Joseph Gordon-Levitt Biography

Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (born February 17, 1981) is an American actor, filmmaker, singer and entrepreneur. As a child, he appeared in the films A River Runs Through It, Angels in the Outfield and 10 Things I Hate About You, and as Tommy Solomon in the TV series 3rd Rock from the Sun. He took a break from acting to study at Columbia University, but dropped out in 2004 to pursue acting again. He has since starred in (500) Days of Summer, Inception, Hesher, 50/50, Premium Rush, The Dark Knight Rises, Brick, Looper, The Lookout, Manic, Lincoln, Mysterious Skin and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. He starred as Philippe Petit in the Robert Zemeckis-directed film The Walk (2015), and as Edward Snowden in the Oliver Stone film Snowden (2016). For his leading performances in (500) Days of Summer and 50/50, he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

Gordon-Levitt also founded the online production company hitRECord in 2004 and has hosted his own TV series, HitRecord on TV, since January 2014, winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media - Social TV Experience in the same year. In 2013, Gordon-Levitt made his feature film directing and screenwriting debut with Don Jon, a comedy film in which he also stars. He previously directed and edited two short films, both of which were released in 2010: Morgan M. Morgansen's Date with Destiny and Morgan and Destiny's Eleventeenth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo.

Early life

Gordon-Levitt was born in Los Angeles, California, and was raised in its Sherman Oaks neighborhood. He is Jewish, from a family that is "not strictly religious"; his parents were among the founders of the Progressive Jewish Alliance. His father, Dennis Levitt, was once the news director for the Pacifica Radio station, KPFK-FM. His mother, Jane Gordon, ran for the United States Congress in California during the 1970s for the Peace and Freedom Party; she met Dennis Levitt while she was working as the program guide editor for KPFK-FM. Gordon-Levitt's maternal grandfather, Michael Gordon, was a Hollywood film director between the 1940s and 1970s, and directed the 1959 Doris Day/Rock Hudson film Pillow Talk. Gordon-Levitt attended Van Nuys High School and graduated in 1999.

Career

Early acting work

Gordon-Levitt joined a musical theater group at the age of four and played the Scarecrow in a production of The Wizard of Oz. Subsequently, he was approached by an agent and began appearing on television and in commercials for Sunny Jim peanut butter, Cocoa Puffs, Pop-Tarts, and Kinney Shoes.

At age six, he starred in several made-for-television films. In 1991, he played both David Collins and Daniel Collins in the Dark Shadows 1991 television series, and appeared in the movie A River Runs Through It . During 1992-93, he played in The Powers That Be, a sitcom starring John Forsythe, as a clever young boy named Pierce Van Horne. Also in 1992, he portrayed Gregory Kingsley in the made-for-TV film Switching Parents, based on Kingsley's real life case of "divorcing" his parents. In 1994, he starred in the Disney film Angels in the Outfield as an orphan who sees angels. In 1996, he began playing Tommy Solomon on the sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun. The series ran for six seasons. The San Francisco Chronicle noted that Gordon-Levitt was a "Jewish kid playing an extraterrestrial pretending to be a Jewish kid". During the 1990s, he was frequently featured in teenage magazines. He also made an appearance as Buddy in the episode "Eric's Buddy" on That '70s Show.

Gordon-Levitt starred in the 1999 film 10 Things I Hate About You, a modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew and voiced Jim Hawkins in Treasure Planet (2002), a Disney adaptation of the novel Treasure Island. In 2000, he began attending Columbia University School of General Studies. He studied history, literature, and French poetry. He became an avid Francophile and a French speaker. He said that moving to New York City from his hometown forced him to grow as a person. He dropped out in 2004 to concentrate on acting again.

Later acting work

Gordon-Levitt has said that he made a conscious decision to "be in good movies" after returning to acting. His films include 2001's drama Manic, which was set in a mental institution, Mysterious Skin (2004), in which he played a gay prostitute and child sexual abuse victim, and Brick (2005), a modern-day film noir set at a high school, in which he had the lead role of Brendan Frye, a teen who becomes involved in an underground drug ring while investigating a murder. Brick received positive reviews, with The Minnesota Daily's critic commenting that Gordon-Levitt played the character "beautifully", "true to film's style", "unfeeling but not disenchanted", and "sexy in the most ambiguous way." Another reviewer described the performance as "astounding". He also starred opposite Steve Sandvoss as a young judgmental missionary in Latter Days (2003), a film that centers on a sexually repressed Mormon missionary (Sandvoss) who falls for his gay neighbor. He had roles in Havoc and Shadowboxer.

