Personal Information
Full Name: Wentworth Earl Miller III
Birth Date: June 2, 1972
Birth Place: Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, England
Marital Status: Single
Height: 6’1”
Eye color: Right eye is hazel, left eye is green
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Education: BA in English Literature from Princeton University
Favorite quote: "Definitions belong to the definers, not the defined" from Toni
Morrison's Beloved
Family & Background
Wentworth Miller has a very rich heritage. His father Wentworth Earl Miller II is a
former district attorney of African-American, Jamaican, English, German, Jewish and
Cherokee descent. Wentworth’s mother, Roxann, is a Special Education Teacher of Russian,
French, Dutch, Syrian and Lebanese descent. He has two younger sisters, Gillian, a
lawyer, and Leigh, attending Law School. At the age of one, Wentworth’s family left
England and moved to Park Slope, Brooklyn, New York where he spent the majority of his
childhood. Coming from a multiracial background and at times feeling “caught between
two communities”, Wentworth was able to find his place among the cultural diversity in
Brooklyn.
The Apple Doesn't Fall Far
Wentworth’s father is a Rhodes Scholar who studied at Oxford and his mother is a
graduate from Yale. Needless to say, he grew up in a household that took education very
seriously. During the school year, Wentworth and his siblings were only allowed to
listen to classical music. For the first three years of high school, he attended
Midwood High School in Brooklyn however after relocating to Sewickley, Pennsylvania,
Wentworth completed his senior year at Quaker Valley Senior High School. After
graduating in 1990, he attended the prestigious Princeton University where he earned
the nickname Stinky due to his sarcastic attitude. His interest in performing was
beginning to develop as he joined the a cappella group, The Princeton Tigertones. In
1995, Wentworth received his degree in English Literature and set out to pave his
destiny.
Career Achievements
After graduating, Wentworth headed west to Los Angeles where he held jobs at a bookstore
and as a temp working behind the scenes for several production companies. It was during
this time that his ambition to act was renewed and he began attending auditions. It was
only a matter of time before his dreams of becoming an actor would be realized. After
years of auditioning, he landed his first guest role on Buffy the Vampire Slayer in 1998.
This was followed by other appearances on Popular, Time of Your Life and ER. In 2002,
he landed his first starring role was as David in ABC’s mini series Dinotopia. The
following year, Wentworth appeared in his first feature film, The Human Stain, playing
a young Coleman Silk. Anthony Hopkins starred as the mature Coleman Silk and the film
also featured Nicole Kidman. That same year, he also made an appearance in the movie
Underworld. In 2005, Wentworth was featured in two of Mariah Carey’s music videos,
"It's Like That" and "We Belong Together" which he credits to further increasing his
profile. He also made guest appearances on Joan of Arcadia and Ghost Whisperer before
landing the role of Michael Scofield on Fox’s Prison Break.
Art Imitates Life
In The Human Stain, Wentworth plays a young Coleman Silk, a man of mixed race who has
made the conscious decision to pass as white. At casting, Wentworth revealed that he
was of the same racial background as the main character however he was requested to
prove his claim by producing family photos. Aside from the racial composition, Wentworth
had another similarity to the character of Coleman Silk. As a professor, Silk is
accused of being racist against black students and rather than reveal his true
background to prove his innocence, he chooses to hold onto his secret and as a result
loses his position. While attending Princeton, Wentworth published a cartoon featuring
a professor of African-American studies, Cornel West. The cartoon referred to Professor
West as being “newly purchased” which was in reference to him being hired by Harvard
University. Many people who were not aware of Wentworth’s background were offended by
the comment and believed it related to slavery. Wentworth knew his intentions and
therefore chose not to defend himself against the perception of others. Wentworth would
later write a letter of apology to the professor however he did not receive a reply.
Professor West, who was friends with actress Anna Deavere Smith who played Coleman
Silk’s mother in The Human Stain, attended the premiere. He reportedly gave Wentworth a
hug and let him know that all was forgiven.
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