Max Minghella
Max Giorgio Choa Minghella (born 16 September 1985) is a British actor and director. He is known for his roles in the films Syriana (2005), The Social Network (2010), The Ides of March (2011), Spiral (2021) and Babylon (2022) as well as his role as Nick Blaine in the television series The Handmaid's Tale (2017–2025), which earned him a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. Minghella's directing credits include the musical drama Teen Spirit (2019), Shell (2024) and television series The Shards (2026).
Max Minghella

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- Name
- Max Minghella
- Birth Name
- Max Giorgio Choa Minghella
- Born
- 16 September 1985
- Birthplace
- London, England
- Education
- Columbia University (BA)
- Occupation
- Actor
- Full name
- Max Giorgio Choa Minghella.
- Nationality
- United Kingdom.
- Languages
- English.
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Max Giorgio Choa Minghella (born 16 September 1985) is a British actor and director. He is known for his roles in the films Syriana (2005), The Social Network (2010), The Ides of March (2011), Spiral (2021) and Babylon (2022) as well as his role as Nick Blaine in the television series The Handmaid's Tale (2017–2025), which earned him a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. Minghella's directing credits include the musical drama Teen Spirit (2019), Shell (2024) and television series The Shards (2026).
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Max Minghella (born 1985) is a British actor, director and film actor, among other activities. The actor was born Max Giorgio Choa Minghella in Hampstead.
Max Minghella studied at Columbia University. The actor is a member of Writers Guild of America West and lived in Los Angeles. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Max Minghella • Birth Name — Max Giorgio Choa Minghella • Born — 16 September 1985 • Birthplace — London, England • Education — Columbia University (BA) • Occupation — Actor • Years Active — 1999–present • Father — Anthony Minghella • Relatives — * Loretta Minghella (aunt) • Dominic Minghella (uncle) • Robert Kotewall (great-grandfather) • Emanuel Raphael Belilios (great-great-grandfather)
Early life and family
Early life and family
Minghella was born on 16 September 1985 in Hampstead, London, the son of director Anthony Minghella and dancer and choreographer Carolyn Jane Choa. Minghella's father was born in Ryde on the Isle of Wight, and was of Italian descent. His mother, who was from Hong Kong, is from a family of multiple heritage. His maternal grandfather George Choa was of three-quarters Chinese and one-quarter Jewish descent, and his maternal grandmother Maisie Nora (née Kotewall) was of Indian Parsi, English, Irish, Swedish and Chinese ancestry. While Minghella was growing up he spent time on his father's film sets. He has said that he has "fond memories" of them and that he felt "no pressure" from his father to succeed in the entertainment industry. He was educated at St Anthony's Preparatory School and University College School in Hampstead. He then attended Columbia University, which he considered his "first priority", and studied history, graduating in 2009. He was a resident of John Jay Hall during his studies at Columbia. He typically worked on films only during his summer breaks. He has said that he felt like "an English boy at an American school", that he kept to himself, and that most of his fellow students did not know that he was an actor. Minghella was inspired to become an actor during his teenage years, after seeing a production of the play This Is Our Youth in London's West End; he subsequently dropped out of the University College School to pursue an acting career, and attended the National Youth Theatre.
2005–2009
2005–2009
Minghella's first professional role was in Fox Searchlight's 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. One critic who rated the film "7 out of 10" remarked that Minghella was "a talented young actor to watch, delivering a strong performance". Minghella's other November 2005 role was the political thriller Syriana, in which he played the son of George Clooney's CIA agent character. In 2006, he starred in the Daniel Clowes adaptation Art School Confidential, a comedy directed by Terry Zwigoff. He got the part after meeting Zwigoff when he visited the set of Bee Season. He starred alongside Blake Lively in Elvis and Anabelle, a dark romantic drama in which he plays an undertaker's son. The film premiered at the South by Southwest film festival in 2007. He described it as "a really sweet film". He was to play Art Bechstein in the film version of writer Michael Chabon's novel The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, but dropped out of the project due to his university schedule. • Illustration — Minghella in 2010 The press reported in 2007 that Minghella was cast alongside Cillian Murphy and Sienna Miller in Beeban Kidron's Hippie Hippie Shake, a film about writer Richard Neville set in 1960s London. In 2008, Minghella played a film director in How to Lose Friends & Alienate People and was seen in a segment of the dark comedy Brief Interviews with Hideous Men. In March 2008, it was announced that he would star with Rachel Weisz in Alejandro Amenábar's second English language film, Agora. The film is set in 4th century Egypt and revolves around Hypatia of Alexandria. Agora premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2009. It became Spain's highest grossing film of the year, earning over $10.3 million within four days of release.
