Miriam Shor joins Bradley Cooper-starrer Leonard Bernstein biopic ‘Maestro’

Miriam Shor arrives at the world premiere of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” on Thursday, April 27, 2023, at the Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles
| Photo Credit: Jordan Strauss

Younger actor Miriam Shor is set to star alongside Bradley Cooper in Maestro, a biographical drama film based on the life of legendary musician Leonard Bernstein. According to Variety, Shor essays the role of actor-model Cynthia O’Neal, a friend of Bernstein and his wife Felicia Montealegre.

The film also features actors Carey Mulligan, Matt Bomer, Sarah Silverman and Maya Hawke. Cooper is directing the Netflix movie and has also co-written the script with Oscar-winning screenwriter Josh Singer.

“I play Cynthia O’Neal, who was a very good friend of the Bernsteins, particularly his wife, Felicia,” Shor said at the premiere of her and Cooper’s latest film Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. In the Marvel Studios movie Cooper voices the character of Rocket Raccoon.

Shor said it’s miraculous to see her co-star switch between actor and director. “I mean, that was unbelievable. Because an actor who also directs, to get to work with Bradley… he’s a savant. It’s miraculous. So that was really special, I was really grateful,” she added.

Maestro tells the complex love story of iconic music composer Leonard Bernstein and actor Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein, a tale that spans over 30 years – from the time they met in 1946 at a party and continuing through two engagements, a 25-year marriage, and three children: Jamie Bernstein, Alexander Bernstein and Nina Bernstein Simmons.

Bernstein rose to fame after he was tasked with conducting the New York Philharmonic when he was 25. His career skyrocketed when he wrote and composed the music for 1961 classic West Side Story.

Cooper has developed the film, follow-up to his directorial debut A Star is Born, together with Bernstein’s family.