List of Bradley Cooper performances

Cooper at the Spain premiere of Silver Linings Playbook in 2013

Bradley Cooper is an American actor and filmmaker. He began his career by appearing in an episode of the sitcom Sex and the City (1999) and as the host of the tourism show Globe Trekker the following year. He made his screen debut in Wet Hot American Summer (2001) as a gay counselor—a role he later reprised in the web television series Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp (2015).[1] In the action television series Alias (2001–2006), Cooper achieved some success for the supporting role of Will Tippin, although he only played a major role in the series for the first few seasons.[2]

Cooper's supporting part in the commercially successful comedy Wedding Crashers (2005) improved his career prospects,[3] but also led to him being typecast as the best friend to the main character in such comedies as Failure to Launch (2006), The Rocker (2008), and He's Just Not That Into You (2009).[4] During this period, Cooper also continued starring in television shows, such as the 2005 sitcom Kitchen Confidential, and played a dual role in a 2006 onstage production of Three Days of Rain. However, the former was cancelled after four episodes due to low ratings.[5] His breakthrough came with the role of a reckless teacher in Todd Phillips' comedy The Hangover (2009),[6] which became one of the highest grossing R-rated films of all time.[7] Cooper continued to take on parts in several box office hits, including The A-Team (2010), Limitless, and The Hangover Part II (both in 2011).[8]

Cooper appeared in four films in 2012, including the critically acclaimed The Place Beyond the Pines and Silver Linings Playbook. His performance in the latter in particular was widely praised,[6] and earned him a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Actor, among other awards.[9] Cooper's profile continued to expand as he took on major roles in several successful films—American Hustle (2013), Guardians of the Galaxy, and American Sniper (both in 2014).[4] After receiving Academy Award nominations for American Hustle and American Sniper, he became the tenth actor in history to receive an Academy Award nomination in three consecutive years.[9][a] Cooper returned to stage work for a 2014 Broadway production of The Elephant Man, where he played the severely deformed Joseph Merrick. His performance drew praise from critics, and earned him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play.[10] None of his 2015 films—Aloha, Burnt, or Joy—performed particularly well at the box office.[8] In 2016, he appeared in the comedy drama War Dogs that he also co-produced under his and Philips' production company, Joint Effort.[11]

In 2018, Cooper directed his first film with the highly successful musical romantic drama A Star Is Born,[12] in which he also starred, and contributed to its writing, production, and soundtrack (alongside Lady Gaga). The soundtrack topped the charts in the UK and Ireland, and included the single "Shallow", which also peaked at number one in Ireland. In 2019, Cooper produced the psychological thriller Joker, based on the DC Comics character of the same name. It became the first R-rated film to pass the billion-dollar mark.[13]

  1. ^ Mumford, Gwilym (July 28, 2015). "Wet Hot American Summer: the obscure cult favourite is about to get a TV reboot". The Guardian. Archived from the original on August 15, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  2. ^ Galloway, Stephen (September 5, 2012). "Bradley Cooper: The Serious Evolution of a Leading Man". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 4, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  3. ^ "Bradley Cooper". Biography.com. Archived from the original on September 1, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  4. ^ a b Lyttelton, Oliver (January 19, 2015). "From 'Alias' To 'American Sniper': How Bradley Cooper Became One Of Hollywood's Biggest Stars". IndieWire. Archived from the original on June 17, 2016. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kitchen Confidential was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b Reid, Ricki (November 23, 2012). "Post—Hangover bliss: Bradley Cooper interview". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  7. ^ "All Time Box Office — R Rated Films". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on November 16, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  8. ^ a b "Bradley Cooper". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on March 20, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  9. ^ a b c Siegemund-Broka, Austin (January 15, 2015). "Oscars: Bradley Cooper Becomes 10th Actor Ever To Score Three-Peat Nomination". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on November 24, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  10. ^ "Tony Award Winners 2015: Full List". Variety. June 7, 2015. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  11. ^ McCarthy, Todd (August 16, 2016). "'War Dogs': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 7, 2016. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
  12. ^ "A Star Is Born Is the Best-Picture Front-Runner, and It Needs Competition, Fast". Vanity Fair. October 12, 2018. Archived from the original on October 14, 2018. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  13. ^ Nolfi, Joey (November 15, 2019). "Joker becomes first R-rated movie to gross $1 billion worldwide". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved August 18, 2022.


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