Ari Aster Bio
Ari Aster (born July 15, 1986) is an American filmmaker best known for writing and directing the elevated horror films Hereditary (2018) and Midsommar (2019). His work combines dark comedy, horror, and graphic violence to explore grief, family trauma, and the unraveling of identity. After gaining recognition with the short film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011), he became one of the most distinctive voices working in modern horror. In 2019, he co-founded the production company Square Peg with Danish producer Lars Knudsen. His recent features include Beau Is Afraid (2023) and Eddington (2025).
Early Life and Background
Ari Aster was born to Jewish parents in Princeton, New Jersey on July 15, 1986. The family moved to New York City when he was about a week old. His mother was a poet and his father was a jazz musician, and he has a younger brother. He spent part of his childhood in England, where his father opened a jazz nightclub in Chester, before returning to the United States at age ten and settling in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He later described himself as a “fat kid with a stutter” who felt alienated and was eventually kicked out of Santa Fe Preparatory School.
As a child, Aster became obsessed with horror films and frequently rented them from local video stores, saying he “exhausted the horror section of every video store I could find.” Originally aspiring to become an author, he became interested in filmmaking through screenwriting and wrote six feature-length screenplays during high school. He began studying film at the College of Santa Fe in 2004, where he made several short films and wrote for the local Weekly Alibi arts magazine. He graduated in 2008 and submitted his short film Tale of Two Tims to the American Film Institute, which led to his acceptance into the 2010 class of the AFI Conservatory’s graduate program, where he earned an MFA with a focus in directing.
Path to Filmmaker
After graduating from the AFI Conservatory, Aster wrote and directed several short films between 2011 and 2018, often collaborating with fellow AFI students Alejandro de Leon and Pawel Pogorzelski. His most notable project was the short psychological horror film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011), which follows a suburban family in which the father becomes trapped in an incestuous relationship with his abusive son. The film served as his thesis project at AFI and premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival in Utah on January 22 before leaking online in November, where it went viral. Short of the Week wrote that the comments on the film’s YouTube page ran from “effusive acclaim to disgusted vitriol,” declaring that “in terms of the internet, that means it’s a hit.”
The Strange Thing About the Johnsons introduced Aster to a wider audience and set the stage for his move into feature filmmaking. He had first conceived the story while discussing taboos with friends, including the film’s star Brandon Greenhouse, before starting his first year at AFI. The short established the unsettling tone and exploration of family dysfunction that would define his later work.
Ari Aster Career
Early Career (2011–2017)
Following his thesis short, Aster continued to develop feature-length projects while based in Los Angeles. He wrote and developed screenplays that drew on his interest in horror, family trauma, and psychological dread, refining the style that would later define his feature work. This period allowed him to build relationships within the independent film industry and attract the attention of the distributor A24.
Although no feature films were released during these years, Aster’s reputation as a promising horror filmmaker grew through festival screenings and online buzz surrounding The Strange Thing About the Johnsons. These formative years prepared him for his transition to directing his first feature film.
Breakthrough (2018–2019)
Aster made his feature-length directorial debut with Hereditary (2018), a supernatural horror film about a family haunted by a mysterious presence after the death of their secretive grandmother. The film premiered in the Midnight section at the Sundance Film Festival and was theatrically released in the United States on June 8 by A24. Critics praised the film, with Toni Collette’s performance earning particular acclaim, and it grossed over $90 million on a $10 million budget, becoming A24’s highest-grossing film worldwide at the time. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone named it the scariest film of 2018.
Aster followed Hereditary with the folk horror film Midsommar (2019), also produced by A24. The film follows a group of American university students who travel to Sweden for a festival that occurs once every 90 years and find themselves in the clutches of a cult claiming to practise paganism. Released theatrically in the United States on July 3, the film received positive reviews, with critics praising Aster’s direction and Florence Pugh’s performance. Aster’s original 171-minute cut had its world premiere at the Film Society of Lincoln Center as part of its Scary Movies XII lineup. For his work on the film, Aster received a nomination for Best Screenplay at the 29th Gotham Independent Film Awards.
Later Career (2023–Present)
In June 2019, Aster and Danish producer Lars Knudsen launched the production company Square Peg. Aster pivoted away from horror by writing, directing, and producing the surrealist comedy-drama Beau Is Afraid (2023), which follows an anxiety-fueled middle-aged man who must venture out on a surreal odyssey to visit his mother’s home. Originally titled Disappointment Blvd., the film was released on April 21 and received mixed reviews, with critics and viewers divided over its length and story. It earned around $10 million at the box office against a $35 million budget, ultimately losing the studio over $35 million.
Aster returned to directing with the neo-Western political satire Eddington (2025), co-produced by A24 and Square Peg. Set in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd protests, the film examines the political and social turmoil in the fictional town of Eddington, New Mexico, caused by a contested mayoral election. The film debuted on May 16, 2025, in competition at the Cannes Film Festival and was released theatrically on July 18. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its ambition but found its satirical elements lacking.
Notable Works and Milestones
Aster’s signature work includes Hereditary (2018), Midsommar (2019), and Beau Is Afraid (2023), all released by A24. Hereditary became A24’s highest-grossing film worldwide at the time of its release, and Midsommar earned Aster a Gotham Independent Film Award nomination for Best Screenplay.
Ari Aster Award Nominations
Ari Aster has earned recognition from critics and awards bodies for his work as a writer and director. His most prominent nomination came at the 29th Gotham Independent Film Awards, where he was nominated for Best Screenplay for the film Midsommar (2019). He has also been honored with inclusion in various critics’ year-end lists for Hereditary, including Rolling Stone naming it the scariest film of 2018.
Ari Aster Awards Won
Verified award totals are not available in the source material provided, so no specific wins are summarized here.
Ari Aster Family
Ari Aster was born to Jewish parents. His mother was a poet and his father was a jazz musician who opened a jazz nightclub in Chester, England, during Aster’s childhood. He has a younger brother. After spending time in England, the family returned to the United States when he was ten years old and settled in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Personal Life
Aster has kept much of his personal life private. He co-founded the production company Square Peg with Danish producer Lars Knudsen in 2019. Beyond his professional collaborations, few additional details about his personal relationships or residence are publicly confirmed.