His next role was in 2007's The Lookout, in which he played Chris Pratt, a janitor involved in a bank heist. In reviewing the film, The Philadelphia Inquirer described Gordon-Levitt as a "surprisingly formidable, and formidably surprising, leading man", while New York magazine stated that he is a "major tabula rasa actor ... a minimalist", and that his character worked because he "doesn't seize the space ... by what he takes away from the character." The San Francisco Chronicle specified that he "embodies, more than performs, a character's inner life." His 2008 and 2009 films include Stop-Loss, directed by Kimberly Peirce and revolving around American soldiers returning from the Iraq War, and Killshot, in which he played a hoodlum partnered with a hired killer played by Mickey Rourke.

Gordon-Levitt played a lead role opposite to friend Zooey Deschanel in 500 Days of Summer, a well-received 2009 release about the deconstruction of a relationship. His performance, described as "the real key" to what makes the film work, credits him with using "his usual spell in subtle gradations." Varietys Todd McCarthy praised his performance, saying he "expressively alternates between enthusiasm and forlorn disappointment in the manner Jack Lemmon could". Peter Travers of Rolling Stone said the movie "hits you like a blast of pure romantic oxygen" and credited both lead actors for playing "it for real, with a grasp of subtlety and feeling that goes beyond the call of breezy duty." He was subsequently nominated for a Golden Globe Award.

He later played villain Cobra Commander in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. On November 21, 2009, he hosted Saturday Night Live. In 2010, he replaced James Franco to star alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in Christopher Nolan's science fiction thriller Inception, which received favorable reviews.

In 2011, Gordon-Levitt began filming Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises, in which he played John Blake, a police officer who emerges as a key ally of Batman. Also released in 2012, he played the starring role of a bicycle messenger in the action film Premium Rush; the younger version of the lead role, shared with Bruce Willis, in the time-travel thriller Looper; and the supporting role of Robert Todd Lincoln in Steven Spielberg's biopic Lincoln.

Gordon-Levitt played a new character, Johnny, in the sequel Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014), described by the filmmakers as "a cocky gambler who disguises a darker mission to destroy his most foul enemy at his best game". In October 2013, it was reported that he was one of the frontrunners to play the lead character for Marvel Studios's superhero film Ant-Man, which eventually went to Paul Rudd.

In 2015, Gordon-Levitt starred as Philippe Petit in the biographical drama The Walk, directed by Academy Award-winning director Robert Zemeckis. Gordon-Levitt then played National Security Agency surveillance leaker Edward Snowden in Snowden, directed by Oliver Stone. The film was released in North America on September 16, 2016, and co-starred Shailene Woodley, Melissa Leo, Zachary Quinto, Tom Wilkinson, and Nicolas Cage.

Directing and producing

Gordon-Levitt's first film as director, the 24 minute-long Sparks, an adaptation of a short story by Elmore Leonard starring Carla Gugino and Eric Stoltz, was selected for the 2009 Sundance Film Festival as part of a new program for short films. In 2010, he directed another short film, Morgan and Destiny's Eleventeenth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo. It premiered at two houses during the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas.

He was one of the many producers of the Broadway show Slava's Snowshow.

In 2013, Gordon-Levitt wrote, directed, and starred in his screenwriting and directorial debut, Don Jon. The film also stars Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore, and Tony Danza, and premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2013. Following the premiere, the film was acquired by Relativity Media and Gordon-Levitt stated: "I always intended this to be a movie for a mass popular audience. Everyone told me it was a long shot ... I couldn't possibly be more grateful."

HitRecord

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Personal life

Gordon-Levitt's older brother, Dan, who was a photographer and fire spinner, died in 2010 at the age of 36.

In October 2013, Gordon-Levitt identified himself as a feminist, giving credit to his mother: "My mom brought me up to be a feminist. She was active in the movement in the '60s and '70s. The Hollywood movie industry has come a long way since its past. It certainly has a bad history of sexism, but it ain't all the way yet."

