Neal Bledsoe (born March 26, 1981) is a Canadian-American actor, writer, and filmmaker.
Early life
Bledsoe was born in
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, but grew up in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
,
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
. Both of his grandfathers served in the
Air Force
An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and his maternal grandfather was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his part in the bombing of the Nazi oil refinery at
Ploiești
Ploiești ( , , ), formerly spelled Ploești, is a Municipiu, city and county seat in Prahova County, Romania. Part of the historical region of Muntenia, it is located north of Bucharest.
The area of Ploiești is around , and it borders the Ble ...
. His mother was a life insurance underwriter and estate planner before becoming an executive for a company that worked all over the world. His father has a PhD in
Sociology
Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...
from the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
where he studied under the philosopher
Marshall McLuhan
Herbert Marshall McLuhan (, ; July 21, 1911 – December 31, 1980) was a Canadian philosopher whose work is among the cornerstones of the study of media studies, media theory. Raised in Winnipeg, McLuhan studied at the University of Manitoba a ...
.
He moved fourteen times around Seattle area growing up, living in Magnolia, Ballard, Fremont, Edmonds, Magnolia again, Ravenna, Downtown, Queen Anne, West Seattle, Queen Anne again, Fremont again, Queen Anne a third time, Bainbridge Island and Capitol Hill. He attended
Roosevelt High School (Seattle) and
Garfield High School (Seattle)
James A. Garfield High School is a public high school in the Seattle Public Schools district of Seattle, Washington. It is named after James A. Garfield, the 20th President of the United States. The school is located at 400 23rd Avenue betwee ...
in Seattle, including a brief stint at Ascent within the
CEDU system of schools, before finally graduating from the
Shawnigan Lake School
Shawnigan Lake School is a co-educational independent boarding school located on Vancouver Island in Shawnigan Lake, British Columbia, Canada. It was founded by Englishman Christopher Lonsdale, Christopher Windley "C. W." Lonsdale in 1916 and was p ...
and then spending a post-graduate year at the
Idyllwild Arts Academy
Idyllwild Arts Academy is a private school located in Idyllwild, in the San Jacinto Mountains and San Bernardino National Forest, within western Riverside County, California. The school was founded in 1946. It was previously known as Idyllwil ...
, to grow as an actor and a writer. It was at the last of these two schools where he began to first publish his writing.
He went on to study at the prestigious
North Carolina School of the Arts where he was mentored by the renowned theater director,
Gerald Freedman, earning a BFA in 2005.
Career
Actor
Bledsoe got a quick start out of school, booking a pilot opposite
Kelly Lynch
Kelly Ann Lynch (born January 31, 1959) is an American film and television actress. She had her breakthrough role in the 1988 film ''Cocktail,'' before playing a romantic lead opposite Patrick Swayze in the cult film '' Road House'' (1989). She w ...
less than a month after leaving school. He worked steadily for the next few years, until he had his breakthrough in 2009 on
Gossip Girl
''Gossip Girl'' is an American teen drama television series created and developed by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage and based on the series of novels of the same name by Cecily von Ziegesar. It follows a group of students on Manhattan's ...
and
Ugly Betty
''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from September 28, 2006, to April 14, 2010. It is based on the Colombian telenovela ''Yo soy Betty, la fea' ...
. He then went on to star on the shows ''
Law and Order: SVU,
Smash,
Ironside,'' ''
The Man in the High Castle,'' ''
The Mysteries of Laura,
Timeless,
Code Black'' and most recently'',
Shameless.''
He has won several awards for his work in independent films such as ''
Junction'', ''West End and After the Sun Fell''. He also has appeared in both
''Revolutionary Road'' and ''
Sex and the City 2
''Sex and the City 2'' is a 2010 American romantic comedy film written, co-produced, and directed by Michael Patrick King. It is the sequel to the 2008 film ''Sex and the City','' which was based on the 1998–2004 HBO television series of ...
'' in blink-and-you'll-miss-him types of roles. Recently, he starred opposite
Val Kilmer
Val Edward Kilmer (December 31, 1959 – April 1, 2025) was an American actor. Initially a stage actor, he later found fame as a Leading actor, leading man in films in a wide variety of genres, including Comedy film, comedies, dramas, action fi ...
in the western ''A Soldier's Revenge.''
