Ariel Geltman Graynor was born April 27, 1983, in Boston, Massachusetts. The daughter of an amateur actress, Ari knew from an early age that she wanted to follow in her mother’s footsteps. "When I was a kid, in first grade, I remember our class was doing a play, and I was assigned a role,” she says. “I came home that day in tears because I was just thrilled to be doing it." Her passion for performing continued to grow throughout her teens, as she appeared in a number of local productions in Boston’s vibrant theater community. “My parents were always so supportive,” she says. “I was always a happy a kid, but somehow the picture always felt more complete when I was on stage.
ari graynor appears on the sopranos
Ari Graynor made the jump from the stage to the screen at age 17 when she played a sexually wanton, manic-depressive student in a four-episode arc of The Sopranos. "That was a pretty great gig, and especially for it to be my first,” she says. Unfortunately, it was also her last major gig for a period of two years until 2003 when she landed a supporting role in the Academy Award-winning drama Mystic River. Directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, and Laurence Fishburne, the film went on to gross more than $156 million worldwide. "It was such a thrill for that to be my first experience on film,” she says. “With him as a director, plus all the people in it, it was just incredible. My actual work was minimal, I was in just a few scenes, but the whole experience of it was amazing.”
ari graynor makes her broadway debut
Although her role may have been minimal, Ari Garynor’s association with the hit film paved the way for a number of other projects over the next two years including parts in the romantic comedy Book of Love starring Simon Baker, the riveting drama Imaginary Heroes featuring Sigourney Weaver and Jeff Daniels and the offbeat dramedy Game 6, with Robert Downey Jr. and Michael Keaton. Ari Graynor also returned to her theatrical roots with a starring role in Brooklyn Boy, a well-received Broadway play from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Donald Marguiles.
Ari Graynor returned to the big screen again the following year with supporting roles in the Christopher Guest satire For Your Consideration and in the gritty dramas An American Crime, starring Ellen Page and Catherine Keener, and Turn the River with Famke Janssen. She also supplemented her income with guest-starring roles in the hit shows CSI: Miami, Numb3rs and American Dad.
ari graynor appears in nick and norah’s infinite playlist
Despite her impressive resume, Ari Graynor went through a prolonged period in 2008 when she couldn’t find any work at all. "I had not worked in seven months,” she admits. “I was in one of those horrible actor black holes of really thinking that I'd probably never work again.” Fortunately, her luck changed for the better when she received the script for Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, a hilarious teen comedy about one wild night in New York City. The script resonated with Ari Graynor, and she knew immediately that she had to play the role of Caroline, Norah’s drunken best friend. “I was obsessed with her from the beginning,” she says. “The casting director told me to audition for Norah too, but there was just something about Caroline I completely connected with. Obviously, Norah is well written, but I just felt like I might never read another role that would be so fun to play. I acted like I was about to vomit in my mouth and just went for it.” Her instincts paid off, and Ari Graynor’s spectacular performance helped the film garner a handful of award nominations while also raking in a respectable $31 million at the box office.
ari graynor appears in fringe
Ari Gaynor has since appeared in five episodes of the J.J. Abrams' sci-fi series Fringe. “I am a fan of J.J. Abrams, and it seemed like an incredible opportunity to work on a cool show with great people,” she says. “It's great for me because I don't have to deal with crazy night shoots or slime or things coming out of my body. I just go hang out in Brooklyn and drink some tea.”
ari graynor looking ahead
The summer ahead promises to be huge for Ari Graynor, as she re-teams with her Nick and Norah co-star Michael Cera in the romantic comedy Youth in Revolt. She’ll also star in Drew Barrymore’s directorial debut, Whip It!.“I think it's going to be a really special movie,” she says of the roller derby-themed comedy. “Visually, it will be amazing, and you have all these amazing women derbying.”