Miles Teller on Paper Tiger: LA wildfire loss fuelled his performance
Synopsis
Miles Teller didn't just act grief in 'Paper Tiger' — he lived it. Weeks after losing his home in the January 2025 Palisades Fire and his grandfather, he got the call from James Gray. The result: a performance, including a visible facial tremor in a scene with Adam Driver, that the actor says came directly from that loss. The film is now nominated for the Palme d'Or at Cannes.
Key Takeaways
Miles Teller , 39 , lost his home in the January 2025 Palisades Fire in Los Angeles along with wife Keleigh Sperry .
The death of his grandfather around the same time compounded the grief he channelled into his 'Paper Tiger' role.
A scene with co-star Adam Driver features a visible facial tremor Teller confirmed was a real, unscripted emotional response. 'Paper Tiger' , directed by James Gray and also starring Scarlett Johansson , has been nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival .
Teller said the role was a deliberate choice to reflect his current stage of life and pursue adult character-driven cinema.
Hollywood actor Miles Teller has revealed that the grief and rage of losing his home in the January 2025 Palisades Fire directly shaped his performance in James Gray's crime drama 'Paper Tiger'. The 39-year-old actor said the raw emotion from that period — compounded by the death of his grandfather — found its way into the character he plays on screen.
The Personal Loss Behind the Role
Teller and his wife Keleigh Sperry lost their home in the Los Angeles wildfires that swept through the Palisades in January 2025. Around the same time, he lost his grandfather. The actor said he was renting a place in Santa Barbara when director James Gray reached out to him about the project.
'When I met James for this movie, our house had just burned down. And I had just lost my grandfather. We were renting a place in Santa Barbara, and then I got the call saying James wanted to meet me for this,' Teller said in an interview with IndieWire.
How Grief Translated to Performance
Teller explained that the sense of lost home — both the physical space and its memories — permeated his portrayal. 'That infused the story and performance with a lot of love as well, because of that feeling of home that Keleigh and I had lost. I'd lost it with my grandfather, but then also just the physical place where you can have people come gather, where you have memories attached. We did not have that, so that probably came through,' he said.
In one particular scene with co-star Adam Driver, Teller's face visibly trembled with anger — something he acknowledged was real. 'There was a twitch going on there,' he said, describing how family dynamics can unlock emotions rooted in childhood. 'It's an entire lifetime of misgivings, he's going to let him have it,' he added, reflecting on the character's outburst.
About Paper Tiger
'Paper Tiger' is directed by James Gray and centres on two brothers whose families come under threat from the Russian mafia. The film also stars Scarlett Johansson and has received a Palme d'Or nomination at the Cannes Film Festival. For Teller, best known for 'Top Gun: Maverick', the role represented a deliberate career choice.
A Calculated Career Move
'If you want to have a long career, the audience, hopefully, that you attract in your early 20s, as they get older, and they start having kids or not having kids, but just getting more life experience under the belt, you want to reflect that in your choices as well,' Teller said. He added that Gray's track record of drawing out complex, adult performances made the project particularly compelling. 'I've loved every one of his films, and I've always felt like he gets incredible performances, so I was excited to play a man at this point,' he said.
With 'Paper Tiger' now in the global spotlight at Cannes, Teller's account of how personal tragedy shaped the work adds a layer of authenticity to what is shaping up as one of the more closely watched films of the festival season.
Point of View
Unprocessed pain — and that the Palisades Fire, which displaced thousands, left marks well beyond property damage. What is notable here is not the method-acting angle but the timing: Teller received Gray's call while still displaced, and chose to use that instability rather than wait for distance. Whether 'Paper Tiger' delivers on that emotional investment will be judged at Cannes, but the nomination alone signals that Gray has extracted something beyond the actor's usual register. For Indian audiences, the film's Russian mafia premise and Scarlett Johansson's presence make it one of the more anticipated Hollywood releases of the festival cycle.
NationPress
14 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is 'Paper Tiger' about?
'Paper Tiger' is a crime drama directed by James Gray about two brothers whose families are threatened by the Russian mafia. The film stars Miles Teller, Adam Driver, and Scarlett Johansson, and has been nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
How did the LA wildfires affect Miles Teller's performance in 'Paper Tiger'?
Teller lost his home in the January 2025 Palisades Fire and his grandfather around the same time. He said both losses infused his performance with grief, love, and rage — emotions that surfaced visibly in at least one scene with co-star Adam Driver.
Who else stars in 'Paper Tiger'?
Alongside Miles Teller, the film features Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson. It is directed by James Gray and has received a Palme d'Or nomination at Cannes.
Why did Miles Teller choose this role?
Teller said he wanted to play a character that reflects where he is in life, and that James Gray's reputation for directing adult, character-driven films made the project compelling. He described it as a deliberate effort to evolve his career choices as he and his audience age.
What was the Palisades Fire?
The Palisades Fire was one of several major wildfires that swept through the Los Angeles area in January 2025, destroying homes across the Pacific Palisades neighbourhood. Miles Teller and his wife Keleigh Sperry were among those who lost their homes in the blaze.
