Ezra Matthew Miller is an American actor. Miller's feature film debut was in Afterschool. Miller starred as Kevin in the drama We Need to Talk About Kevin and co-starred in the film adaptation of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. In 2015, Miller co-starred in the drama The Stanford Prison Experiment and the comedy Trainwreck. Miller played Credence Barebone in the Fantastic Beasts films Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and '. Miller also portrays Barry Allen / The Flash in the DC Extended Universe, beginning with a minor role in ', a cameo in Suicide Squad and later as one of the leads in Justice League. Miller also reprised the role of Barry Allen on television in The CW's Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover in 2020.
Early life
Miller was born and raised in Wyckoff, New Jersey. Miller has two older sisters, Saiya and Caitlin. Miller's mother, Marta Miller, is a modern dancer. Miller's father, Robert S. Miller, was senior vice president and managing director of Hyperion Books, and later became a publisher at Workman Publishing. Miller's father is Jewish and Miller's mother, who has German and Dutch ancestry, is from a Christian background. Miller self-identifies as Jewish and "spiritual". At the age of six, Miller started to train as an opera singer, in order to overcome a speech impediment. Miller has sung with the Metropolitan Opera, and performed in the American premiere of Philip Glass's opera White Raven. Miller attended Rockland Country Day School and The Hudson School, dropping out at age 16 after the release of the film Afterschool.
Career
Miller's start in film began in 2008 with Antonio Campos' Afterschool, in the role of a teenager at a boarding school who accidentally films the drug-related deaths of two classmates, and is then asked to put together a memorial video. The following year, Miller appeared in City Island with Andy García, Julianna Margulies, and Steven Strait. In 2010, Miller portrayed the lead of Beware the Gonzo and had a supporting role in Every Day, both of which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Miller next appeared in the BBC Films film We Need to Talk About Kevin, alongside Tilda Swinton and John C. Reilly, which was adapted and directed by Lynne Ramsay from American author Lionel Shriver's 2003 novel of the same name. Miller played Damien on the Showtime hit comedy series Californication. Miller appeared on Royal Pains as Tucker Bryant for two seasons. In the 2012 film adaptation of the novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Miller played Patrick, alongside Logan Lerman and Emma Watson. Miller has been credited with singing, drumming and percussion on musical recordings by the band Sons of an Illustrious Father, as early as 2011. The band is a trio that features Lilah Larson, Josh Aubin and Miller. In 2019, the band released a cover of "Don't Cha" by the Pussycat Dolls and Miller appeared in its music video. Miller played Credence Barebone in the 2016 film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, a spin-off of the Harry Potter film series. Miller reprised the role in the film's sequel, ', which was released in November 2018. Miller portrays Barry Allen / The Flash in Warner Bros.' DC Comics adaptations, first appearing in cameos in ' and Suicide Squad, and continuing the role as one of the leads in Justice League. Miller is set to play the character in the standalone filmThe Flash. Miller attended Middle East Film and Comic Con in 2018 representing their character in the DC Comics franchise film Justice League. In 2020, Miller reprised the role of The Flash for a cameo appearance in the Arrowverse crossover event, Crisis on Infinite Earths.
Personal life
Miller came out as queer in 2012. Having expressed an interest in "kissing boys" at a young age, Miller stated, "The way I would choose to identify myself wouldn't be gay. I've been attracted mostly to 'shes' but I've been with many people and I'm open to love whatever it can be." Miller also commented on having "a lot of really wonderful friends who are of very different sexes and genders. I am very much in love with no one in particular." Miller uses they/them pronouns, which GQ Britain stated is done "in a pointed refusal to be gendered". Miller stated that, for them, queer means "I don't identify as a man. I don't identify as a woman. I barely identify as a human." Having used all pronouns interchangeably, Miller has also stated that they are "comfortable with all the pronouns" and that they "let he/his/him ride, and that's fine." Although Miller has been credited as a queer icon, GQ Britain stated that they also eschew the term queer, "as even queer is a label to them". Miller revealed having had a personal#MeToo experience with a Hollywood producer and a director, both unnamed. Miller said, "They gave me wine and I was underaged. They were like, 'Hey, want to be in our movie about gay revolution?' And I was like, 'No, you guys are monsters.'" Miller then went on to show support for the #MeToo movement. In 2010, Miller dated Zoë Kravitz while they were filming Beware the Gonzo. On June 28, 2011, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, while shooting The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Miller was a passenger in a vehicle that was pulled over for a broken brake light, and police discovered 20 grams of marijuana in their possession. Initially, Miller was charged with drug possession, but the charge was later dropped by a judge. Instead, Miller faced a penalty of $600 for two citations of disorderly conduct. Miller later commented: "I don't feel like there's any need to hide the fact that I smoke pot. It's a harmless herbal substance that increases sensory appreciation."
