Miles Teller

Miles Teller is an American actor. He made his feature film debut with the independent drama Rabbit Hole, and gained wider recognition for his roles in the coming-of-age film The Spectacular Now and the Divergent Series|Divergent film trilogy]. His breakthrough role came in the drama Whiplash, which earned him critical acclaim.
Teller went on to star in the superhero film Fantastic Four as Mister Fantastic and in the biographical film War Dogs. He garnered a mainstream resurgence for his starring role in the action film Top Gun: Maverick. In television, he has starred in the Amazon Prime Video crime drama Too Old to Die Young and the Paramount+ miniseries The Offer.

Early life

Teller was born in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. His mother, Merry, is a real estate agent, and his father, Michael, is a nuclear power plant engineer. He has two older sisters, Erin and Dana. His paternal grandfather was of History of [the Jews in Russia|Russian Jewish] descent, and his ancestry also includes English, Irish and African-American forebears.
Teller spent his early years in Pennsylvania and Delaware before his family moved to Citrus County, Florida, when he was 12. Growing up, he was involved with acting, was president of his high school's drama club, and played alto saxophone, drums, piano and guitar. He also played baseball and had dreams of turning professional. He graduated from Lecanto High School in Lecanto, Florida. Subsequently, he attended the New York University Tisch School of the Arts; there, he studied method acting at the Lee Strasberg [Theatre and Film Institute] and screen acting with Stonestreet Studios. He earned a BFA in drama in 2009.
In 2007, Teller was a passenger in a car that lost control at and flipped eight times. He has multiple scars on his face from the crash.

Career

Early work and breakthrough (20042021)

Teller appeared in many short films between 2004 and 2010. After graduating from Tisch School of the Arts in 2009, he made his major film debut in Rabbit Hole, after Nicole Kidman handpicked him for the role. Teller starred in the stage musical Footloose in high school, and later appeared in the 2011 remake film of the same name. In 2013, he starred in 21 & Over and The Spectacular Now, opposite Shailene Woodley.
In Damien Chazelle's second film Whiplash, Teller played a drummer who tries to impress his abusive jazz teacher, which earned him nominations for the Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Actor, the Satellite [Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture] and the BAFTA Rising Star Award. Despite the acclaim that the film received and the intensity of his prep time, Teller said in an interview in 2015 that after taxes he "made like $8,000" for the movie.
Teller received further recognition for playing Peter Hayes in Divergent, and the film's sequels, Insurgent and Allegiant. He has also played Mister Fantastic in the reboot film Fantastic Four and arms dealer David Packouz in War Dogs. He trained for 5 months to get in shape for the role of biopic boxer Vinny Paz in film Bleed for This.
In 2017, he starred in two biopic films, Only [the Brave |Only the Brave] and Thank You for Your Service. In November 2020, it was announced that Teller will star in a political satire called The Fence. In September 2021, it was reported that filming on The Offer, the Paramount+ miniseries about the production of the film The Godfather in which Teller plays producer Albert S. Ruddy, was temporarily halted due to COVID concerns. The miniseries ran from April to June 2022. In November 2021, he appeared in Taylor Swift's music video "I Bet [You Think About Me]" directed by Blake Lively.

''Top Gun: Maverick'' and beyond (2022present)

In 2022, he starred in Top Gun: Maverick. He was initially hesitant to accept the role, as he was wary of the potential success and attention he would receive from starring in a major film alongside Tom Cruise. He was convinced to accept it by Cruise himself, who persuaded him that he was perfect for the role. In May 2022, Teller stated that he had been pitching a follow-up film centered around his character to the studio. Teller referred to his pitch as Top Gun: Rooster. By July of the same year, he stated that he has been having ongoing discussions regarding a sequel with Cruise. In regard to the popularity and support, Teller said that the experience has "been awesome" and that "I've never really experienced something like this in my life."
Teller made his hosting debut on the opener of the 48th season of Saturday Night Live in 2022, and during the Super Bowl LVII telecast in 2023, Teller, his wife, and their dog starred in a commercial for Bud Light in which they pass the time while waiting for a customer service representative to speak to them, dancing to the on-hold music.

Personal life

Teller became engaged to model Keleigh Sperry at the Molori Safari Lodge in the Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa, on August 20, 2017. They married on September 1, 2019, in Maui, Hawaii. In 2025, their home was destroyed by the Palisades Fire. Later that year, he visited his former high school to inspire and answer questions by students, and the school named their theater the "Miles Teller Theatre".

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2010	Rabbit Hole	Jason
2011	Footloose	Willard Hewitt
2012	Project X	Himself	credited as "Miles"
2013	The Spectacular Now	Sutter Keely
2013	21 & Over	Miller
2014	Whiplash	Andrew Neiman
2014	That Awkward Moment	Daniel
2014	Divergent	Peter Hayes
2014	Two Night Stand	Alec
2015	The Divergent Series: Insurgent	Peter Hayes
2015	Fantastic Four	Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic
2016	The Divergent Series: Allegiant	Peter Hayes
2016	Get a Job	Will Davis
2016	War Dogs	David Packouz
2016	Bleed for This	Vinny Pazienza
2017	Only the Brave	Brendan "Donut" McDonough
2017	Thank You for Your Service	Adam Schumann
2022	Top Gun: Maverick	Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw
2022	Spiderhead	Jeff
2025	The Gorge	Levi	Also executive producer
2025	Eternity	Larry	Also executive producer
2026	Michael	John Branca	Post-production
	The Ark and the Aardvark	Gilbert	In production
	Paper Tiger	Irving Graff	Filming