Did you know that Rooney Mara has had a boyfriend this whole time? I’m sure someone knew that, but I didn’t. Her boyfriend, Charlie McDowell, hasn’t been on her arm at any of her big press events. She hasn’t discussed him in interviews. These are the first photos of them together in months, and even then, they’re candids, out and about in NYC and arriving at LAX yesterday. Even more stunning? Charlie McDowell has famous parents – he’s the son of Mary Steenburgen and Malcolm McDowell. WTF?!?! Mary and Malcolm were together? They had a KID together? How do I have no knowledge of this? E! News put together a “getting to know… Roony Mara’s boyfriend” piece that I found interesting:
Lizbeth Salander doesn’t loath all men. Rooney Mara, whose performance as the troubled yet super-fierce hacker in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is winning rave reviews, has recently been spotted out and about—and smooching—a guy by the name of Charlie McDowell.
And, because Mara is a rising movie star, Vogue cover girl, fashion plate, Golden Globe nominee, etc., we wanted to know way more about the fellow on her arm. You know, make sure he’s up to snuff.
Here are five things we learned:
1. He’s Got a Big, Fancy Family: If not exactly royalty, he’s at least acting gentry, or something like that. Dad is multifaceted British thesp Malcolm McDowell (Charlie’s full name is Charles Malcolm McDowell), mom is Mary Steenburgen and sis is Sons of Anarchy actress Lily McDowell. Subsequently, his stepdad is Ted Danson. Malcolm had three more kids with current wife Kelley, so Charlie’s got three half-siblings. Hey, Rooney gets it. Her sis is American Horror Story star Kate Mara and her parents are both scions of storied NFL-team power players.
2. When in Rome…: McDowell was born in L.A. and headed right into showbiz after studying film at Chapman University. The 28-year-old has written, directed and produced short films, toured with Ben Harper making a concert film, manned a camera at sporting events, served as a production assistant (and had a small role) on Curb Your Enthusiasm and was a consultant on the Ken Burns documentary series Baseball. Now McDowell, who became a directing fellow at the American Film Institute in 2005, has his own company, Cloudbreak Productions. He directed Danson and Lolita Davidovich in his 2007 short, Bye Bye Benjamin.
3. He’s Adaptable: Mara is a born-and-raised New Yorker, and the majority of her and McDowell’s photo ops have come on the streets of Manahattan, and one in Stockholm. Aw, what a good boyfriend, traveling around with her like that! Award season is heating up, though, and we’ll be keeping an eye out for McDowell when Best Actress nominee Mara hits the red carpet at the Golden Globes on Sunday.
4. He’s No Playboy (That We Know Of): McDowell’s most recent high-profile flame was Tony winner Kristin Chenoweth and, before that, he was linked to Haylie Duff. That’s about all the news he’s made on the romance front.
5. It’s a Miracle He Doesn’t Have Nightmares: In an interview focused on his famous father he gave when he was about 21, McDowell said that his dad dressed him up as Alex from A Clockwork Orange when he was about 6 years old—though he never dressed as the brainwashed nutter for Halloween. “I think I would scare the crap out of people,” McDowell said. “I’ve put on a bowler hat a few times and I almost scared myself! [My dad and I] look a lot alike.”
[From E! News]
That’s it in a nutshell. Ted Danson’s step-son is dating an heiress/actress who badmouths everyone and everything that came before David Fincher. I wonder how Charlie feels about that? Considering his conquests include Haylie Duff, he’s probably happy that he’s scored a soon-to-be A-lister, I guess. Now, does this change the idea I have of Rooney and David Fincher and their somewhat creepy relationship? Not really. I still think Rooney and Fincher were (or are) boning.
Photos courtesy of Fame & Pacific Coast News.
Wow…I can see a resemblance to Malcolm but would have never guessed.
He looks like his dad but he’s tall maybe that’s from MOM (OH and I always thought that MM was gay). Actually I am of the OP that Mara and Daniel Craig were boning…as per that Blind Item from last week.
“…I always thought that MM was gay…”
This is probably a stupid question, but who is MM?
MM=Malcolm McDowell, the man mentioned in the article posted above.
Malcolm McDowell, it was just an assumption I made based obviously on my failed gaydar.
She must have taken my advice and decided to wear a hat to cover up that awful hairstyle.
That’s the first thing I thought when I saw the pictures. lol
I took two things away from this:
He is 28. And was with Kristin Chenowith, 43. Um Demi 2.0?
And Mary Steenburgen. With Malcolm McDowell. How?..why??..
WTF?!?! Mary and Malcolm were together? They had a KID together? How do I have no knowledge of this?
My thoughts exactly. WTF?
Two kids together!
Yeah, the IMDB says of Mary Steenburgen…
“Spouse
Malcolm McDowell (29 September 1980 – 1 October 1990) (divorced) 2 children”
NO IDEA.
McDowell and Steenburgen hooked up when they did the time travel romance TIME AFTER TIME back in 1979.
