Benjamin Millepied

Benjamin Millepied is a choreographer and dancer. Millepied began his ballet training at age 8 under the guidance of his mother, a former dancer. He went on to study at the Conservatoire National and later earned a scholarship to study at the New York City Ballet. He was invited to join the company as a dancer in 1995.

By 2002, the France native became a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, and he began choreographing for popular ballet companies, including the Metropolitan Opera and the American Ballet Theatre. His work was highly acclaimed and landed him the role of choreographer for the 2010 ballet film Black Swan, where he met future spouse Natalie Portman.

The following year, the dancer founded the contemporary ballet company L.A. Dance Project. From 2014 to 2016, Millepied was the director of dance at the Paris Opera Ballet. Following his departure, he continued to choreograph for ballet companies around the world. He has also made a handful of screen appearances, including as a guest judge on So You Think You Can Dance.

The dancer wed Portman in 2012; the pair share children Aleph (born in 2011) and Amalia (born in 2017). The couple announced their split in 2023, and their divorce was finalized the following year.