Adam Driver

• 1. The Misfit In The Marines

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  Adam Douglas Driver was born on the 19th of November 1983 in Fontana, California. His family moved to San Diego when he was seven years old before settling in Mishawaka, Indiana after his parents divorced. He spent his teenage years as a self-described misfit who climbed radio towers and set objects on fire. Driver co-founded a fight club with friends while attending high school in Indiana. He graduated from Mishawaka High School in 2001 but failed to gain admission to Juilliard School for drama. After leaving home at eighteen, he broke down in Amarillo, Texas during a road trip to Los Angeles. He lived in a hostel for two days and was scammed by a real estate agent before returning to Indiana. Shortly after the September 11 attacks, Driver enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. He served for two years and eight months as an 81mm mortar man in Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines. A mountain bike accident fractured his sternum and ended his active duty service.

• 2. Breaking Out On Television

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  Driver made his film debut in Clint Eastwood's biographical film J. Edgar released in 2011. He appeared in several television series including The Unusuals and Law & Order before landing a major role. In 2012, he starred as Adam Sackler in the HBO comedy-drama series Girls. His portrayal of an emotionally unstable boyfriend earned him three consecutive Primetime Emmy nominations from 2013 through 2015. The character appeared in 49 episodes across five seasons until the show concluded in 2017. Critics praised his work on stage where he won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in Look Back in Anger. He played Cliff, a working-class Welsh houseguest in that production at Roundabout Theatre Company. Driver also appeared in films like Lincoln and Frances Ha during this early period. His performance in Hungry Hearts won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the 71st Venice International Film Festival in 2014.

• 3. Transitioning To Film Stardom

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  Driver gained wider recognition for playing Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens which opened on the 18th of December 2015. He reprised the role in The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker to conclude the sequel trilogy by 2019. Before becoming a leading man, he took supporting roles in indie dramas like Paterson and Silence. In Paterson, he played a bus driver and poetry writer who premiered at the 69th Cannes Film Festival. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone called his portrayal indelibly moving and lyrical. While filming Silence, Driver lost almost 50 pounds to portray Father Francisco Garupe. He received multiple nominations for Best Actor from critics associations including the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award. David Edelstein of Vulture described his Kylo Ren as one of cinema's most fascinating human monsters. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian highlighted Driver's fastidious contempt for enemies' weakness in his review.

• 4. The Star Wars Phenomenon

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  Disney Studios cast Adam Driver as villain Kylo Ren in early 2014 for the upcoming film. The movie released on the 18th of December 2015, achieving both commercial success and critical acclaim. Driver appeared in three films spanning from 2015 to 2019 within the Star Wars sequel trilogy. His performance was positively received across all installments with specific praise for his emotional range. After the trilogies concluded, Driver sought to continue portraying the character in a spin-off film titled The Hunt For Ben Solo. Steven Soderbergh wrote the screenplay but Disney Studios rejected the script despite Lucasfilm saying they loved the idea. The role earned him recognition alongside other major studio productions like Logan Lucky and The Report. He also voiced Kylo Ren in video games such as Disney Infinity 3.0 and Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens. A theme park attraction called Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance opened at Disneyland between 2019 and 2020 featuring his voice.

• 5. Academy Award Recognition

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  Driver received consecutive Academy Award nominations for playing opposing character archetypes in two different films. He won Best Supporting Actor for BlacKkKlansman which premiered at the 71st Cannes Film Festival in 2018. In that film, he played a Jewish police detective who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan. Jon Frosch of The Hollywood Reporter noted he delivered a brilliantly inhabited portrait of a man undergoing divorce in Marriage Story. That second film premiered at the 76th Venice International Film Festival in 2019 earning him a nomination for Best Actor. He also received BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations for both performances. Driver was part of the ensemble cast of Lincoln winning a SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. His dual nominations highlighted his versatility across comedy-drama and political thriller genres.

• 6. Broadway And Stage Presence

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  Adam Driver made his Broadway debut in Mrs. Warren's Profession in 2010 before acting in Man and Boy the following year. He returned to live theater with acclaimed performances in Burn This alongside Keri Russell in 2019. The production earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play. Driver will return to the off-Broadway stage playing fictional country music star Strings McCrane in Hold On to Me Darling starting in September 2024. Robert Hoffer for The Wrap considered McCrane to be the best role for Driver. He has said on multiple occasions that he dislikes watching or listening to his own performances. His usual technique involves leaving the theater after a show and pretending he was there the whole time when the lights come up.

• 7. Personal Life And Philanthropy

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  Driver married his long-time girlfriend Joanne Tucker in June 2013 while they were attending Juilliard together. Tucker is the granddaughter of Bermudian politician Henry Tucker. The couple have a son born in 2016 whose birth they kept private from the press for two years. They gave birth to a second child, a girl, in early 2023. They live in Brooklyn Heights with their children and dog. Driver founded Arts in the Armed Forces as a nonprofit organization performing theater for all branches of the military. The group provides free arts programming to American active-duty service members, veterans, military support staff, and their families worldwide. A photo shows him at Camp Pendleton in 2008 with Isiah Whitlock Jr. and Jay O. Sanders during a performance. He hosted Saturday Night Live four times between 2020 and 2023 with musical guests Halsey and Olivia Rodrigo.