Jonathan Groff

Jonathan Drew Groff (born March 26, 1985) is an American actor and singer . He began his career on Broadway, rising to prominence for his portrayal of Melchior Gabor in the original production of '' Spring Awakening'' (2006-2008), for which he was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest nominees for the award, at age 21. He returned to Broadway to portray King George III in the original production of ''Hamilton'' (2015), for which he earned a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical. For the original cast album of ''Hamilton'', he, along with the other singers on the recording, won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

Branching out into film and television roles, Groff made his film debut in Ang Lee's ''Taking Woodstock'' (2009), and became a recurring guest star in the Fox musical-comedy series ''Glee'' (2009–2015) as Jesse St. James. He voiced the roles of Kristoff and Sven in Disney's '' Frozen'' franchise, including '' Frozen'' (2013) and ''Frozen II'' (2019), two of the highest-grossing films of all time, as well as the short films ''Frozen Fever'' (2015) and ''Olaf's Frozen Adventure'' (2017). Groff starred as Patrick Murray in the HBO comedy-drama series ''Looking'' (2014–2015), the network's first TV series centering around the lives of gay men, as well as its subsequent television film, '' Looking: The Movie'' (2016), and portrayed FBI Special Agent Holden Ford in the Netflix period crime drama '' Mindhunter'' (2017–2019), produced by David Fincher, for which he won a Satellite Award. In 2021, he received a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Anthology Series or Movie for his performance in the Disney+ live stage recording of ''Hamilton''.

Groff starred in the fourth installment of the ''Matrix'' franchise—''The Matrix Resurrections'' (2021)—as Smith, replacing Hugo Weaving from the original trilogy. In 2022, he executive produced the HBO documentary film '' Spring Awakening: Those You've Known'', which saw the 15 year reunion of the original cast of the musical, and voiced the lead role of Ollie in the Netflix series '' Lost Ollie''. Upcoming projects include the New York Theatre Workshop revival of Stephen Sondheim's '' Merrily We Roll Along'' and M. Night Shyamalan's apocalyptic horror film '' Knock at the Cabin'' (2023).

Early life and education

Jonathan Drew Groff was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to Julie (née Witmer), a physical education teacher, and Jim Groff, a harness horse trainer. He has one older brother, David, who is President and COO of WebstaurantStore. He is a first cousin of singer James Wolpert, a semi-finalist on the fifth season of ''The Voice''. Groff is of German descent. His father is Mennonite, and his paternal grandfather, J. Wade Groff, was a Mennonite minister. Groff's mother is Methodist, and Groff was raised in the Methodist faith. He grew up among Amish communities in Ronks, Pennsylvania, spending his teenage years driving around his Amish neighbors, who were not allowed to use electricity or drive cars.

Groff's roots in theater and acting began at an early age. When he was three years old, Groff fell in love with Julie Andrews' performance as Mary Poppins, and growing up, he and his brother put on childhood home productions, such as a performance of ''The Wizard of Oz'' in his father's barn, where he played Dorothy. Groff credits Sutton Foster as one of his greatest influences and idols, and as a young aspiring actor, he would wait at the stage door after her performances to get her autograph. Groff joined his middle school and high school drama departments, and it was there that he became inspired to start a career in theater.

In his adolescence, Groff took part in many community productions in his hometown of Lancaster. At seventeen years old, he directed and starred in ''You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown'' at a high school theatre festival at the Fulton Opera House, for which he won a community award. He also performed in ''The Sound of Music'', ''Ragtime'', ''Cyrano'', ''Evita'', ''My Fair Lady'', ''Peter Pan'', ''The Pirates of Penzance'', and ''Rags'' at the Fulton Opera House, as well as starring as Edgar in '' Bat Boy: The Musical'' and Ugly in ''Honk!'' at The Ephrata Performing Arts Center.

Groff graduated from Conestoga Valley High School in 2003 and intended to attend Carnegie Mellon University, but he deferred his admission for a year when he was cast as Rolf in a Non-Equity national tour of ''The Sound of Music''. After the tour, Groff decided to move to New York City instead of attending college and begin his career.

