John Cameron Mitchell
John Cameron Mitchell | |
---|---|
Born | |
Education | Northwestern University |
Occupation(s) | Actor, playwright, screenwriter, film director |
Years active | 1983–present |
John Cameron Mitchell (born April 21, 1963) is an American actor, playwright, screenwriter, singer, songwriter, producer and director. He is known as the writer, director and star of the 2001 film Hedwig and the Angry Inch, which is based on the stage musical of the same name. He also portrayed the role of Joe Exotic in the Peacock limited series Joe vs. Carole in 2022.
Early years
Mitchell was born in
Career
Mitchell's first professional stage role was
He appeared in the original cast of John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation (both off- and on-Broadway), and starred in Larry Kramer's off-Broadway sequel to The Normal Heart, The Destiny of Me, for which he received an Obie Award[5] and a Drama Desk nomination.[6]
Mitchell's early television work includes guest-starring roles in
Starring and co-starring film roles include a homicidal
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
In 1998, Mitchell wrote (along with composer
Three years later, he directed and starred in the
The 2014 Broadway production of Hedwig starred Neil Patrick Harris and Lena Hall, was directed by Michael Mayer, and won four Tony Awards, including Best Actor in a Musical (Harris), Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Hall), and Best Revival of a Musical. Mitchell reprised his Hedwig performance during the run and received a 2015 Special Tony Award for his return to the role.[10]
Shortbus
After the success of Hedwig, Mitchell expressed an interest in writing, directing, and producing a film that incorporated explicit sex in a naturalistic and thoughtful way, without using "stars".[11] After three years of talent searches, improvisation workshops, and production, Shortbus premiered in May 2006 at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. The film garnered many awards,[12] at venues such as the Athens, Gijon, and Zurich International Film Festivals.
Rabbit Hole
He directed the 2010 film Rabbit Hole, starring Nicole Kidman (in an Oscar-nominated performance) and Aaron Eckhart, adapted from David Lindsay-Abaire's Pulitzer Prize-winning play of the same name about a couple dealing with the loss of their four-year-old son. Mitchell became interested in directing the project out of a personal connection to the story, having dealt with the death of his four-year-old brother as a teenager.[13] The film debuted at the Toronto Film Festival.
Other work
Mitchell was the executive producer of the 2004 film
Mitchell has appeared as a pundit on
Mitchell appeared as David Pressler-Goings in Seasons 2 and 3 of HBO series Girls, and as Andy Warhol in HBO's Vinyl. Mitchell can be seen in the 2016 documentary Danny Says alongside Danny Fields, Alice Cooper and Iggy Pop. He has played a character based on Milo Yiannopoulos on The Good Fight opposite Christine Baranski and as the character of Egon in season 4 of the Amazon Studios series Mozart in the Jungle opposite Gael García Bernal. In 2014, he directed an unaired pilot of Showtime series Happyish starring Philip Seymour Hoffman in his final role.
Mitchell's film How to Talk to Girls at Parties, a screen adaptation of Neil Gaiman's punk-era short story of the same title starring Elle Fanning, Alex Sharp, and Nicole Kidman was released by A24 in spring 2018.[20] He directed (with co-director Mark A. Burkley) Netflix's GLOW Season 2 episode "Mother of All Matches" which was deemed Number One of "The best TV episodes of 2018" by Entertainment Weekly.[21]
Mitchell was a series cast member in
Mitchell's "distance-defying, community-built benefit album" New American Dream (Parts 1 and 2) was released September 4, 2020, including collaborations with
In 2022, he played
Personal life
In 1985, at the age of 22, Mitchell came out as gay to his family and friends.[4] He came out publicly in a 1992 New York Times profile.[3] His subsequent writing has often explored sexuality and gender. He is a Radical Faerie. Mitchell's experiences with the group influenced the making of Shortbus.[26] Along with Shortbus stars PJ DeBoy and Paul Dawson and performance artists Amber Martin and Angela Di Carlo, he is a co-founder and DJ of the long-running New York City monthly party "Mattachine," named after the early American gay rights organization Mattachine Society.[27] In 2022, he came out as non-binary,[28] and continues to use he/him pronouns.[29]
