Mike Faist

Michael David Faist(/faɪst/;born January 5, 1992)is an American actor. He is the recipient of aGrammyand aDaytime Emmy Award, with nominations for aTonyand aBritish Academy Film Award.
An alumnus of theAmerican Musical and Dramatic Academy, Faist began his acting career in 2011 inDisney'sNewsies, appearing in itsBroadwayproduction (2012–2013). He continued to appear in several independent films, television series and starring inOff-Broadwayproductions before his breakthrough role in the Broadway musicalDear Evan Hansen(2015–2018), for which he was nominated for theTony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musicaland won theGrammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
In 2021, Faist starred in the seriesPanicand had his first major film part as Riff, the leader of the Jets, inSteven Spielberg'sWest Side Story,for which he received a nomination for theBAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. He has since starred asJack Twistin aWest End theatreproduction ofBrokeback Mountain(2023) and in the romantic sports filmChallengers(2024).
Michael David Faist was born on January 5, 1992, inGahanna, Ohio,and was adopted by his parents, Julia and Kurt Faist.The family owns a real estate business.As a child, Faist realized he wanted to pursue a career in the performing arts. He was enticed by dancing after seeingGene KellyandFred Astairein oldMGMfilms, especially Kelly inSingin' in the Rain. "Just the way he performed and moved, he was able to tell a story through movement," Faist said. At the age of 5, he pressured his parents to enroll him in dance classes and began auditioning for community theater and children's theater.In a Columbus Children's Theatre production ofThe Wizard of Oz, he played one of the Lollipop Guild, later joining the cast ofOliver!andAlice in Wonderland.
Faist fell in love with acting while attending The Academy of Performing Arts (TAPA) company inColumbus, Ohio, and while atGahanna Lincoln High Schoolhe acted in several productions, such as Danny Zuko inGreaseand Simon inJesus Christ Superstar.At the age of 17, Faist met his birth mother and her family, who are mostly pilots by profession. The eldest of his two half-brothers taught him how to fly. Faist has since then obtained hispilot's license.
In 2009, he graduated from high school a year early and moved toNew Yorkto pursue a stage career.He enrolled in theAmerican Musical and Dramatic Academybut dropped out after two semesters.While auditioning forOff-Broadwayplays, he began selling tickets inTimes Square.On his first job as a professional actor in the playWhite Christmas, he was collecting food stamps, earning $150 per week, and living in the back of aMcDonald'sparking lot.
Faist began his acting career in 2011, originating the role of Morris Delancey, a bully and publisherJoseph Pulitzer's henchman, in the regional premiere ofNewsiesat thePaper Mill Playhouse. When the musical transferred toBroadway, he understudied the lead role of Jack Kelly, a newsboy who leads his colleagues in a strike against the publisher, in addition to his other roles. Faist had to alternately play the roles in quick succession during the opening number. "You have to really make sure you're warmed up vocally and physically and you're mentally prepared," Faist said of the demands of his dual role, but added, "It's not hard to have fun in Newsies, about the uprising of children, a new generation coming in to take over the old."Newsiesopened to critical acclaim and was nominated forBest Musicalat the66th Tony Awards.In 2012, he made his feature film debut in the coming-of-age dramaThe Unspeakable Act. The independent film received positive reviews.
Faist went on to star as Rhys Thurston inBranden Jacobs-Jenkins's playAppropriateOff-Broadwayin 2014, which drew critical acclaim from chief theater criticBen BrantleyofThe New York Times.In 2015, he appeared as Skip in the short filmYellow,a psychiatric ward patient inTouched with Fire, and Gordie Joiner inThe Grief of Otherswhich received critical and generally positive reviews.He was also cast in an unaired pilot of the seriesEye Candyas Olsen and co-starred as tutor Aleksei Belyaev oppositePeter Dinklagein an Off-Broadway production ofA Month in the Country.
In August 2015, he originated the role of Connor Murphy in the hit musicalDear Evan Hansen, playing the role of the drug addict from the workshop till its Broadway transfer in 2016. The musical received critical acclaim and earned Faist aTony Awardnomination forBest Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical.Along with his cast members, he also won theGrammy Award for Best Musical Theater Albumand theDaytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Musical Performance in a Daytime Programfor their performance ofYou Will Be FoundonThe Today Show.Of his process for developing his character, a suicidal high school student, Faist said that he "read stories by real survivors on a website, livethroughthis.org. I realized that there seems to be a general lack of self-love and empathy in our society. I hope that when people see the show, they'll say, 'Oh, I am loved. I'm exactly who I am, and I am enough'."Along with cast membersBen Levi RossandMallory Bechtel, Faist lent his voice for the audiobook version ofVal Emmich'sDear Evan Hansen: The Novel, a book adaptation of the musical released in October 2018.