Yup, it was actually a really cute movie, if you can think of Malcolm McDowell that way after Clockwork Orange….he was H.G. Wells and chased Jack the Ripper into the future in a time machine. Disco era: how perfect for Jack the Ripper is that? McDowell saves her from the Ripper. They did another one too, where she played a writer, I think Marjorie Rawlings (the Yearling?) was her name and he played her editor.
Haylie Duff and Kristin Chenoweth?? That’s kind of random. I don’t care for either one. Poor Haylie, what an unfortunate face, and Kristin is super-scary looking. Boobs! Teeth! Hair! Smile! Christian! She’s not obnoxious about it, but it just seems super-intense like the rest of her.
This dude seems kind of boring, but maybe Rooney is boring too, so that’s ok.
Malcolm McDowell, of course, is NOT boring; he’s one of my favorite actors of all time, and has created some absolutely terrifying, indelible images.
I think he also has a humor blog – Dear Girls Above Me – it’s pretty funny. A friend interviewed him and said he didn’t do any name dropping and couldn’t be nicer. Rooney Mara, on the other hand, well, that’s another story.
I like that site, very funny.
That’s why I didn’t believe the Rooney Mara stories at first. He seems like a reasonably normal guy and those stories and BI’s make her seem so incredibly needy.
You do know blind items are “blind” for a reason, right? Cuz they’re, you know, completely unfounded.
He doesn’t seem to have a type (Haylie Duff, Kristen Chenoweth and Rooney Mara?).
Malcom McDowell and Mary Steenburgen were married for quite awhile,like 10 years. I think they hooked up on “Time After Time.” I’m a huge Malcolm McDowell fan.
Rooney Mara actually looks cute and shows signs of life in these photos.
Mary Steenburgen & Malcom McDowell were married for 10 years
Malcolm McDowell and Mary Steenburgen got together when they were filming “Time After Time.” In the DVD commentary he talks all about how they fell in love while making the movie. It’s very sweet.
Also, Charlie McDowell has a blog, “Dear Girls Above Me” (http://www.deargirlsaboveme.com/post/1509).
Thanks for the blog link it is entertaining 🙂
Wow! Thanks for link! He is hysterical. I’m a new fan now.
OK, I checked the blog, and he is really funny. And the banner pic is adorable. He’s cute, with the beard and the big eyes. I love a beard.
I guess he couldn’t be a TOTAL nimrod if his dad is Malcolm McDowell.
My G-D…I had/have SUCH A THING FOR THAT BOY’S DADDY!!!
Have watched ALL of his movies…AD NAUSEUM!!!
That scene in “Cat People” when Malcolm is going up the stairs…dressed in a tight black t-shirt and ass hugging tight black pants…and they shoot it from back…ass all in the camera…
PURE PORN!!!
Where was I?!?! Oh…Mary’s stock went up CONSIDERABLY in my book when she hooked up with him!!!
Cat People, yeah! I still think of that scene when he wakes up naked after spending the night with a young lady. He saunters into the bathroom to wash up, and notices… something sticking to his leg. He picks it off, looks at it, and pops it into his mouth.
Ewwww, damn you Kelly, I was eating while reading your comment. Now I lost my appetite and that scene is playing over and over in my head.
P.s. I used to be so obsessed with that movie when I was a teen.
Haha! And the look on his face when he eats it is priceless. So smug.
The only thing interesting I look from this article is that he was linked to Kristen Chenoweth. She scares me!
She suits a toque.
Even before I clicked this link, I knew this was the Dear Girls Above me guy! I check in on his Twitter feed every once in awhile, it’s hilarious!
Basically him posting the ridiculous things the two incredibly ditzy girls say who live above him in his apartment building and his running commentary on it.
Wait… she’s getting rave reviews for GWTDT? I thought everyone agreed she was good but not as good as Noomi Raplace.
You should read the reviews. They’re 95% raves for her. Some predict her for an Oscar nomination.
Some prefer her to Rapace, some say she “made it her own” but prefer Rapace.
That may have been hyperbole. I haven’t read all the reviews to know whether or not it’s 95%, 90%, 60%, etc. who rave her. She is getting raves tho.
His uncle is Siddig from Star Trek Deep space 9, Siddig’s Uncle was the Sudanese Primeminister so Charlie is kinda sort like royalty.
I think that Malcolom McDowell is Siddig’s uncle, which makes Charlie McDowell his (Siddig’s) cousin.
Mary Steenburgen sent a tweet when TGWTDT came out asking people to go see “my son’s girlfriend’s movie”. Yes she had a boyfriend this whole time but he was in America while Rooney was in Sweden with David Fincher. You do the math.
What math? He lives in the U.S. and his girlfriend had to go to Sweden for work.
I know people find her insufferable, but I kinda like her. This just proves she has good taste in men. He seems smart, funny and well he’s hot.
He was also in Swenden with Mara. Swedish paps got some photos of them but it was during a time when nobody cared for Mara.
I don’t normally follow BI’s but I totally think that she & Daniel Craig had a thing when filming GWDT. Maybe it just because I don’t like her though. I much prefer the Swedish Lisbeth