Formerly a resident of Manhattan, as of 2023, Mitchell now lives in New Orleans.[30][31]
Work
As director
Film
Year | Title | Notes |
---|---|---|
2001 | Hedwig and the Angry Inch | Also writer and star |
2006 | Shortbus | |
2010 | Rabbit Hole | |
2011 | Lady Grey London | Short film |
2011 | L.A.dy Dior | Short film |
2013 | Insurrection | Short film |
2017 | How to Talk to Girls at Parties |
Television
Year | Title | Notes |
---|---|---|
2013 | Nurse Jackie | Episode: "Luck of the Drawing" |
2015 | Happyish | Unaired pilot |
2018 | GLOW | Episode: "Mother of All Matches"; Co-director with Mark A. Burkley |
Podcast
Year | Title | Notes |
---|---|---|
2018 | Anthem: Homunculus | Scripted podcast series |
As actor
Film
Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1986 | Band of the Hand | J. L. | |
1986 | One More Saturday Night | Teenager No. 2 | |
1987 | The Stepford Children | Kenny | TV film |
1988 | A Friendship in Vienna | Tommi Lowberg | TV film |
1989 | No Holds Barred | Man in Audience (uncredited) | |
1989 | Misplaced | Jacek | |
1990 | Book of Love | Floyd | |
1990 | The Dreamer of Oz: The L. Frank Baum Story | Albert the Reporter | TV film |
1990 | Teach 109 | 1st Android | TV short |
1990 | Daybreak | Lennie | TV film |
1995 | Girl 6 | Rob | |
1996 | David Searching | Man with Fruit | |
1999 | I Remember | Joe | Short film |
2001 | Hedwig and the Angry Inch | Hedwig | Also director and writer |
2006 | Shortbus | Sextra | (uncredited) |
2016 | My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea | Brent Daniels | Voice role in animated feature |
Television
Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1984 | American Playhouse | Calvin Fitch | Episode: "The Roommate" |
1986 | The Equalizer | Ed Donahue | Episode: "Unpunished Crimes" |
1986 | The Twilight Zone | Tom | Episode: "A Day in Beaumont/The Last Defender of Camelot" (segment "The Last Defender of Camelot") |
1986 | ABC Afterschool Specials
|
Friend at bus stop | Episode: "A Desperate Exit" |
1987 | MacGyver | Aaron | Episode: "Hell Week" |
1987–1990 | Head of the Class | Manfred | Episodes: "That'll Be the Day" and "From Hair to Eternity: Part 2" |
1988 | Our House
|
Willie Gillis | Episode: "Out of Step" |
1988 | Freddy's Nightmares | Bryan Ross | Episode: "It's a Miserable Life" |
1993 | Class of '96 | Horace | Episode: "See You in September" |
1995 | Law & Order | Eddie | Episode: "Pride" |
1996 | Party Girl | Derrick | 4 episodes |
1997 | Nothing Sacred | Matt Evans | Episode: "Speaking in Tongues" |
2013–2014 | Girls | David Pressler-Goings | 5 episodes |
2016 | Vinyl | Andy Warhol | 3 episodes |
2017–2022 | The Good Fight
|
Felix Staples | 6 episodes |
2018 | Mozart in the Jungle | Egon | 4 episodes |
2019–2021 | Shrill | Gabe | 22 episodes |
2021 | Santa Inc. | Dr. Almonds | Animated TV Series |
2022 | Joe vs. Carole | Joe Exotic | Limited series[32] |
2022 | The Sandman | Hal | 11 episodes |
2023 | Yellowjackets | Caligula | 1 episode |
2023 | City on Fire | Amory Gould | Main cast |
Podcasts
Year | Title | Roles | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2018–present | The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air) | John Cameron | Voice role - fictional podcast series |
2019–present | Anthem: Homunculus | Ceann Mackay | Voice role - fictional podcast series |
Hot White Heist | Orlov | Podcast series | |
2021 | The Cinnamon Bear | Grand Wonky | Podcast series |
See also
- Dramatic license
- LGBT culture in New York City
- List of LGBT people from New York City
References
- ^ Moore, John (June 23, 2010). ""Hedwig" creator's parents are tearing down a wall". The Denver Post. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- ^ "Mitchell, John Cameron (b. 1963)". GLBTQ. Archived from the original on April 18, 2007. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
- ^ a b Weber, Bruce (November 4, 1992). "A Minimalist Actor Now Warms to Excess". The New York Times. Retrieved April 6, 2009.
