Mark Leonard Winter

Mark Leonard Winter (born 11 March 1983) is an Australian actor, known for performances in film, television and on stage.

Early life Winter's family moved from Australia to Washington DC, United States, when he was in grade ten. It was the freedom of his American school and new friends, that he credits with passion for the arts and creative thinking. He states that he started to think a bit too creatively, so his parents sent him back to Australia to attend boarding school where he fell in love with English literature and theatre. He starred in the 2020 thriller film Escape from Pretoria.

In the TV series Pine Gap (2018) Winter played a technical geek on the autism spectrum, Moses Dreyfus. Winter was nominated for an AACTA Award for his performance in 2020's TV mini-series, Halifax: Retribution. Following that, Winter played Callum on the TV mini-series Inside, then Russell in the TV series The Newsreader in 2021. In 2021 he also played Joel Welch, a methadone addict in episode 3 of the ABC TV series Fires.

Stage On stage, Winter has performed major roles with leading Australian theatre companies, including the Sydney Theatre Company and the Melbourne Theatre Company. He was one of the founding members of Black Lung, an independent theatre company. In 2015, Winter starred in the Melbourne Theatre Company's production of Simon Stephens' Birdland, for which he won the award for Best Male Actor at the Helpmann Awards.

Directing Winter's first film as writer-director, The Rooster, is a comedy drama starring Hugo Weaving, which premiered at the Melbourne International Film Festival in August 2023. The film was selected as one of four nominees for the CinefestOZ Film Prize, worth , in September 2023, and was also nominated for the 2023 AACTA Award for Best Indie Film.

It was released in Australian cinemas on 22 February 2024.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes 2006 Rush Liam Rainey Short film 2007 Advantage Satan Short film 2008 Playing for Charlie Scarf 2008 Hell's Gates Alexander Dalton Short film 2009 Van Diemen's Land Alexander Dalton 2009 Balibo Tony Stewart 2009 Covered Matt Short film 2009 Further We Search Damien 2010 Blame John 2010 Arietta Short film 2010 Yasue Steven Short film 2011 Phone Call Jack Short film 2012 Green Eyed Lloyd Short film 2013 The Boy Castaways Michael 2013 One Eyed Girl Travis 2014 Healing Shane Harrison 2014 There Is No Such Thing as a Jellyfish Boyfriend Short film 2015 The Fear of Darkness Matt Sorensen 2015 The Dressmaker Reginald Blood 2016 Halfbeard Barber Short film 2017 Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow Helmut Short film 2018 The True History of Billie the Kid Jimbo Short film 2019 Measure for Measure Angelo 2020 Disclosure Danny Bowman 2020 Escape from Pretoria Leonard Fontaine 2021 Tough Shane Short film 2021 Little Tornadoes Leo 2022 Elvis Tom Hulett

As writer / director Year Title Role Notes 2023 The Rooster (film) Writer / Director

Television Year Title Role Notes 2010 The Pacific Relief Cook Miniseries, episode 2: "Basilone" 2011 Killing Time Colin Miniseries, episode 5 2011 Cop Hard Detective Larry Hard 13 episodes 2011 Winners & Losers James 'JB' Bartlett Season 1, 8 episodes 2011 Rush Liam Rainey Season 4, 3 episodes 2012 Dangerous Remedy Lionel Pugh TV movie 2013 Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries Aubrey Wilde Season 2, episode 5: "Murder à la Mode" 2014 The Greatest Love of All John Miniseries, 6 episodes 2015 Fresh Blood Pilot Season Teddy Season 1, episode 5: "Bedhead" 2017 Top of the Lake Johnno Season 2, episode 2: "The Loved One" 2017 Cleverman Bill Hendricks Season 2, 5 episodes 2018 Pine Gap Moses Dreyfus Miniseries, 6 episodes 2020 Halifax: Retribution Duncan Miniseries, episode 2 2020 Inside Callum Miniseries, episode 5 2021 Eden Damien Miniseries, 4 episodes 2021 The Newsreader Russell Season 1, episode 5: "No More Lies" 2021 Fires Joel Welch Miniseries, 2 episodes 2025The Family Next Door PeterTV series: 3 episodes