Acting career

2005–2009: Career beginnings and ''Spring Awakening''

Groff started out waiting tables at the Chelsea Grill in New York City before earning his Actors' Equity Association card in 2005, with the musical '' Fame'' at the North Shore Music Theatre, where he played Nick Piazza. That same year, he made his Broadway debut as an understudy for the lead role (played by Christopher Hanke), swing, and dance captain for the musical ''In My Life'' by Joseph Brooks, opening on October 20 and closing on December 11, 2005, after 61 performances. The musical was panned by critics, with a review from '' Broadway.com'' calling the production "undoubtedly the most bizarre, misguided Broadway musical of the millennium".

His breakout performance occurred in 2006, when Groff originated the lead role of Melchior Gabor in the Broadway production of the rock musical '' Spring Awakening''. The musical tells the story of repressed adolescents in late nineteenth century Germany discovering their sexuality, adapted from Frank Wedekind's original 1891 play by Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater and directed by Michael Mayer. Groff was first cast in a workshop of ''Spring Awakening'' at Baruch College with Lea Michele, John Gallagher Jr., and the rest of the original cast, and the production then moved to the Atlantic Theater Company for its original off-Broadway run from May 19 through August 5, 2006, before transferring to Broadway. During the Broadway production at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, Groff played the role from its debut on December 10, 2006, through May 18, 2008, when he departed the production with co-star and best friend Lea Michele. The musical achieved great critical acclaim, garnering eleven nominations and winning eight awards, including Best Musical, at the 61st Tony Awards. The musical was also awarded the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album, which the Grammys did not award to vocalists at that time. Charles Isherwood of ''The New York Times'' called the show a "brave new musical, haunting and electrifying by turns" and praised Groff's "ardency and thoughtfulness". ''Variety'' wrote that the performances of "Michele, Groff and Gallagher dominate the young ensemble". Groff was nominated for a Drama Desk Award, a Drama League Award, and a Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance. He received the Theatre World Award for Outstanding Debut Performance.

In 2007, Groff played the recurring role of Henry Mackler for eleven episodes on the ABC soap opera ''One Life to Live''. His character's storyline about a school shooting was cut due to the Virginia Tech shooting in April 2007. In November 2007, Groff was cast in the FX series Pretty/Handsome, directed and written by Ryan Murphy, and filmed a pilot, but the series was not picked up.

From July 22 through August 31, 2008, Groff played the lead role of Claude in the Shakespeare in the Park production of ''Hair'', a rock musical about hippie counterculture during the Vietnam War that was directed by Diane Paulus. Theater critic Ben Brantley of ''The New York Times'' wrote in his review of ''Hair'' that "Mr. Groff, who was memorably tormented by young lust in the musical ''Spring Awakening'', is even more affecting here, his open face a shifting map of doubt and affirmation." Groff decided to turn down the opportunity to reprise his role in the Broadway production, choosing instead to make his film debut. In 2009, he appeared as Michael Lang in Ang Lee's comedy-drama film ''Taking Woodstock'', about the 1969 Woodstock Festival. While critics found the film "likable" but "underwhelming", Groff's performance was praised for its "crafty, angelic fervor" by ''Rolling Stone''.

From November 14 to December 21, 2008, Groff appeared as Billy Noone, a closeted gay soldier fighting in Iraq, in the off-Broadway production of ''Prayer for My Enemy'', a play written by Craig Lucas. The production was directed by Bartlett Sher and performed at Playwrights Horizons. Ben Brantley wrote in ''The New York Times'' that the play is "muddle-headed" and "disconnected", but Groff "exudes the charismatic aura of distressed youth". From April 10 to May 17, 2009, Groff appeared as Gray Korankyi and Walter Riemann in the off-Broadway production of another Craig Lucas play, ''The Singing Forest'', alongside Olympia Dukakis at the Public Theater. The play, directed by Mark Wing-Davey, was described by critics as "convoluted" in plot but with strong performances, praising Groff for his "natural emotional transparency hathelps add layers to Gray". For both performances, Groff received an Obie Award.

Groff starred as Dionysus in the play ''The Bacchae'' opposite Anthony Mackie from August 11 to 30, 2009; it was directed by JoAnne Akalaitis and produced as a part of the Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park. ''The Hollywood Reporter'' wrote that "Groff is surprisingly effective as the Stranger, Dionysus' human guise", but "in the moments when he must be the immortal god and register his full wrath, however, Groff is less successful despite an earnest effort."