The two following years, Faist continued to feature in small independent films the likes ofOur Time,I Can I Will I DidandActive Adults.He also appeared in crime procedural dramasLaw & Order Special Victims Unitin a 2017 episode as Glenn Lawrence. In October 2017, he taughtImprovand acting exercises in a Broadway Musical Theatre Workshop and also held a Master Class for audition technique and song interpretation.He taught the same class inMontrealthat November.
In 2018, he appeared in an episode ofDeceptionand starred in theSecond Stage Theaterproduction ofDays of Rageas Spence, a conflicted and passionate young man torn between causes and women.He also appeared in the horror-fantasy filmWildlingoppositeBel Powley. It premiered atSouth by Southwestto mixed reviews.In 2020, he played a starring role as Arthur in the small independent dramaThe Atlantic City Story.
In 2021, Faist co-starred as Dodge Mason in theAmazon's teen drama thrillerPanic.The New York Timesspoke of Faist, describing him as tall and lanky, making quite a striking figure in the series, "With a slender charisma and a bone structure that seems to have been sculpted with a scythe, the actor could easily have embarked on Panic. But his sensitivity is closer to that of leading men as atypical asAdam Driver, and he modernizes a potentially versatile piece."Despite receiving positive reviews from critics, the series was canceled after one season.Faist received a nomination for his work by theCritics Choice Associationin the categoryBest Actor in an Action Seriesat the2nd Critics' Choice Super Awards.
Later that year, he had his first major movie role inSteven Spielberg's film adaptation ofWest Side Storyas Riff, Tony's best friend and leader of the Jets gang.The film was a critical success and some critics deemed it superior to the 1961 film.His performance earned universal praise from critics.The Washington Postregards his magnetic performance asWest Side Story's "stand-out" as its chief film criticAnn Hornadaywrote "The revelation in this production, however, is Mike Faist, who is not only a gifted singer and dancer, but plays Jets gang leader Riff with just the right mix of spiky resentment, hair-trigger anger and loose-limbed grace.".On his collaboration with Faist, screenwriterTony Kushnersays, "He really wants to think about economics, politics, psychology, and psychotechnology, and he feeds himself with a kind of acuity and precision that I think is the mark of a great actor."To craft a new version of his character, Faist took inspiration from a 1959Bruce Davidsonphotography book entitledBrooklyn Gang."You look at those photos and you see these people, the nihilism that exists, their inability to see past tomorrow, or even today for that matter. There's something depressing about it, also carnal, wild, and primal," Faist explained.For his performance, Faist received a nomination forBest Actor in a Supporting Roleat the75th British Academy Film Awards.
Faist made hisWest Enddebut in the stage adaptation ofBrokeback MountainasJack Twist, oppositeLucas HedgesasEnnis Del Mar, in May 2023.The production received mixed reviews but Faist earned acclaim with Arifa Akbar ofThe Guardianwriting, "[the two leads] chemistry comes alive as boyish romance, with play fighting and suddenly grabbing ardour...both actors are compelling, Faist especially so as the ebullient Jack".Faist portrayed photographerDanny LyoninJeff Nichols'The BikeridersoppositeAustin Butler,Jodie ComerandTom Hardy.Faist practiced photography and spent a weekend with Lyon, in addition to studying Lyon's personal audio recordings and other material.The film premiered at the 2023Telluride Film Festivalto positive reviews. Sheri Linden ofThe Hollywood Reporternoted that despite Faist's "charismatic screen presence, [he] was somewhat wasted here".
Faist starred withZendayaandJosh O'ConnorinLuca Guadagnino's romantic dramaChallengersas Art, a famed tennis player facing his rival.He gained 30 pounds for the role and practiced tennis.The film was originally set to premiere at the80th Venice International Film Festivalbut was delayed by the studio to 2024 due to the2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.The film received positive reviews from critics.
Faist writes short stories and has stated that it is important for an actor to write in order to understand scripts. He helped to establish a playwright's festival, the Ohio Artists Gathering, which he described as "a one-week theater festival bringing artists from New York and LA and integrating them with local actors, writers, and directors." The first festival was held inColumbus, Ohioin 2018.HisBikeridersdirectorJeff Nicholsshared in an interview that Faist was writing a screenplay and might want to become a filmmaker himself.