2010–2016
2010–2016
In David Fincher's The Social Network, the 2010 film about the origins of Facebook, he plays Divya Narendra, one of the Harvard upperclassmen who sues Mark Zuckerberg for stealing the idea behind Facebook. In June 2010, Minghella was cast in the science-fiction film The Darkest Hour, released in December 2011. He appeared in the ensemble dramedy 10 Years (2012). In June 2012, he joined the cast of the Shawn Levy comedy The Internship. In November 2013, it was announced that Minghella would be playing Richie Castellano in the second season of the Fox sitcom The Mindy Project. In 2013, he appeared in the music video for "Shot at the Night" by The Killers. The video has amassed over 140 million views on popular streaming site YouTube. In 2014, Minghella served as executive producer on a film adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's The Two Faces of January. The following year, he wrote and produced an adaptation of Liz Jensen's novel The 9th Life of Louis Drax directed by Alexandre Aja. Minghella and Aja previously collaborated on the 2013 film Horns. In 2015, he appeared opposite Dakota Johnson in the Vogue short film "Just a Minute"
2017–2024
2017–2024
Minghella played the role of Nick Blaine, an Eye in the Republic of Gilead and the love interest of June Osborne, in the Hulu dystopian series The Handmaid's Tale from 2017 to 2025. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the role in 2021. Minghella made his directorial debut with 2018's Teen Spirit, a musical, from his own screenplay. The film starring Elle Fanning, Zlatko Burić and Rebecca Hall premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and South by Southwest in 2019. The soundtrack was released by Interscope Records featuring performances of and music written by Robyn, Ellie Goulding, Ariana Grande, Katy Perry, Tegan & Sara, Annie Lennox, Orbital, Alice Deejay, The Undertones, Major Lazer, Grimes, Whigfield, and Sigrid, and an original song "Wildflowers" written by Carly Rae Jepsen and produced by Jack Antonoff. Minghella starred in Spiral, a spin-off from and ninth installment of the Saw film series. He played a rookie cop who teams up with Chris Rock's veteran detective to track down a Jigsaw copycat. The film was released on May 14th 2021 and remained number one at the box office for two consecutive weeks. Minghella portrayed Irving Thalberg in the 2022 film Babylon. In 2024, Minghella directed the body horror satire Shell starring Elisabeth Moss, Kate Hudson and Kaia Gerber. The film was released by Republic Pictures in October 2025 following its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.
2025–present
2025–present
In 2025, Minghella joined the cast of the HBO financial drama Industry in its fourth season as a series regular, playing enigmatic fintech CFO Whitney Halberstram. The season premiered in January 2026. Minghella received critical acclaim for his role, with Liam Gaughan of Collider calling it a "magnetic, unnerving performance". Ben Travers of IndieWire named him the "MVP" of the season. In August 2025, it was announced Minghella would be joining the cast of DC Studios Clayface. He is expected to play a Gotham City Police Detective and love interest to Naomi Ackie's character. The film is set for release on October 23rd 2026. Minghella is reported to be directing episodes of the upcoming television series The Shards based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis. In May 2026, Deadline announced Minghella has been cast in the fourth season of The White Lotus.
Personal life
Personal life
Minghella was in a relationship with The Misshapes DJ Leigh Lezark from 2006 to 2008. Minghella dated actress Kate Mara from 2010 to 2014. In 2015, Minghella was linked to Irish actress Eve Hewson. In 2018, he reportedly began a relationship with actress Elle Fanning, whom he directed in Teen Spirit. They separated in 2023 after several years together.
