Cooper Koch

Cooper Joseph Koch was born on July 16, 1996, in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, to a family involved in the film industry.^[1] His father, Billy Koch, who is of Jewish Russian descent,^[2] is the founder and owner of the horse racing club Little Red Feather and previously worked as a production assistant in numerous films.^[3][4][5] His mother, Kathy Kaehler, is a celebrity personal trainer.^[6] He has a twin brother, Payton Koch, who is a film editor, and a younger brother, Walker, who is a musician.^[7][8] His grandfather is film producer Hawk Koch, and his great-grandfather was film producer and director Howard W. Koch, both of whom served as presidents of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.^[8][9][10] His great-granduncle was Charles Pincus,^[a] a California dentist known for inventing the dental veneer in 1928.^[11] Koch's great-uncle is businessman and Democratic politician Alan Blinken, who was married to Koch's great-aunt, Melinda Blinken (née Koch), until her death in 2021.^[12][13][14]

Koch began acting in local theater productions at the age of five.^[15] He later attended Calabasas High School, where he performed in various stage adaptations such as West Side Story and A Midsummer Night's Dream.^[16][4] He was also a member of the school's a cappella group and orchestra, where he played the viola, as well as the boys' volleyball varsity team.^[17] In May 2018, he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Acting from Pace University.^[8]

Koch made his on-screen debut with a background role in the 2007 film Fracture, which was produced by his grandfather, Hawk Koch.^[8] In 2010, he appeared in the music video for "Ordinary Girl" by Miley Cyrus (performing as her character, Hannah Montana).^[18] From 2017 to 2021, Koch primarily appeared in short films and stage productions. He had a guest role in the episode "Forty Candles" of the comedy series West 40s (2018),^[19] and he was cast in Hulu's series adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's novel Less than Zero, although Koch was fired during production and the pilot was not picked up.^[20][21] He later appeared in A New York Christmas Wedding (2020), playing Azrael Gabison, a guardian angel who shows a woman an alternate version of her life.^[22] He also appeared in two episodes of the crime drama series Power Book II: Ghost.^[23]

In 2022, Koch starred in Carter Smith's body horror film Swallowed,^[24] which earned the Grand Jury Prize at the 2022 NewFest.^[25] He portrayed Benjamin, an aspiring gay pornographic actor who is forced to smuggle mysterious drugs by swallowing them.^[26] That same year, he starred in the Blumhouse Productions slasher film They/Them, playing Stu, a closeted gay jock who attends an LGBTQ conversion therapy camp.^[27][28]

Koch first auditioned for the role of convicted murderer Erik Menendez in the NBC limited series Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders and the Lifetime television film Menendez: Blood Brothers (both 2017).^[29] He later earned the part in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story (2024), the second season of Netflix's true crime anthology series Monster.^[30][31] His performance received critical acclaim, particularly in the fifth episode, "The Hurt Man", a 34-minute one-shot of Erik detailing the sexual abuse he suffered from his father.^[31] Critics highlighted his portrayal as one of the season's standout performances,^[32][33] and he received praise from Lyle and Erik Menendez.^[1] The role earned him nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film.^[34]

In October 2024, Koch signed with United Talent Agency for representation.^[35] In November, he appeared in the short film Togetherness, as part of a campaign by fashion house Yves Saint Laurent.^[36] In May 2025, he fronted Calvin Klein's summer campaign.^[37][38]

In July 2025, Koch was cast in an undisclosed role in Luca Guadagnino's upcoming biographical film Artificial, based on the brief dismissal of Sam Altman as CEO of OpenAI.^[39] In February 2026, he was announced to star in a presentation for a Broadway revival of The Little Dog Laughed, scheduled for March 4.^[40]

Koch has collaborated with multiple luxury fashion brands including Yves Saint Laurent, Calvin Klein, Tiffany & Co.,^[41] Armani,^[42][43] Ralph Lauren,^[44] Montblanc,^[45] Tod's,^[46] and Schiaparelli.^[47] He was formerly signed with Wilhelmina Models, for whom he modeled for Skechers and Patagonia, and in 2024 he fronted Gap's summer collection alongside Japanese actress Kiko Mizuhara.^[48][49][50]

Koch is gay; he came out during college and has spoken about experiencing difficulties with self-acceptance after being bullied during his youth.^[51][52] He has also said that early in his acting career he faced challenges obtaining roles due to his sexuality and his "gay voice".^[51] Since 2024, he has been in a relationship with filmmaker Stuart McClave.^[53][54]

Key

†	Denotes film or TV productions that have not yet been released

Film

More information Year, Title ...

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2007	Fracture	Kid		[8]
2017	Mine	Cody	Short film	[55]
2018	Me Da La Lata	Andreas Lousche		[56]
	The Latent	Matthew
	Decadeless	Richard		[19]
2019	Daddy	Bellhop
2021	4 Floors Up	The Stranger		[56]
2022	Swallowed	Benjamin		[57]
	They/Them	Stu		[28]
2024	Togetherness	Himself	Short film	[36]
2026	Artificial †	TBA	Post-production	[39]

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Television

More information Year, Title ...

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2018	West 40s	Boy on train	Episode: "Forty Candles"	[19]
2019	Less Than Zero	Julian	Unaired TV pilot	[23]
2020	A New York Christmas Wedding	Azrael Gabison	TV Movie	[8]
	Power Book II: Ghost	Chase	2 episodes	[23]
2024	Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story	Erik Menendez	Lead role	[30]

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Theater

More information Year, Title ...

Year	Title	Role	Venue	Ref.
2019	Head First	Kyle	Wild Project, Fresh Fruit Festival	[58]

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Music video

More information Year, Song ...

Year	Song	Artist	Role	Ref.
2010	"Ordinary Girl"	Hannah Montana	Boy	[18]
2015	"Reflection"	Towkio		[59]

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