Wes Bentley (full name: Wesley Cook "Wes" Bentley, born September 4, 1978) is an american film actor. Bentley was originally to be set to portray a villain named Waspfly in Power Rangers Lost Galaxy: The Rise of Trakeena .but unfortunately, that character has been dropped from the film. On July 20, 2012, following the departure of Tony Marshall 's original actor, Tobey Maguire , Bentley has been cast to extensively play the Red Ranger in the reboot fanfilm, and the film will finally make its actual long-awaited debut in Summer 2014.
Bentley is known for his role of Ricky Fitts in American Beauty.
Bentley was born in Jonesboro, Arkansas, the son of Cherie and David Bentley, who are United Methodist ministers.
Bentley has starred in several films, including the Oscar-winning film American Beauty, The Four Feathers (alongside Heath Ledger), P2, and Ghost Rider. He starred in the thriller Dolan's Cadillac,[3] based on the short story by Stephen King,[4] and There Be Dragons by director Roland Joffé. Bentley is one of the main subjects in the documentary My Big Break, directed by Tony Zierra, which follows Bentley and three of his former roommates, Chad Lindberg, Brad Rowe and Greg Fawcett, as they pursue their dream to become successful actors in Hollywood.
In 2010, he starred opposite Nina Arianda in the premier of the David Ives play Venus in Fur at the Classic Stage Company in New York City.[5][6][7][8]
In a New York Times article on February 8, 2010, he described his descent into drug addiction that began almost immediately after his success in American Beauty. He said he hid his addiction from his wife; they separated in 2006, and he moved to an apartment where he began doing drugs full-time. During this time he worked sporadically, just enough to pay bills and buy drugs, and in 2008 was arrested and ordered into counseling and 12-step programs. He relapsed, however, and "continued using heroin until he was broke."
In July 2009, he said, he confessed to a friend, "I’m a drug addict, and an alcoholic, and I need help. I need help or I’m going to die.” He again entered a 12-step program and, while clean since then, considers himself on the path to recovery, and has begun to rebuild his career by starring in the Off-Broadway play Venus in Fur.[5] The documentary My Big Break captures Bentley's early life as an unknown actor, his explosive career launch after American Beauty, his subsequent emotional struggle with fame, and his admission years later that he was recovering from an addiction to drugs and alcohol.
Filmography Credits[]
TV Movies[]
- The Ungodly (2007)
Films[]
- Beloved (1998)
- Three Below Zero (1998)
- American Beauty (1999)
- The White River Kid (1999)
- The Claim (2000)
- Soul Survivors (2001)
- Carving Out Our Name (2001)
- The Four Feathers (2002)
- The Game of Their Lives (2005)
- Weirdsville (2007)
- Ghost Rider (2007)
- P2 (2007)
- Ungodly (2007)
- The Last Word (2008)
- My Big Break (2009)
- The Tomb (2008)
- The Last Word (2008)
- Dolan's Cadillac (2009)
- There Be Dragons (2010)
- Jonah Hex (2010)
- What Do You Got? – Bon Jovi (2010)
- Power Rangers LG: The Rise of Trakeena (2011)
- The Hunger Games (2012) (casting)
Theatre Work[]
- Venus in Fur (2010)
External Links[]
- Wes Bentley at the Internet Movie Database
- Wes Bentley at Allmovie
- Wes Bentley at Facebook