In December 2014, Gordon-Levitt married Tasha McCauley. Their first child, a son, was born in August 2015. Their second son was born in June 2017.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1992	Beethoven	Student No. 1
1992	'	Young Norman
1992	Switching Parents	Gregory Kingsley / Shawn Russ
1994	Holy Matrimony	Zeke
1994	Roadflower	Rich Lerolland
1994	Angels in the Outfield	Roger Bomman
1996	'	Oliver Laird
1998	Sweet Jane	Tony
1998	Halloween H20: 20 Years Later	James "Jimmy" Howell
1999	10 Things I Hate About You	Cameron James
2000	Picking Up the Pieces	Flaco
2000	Forever Lulu	Martin Ellsworth
2001	Manic	Lyle Jensen
2002	Treasure Planet	Jim Hawkins	Voice role
2003	Latter Days	Elder Paul Ryder
2004	Mysterious Skin	Neil McCormick
2005	Brick	Brendan Frye
2005	Havoc	Sam
2005	Shadowboxer	Dr. Don
2007	The Lookout	Chris Pratt
2008	Stop-Loss	Tommy Burgess
2008	Miracle at St. Anna	Tim Boyle
2008	'	Bar Patron	Uncredited cameo
2009	Killshot	Richie Nix
2009	Big Breaks	Todd Sterling	Short film
2009	(500) Days of Summer	Tom Hansen	Nominated "? Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
2009	Uncertainty	Bobby
2009	Women in Trouble	Bert Rodriguez
2009	G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra	Rexford "Rex" Lewis / Cobra Commander	Nominated "? Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Villain
2010	Hesher	Hesher
2010	Morgan M. Morgansen's Date with Destiny	Morgan M. Morgansen / Narrator	Short film; also director and editor
2010	Elektra Luxx	Bert Rodriguez
2010	Morgan and Destiny's Eleventeenth Date	Morgan M. Morgansen / Narrator	Short film; also director and editor
2010	Inception	Arthur
2011	50/50	Adam Lerner	Nominated "? Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy
2012	The Dark Knight Rises	Robin John Blake
2012	Premium Rush	Wilee
2012	Looper	Young Joe	Also executive producer
2012	Lincoln	Robert Todd Lincoln
2013	Don Jon	Jon "Don Jon" Martello	Also director and writer
2014	The Wind Rises	Jiro Horikoshi (voice)	English dub
2014	Sin City: A Dame to Kill For	Johnny
2014	The Interview	Himself	Uncredited cameo
2015	The Walk	Philippe Petit
2015	The Night Before	Ethan
2016	Snowden	Edward Snowden

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1988	Stranger on My Land	Rounder	TV movie
1988	Family Ties	Dougie	2 episodes
1989	Settle the Score	Justin	Movie
1990	Murder, She Wrote	Boy No. 1	Episode: "Shear Madness"
1991	Changes	Matthew "Matt" Hallam	Movie
1991	Hi Honey - I'm Dead	Josh Stadler	Movie
1991	Plymouth	Simon	Movie
1991	Dark Shadows	Daniel Collins (and David Collins)	11 episodes
1991	China Beach	Archie Winslow, age 9	Episode: "Quest"
1991	Quantum Leap	Kyle	Episode: "Permanent Wave" (season 4)
1991	L.A. Law	Rick Berg	Episode: "Lose the Boss"
1992	'	Pierce Van Horne	13 episodes
1993	Gregory K	Gregory Kingsley	Movie
1993	Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman	Zack Lawson	Episode: "The Secret"
1993	Roseanne	George	4 episodes
1995	'	Matthew	Movie
1996-2001	3rd Rock from the Sun	Tommy Solomon	131 episodes
1998	That '70s Show	Buddy Morgan	Episode: "Eric's Buddy"
2000	'	Zach	Episode: "Something About Harry"
2005	Numb3rs	Scott Reynolds	Episode: "Sacrifice"
2009 2012	Saturday Night Live	Himself (host)	2 episodes
2013	Lady Gaga and the Muppets Holiday Spectacular	Himself	Special
2014-2015	HitRecord on TV	Himself (host)	Also executive producer
2015	Comedy Bang! Bang!	Himself	Episode: "Joseph Gordon-Levitt Wears a Heart T-Shirt and Blue Jeans"
2015	The Mindy Project	Matt Sherman	Episode: "While I Was Sleeping"
2015	The Muppets	Himself	Episode: "Going, Going, Gonzo"
2017	Comrade Detective	Iosif Baciu (voice)

Video games

Year	Title	Voice role
2009	G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra	Cobra Commander

Discography

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Awards and nominations

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