On the stage, he worked on the Broadway production of ''
Impressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...
'', the world premiere of Stephen Wadsworth's Figaro Plays at the
McCarter Theatre
McCarter Theatre Center is a not-for-profit, professional company on the campus of Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey. It was incorporated as a nonprofit in 1963. A two-time Tony Award winner, the McCarter’s legacy traces back to ...
and
Michael Arden's award-winning production of ''
The Pride'' at the
Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, also known as The Wallis, is a community arts center in Beverly Hills, California, named for philanthropist and endower Wallis Annenberg
Location
The Wallis is located on the corner of North S ...
.
He appeared in several campaigns for
Tiffany and Co
Tiffany & Co. (colloquially known as Tiffany's) is an American luxury goods, luxury jewelry and specialty design house headquartered on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. Tiffany is known for its luxury goods, particularly its sterling silver and diam ...
, opposite Dutch model,
Doutzen Kroes
Doutzen Kroes (, ; born 23 January 1985) is a Dutch fashion model. She began her modelling career in 2003, in the Netherlands and was quickly sent by her agency to New York where she was cast by lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret. She was a ...
.
He also was an
Old Spice
Old Spice is an American brand offering male grooming products including aftershaves, deodorants and antiperspirants, shampoos, body washes, shaving cream, and soaps. It is manufactured by Procter & Gamble.
Old Spice was launched as Early Amer ...
Man.
In December 2022, Bledsoe announced that he was leaving the
Great American Family
Great American Family is an American cable television network owned by Great American Media. The channel broadcasts family-oriented general entertainment programming such as television series and made-for-TV movies—some of which containing f ...
network because of their anti-
LGBTQ
LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, Gay men, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (sexuality and gender), questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, Asexuality, asexual, ...
stance. Bledsoe stated, "the thought that my work could be used to deliberately discriminate against anyone horrifies and infuriates me."
Writer
As a writer, he has written films, poems, short stories, cartoons, essays and articles. In 2014, he became a contributor to
Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...
's MMQB. His long-form series, ''The Delicate Moron'', chronicled his attempt to play for the
Los Angeles Kiss
The Los Angeles Kiss (stylized as LA KISS) were a professional arena football team based in Anaheim, California, and members of the Arena Football League (AFL). The Kiss joined the AFL as an expansion team after Los Angeles' previous franchise ( ...
of the
Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...
. Recently, he published a profile in ''
Men's Health
''Men's Health'' (''MH''), published by Hearst Communications, Hearst, is the world's largest men's magazine brand, with 35 editions in 59 countries; it is the bestselling men's magazine on American newsstands.
Started as a men's health magazin ...
'' magazine on former NFL running back and ''
Ballers
''Ballers'' is an American sports comedy-drama series created by Stephen Levinson that aired for five seasons on HBO from June 21, 2015, to October 13, 2019. It stars Dwayne Johnson as a retired NFL player who must navigate his new career as th ...
'' writer,
Rashard Mendenhall
Rashard Jamal Mendenhall (born June 19, 1987) is an American former football running back who played for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini and was selected by the Pitt ...
.
Filmmaker
In 2015, he received a commission to write and direct and star in the short film ''Primary.'' The film examines the subject of open relationships and was heavily influenced by the work of
John Cassavetes
John Nicholas Cassavetes (December 9, 1929 – February 3, 1989) was an American filmmaker and actor. He began as an actor in film and television before helping to pioneer modern American independent cinema as a writer and director, often self- ...
,
Esther Perel
Esther Perel (; born August 13, 1958) is a Belgian-American psychotherapist, known for her work on human relationships.
Perel promoted the concept of "erotic intelligence" in her book ''Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence'' (2006), ...
and
Helen Fisher, as well as months of extensive interviews with a diverse range of people from across the relationship spectrum.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bledsoe, Neal
1981 births
21st-century Canadian male actors
21st-century American male actors
American male film actors
American male musical theatre actors
American male soap opera actors
American male television actors
Canadian expatriate male actors in the United States
Canadian male film actors
Canadian male musical theatre actors
Canadian male soap opera actors
Canadian male television actors
Living people
Male actors from Seattle
Male actors from Toronto
University of North Carolina School of the Arts alumni
Shawnigan Lake School alumni