Dylan and Cole Sprouse

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Dylan and Cole Sprouse

Dylan (left) and Cole Sprouse as Zack and Cody Martin on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, 2005
Born: August 4, 1992 (age 14)
Occupation: Actors
Website: [1]

Cole Mitchell Sprouse and Dylan Thomas Sprouse (born August 4, 1992) are American twin brother actors. They are sometimes collectively referred to as DC Sprouse, Cole & Dylan, the Sprouse Bros., or the Sprouse Twins, and are perhaps best known for their roles in the film Big Daddy, as Ross's son Ben on Friends, and for portraying the title characters on the Disney Channel series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. As a result of the series' success, they have become "heartthrobs"[1] and "overwhelming draws" among tween and teen audiences.[2]

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life

The Sprouses were born in Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy to American parents Matthew Sprouse and Melanie Wright, who at the time were teaching at an American English language school in Italy; Dylan, named after poet Dylan Thomas, is fifteen minutes older than Cole,[3] who is named for jazz singer and pianist Nat King Cole.[4] The twins moved back to the United States four months after their birth, and grew up in their parents' native Long Beach, California. Their parents divorced in 1997.

[edit] Acting career

After a suggestion by their grandmother, Jonine Booth Wright, who was a drama teacher and actress, the Sprouses began acting at the age of six months, appearing in a commercial for toilet paper. As with many identical twin actors, the two have often played the same role, allowing more time for the character to be filmed. From 1993 to 1998, the two starred on the ABC-TV series, Grace Under Fire, playing one character, Patrick Kelly.

In 1999, the twins appeared in their first major feature film, the Adam Sandler vehicle Big Daddy, in which they played a boy adopted by Sandler's character; that year, Cole collaborated with Sandler on the second version of The Chanukah Song, and the twins also had a minor role in the thriller The Astronaut's Wife. Dylan Sprouse has noted that after Big Daddy's release, the two entered into a "slow" period in their careers, and were not cast in any major roles for a time.[1] During the early 2000s, the twins appeared in episodes of the The Nightmare Room and That 70's Show, as well as in "MADtv: Season Four (1998-1999)" (episode #425) and the feature films The Master of Disguise and Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights, in a voice-over role. In 2001, Cole Sprouse appeared in several episodes of the television show, Friends, as Ross Geller's son, Ben.

Between the years of 2002 and 2003, the two starred in I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus and Just for Kicks, both of which were family films that received a direct-to-video release. The Sprouses were subsequently cast in the Disney Channel television series The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, where they play identical twins Zack and Cody Martin. The series, which debuted in March 2005, has become a ratings success[1] and the twins have become very well known among pre-teen and teen audiences. As part of their involvement with Disney, the brothers are now part of the 11-member group, the Disney Channel Circle of Stars, and sang the song A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes along with the members of the circle, for a video that was released as bonus material in the special edition version of the Disney film, Cinderella. The Sprouses also participated in the Disney Channel Games 2006, which began airing in June of 2006. Dylan was on the Red Team with Zac Efron, Kay Panabaker, Anneliese van der Pol, Shin Koyamada and Moises Arias, while Cole was on the Blue Team, along with Brenda Song, Corbin Bleu, Vanessa Anne Hudgens, Monique Coleman and Jason Earles.

The Sprouses played one character, Jeremiah, in the independent film The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, which was produced in 2004 but not given a theatrical release until March of 2006, when it played in a total of three theatres across the United States, ultimately grossing $29,000 domestically.[5] As of November 2006, the two are filming the Sony Pictures film The Prince and the Pauper, which also stars Sally Kellerman, Ed Lauter and Dedee Pfeiffer, in Palm Beach, Florida; filming began in October and ended by December.[6] It was also recently announced that The Suite Life of Zack & Cody would be shooting a third season. [7] The boys also lent their voices to a movie called Holidaze: The Christmas That Almost Didn't Happen, which also features the voices of fellow Disney Channel stars Brenda Song and Emily Osment. [8]

[edit] "Sprouse Bros." brand

In September 2005, the Sprouses signed a licensing agreement with Dualstar Entertainment to create a new commercial brand, entitled "Sprouse Bros", which will include DVD movies, CDs, clothing, sports gear, video games, ring tones and deodorants[1] targeted towards preteen tweens and teen audiences. Dualstar has partnered with Leisure Publishing LLC to create a magazine called Sprouse Bros. Code, which will target boys ages 8-14 with a guide on recent trends favored by the Sprouses; Cole Sprouse has stated that the magazine will appeal to "people who are our age and boys. We don't want anything too girlie",[9] while Dylan has said that it will have "something that will appeal to everybody".[10] The first issue became available on July 18, 2006.[11]

