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Max Minghella (born September 1, 1985) is an English actor. The son of director Anthony Minghella, he has appeared in several dramatic American films, making his feature film debut in 2005's Bee Season and starring in 2006's Art School Confidential.

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Early life 1.2 Career 1.3 Personal life 2 Filmography 3 Footnotes 4 External links

Minghella was born in Hampstead, London to Academy Award-winning director Anthony Minghella and Carolyn Choa, a Hong Kong-born Chinese^[1] choreographer; his paternal grandparents are ice cream factory owners of mostly Scottish descent, although his great-grandfather was Italian. His maternal family are medical doctors and hospital consultants in both Hong Kong and London. Minghella spent time on his father's film sets while growing up, of which he has "fond memories", and has said that he has felt "no pressure" by his father to succeed in the entertainment industry.^[2]

Minghella was inspired to become an actor during his late teenage years, after seeing a production of the play This is Our Youth at London's West End; he subsequently dropped out of the University College School to pursue an acting career, and attended the National Youth Theatre.^[3]

Although Minghella had a minor, uncredited appearance in his father's film, Cold Mountain,^[4] his first professional role was in Bee Season, playing the son of a dysfunctional Jewish American family. The film was released in November 2005 to mostly mixed reviews and low box office, grossing only $1 million in its limited release,^[5][6] although some critics remarked that Minghella was "a talented young actor to watch, delivering a strong performance".^[7]

Minghella had a role in the political thriller Syriana, which was also released in November 2005, playing the son of George Clooney's CIA agent character. His most recent film, which was released in the United States on May 5, 2006, is Art School Confidential, a quirky comedy directed by Terry Zwigoff and co-starring Sophia Myles and John Malkovich. His next role will be in Elvis and Anabelle, a dark romantic comedy in which he will play a mortician's son; the film co-stars Blake Lively and Mary Steenburgen. Minghella describes it as "a really sweet film".^[1]

Minghella was asked to perform in High School Musical in the role of Chad Danforth, but turned down the role early in 2005, forcing Corbin Bleu to be brought in at the last moment. Minghella has been quoted as saying that "my choice may have been short-sighted and I would be lying if I said I didn't regret it, but Corbin did a great job and all the more power to him. He's a great actor and a close friend."^{[citation needed]}

Minghella was also cast in the film version of writer Michael Chabon's novel, The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, as Art Bechstein, a young man exploring his sexuality in a coming-of-age story set in the 1980s^[8], although he has since dropped out of the project.^[9]

Minghella currently attends Columbia University, which he considers his "first priority", as part of the class of 2009. He will usually work on films only during his summer break.^[1] Minghella says that he feels like "an English boy at an American school", keeps to himself, and that most students at Columbia have "no idea" who he is. Currently, Max is in a relationship with the New York socialite Leigh Lezark of the Misshapes.

• Brief Interviews with Hideous Men (2007)
• Elvis and Anabelle (2007) - Elvis
• Art School Confidential (2006) - Jerome
• Syriana (2005) - Robby Barnes
• Bee Season (2005) - Aaron

• Max Minghella at the Internet Movie Database
• USA Weekend magazine profile (November 20, 2005)