Jonathan Drew Groff (born March 26, 1985) is an American actor and singer.
Early Life[]
A native of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Groff's love for theatre began at age 3, when he and his brother, David would perform many childhood home productions including The Wizard of Oz in his father's barn as Dorothy. In middle and high school, Groff joined the drama departments, where he started to get interested in theatre and participated in many community productions in his hometown and by age 17, he participated in a high school theatre festival, where he directed and starred in a production of, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. Other theatre credits during that time include The Sound of Music, My Fair Lady, Evita, Peter Pan, Ragtime, Egar in Bat Boy: The Musical, and Ugly in Honk!. A graduate of Conestoga Valley High School's class of 2003, and intended to attend Carnegie Mellon University, deferring admission for a year when he was cast as Rolf in a Non-Equity national tour of The Sound of Music. After the tour ended, Groff moved to New York City to begin his career.
Stage, Film & TV[]
Prior to earning his Actors' Equity Association card in 2005, with the musical Fame at the North Shore Music Theatre, he worked as a waiter at Chelsea Grill and made his Broadway debut as a dance captain and understudy in the musical All My Life. However, his breakthrough role was that of Melchior Gabor in the Broadway production of the rock musical Spring Awakening. This was followed by more production on and off Broadway with shows, like Hair, The Singing Forest, Deathtrap, The Pirates of Penzance, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, A New Brain, Sondheim on Sondheim, Little Shop of Horrors, and originating the role of King George III in Hamilton, and as Franklin "Frank" Shepeard in the 2022 Off-Broadway production, and reprised the role in the 2023 Broadway revival of Merrily We Roll Along. Groff's performance earned him his third Tony Award nomination and first win for Best Leading Actor in a Musical. Groff will next star in the musical Just in Time as singer Bobby Darin
On film and television, Groff is perhaps known for his recurring role of Jesse St. James in seasons 1 through 3 and 6 of The Fox Comedy-Drama Musical series Glee and as the voice of Kristoff in Disney's Frozen, its sequel Frozen II and its Spinoffs. Other film credits include Taking Woodstock, The Conspirator, American Sniper, The Matrix Resurrections, The Normal Heart, and Lost Ollie. Outside his work on Glee, his TV credits include Boss, Looking, Mindhunter, The Simpsons, and Invincible.
Horror Filmography[]
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Knock at the Cabin | Eric |