also received a Certificate of Outstanding Achievement for Best Actor at the Brooklyn International Film Festival for his lead role in the film HairBrained in 2013.[20] On October 11, 2018, Wolff received the Auteur Award at the San Diego International Film Festival.[21]

He received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Actor at the 9th Canadian Screen Awards in 2021, for his performance in the film Castle in the Ground.[22]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2005 The Naked Brothers Band: The Movie Alex Wolff
2011 From Up on Poppy Hill Riku Matsuzaki (voice) English dub
The Sitter Clayton
2012 The Empty Room Allen Short film
2013 A Birder's Guide to Everything Timmy Barsky
Hair Brained Eli Pettifog
2015 Coming Through the Rye Jamie Schwartz
Boots Noah Short film
2016 My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 Bennett
The Standoff Zane
Patriots Day Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
2017 Thoroughbreds Party Friend Uncredited
The House of Tomorrow Jared Whitcomb
My Friend Dahmer John 'Derf' Backderf
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle Spencer Gilpin
2018 Hereditary Peter Graham
Dude Noah
Stella's Last Weekend Oliver
2019 The Cat and the Moon Nick Also writer and director
Castle in the Ground Henry Fine
Bad Education Nick Fleishman
Human Capital Ian
Jumanji: The Next Level Spencer Gilpin
2021 Pig Amir
Old Trent Cappa
2022 Susie Searches Jesse
2023 A Good Person Mark
The Line Tom Backster
Oppenheimer Luis Walter Alvarez
2024 A Quiet Place: Day One Reuben
2025 Magic Farm Completed

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2007–2009 The Naked Brothers Band Alex Wolff Main cast
2009 Mr. Troop Mom Alex Wolff Television film
Monk Brian Willis Episode: "Mr. Monk Goes Camping"
2010 In Treatment Max Weston 7 episodes
2016 Divorce Cole 2 episodes
2017 Red Oaks Director Episode: "Summer in the City"
Crash & Burn Gabriel Television film
2020 Acting for a Cause Algernon / Warren Straub 2 episodes
2024 So Long, Marianne Leonard Cohen [23]

Music videos

Year Song Artist Role
2024 "Lithonia" Childish Gambino Drummer

References

  1. ^ a b "Alex Wolff: Biography". TVGuide.com. Archived from the original on April 1, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  2. ^ Seidel, Mitchell (September 1, 2007). "Michael Wolff". JazzTimes. Archived from the original on June 17, 2018. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  3. ^ "Celebrity Jews". J. The Jewish News of Northern California. May 18, 2007. Archived from the original on May 13, 2018. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  4. ^ Smason, Alan (March 8, 2013). "Jeff Berlin to Join Wolff and Clark Expedition Here". Crescent City Jewish News. Archived from the original on June 17, 2018. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  5. ^ Smason, Alan (November 2, 2006). "Cleveland Set to Enjoy Smooth Jazz Stylings of Michael Wolff". Cleveland Jewish News. Archived from the original on January 16, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2007.
  6. ^ Europa Publications (2003). The International Who's Who 2004. Routledge. p. 454. ISBN 1857432177.
  7. ^ Saracevic, Al (January 26, 2007). "The Technology Chronicles: Six Degrees of Tim Draper". SFGate. Archived from the original on February 2, 2009. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  8. ^ a b Lee, Felicia R. (January 25, 2007). "A TV Family Bound by Blood and a Band". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 5, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  9. ^ Lim, Jason (June 3, 2011). "Baidu Early Investor, Tim Draper Is the Risk Master". TechNode.com. Archived from the original on January 24, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  10. ^ P.V, Sahad (October 16, 2008). "Next Tech Giant Will Be a Cellphone Application Company: Tim Draper". VCCircle.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  11. ^ "Alex Wolff says He, Brother Nat and Tourmate Billie Eilish 'Have Bonded' Over Having Tourette's: 'She's One of Us'". People. October 4, 2024.
  12. ^ Steinberg, Jacques (September 22, 2007). "Famous for Playing Rock Stars". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 26, 2017. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  13. ^ "Alex Wolff – Filmography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2015. Archived from the original on July 8, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  14. ^ Couch, Aaron (March 12, 2018). "Alex Wolff Sets Cast for Directorial Debut 'The Cat and the Moon' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 13, 2018.
  15. ^ "Young Hollywood Actors Perform Online for Charity". BBC News. Archived from the original on November 3, 2020. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  16. ^ Acting for a Cause (TV Series 2020– ) - IMDb, archived from the original on June 11, 2020, retrieved September 18, 2020
  17. ^ "Naked Brothers Band TV Movie: Awards". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 25, 2014. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  18. ^ "29th Annual Awards 2008". Young Artist Awards. Archived from the original on July 6, 2008. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  19. ^ "30th Annual 2009 Nominations and Recipients". Young Artist Awards. Archived from the original on July 19, 2011. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  20. ^ "2013 Winners". Brooklyn International Film Festival. Archived from the original on April 2, 2014. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
  21. ^ Gray, Tim (August 29, 2018). "Alex Wolff, Dominique Fishback to Receive San Diego Festival Honors". Variety. Archived from the original on August 30, 2018. Retrieved August 30, 2018.
  22. ^ Brent Furdyk, "Canadian Screen Awards Announces 2021 Film Nominations" Archived August 29, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. ET Canada, March 30, 2021.
  23. ^ Whittock, Jesse (April 13, 2023). "'So Long, Marianne': Alex Wolff to Play Leonard Cohen As Crave Boards NRK Drama Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 13, 2023.