Miles Teller Opens Up About Controversial 2015 Esquire Profile, Reveals Why He's Avoided Print Interviews Since

Miles Teller is looking back at one of the most talked-about profiles of his career—a 2015 Esquire cover story that sparked considerable backlash at the time.

The piece, which featured Teller on the cover, opened with the question: "You're sitting across from Miles Teller at the Luminary restaurant in Atlanta and trying to figure out if he's a d-ck." It concluded by noting that he would "contribute to the cache or catalog or canon or whatever the f— you call it and charm the world with his dickishness."

Teller wasted no time responding to the article when it dropped. In August 2015, he took to Twitter to express his frustration, writing: "@esquire couldn't be more wrong. I don't think there's anything cool or entertaining about being a dick or an asshole. Very misrepresenting."

Over a decade later, the actor has now elaborated on why that experience left such a lasting impression. Speaking with IndieWire, Teller explained that the mishandling of the profile fundamentally changed his approach to media engagements.

"That was so mishandled," Teller said. "The reason why I have not done profiles is because I said, 'Wow, if I'm not doing this interview on camera, this person can misquote things or put things out of order or say things that didn't happen.' It felt like such a violation of what actually transpired."

The actor went on to detail how he instructed his team to avoid similar arrangements going forward. "I told my team, 'Guys, I don't think I'm doing this again, because I'm reading this and this doesn't sound like me to me. This is not life, so why would I ever want to be a part of something where they can just put that in?'"

Teller also reflected on the broader implications of the experience, noting the disconnect between authentic representation and what captures public attention. "So it's unfortunate that being a good person, that doesn't sell. People want to click on the negativity. If you go to bed and put your head on your pillow and how you treat people truly, that's what matters."

Looking back at the passage of time, Teller added perspective to the incident: "That [2015] interview was like 12 years ago."