In September of 2006, the Sprouse brothers, represented by Dualstar Entertainment, signed a book deal with Simon Spotlight, a publishing company, to release a spy book series that will utilize the "Sprouse Bros." brand. The book series, which is scheduled for release in the summer of 2007, has been described by the publisher as featuring the Sprouses as "young James Bonds [or] undercover agents".[12]

[edit] Personal life

Dylan Sprouse has stated that the experience of coming to fame after the success of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody is "kind of scary, how fast everything is moving. Just a year ago none of this was happening, it was just doing 'Suite Life,' and now I can't wait for what's in store..."[9] While filming The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, the two receive on-set tutoring for three hours each day.[1]

As of 2006, the Sprouses enjoy snowboarding, surfing, basketball and motocrossing,[4] as well as working on drawing a comic strip, The Adventures of Tibblebu and Thumbin, based on a stuffed animal of Cole's.[13] Cole Sprouse's favorite school subjects are math and science; he names The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time as his favorite video game and Forrest Gump and Godzilla as the films he likes the most.[3] Dylan prefers science, dislikes math, and enjoys playing the videogames Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee; his favorite film is Napoleon Dynamite.[3] The twins have a dog named Bubba,[4] and their favorite actor and co-star is Adam Sandler.[3]

According to a May 2006 interview with Mad Kids magazine, the Sprouses do not speak Italian,[3] despite incorrect reports to the contrary:[14].

Cole: "I can't say anything in Italian. "Pizza, por favor" maybe?"

Dylan: "...I don't really speak Italian except for "spaghetti", "Italian ice" (Yum!) and "Ferrari".

[edit] Selected filmography

Dylan Sprouse with Asia Argento in The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, 2004
Enlarge
Dylan Sprouse with Asia Argento in The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, 2004
Year Title Role Notes
2007 A Modern Twain Story: The Prince and the Pauper Matthew Hill and Jeff Mahoney Main Characters
2006 The Emperor's New School Zim & Zam Guests
2005 The Suite Life of Zack and Cody Zack and Cody Martin television series
2004 The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things Jeremiah (Age 11) limited release
2003 Apple Jack Jack Pyne short film
Just For Kicks Cole & Dylan Martin direct-to-video
2002 I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus Justin Carver direct-to-video
Eight Crazy Nights K-B Toys Soldier
The Master of Disguise Young Pistachio Disguisey
2001 Diary of a Sex Addict Sammy Jr. direct-to-video
2001 The Nightmare Room: Scareful What You Wish For Buddy one episode
1999 The Astronaut's Wife Twin
Big Daddy Julian 'Frankenstein' McGrath

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d e The Early Show. The 'Suite Life' Of The Sprouse Twins. Retrieved on July 6, 2006.
  2. ^ Newsday.com. Tween shows, top ratings. Retrieved on April 15, 2006.
  3. ^ a b c d e Mad Kids (May, 2006). "The Mad Kids Chatroom: This Month: Dylan & Cole Sprouse". Mad Kids 1 (#3): 26-28.
  4. ^ a b c Popstar (June, 2006). "Dylan & Cole take over the world!: House of Sprouse!". Popstar Special! - (-): 90.
  5. ^ Box Office Mojo.com. THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS. Retrieved on April 14, 2006.
  6. ^ Palm Beach Post. PALM BEACH COUNTY HOSTS 'SUITE' TWINS FOR UPCOMING FLICK. Retrieved on November 15, 2006.
  7. ^ Cole Sprouse. “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody” will film a third season. Retrieved on November 30, 2006.
  8. ^ Dylan Sprouse. Dylan Sprouse and Cole Sprouse “Holidaze” Trailer. Retrieved on November 30, 2006.
  9. ^ a b The New York Times. Boys Just Want to Be ... Olsens (Page 2 of 2). Retrieved on April 29, 2006.
  10. ^ The New York Times. Boys Just Want to Be ... Olsens (Page 3 of 3). Retrieved on April 29, 2006.
  11. ^ TeenPeople. Get Ready for the Sprouse Twins. Retrieved on April 28, 2006.
  12. ^ The Book Standard. 14-Year-Old Celebrity Twin Actors Looking Forward to Providing Interesting Book Content. Retrieved on September 23, 2006.
  13. ^ BOP (May, 2006). "Cole and Dylan Sprouse: "We draw"". BOP magazine - (-): 54.
  14. ^ The Internet Movie Database and several other trivia web sites have incorrectly suggested that the Sprouses speak Italian.

[edit] External links

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