Miles Teller’s professional acting career was almost over before it began. In 2007, the “Whiplash” star was involved in a serious car accident. Only 20 years old at the time, Teller recalled to ABC News: “My buddy lost control of my car going 80 mph. We flipped eight times. I got ejected out the window. The car landed, and I was just laying like 50 feet from the car, unconscious, covered in blood.” Teller was such a mess from the crash that his friend thought he was dead. Fortunately, he survived and mostly recovered from his injuries. However, he does have scars on his face as a result. He also has two pieces of gravel still lodged beneath his skin.
Surprisingly, the scars, which he felt were holding him back, proved to be an asset when he auditioned for the 2010 drama “Rabbit Hole.” “When I was first auditioning for projects, they’d say, ‘Miles is a good actor but it doesn’t make sense for this character to have scars.’ But John Cameron Mitchell, the Rabbit Hole director, he loved it. He was like, ‘It’s your character’s secret!'” Teller revealed The Guardian.
Filming the movie proved to be an emotional experience for Teller, though. His character Jason is behind the wheel and accidentally kills the son of a couple (played by Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart), but he knew their grief all too well as shortly before filming, two of his friends tragically died in separate motor accidents.