- ^ a b c "John Cameron Mitchell profile". glbtq.com. May 5, 2005. Archived from the original on April 18, 2007. Retrieved May 27, 2007.
- ^ Berson, Misha (August 3, 2001). "Man behind Hedwig captures her on film". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on December 11, 2012. Retrieved May 27, 2007.
- The Houston Chronicle. Retrieved May 27, 2007.
- ^ Brantley, Ben (June 26, 1996). "Redeeming A Williams Washout". The New York Times. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
- ^ Blackwelder, Rob (June 21, 2001). "'Hedwig'-ing Out". Spliced Wire. Archived from the original on March 30, 2007. Retrieved May 27, 2007.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - Topix.net. Retrieved May 27, 2007.
- ^ Mark Maron interview with Mitchell here.
- ^ Brooks, Brian (October 1, 2006). "indieWIRE INTERVIEW: John Cameron Mitchell, director of "Shortbus"". IndieWire. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- ^ Shortbus - IMDb, retrieved March 13, 2020
- ^ Cassie Carpenter. ""Rabbit Hole" director inspired by personal tragedies". U.S. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- ^ "John Cameron Mitchell at Outside the Margins". Xtra. October 7, 2008. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
- ^ Harrington, Richard (January 7, 2005). "Scissor Sisters: On the Kutting Edge". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
- ^ Durbin, Jonathan.What Is a Scissor Sister? PAPER Magazine. April 4, 2005.
- ^ "Seraph". January 16, 2013. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Agent Provocateur Models Rebel, Strip Down to Lingerie in Protest". AdRants. September 16, 2013. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
- ^ "Here Is Amanda Palmer's David Bowie Memorial Cover EP, Feat. John Cameron Mitchell and Anna Calvi". Flavorwire. February 4, 2016. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
- ^ "John Cameron Mitchell Talks Animated 'The Ruined Cast' & Upcoming Neil Gaiman Adaptation". indieWIRE. December 10, 2010. Archived from the original on December 15, 2010. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
- ^ "the 10 Best TV Episodes of 2018". Entertainment Weekly. December 7, 2018. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
- ^ "The Anthem: Homunculus Listening Party". Tribeza. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ "The Orbiting Human Circus - Team". WNYC Studios. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- ^ Male, Andrew (September 6, 2020). "Hedwig eats Trump: John Cameron Mitchell on his 'musical orgy' about Donald's America". The Guardian. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ Bowie, David (October 20, 1999). "Bowie Produces Hedwig".
- ^ Dubowski, Sandi (Fall 2006). "Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret". Filmmaker. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
{{cite magazine}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Murphy, Tim (Fall 2010). "Tinseltown Can Wait; the Village Cannot". The New York Times. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- ^ Henderson, Taylor (March 4, 2022). "Actor John Cameron Mitchell Comes Out as Nonbinary". Pride Magazine.
- ^ Keeps, David A. (June 1, 2022). "The gospel according to John Cameron Mitchell". Los Angeles Magazine.
- ^ Davies, Madeleine (January 16, 2024). "How John Cameron Mitchell Turned His New Orleans Home Into a Queer Art Church". Dwell. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
- ^ Epstein, Warren (February 4, 2001). "Springs has surprisingly strong link to Sundance". The Gazette. Archived from the original on March 7, 2010. Retrieved May 27, 2007.
- ^ Otterson, Joe (June 24, 2021). "'Joe Exotic' Peacock Series Casts Dean Winters as Jeff Lowe". Variety. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
External links
- John Cameron Mitchell at IMDb
- John Cameron Mitchell at the Internet Broadway Database
- John Cameron Mitchell at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- Mitchell Live at Amoeba Music "Origin of Love"
- Mitchell's video for Bright Eyes' "First Day of My Life"
- BBC Collective Archived September 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine Shortbus feature including John Cameron Mitchell video interview
- John Cameron Mitchell interview at Eros-Zine.com (March 2007)