As writer / director Year Title Role Notes 2014 The Greatest Love of All Writer / Director Miniseries, 6 episodes

Stage

As cast Year Title Role Notes 2006; 2007 Kissy Kissy The Black Lung Theatre, Melbourne 2006 A Kind of Hush Cinema Nova, Melbourne 2006 The Winter's Tale The Eleventh Hour Theatre, Melbourne 2007 A Ramble Through the Wooded Glen Fairfax Studio, Melbourne with Black Lung for Short+Sweet 2008 The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark Tower Theatre, Melbourne with Malthouse Theatre & Poor Theatre 2008 The Soldier's Tale Sacred Heart Chapel, Melbourne with Orchestra Project & The Hayloft Project 2008 Avast The Preacher Tower Theatre, Melbourne with Malthouse Theatre & Black Lung 2008 Avast II: The Welshman Cometh The Preacher Tower Theatre, Melbourne with Malthouse Theatre & Black Lung 2010; 2015 Thyestes Atreus Tower Theatre, Melbourne, CarriageWorks, Sydney, Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers, France with Belvoir, Malthouse Theatre & The Hayloft Project 2014 The Effect Tristan Bille Brown Studio, Brisbane with QTC & STC 2015 Suddenly Last Summer Doctor Cukrowicz Sydney Opera House with STC 2015 Birdland Paul Southbank Theatre, Melbourne with MTC 2015 King Lear Edgar STC 2016 Miss Julie Jean Southbank Theatre, Melbourne with MTC 2017 Chimerica Joe Schofield Roslyn Packer Theatre, Sydney with STC 2017 Three Sisters Vershinin Sydney Opera House with STC 2023 The Master and Margarita The Master / Ensemble Belvoir Street Theatre, Sydney 2024 A Streetcar Named Desire Stanley Kowalski MTC

As crew Year Title Role Notes 2007; 2008 Spring Awakening Designer Fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne, Belvoir Street Theatre, Sydney with The Hayloft Project 2008 Avast Devisor Tower Theatre, Melbourne with Malthouse Theatre & Black Lung 2008 Avast II: The Welshman Cometh Devisor Tower Theatre, Melbourne with Malthouse Theatre & Black Lung 2009 3xSisters Director Arts House Meat Market, Melbourne with The Hayloft Project 2010; 2015 Thyestes Writer Tower Theatre, Melbourne, CarriageWorks, Sydney, Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers, France with Belvoir, Malthouse Theatre & The Hayloft Project 2013; 2021 The Blind Date Project Director / Creator The Karaoke Klub, Sydney, Artspace, Adelaide with Ride On Theatre

Recognition and awards Year Work Award Category Result 2009 3 x Sisters (The Hayloft Project) Green Room Award Best Show 2010 Thyestes Green Room Awards Best Production 2010 Thyestes Green Room Awards Best Adaption 2010 Thyestes Green Room Awards Best Ensemble 2010 Thyestes Green Room Awards Best Actor 2012 Thyestes Sydney Theatre Awards Best New Australian Work 2012 Thyestes Sydney Theatre Awards Best Leading Actor 2014 One Eyed Girl 21st Annual Austin Film Festival: Dark Matters Jury Award 2015 One Eyed Girl Madrid International Film Festival Award Best Lead Actor 2015 Birdland Green Room Award Best Male Actor 2016 King Lear Helpmann Award Best Male Supporting Actor 2016 Birdland Helpmann Award Best Male Actor 2017 Miss Julie Green Room Award Best Male Actor 2017 Mark Leonard Winter Sidney Myer Creative Fellowship Recognising Outstanding Talent for mid-career artists 2023 The Rooster CinefestOZ Film Prize 2023 The Rooster AACTA Award Best Indie Film

Personal life Winter is married to actress and singer, Geraldine Hakewill. They first met in 2011, occasionally crossing paths until they became a couple in 2017, and married in December 2021. They have co-starred in the 2020 psychodrama Disclosure.

Winter is a big fan of movies from the 1970s, and the work of Robert De Niro and Daniel Day-Lewis.