Television
Television
List of television appearances and roles • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 2013–2017 — The — Richie Castellano — 8 episodes • 2017–2025 — The — Nick Blaine — Main role Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (2021) Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2018–19, 2022) • 2026 — Industry — Whitney Halberstram — Season 4 • 2026 — The Shards — Director; 2 episodes • TBA — The White Lotus — Season 4

Max Minghella at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) for the movie Shell.
Kevin Payravi · Kevin Payravi / WikiPortraits
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Los Angeles.
Residences
Hampstead.
Birth place
Film
List of films and roles • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1999 — Toy Boys — Danny — Short film • Let the Good Times Roll — Boy with dog • 2003 — Cold Mountain — Extra — Uncredited • 2005 — Bee Season — Aaron Naumann • Syriana — Robby Barnes • 2006 — Art School Confidential — Jerome Platz • 2007 — Elvis and Anabelle — Elvis • 2008 — How to Lose Friends & Alienate People — Vincent Lepak • 2009 — Brief Interviews with Hideous Men — Kevin (Subject No. 28) • Agora — Davus • 2010 — The — Divya Narendra — Hollywood Film Festival for Ensemble of the Year Palm Springs International Film Festival Ensemble Cast Award Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Nominated—Central Ohio Film Critics Association for Best Ensemble Nominated—San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Performance by an Ensemble Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble • 2011 — The — Ben Harpen — Nominated—Central Ohio Film Critics Association for Best Ensemble • 10 Years — AJ • The — Ben • 2013 — The — Graham Hawtrey • Horns — Lee Tourneau • 2014 — About Alex — Isaac • Not Safe for Work — Thomas Miller • 2015 — Into the Forest — Eli • Just a Minute — The Voice — Short film • 2016 — The — Nurse — Uncredited; also screenwriter and producer • Fluffy — Mark Mason — Short film • 2018 — Teen Spirit — Director and screenwriter • 2021 — Spiral — William Schenk / William Emmerson • 2022 — Babylon — Irving Thalberg — Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture • 2023 — Maximum Truth — Antonio Kelly-Zhang • 2024 — Shell — Director • 2026 — Clayface — John Borelli — Post-production
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Max Minghella. TVGuide.com.
- 2.Roy, Donald. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press subscription required. 27 November 2015. 978-0-19-861411-1.
- 3.Webb-site Who's Who: Choa, Maisie Nora 羅璇基.
- 4.Roman, Julian. Max Minghella Talks Art School Confidential. MovieWeb. 8 May 2006.
- 5.Pearlman, Cindy. Film director's son makes his own busy career. Chicago Sun-Times. November 2009.
- 6.Ghorbani, Liza. The Talented History Student. The New York Times. 14 May 2006.
- 7.Ghorbani, Liza. The Talented History Student. The New York Times. 2006-05-14. 0362-4331.
- 8.Day, Elizabeth. Max Minghella: "At first it was difficult to be taken seriously". The Guardian. 23 October 2011.
- 9.The Numbers. Bee Season.
- 10.Bee Season (2005). Rotten Tomatoes.
- 11.Douglas, Edward. Bee Season Movie Review. ComingSoon.net.
- 12.Pajiba. Interview with Rawson Marshall Thurber. 5 July 2006.
- 13.Dawtrey, Adam. 'Hippie' grooves for Universal. Variety. 2 May 2007.
- 14.McLovin/Red Mist Becomes Evil Ed in 'Fright Night' Redo!!
- 15.Max Minghella Prepares for Earth's 'Darkest Hour'
- 16.Alejandro Amenábar presents "Agora". Festival de Cannes. 2009-05-16.
- 17.'Agora' earns highest 2009 Spanish box office gross within four days. The Independent. 2009-10-14.
- 18.Rich, Katey. New Social Network Cast Announced on Facebook, Of Course. Cinema Blend. 20 October 2009.
- 19.Home Max Minghella Set for The Darkest Hour
- 20.Trumbore, Dave. Max Minghella May Take THE INTERNSHIP, Taylor Schilling to STAY and Brie Larson Joins THE SPECTACULAR NOW. Collider. 2012-06-21.
- 21.Mindy Project Scoop: Social Network Actor Max Minghella to Play Danny's Bro. TVLine. 28 October 2013.
