Jonathan Neil Alexander started working in theatre at eight years old. As a teen, he moved from small-town Nova Scotia to New York to study at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He spent his university years between Montreal and California where he trained at the Groundlings, worked on a National Campaign with The Trevor Project, and starred in several pieces of theatre; working with famed director Mark Ramont of Ford’s Theatre D.C.Jonathan can be seen starring alongside Crispin Glover and Ben Barnes in the upcoming highly-anticipated American horror anthology series Cabinet of Curiosities by renowned filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro. We caught up with him to discuss his latest project and more!
Thank you for agreeing to catch up with Occhi Magazine. Congratulations on your career to date. How did you get into the industry?
Thanks for having me, I appreciate it! I started doing local theatre when I was eight or so and really fell in love with the work then. I remember convincing my mom to put me in this summer theatre camp; we had two weeks to write, direct, act, and perform a piece of theatre ourselves. It was like the most exciting thing for a kid with a lot of creative energy. I felt like I could do it forever.
You studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, trained at the Groundlings, and worked with director Mark Ramont of Ford’s Theatre D.C. Please share these experiences and how they have prepared you for a career in the industry.
Oh man, so I was pretty lucky when it came to training. I’ve had some incredible mentors and still do. I always tried to get as much training as I could. As a teen, I did a fair amount of training in New York. I worked with Ben Hartley, Sande Shurin, Irazema Rivera, and some other amazing teachers from LaGuardia. The groundlings I was able to get into when I was in college out at Cal State which is where I met Mark, a real lover of artists, he has a way of supporting and nourishing actors, a brilliant man. For me, it was always about strengthening as many muscles as I could. I think if your training is dynamic then you can be prepared for whatever work you agent throws your way, or at least feel like you can offer something to the job.
You have worked with several celebrated directors including Canadian Screen Award-winning filmmaker Winnifred Jong, Emily Cohn, Keith Thomas, and the one and only Roland Emmerich, but who are your biggest industry influences?
I’d say I’m pretty heavily influenced by the people I work with, those connections that you make and the memories you get to keep from working on a project together are really special. Otherwise, I think Ari Aster is a literal genius, I’m a big fan of anything A24. There’s such a long list of actors I love, too many to name but a few off the top, Isabelle Huppert, Evan Peters, and Frances McDormand. I think these actors and the kind of projects they work on and the humanity they ruthlessly demand in their work. It’s stunning.
Undoubtedly every project contributes to your career trajectory, but can you recall a milestone or experience that has changed your appreciation of the industry or how you approach your work?
Definitely! I worked as a writer on an OUTtv show called Sloppy Jones starring Colin Mochrie and Linda Kash. Having been on ’the other side’ and writing a project helped me honestly as much as any acting class has ever helped me. It felt like it broke down some barriers, understanding how writers approach their work and what they hope for from actors. This experience almost helped to relax me more as an actor.
You’re set to appear in the new highly anticipated horror anthology series Cabinet of Curiosities by Guillermo del Toro. Please tell us more about the project, and what audiences can expect.
It’s going to be epic. Cabinet premieres on October 25th on Netflix, where two episodes of the eight episodes series will be released each day. Every episode features an entirely different world with a unique cast and director, all from the mind of Oscar winner Guillermo Del Toro. The lineup of cast and crew for this series is outstanding – Gina Davis, Rupert Grint, Ben Barnes, Crispin Glover – the talent in front of and behind the camera is some of the best in the industry. The story I’m a part of is called Pickman’s Model based off a short story by H.P Lovecraft. I think the exciting part for me, is that I have no idea what the other stories are about or what their themes are so I will also be tuning in with everyone else. I would have even if I wasn’t a part of one of the episodes anyway.
What other projects are you currently working on?
I’m filming a Hallmark film called ’Twas the night before Christmas’! It was always a goal of mine to get in one of those, my sister loves them. I’m slated to work on a beautiful story called MoonBeaming with Max Morrow out West in the coming months that deals with grief and sexuality I’m honored to be a part of as well!
Where can our readers find out more about you and your projects?
You can check out my instagram @jonathanneilalexander I’m pretty good at keeping it up to date.
Images, courtesy of Jonathan Neil Alexander
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