Griffin Matthews (born 1981/82) is an American actor, writer, and director. Born in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, he graduated from

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

with a B.F.A. in musical theater. Matthews served two years in the

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

in West Africa. In 2005, he founded a nonprofit, UgandaProject (originally named Be The Change Uganda), to support the education of teenagers in

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

. With husband Matt Gould, Matthews co-wrote the musical ''Witness Uganda'', later retitled ''

Invisible Thread Invisible thread is very thin monofilament thread used by magicians to make small, lightweight objects seem to levitate and animate. It is usually made from nylon Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers composed ...

'', based on his experience volunteering in Uganda. The musical won the 2014 Richard Rodgers Awards for Musical Theatre in 2012 and 2014. Matthews appears as fashion designer Luke Jacobson in the 2022

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...

series '' She-Hulk: Attorney at Law''. His other television credits include ''

Dear White People ''Dear White People'' is a 2014 American satirical dark comedy-drama film written, directed and co-produced by Justin Simien. The film focuses on escalating racial tensions at a fictitious, prestigious Ivy League college from the perspective of ...

'', ''

The Flight Attendant ''The Flight Attendant'' is an American dark comedy drama mystery thriller television series developed by Steve Yockey based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Chris Bohjalian. It stars Kaley Cuoco in the title role and premiered on HB ...

'', ''

The Mentalist ''The Mentalist'' is an American drama television series that ran from September 23, 2008, until February 18, 2015, broadcasting 151 episodes over seven seasons, on CBS. Created by Bruno Heller, who was also its executive producer, the show fol ...

'', '' Weeds'', ''

Torchwood ''Torchwood'' is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. A spin-off of the 2005 revival of ''Doctor Who'', it aired from 2006 to 2011. The show shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing ...

'', and '' Law & Order: LA''. Matthews, who is Black, has criticized

institutionalized racism Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of racism that is embedded in the laws and regulations of a society or an organization. It manifests as discrimination in areas such as criminal justice, employment, housing, health ...

in American theater. Matthews is openly gay. He married composer and writer Matt Gould in 2017; they had met in 2002 through their Peace Corps service in Africa. The couple adopted two sons in August 2022.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Matthews, Griffin 1980s births Living people African-American dramatists and playwrights African-American male actors African-American directors American gay actors Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts alumni LGBT African Americans LGBT people from Pennsylvania Male actors from Pittsburgh