Sophie von Haselberg

Sophie von Haselberg, born Sophie Frederica Alohilani von Haselberg on November 14, 1986 in Los Angeles, California, is an American actress who has carved a niche in both film and television through nuanced performances that reflect her rich artistic lineage. The daughter of celebrated singer‑actress Bette Midler and German‑born visual artist Martin von Haselberg, she grew up amid a blend of entertainment royalty and avant‑garde creativity, a background that informed her early appreciation for storytelling. After attending the prestigious Nightingale‑Bamford School in New York City, she pursued a dual undergraduate major in Sociology and East Asian Studies at Yale University, graduating in 2008, and later returned to Yale’s School of Drama to earn an MFA in 2014, honing the craft that would define her career. Following a brief stint working for an advertising agency in China, von Haselberg made her New York stage debut in October 2014 at the Vineyard Theatre, starring in Billy and Ray, a production directed by Garry Marshall, who had famously directed her mother in “Beaches.” Her breakthrough on screen arrived the following year when Woody Allen cast her in Irrational Man alongside Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone, earning a glowing review in which Allen praised her “spitting‑image” of her mother and noted that her performance was compelling enough to reshape the film’s characters. In 2015 she also appeared in a pilot for MTV with Nicole Byer and began work on HBO’s The Wizard of Lies; subsequent roles include Joyce in Ask for Jane (2017), Linda Elwell in FX’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (2018), and a cameo as ACT UP activist Syd in the second season of Pose. Beyond acting, von Haselberg’s multicultural education and fluency in East Asian studies have allowed her to engage in various cultural projects, though the public record primarily highlights her screen work. On June 6, 2020 she married Harry J. N. Guinness in Millbrook, New York, an event that underscored her continued connection to her familial roots while she advances her artistic journey. Today she remains an active member of the entertainment industry, with a career spanning from 1991‑present, and continues to explore roles that blend depth, humor, and social relevance.