Aaron Paul Biography

AARON PAUL

Date of Birth: August 27, 1979

Aaron Paul was born a month premature in his parents’ bedroom in Emmett, Idaho and is the youngest of five children. Aaron’s father is a retired Christian Baptist minister and growing up, Aaron took part in church programs and performed in plays. It was in grade eight, after joining the theater department at school, that he decided to he wanted to become an actor professionally.

Aaron attended Centennial High School in Boise, Idaho and graduated a year early in 1998. After graduation, he took his $6,000 in savings and with his mother, drove to Hollywood, California to pursue acting. Two years earlier, Aaron had gone to Los Angeles for the International Modeling and Talent Association competition and came in second place. That was when he signed with a manager and made his on-camera debut in Korn’s music video for Thoughtless, as well as appearing in Everlast’s White Trash Beautiful. He also acted in commercials for Juicy Fruit, Corn Pops and Vanilla Coke.

During the late '90s, while trying to pursue acting, Aaron worked as an usher at the Universal Studios Movie Theater in Hollywood. He made his television debut in 1999 on an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210 and made a guest appearance on an episode of Melrose Place that same year. In 2000, Aaron appeared on The Price is Right and made it all the way to the Showcase Showdown, where he won a desk.

Soon after, Aaron began landing minor roles in Hollywood films such as Whatever It Takes (2000), National Lampoon’s Van Wilder (2002) and Bad Girls From Valley High (2005). His most notable roles were in the films K-PAX (2001), playing the estranged son of Jeff Bridges and in Mission: Impossible III (2006), playing Tom Cruise’s brother-in-law.

After guest appearances on several more television shows, including CSI: Miami, Veronica Mars, Criminal Minds and Bones, Aaron became known for his role as Scott Quittman on HBO’s Big Love.

His breakout role came in 2008 when he landed the role of Jesse Pinkman in the AMC series Breaking Bad. His character was supposed to die at the end of the first season, but the show’s creator Vince Gilligan loved his chemistry with lead actor Bryan Cranston, so he re-wrote the script to keep Aaron’s character in the series.

Breaking Bad had a major fan following and was regarded as one of the best shows on television. It lasted five seasons, with the series finale airing on September 29, 2013. For his work on the show, Aaron was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama series in 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2013. He won the award in 2010 and 2012.

In 2012 and 2013, Aaron made an appearance on Tron: Uprising in the role of Cyrus. In 2013 he also made a surprise appearance on the 39th season opener of Saturday Night Live as “meth nephew,” a relative of Bobby Moynihan’s popular “drunk uncle” character. On May 26th of that same year, Aaron married his girlfriend Lauren Corinne Parsekian. The couple met at the Coachella Music Festival in California and started dating a year later at the same festival. They became engaged on January 1, 2012.

He played the starring role in the 2014 motion picture Need for Speed, based on the popular video game of the same name, and stars alongside Christian Bale in the religious movie Exodus (2014), that depicts the exodus of Jews from Egypt. More recently, he starred in the crime thriller Triple 9, the comedy Central Intelligence (2016), the mystery thriller The 9th Life of Louis Drax (2016), and the drama Come and Find Me (2016).

Filmography:

Come and Find Me (2016)
The 9th Life of Louis Drax (2016)
Central Intelligence (2016)
Eye in the Sky (2016)
Triple 9 (2016)
Exodus (2014)
Decoding Annie Parker (2013)
Need for Speed (2014)
Quad (2013)
Smashed (2012)
Wreckage (2010)
The Last House on the Left (2009)
Say Goodnight (2008)
Daydreamer (2007)
Choking Man (2006)
Mission: Impossible III (2006)
Bad Girls from Valley High (2005)
Perfect Opposites (2004)
Van Wilder: Party Liaison (2002)
K-PAX (2001)
A Fish Tale (2000)
Whatever It Takes (2000)