2010–2016: ''Glee'', ''Frozen'' and ''Hamilton''

Starting in 2010, Groff rose to greater prominence as a recurring guest star in the Fox musical comedy-drama ''Glee'' as Jesse St. James, lead performer in rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline and love interest to Rachel Berry, played by Lea Michele. He appeared in a total of fifteen episodes over the first, second, third, and sixth seasons of the series. Groff was featured in four of ''Glee'''s soundtrack albums and made a special appearance in the concert tour Glee Live! In Concert! with Michele at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles and at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

From August 21, 2010, to January 15, 2011, Groff made his West End debut in the London revival of '' Deathtrap'', a play written by Ira Levin and directed by Matthew Warchus at the Noël Coward Theatre. Groff played Clifford Anderson, a young brilliant playwright, starring alongside Simon Russell Bale as Sidney Bruhl, his professor. The play received positive critical reception; ''The Spectator'' called Groff's performance "magnetic" and "deeply charismatic" but found the "relationship between student and professor o beunconvincing".

Groff also starred in the off-Broadway world premiere of the play ''The Submission'' by Jeff Talbott with MCC Theater. The production was directed by Walter Bobbie and performed at the Lucille Lortel Theatre from September 8 to October 22, 2011. He portrayed Danny Larsen, a white playwright who submits his play under the pen name of an African-American woman, alongside Rutina Wesley, who played an actress he hires to pose as the writer. The production was met with mostly positive reviews, with ''The New York Times'' praising the script for its "self-awareness" but also finding it "too theatrical" and lacking "real emotions". Groff's acting was widely praised, however, with critics calling his performance "exceptional", "deft", and "disarming".

From August to October 2012, Groff appeared as Ian Todd, a ruthless political aide, in the second and final season of the Starz political drama series ''Boss''. The series was not renewed for a third season due to low ratings. Groff then played Ken, an artist's assistant, opposite Alfred Molina in the Center Theatre Group production of John Logan's play ''Red''. The production ran from August 1 through September 9, 2012, and was directed by Matthew Warchus. From March 14 to 17, 2013, Groff and Molina reprised their roles for six more performances of the play, this time through L.A. Theatre Works and directed by Rosalind Ayres. Charles McNulty of the ''Los Angeles Times'' praised Groff's performance for its "admirable clarity" and wrote that "he is every bit as effective in revealing the delicate nuances of is character"

In 2013, Groff starred in ''C.O.G.'', a comedy-drama film adaptation based on David Sedaris's book of essays, ''Naked''. In the film, Groff plays David, loosely based on Sedaris himself, a young repressed gay man who moves to Oregon in search of a new purpose. The film, directed and written by Kyle Patrick Alvarez, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 20, 2013, and was released in theaters on September 20, 2013, to mixed but mostly positive reviews, with critics citing a "meandering" plot. As Dan Callahan from '' RogerEbert.com'' wrote of Groff's performance, "Groff has an innate sweetness and likability about him no matter what he does, and ... brings a yearning to his role that steadily makes this semi-amusing tale of a fish out of water into a serious and often surprising drama". On June 11, 2013, Groff portrayed Frederic, a pirate apprentice, in a one-night-only Shakespeare in the Park gala production of the comic opera ''The Pirates of Penzance.'' The production was directed by Ted Sperling at the Delacorte Theater, with other members of the cast including Kevin Kline, Martin Short, and Glenn Close.

In 2013, Groff voiced Kristoff, a rugged mountain man and love interest to Anna, and his reindeer Sven in Disney's animated feature '' Frozen'', alongside Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, and Josh Gad. The film premiered on November 19, 2013, and later won an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA for Best Animated Feature. Following the film's massive commercial success and its ranking as the highest-grossing animated film of all time, the fifteenth highest-grossing film of all time, and the highest-grossing film of 2013, Groff reprised his role in the short film sequel ''Frozen Fever'', which premiered on March 13, 2015.

From 2014 to 2015, Groff starred as Patrick Murray, a gay video game developer, in the HBO comedy-drama series ''Looking'', created by Michael Lannan

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