- 22.Coulehan, Erin. The Killers Give Lovers a Chance in 'Shot at the Night'. Rolling Stone. 27 September 2013.
- 23.TheKillersVEVO. The Killers - Shot At The Night. 2013-09-27.
- 24.Young, Graham. Movie review: The Two Faces Of January (12A). Birmingham Live. 2014-05-16.
- 25.Yamato, Jen. ‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’s Jamie Dornan To Star In Miramax’s ‘The 9th Life Of Louis Drax,’ Alexandre Aja Directing. Deadline. 2014-08-27.
- 26.Sneider, Jeff. Max Minghella in talks to grow ‘Horns’. Variety. 2012-09-05.
- 27.Nast, Condé. For Fifty Shades of Grey's Dakota Johnson, It's Never "Just a Minute". Vogue.
- 28.Barlow, Eve. Interview: Max Minghella, who plays Nick in the Handmaid's Tale, is the enigmatic Brit in LA about to make his directorial debut.
- 29.Lodderhose, Diana. Max Minghella Teams With 'La La Land' Producer For Directorial Debut 'Teen Spirit' – Berlin. 30 January 2017.
- 30.Miller, Julie. Elle Fanning on Unleashing Her Inner Pop Star in Max Minghella’s Dreamy Teen Spirit. Vanity Fair. 2018-09-07.
- 31.Max Minghella’s “Teen Spirit” Gathers Enthusiastic Reviews at SXSW Premiere. Serial Pictures.
- 32.Havens, Lyndsey. How Interscope Helped Make Pop Star Drama ‘Teen Spirit’ Happen. Billboard. 2019-03-07.
- 33.Riley, Jenelle. Max Minghella Talks His Roles in ‘Saw’ Spinoff ‘Spiral’ and ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’. Variety. 2021-05-13.
- 34.Rubin, Rebecca. ‘Spiral’ Pushes ‘Saw’ Franchise Past $1 Billion at Global Box Office. Variety. 2021-05-23.
- 35.Kit, Borys. Max Minghella, Flea, Samara Weaving Join Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie in 'Babylon'. The Hollywood Reporter. 2 June 2021.
- 36.Szalai, Georg. Elisabeth Moss and Max Minghella Want to Entertain You With ‘Shell,’ a “True Popcorn Movie”. The Hollywood Reporter. 2024-09-07.
- 37.Otterson, Joe. ‘Industry’ Season 4 Casts Max Minghella. Variety. 2025-02-20.
- 38.Gaughan, Liam. 'Industry' Season 4 Review: HBO's Most Underrated Thriller Series Returns With a Dark New Chapter. Collider. 2026-01-06.
- 39.Travers, Ben. ‘Industry’ Review: Season 4 Is a Remarkable Reboot That Will Blind You with Its Brilliance. IndieWire. 2026-01-11.
- 40.Kit, Borys. Max Minghella in Talks to Join DC Studios Horror Movie ‘Clayface’. The Hollywood Reporter. 2025-08-11.
- 41.Lang, Brent. DC Studios Moves ‘Clayface’ to October 2026, Warner Bros. Shifts ‘Practical Magic 2’ Release Date. Variety. 2026-02-06.
- 42.Radish, Christina. ‘Industry’ Star Max Minghella Unpacks the Batman-Joker Relationship That Ultimately Brought Down Whitney. Collider. 2026-03-03.
- 43.Cordero, Rosy. Ben Kingsley, Max Minghella & Pekka Strang Join 'The White Lotus' S4. Deadline. 2026-05-11.
- 44.Who Has Max Minghella Dated? Inside the 'Shell' Director’s Quiet Love Life. ELLE. 2025-11-25.
- 45.Max Minghella’s Complete Dating History. Elle.
- 46.Who Has Max Minghella Dated? Inside the 'Shell' Director’s Quiet Love Life. ELLE. 2025-11-25.
- 47.Who Is Max Minghella? Meet Elle Fanning’s Ex-Boyfriend. Elle.
- 48.Elle Fanning Confirms She and Max Minghella Split After More Than 4 Years of Dating. Yahoo Entertainment.
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