Chet Paxton
Chet Paxton | |
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Paxton at the 3rd Annual MovieNation Awards, December 2015 | |
Born |
Chester Adam Paxton, Jr. February 6, 1994 Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States |
Occupation | Actor, model |
Years active | 2013–present |
Known for | His Favorite Color Was Red |
Height | 5′ 8″ (1.73m) |
Partner(s) |
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Chester Adam "Chet" Paxton, Jr. (born February 6, 1994) is an American actor and model. He made his feature film debut in the drama His Favorite Color Was Red (2015), for which he won a MovieNation Award for Outstanding Breakthrough Performance. In 2016, he starred in the true crime film The Darkest Night, the action-adventure concert film Roadie 3D, and the period drama A Mad Grasp. For the latter, his performance alongside the cast earned him the MovieNation Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.
Early life
Paxton was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania. His father, Chester Paxton, Sr., is a military veteran who had numerous jobs, and his mother, Cyndi Boscia, is an interior designer. He has an older sister, Alison. Paxton has spoken of his tumultuous relationship with his father, stating that "my greatest and my worst memories are with my father, all my major trauma and major celebration came from him". His parents eventually divorced when he was ten, mainly owing to financial problems, and Paxton had what he has described as a "decent childhood", growing up lower class in Emmaus, Pennsylvania with his mother and sister. Paxton's uncle was going to adopt him at one stage because his parents could not afford to have him anymore and "they had too much pride to go on welfare or food stamps". As a way of dealing with his parents' divorce, he would perform for his family, mimicking his father. Paxton remains close to and financially supports both of his parents.
When Paxton was a student at Emmaus High School, he couldn't wait for classes to be over so he could dash off to Allentown's Theatre Outlet or Civic Theatre for rehearsals. "I was obsessed with acting," he told the New York Daily News. "Sometimes I'd go to rehearsals for the school play and then come home and spend another six to eight hours rehearsing for a community theater production." Paxton switched to the University of North Carolina School of the Arts for his senior year of high school, where he was "around artists for the first time". He had plans to continue at UNCSA for undergraduate studies, but decided to pursue other opportunities instead.
Career
Acting
Paxton got his start on stage in 2013 with his portrayal of young heroin addict Bobby in the short-lived Broadway revival of American Buffalo. In 2015, he began his film career with a pivotal role in His Favorite Color Was Red, in which he played a teenager who commits a mass murder-suicide at his high school. Paxton won Outstanding Breakthrough Performance at the MovieNation Awards for the role. After that, Paxton appeared in The Darkest Night (2016) with Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon, which was directed and adapted by Rob Huxley from American author Ron Franscell's 2008 novel of the same name. Also in 2016, Paxton starred in the back-to-back films, Roadie 3D, which marked his first major leading role, and A Mad Grasp, which gave him distinction of being the first actor to have one film replaced by another of his own at the top of the box office. In 2016, amidst multiple nominations, Paxton won his second MovieNation Award with the cast of A Mad Grasp in the category of Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.
Paxton's upcoming projects include a live-action film adaptation of the Marvel supervillain character Green Goblin, set to be released in 2017. Also in 2017, Paxton will appear in the zombie comedy My Girlfriend's Back. In September 2016, Justincase Productions announced on Twitter that Paxton will portray James Dean in the drama Dean & Stock. The film will begin production in early 2017 and is tentatively scheduled for a 2018 release.
Modeling
In May 2015, Paxton was announced as the new face of Prada for the Italian luxury brand's fall/winter 2015 menswear and eyewear campaigns. "I am truly honored to be the new face of Prada, a brand with such a prestigious history, and that I have always loved," Paxton said in a statement when the campaign was announced. "When you wear their clothes, you feel like royalty. I’m very much looking forward to my moment as a prince."
Personal life
Sexuality and relationships
Paxton has described himself as pansexual, specifying: "I'd say the best definition would be that my sexual attraction is not based on gender assignment or gender expression. I am attracted to men and women as well as non-binary people who don’t identify as either. To me, pansexuality feels the most organic way to exist in this world." In 2013, Paxton briefly dated actress Courtney Halverson, whom he met while working on the Broadway revival of American Buffalo. They split shortly after Paxton's stint in the play. Since 2014, Paxton has been dating actor Gabriel Young.
Legal troubles and rehab
Early in the morning of November 8, 2014, a security guard asked Paxton to leave a CVS in the Greenwich Village area of New York City, which Paxton refused. Paxton was arrested for misdemeanor criminal trespassing. Although it was initially suspected that Paxton was drunk at the time, the officer who wrote the arrest report marked "no" next to the question "Under the influence or alcohol/drugs?" The criminal charges were dropped on December 17, 2014. On November 13, 2014, Paxton checked himself into Silver Hill Hospital, a mental health facility in New Canaan, Connecticut, for "bipolar disorder and severe depression". He was released after 60 days of treatment.
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | His Favorite Color Was Red | Lloyd Coleman | Feature film debut |
2016 | The Darkest Night | Ronald Kennedy | |
2016 | Roadie 3D | Victor | |
2016 | A Mad Grasp | Charlie Barnes | |
2017 | Green Goblin | Harry Osborn/Green Goblin | Post-production |
2017 | My Girlfriend's Back | Walter McCredle | Awaiting release |
2018 | Dean & Stock | James Dean | Pre-production |
Theatre
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2013 | American Buffalo | Bobby | Broadway debut |
Awards and nominations
Year | Association | Nominated work | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | MovieNation Awards | His Favorite Color Was Red | Outstanding Supporting Performance by an Actor or Actress | Nominated |
Outstanding Breakthrough Performance | Won | |||
2016 | The Darkest Night | Outstanding Supporting Performance in a Motion Picture | Nominated | |
A Mad Grasp | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | Won | ||
Outstanding Performer of the Year | Nominated |