Dash Mihok

Dash Mihok was born May 24, 1974 in New York City and grew up in Westbeth, a trendy artists’ housing community in Manhattan’s West Village. The son of actor parents, he was named after famed mystery writer Dashiell Hammett, author of The Thin Man, The Glass Key, and The Maltese Falcon.

Though exposed to theater at a young age, Mihok’s plans did not originally include a career in acting. A whiz at math and science, his primary goal was college and a degree in biochemistry. However, during his senior year at the Bronx High School of Science he joined the CityKids Repertory, a group begun in 1985 by the CityKids Foundation to bring together young people from diverse backgrounds, so that they might share life experiences, and create original dramatic and musical works based on those experiences. This led to his 1993 television debut, an ABC Saturday Morning Special produced by Jim Henson and starring the CityKids with Henson’s muppets. Simply titled CityKids, it stressed self-esteem, leadership, and the importance of tolerance and communication through non-violence. He was also featured in the racially themed 1994 independent film Black is White.

Miscellaneous television appearances followed, including episodes of New York Undercover, NYPD Blue, and a February 1995 episode of Law and Order. Later that same year he garnered critical acclaim with his portrayal of a mentally unbalanced young man in the CBS television movie Murderous Intent, co-starring Corbin Bernsen and Lesley Ann Warren.

In 1996 Mihok had roles in the films Foxfire, opposite Angelina Jolie, Sleepers, Barry Levinson’s hard-hitting story of sexual abuse and revenge starring Kevin Bacon and Robert DeNiro, and William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, Baz Luhrmann’s hip, avant-garde re-telling of the bard’s immortal classic, featuring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes as the doomed lovers. Sporting a shoulder holster, open Hawaiian shirt and crew cut for the role of Romeo’s kinsman Benvolio, Mihok earned a small cult following with his performance that endures to this day.

During the ’96-’97 television season he was a featured regular on the short-lived CBS series Pearl. Cast as Joey, rebellious son of Rhea Perlman’s title character, the actor demonstrated a sharp edge for comedy and easily pulled off the cutting Perlman-esque attitude needed to make the role believable, despite the obvious difference in their physical appearances. In 1998 Mihok starred in the independent romantic comedy Telling You, then won the biggest role of his career up to that point as Private 1st Class Doll in Terrence Malick’s gripping war drama The Thin Red Line. During filming, Malick shot an over-abundance of footage, supposedly enough for a ten hour movie; despite having large chunks of his screen-time cut during the editing process, Mihok’s performance – among a cast that included Sean Penn, Adrian Brody, Woody Harrelson, Nick Nolte, and John Travolta – remained one of the most moving and human.

During spring of the following year he appeared in seven episodes of the new WB drama Felicity, playing Lynn McKennan, a competitive swimmer at the fictional University of New York. At first appearance just a typical jock, Lynn later revealed his deeper qualities by helping a fellow student tune her guitar, and encouraging her to have more confidence in her performance skills. The character was written out of the show at the end of the season however, much to the dismay of Lynn’s growing fan base. Later that year, Mihok traveled to Iowa to film the comedy Whiteboyz, the story of three high school kids from a small rural town who dream of becoming big-time, big-city rappers. A part-time rapper himself in real life, the actor easily slipped into the role of James, and quickly demonstrated his talent for spinning verse early in the film.

In 2000 he had a supporting role in The Perfect Storm, the true story of the 1991 disappearance of the New England fishing vessel ‘Andrea Gail’ during one of the largest Atlantic storms on record. For his role of Sgt. Jeremy Mitchell, Mihok, along with co-star Josh Hopkins, participated in a parajumper training course, flew on simulated helicopter rescue missions, trained in air-lift water rescue, and took part in a night-vision goggles lab.

2001 was a busy year for the actor, and saw one of his funniest, most unusual roles: Walter P. Higgs III, a bumbling, legendary – in his own mind – bank robber trying to turn over a new leaf in the shoot-em-up western The Journeyman. Things just go from bad to worse for Walter, as he is double-crossed by his partner, gets shot – three times – and has his horse and clothes stolen. Some days it just doesn’t pay to get out of the bunk. That same year Mihok also had roles in Nailed, with Harvey Keitel and Brad Rowe, Finders Fee, with James Earl Jones and Robert Forster, and One Eyed King, with Armand Assante, William Baldwin and Chazz Palminteri.

In 2002 he appeared in the Bollywood-inspired sex comedy The Guru, as well as the gritty police drama Dark Blue, about corruption and the L.A. riots in the wake of the Rodney King beating. Mihok also traveled to Alabama to film what some would go on to call the single greatest performance of his career: the painfully shy, tragically misunderstood boxer Johnny Flynton. A short film by former world karate and kick-boxing champion Lexi Alexander, Johnny Flynton had the prestigious honor of being nominated in the category ‘Best Live Action Short Film’ for the 75th annual Academy Awards. The role remains one of the actor’s personal favorites.

Since 2002 Mihok has appeared in a variety of films, including Basic (2003), The Day After Tomorrow (2004), Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005), I Am Legend (2007) and Punisher: War Zone (2008). He has also had roles of the television shows CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Ghost Whisperer and Pushing Daisies. Some of his upcoming productions include In NorthWood, Lifted and The Mortician.

Known in the industry as an exceptionally gifted, dedicated, hard worker and as one of the genuinely nicest guys in the business, Mihok has been called “a genius”, “a breath of fresh air”, and “the most unappreciated talent in Hollywood” by those fortunate enough to work with him. Displaying a wide range of emotions, he can turn on a dime and play sensitive, funny, goofy and romantic, or harsh, brutal, sadistic and blood-thirsty, and make each role believable. With more than fifteen year’s experience and over fifty roles to his credit, Dash Mihok has proven himself a formidable talent in the movie business, and will continue to do so for years to come.

Biography written exclusively for dashmihok.com by Mark.
Last updated March 2010.