Nick Robinson (American actor)
Nick Robinson | |
---|---|
Born | Nicholas John Robinson March 22, 1995 Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
Education | Campbell Hall School |
Alma mater | New York University |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2007–present |
Nicholas John Robinson (born March 22, 1995) is an American actor. As a child, he appeared in a 2008 stage production of A Christmas Carol and Mame, after which he starred in the television sitcom Melissa & Joey (2010–2015). He went on to play a supporting role in the science fiction adventure film Jurassic World (2015) and took on lead roles in several teen dramas, including The Kings of Summer (2013), The 5th Wave (2016), Everything, Everything (2017), Love, Simon (2018), and Native Son (2019). In 2020, Robinson co-starred in the FX miniseries A Teacher. In 2021, he co-starred in the Netflix miniseries Maid.
In 2018, Robinson was named in Forbes' "30 Under 30" list in the Hollywood & Entertainment category.
Early life
Robinson was born on March 22, 1995, in Seattle, Washington. He has four younger siblings. His mother is Denise Podnar. He graduated from Campbell Hall School in 2013. He was accepted to New York University’s College of Arts and Sciences and attended in the summer to work on another season of Melissa & Joey.
Career
Robinson made his professional acting debut at the age of eleven with a role in a stage adaptation of Charles Dickens' novel A Christmas Carol. Talent scout Matt Casella recommended him to a few agencies and Robinson was eventually signed with the Los Angeles-based Savage Agency. Because of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, Robinson's family moved back to Washington where he continued to perform on stage in and around Seattle.
In 2010, Robinson was cast in the role of Ryder Scanlon, the nephew of Melissa Joan Hart's character, on the ABC Family sitcom Melissa & Joey, playing the character until its cancellation in 2015.
In 2011, while on hiatus from Melissa & Joey, Robinson began filming of the Disney Channel original movie Frenemies; Robinson played the role of Jake Logan. Frenemies premiered in January 2012, on the Disney Channel.
In 2012, Robinson was cast in the lead role of Joe Toy in director Jordan Vogt-Roberts' The Kings of Summer. He also guest-starred in the episode "Blue Bell Boy," during the third season of HBO's Boardwalk Empire. He also began appearing in a series of television commercials for Cox Communications entitled "Buffer Time is Bonding Time."
In October 2013, Robinson was cast in Jurassic World, which was released in 2015. He played one of a pair of brothers who visit their aunt at Jurassic World. He played Ben Parish in the film adaptation of the novel The 5th Wave, which was released in January 2016. These roles made him unavailable for multiple episodes of the final season of Melissa & Joey, but he returned for the final three episodes.
He played the titular lead in independent film Being Charlie, a semi-autobiographical feature about director Rob Reiner's relationship with his son, which premiered at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival; the film was released theatrically in 2016.
In 2017, he starred in William H. Macy's comedy-drama film Krystal, and as Olly in Everything, Everything, a film adaptation of the novel of the same name.
In 2018, Robinson starred as the titular Simon Spier in the gay coming out teen drama film Love, Simon. The film was considered ground-breaking because it was the first major studio film to focus on a gay, teenage romance. Robinson's performance as Simon garnered critical acclaim. After reading the script, Robinson revealed that he broke his own rule to no longer play high schoolers because he saw the cultural importance of the film.
In June 2018, it was announced he would star in the film adaptation of the novel Weetzie Bat. In 2019, he co-starred in the third film version of Richard Wright's Native Son.
In 2020, Robinson co-starred in the FX miniseries A Teacher, and he narrated his DM responses to the protagonist of Love, Victor, a Love, Simon spinoff TV series on Hulu, and appeared in two episodes of the show.
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2012 | Frenemies | Jake Logan | |
2013 | The Kings of Summer | Joe Toy | |
2015 | Jurassic World | Zach Mitchell | |
Being Charlie | Charlie Mills | ||
2016 | The 5th Wave | Ben Parish | |
2017 | Kong: Skull Island | Bar guest #2 | Cameo |
Everything, Everything | Olly Bright | ||
Krystal | Taylor Ogburn | ||
2018 | Love, Simon | Simon Spier | |
2019 | Native Son | Jan Erlone | |
Strange but True | Phillip Chase | ||
2020 | Shadow in the Cloud | Stu Beckell | |
2021 | Silk Road | Ross Ulbricht |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2010–2015 | Melissa & Joey | Ryder Scanlon | Main role |
2012 | Boardwalk Empire | Rowland Smith | Episode: "Blue Bell Boy" |
2020–2021 | Love, Victor | Simon Spier | Special guest star (seasons 1–2) |
2020 | A Teacher | Eric Walker | Main role; miniseries |
2021 | Maid | Sean | Main role |
Video games
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | Lego Jurassic World | Zach Mitchell | |
2015 | Lego Dimensions | Zach Mitchell |
Theatre
Year | Title | Role | Venue |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | To Kill a Mockingbird | Jem Finch | Intiman Playhouse |
A Christmas Carol | Ensemble | ACT Theatre | |
2008 | A Christmas Carol | Ensemble | ACT Theatre |
2008 | Mame | Patrick Dennis | 5th Avenue Theatre |
2009 | A Thousand Clowns | Nick Burns | Intiman Playhouse |
2010 | Lost in Yonkers | Arty Kurnitz | Village Theatre |
2019 | To Kill a Mockingbird | Jem Finch | Shubert Theatre |
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards | Best Performance by a Youth in a Lead or Supporting Role – Male | The Kings of Summer | Nominated | |
2015 | Young Entertainer Awards | Best Leading Young Actor – Feature Film | Jurassic World | Nominated | |
2017 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Drama Movie Actor | Everything, Everything | Nominated | |
2018 | MTV Movie & TV Awards | Best Kiss (shared with Keiynan Lonsdale) | Love, Simon | Won | |
Human Rights Campaign | Ally for Equality Award | Love, Simon | Won | ||
Maui Film Festival | Rising Star Award | Love, Simon | Won | ||
Teen Choice Awards | Choice Breakout Movie Star | Love, Simon | Won | ||
Choice Movie Ship (shared with Keiynan Lonsdale) | Love, Simon | Nominated | |||
Los Angeles Online Film Critics Society | Best Actor | Love, Simon | Nominated | ||
People's Choice Awards | The Male Movie Star of 2018 | Love, Simon | Nominated | ||
The Comedy Movie Star of 2018 | Love, Simon | Nominated | |||
2019 | Satellite Awards | Best Actor in Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical | Love, Simon | Nominated |