On May 6, 2016, Bates was announced as the lead and titular character of the new Han Solo anthology film.
Born in Wollongong, Australia, Bates is the oldest of two sons born to an Australian father and an American mother. When Bates was around eight years old, his mother Emily moved the boys to her hometown in Greenville, South Carolina.
While visiting Los Angeles during a school break in 2003, Bates was discovered by a talent agent. He later dropped out of high school and moved to Los Angeles where he would land his first jobs in Little Miss Sunshine and Fast Food Nation.
Through his friendship with director Elliot Szalinski, Bates would continue to grow his career and eventually into behind-the-scenes roles. Over the next few years, Bates claimed to live out of his car and on the couches of acquaintances and friends, most notably he spent much of his time off at Szalinski's home in San Francisco.
Bates has since then carved a corner of the indie film industry and found stability in his niche.
In 2011, Bates and girlfriend, actress Isabelle Grace, were married for a grand total of eight months. The two later filed for divorce on the grounds of irreconcilable differences. On more than one occasion, police were called to the couple's Malibu home due to domestic disturbance. Isabelle's famous relatives were reportedly unhappy with the union.
In 2012, Bates was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and resisting arrest without violence in the state of Nevada, though the charges were dropped. However, he was instead charged with posession of cocaine. Bates pled guilty to felony drug possession, and in return, his charges were dropped from his record as long as he stayed out of trouble for a year, paid a $2,000 fine, did 200 hours of community service, and completed a drug and alcohol counseling course.
due to early exposure as an actor, bates is a frequent at film festivals. his work is touted by some to be refreshing and nuanced, and hackneyed and pretentious by others. he is known for his often polarizing style of method acting.
it didn't take long for bates to hunger for more, slowly easing behind the scenes as a writer and a director. by 2012, his first feature film debuted at sundance, launching bates as one to watch in the indie world.
bates also runs a mockumentary youtube channel called "[tbd]," which follows the adventures of two supernatural and myth chasers. bates's character is intended to be a version of himself from an alternate universe.
it didn't take long for bates to hunger for more, slowly easing behind the scenes as a writer and a director. by 2012, his first feature film debuted at sundance, launching bates as one to watch in the indie world.
bates also runs a mockumentary youtube channel called "[tbd]," which follows the adventures of two supernatural and myth chasers. bates's character is intended to be a version of himself from an alternate universe.
bates is particularly known for his eccentricity and insatiable curiosity. his thoughts, actions, and work are driven by his fascination with the duality of nature versus nuture and the way life and people can change with the adjustment of a variable or two.
is naturally left-handed, but trained himself over time to be ambidextrous though he still favors his left
diligently upholds a facetious one-sided social media feud with zooey deschanel
was nicknamed "batty bates" as a child; as such, bates often uses a symbol of a bat as his sign off
can frequently be found sketching; always begins his writing process with a drawing
father, unknown to public
presumed dead, all other details unknown
mother, emily bates
52 years old, pediatric nurse, single mother with chronically terrible taste in men
younger brother, liam bates
22 years old, recent graduate from clemson university, complete opposite, at times a stranger
ex-wife, isabelle grace
actress, hollywood royalty, married in 2011 for eight months
mentor, elliot szalinski
filmmaker, first person to take a chance on him, surrogate father, the reason for everything