Jonathan Groff

He began his career on Broadway making his debut in the musical In My Life (2005). He later received Tony Award nominations for playing Melchior Gabor in the original production of the rock musical Spring Awakening (2006), King George III in the original production of the historical musical Hamilton (2015), and Bobby Darin in the original production of the jukebox musical Just in Time (2025). In 2024, he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for playing Franklin Shepard in the musical revival of Stephen Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along. He also starred as Seymour Krelborn in the off-Broadway musical revival of Little Shop of Horrors in 2019. On television, he started his career with a recurring guest star as Jesse St. James in the Fox musical-comedy series Glee (2009–15). He starred as Patrick Murray in the HBO comedy-drama series Looking (2014–15), the network's first series centering on the lives of gay men, as well as its subsequent television film, Looking: The Movie (2016). He portrayed FBI Special Agent Holden Ford in the Netflix period crime drama Mindhunter (2017–19). He was Primetime Emmy Award-nominated for his role in the Disney+ live stage recording of Hamilton (2020). Groff made his film debut playing Michael Lang in Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock (2009). He has since played Louis J. Weichmann in The Conspirator (2010), Smith in The Matrix Resurrections (2021), and a father held hostage in Knock at the Cabin (2023). He also voiced both Kristoff and Sven in the Disney animated Frozen franchise, including Frozen (2013) and Frozen II (2019). 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.

Jonathan Groff studied at Conestoga Valley High School. The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is acting and music. Residence is recorded at Ronks and New York City. Distinctions recorded are Theatre World Award, Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and Disney Legends.

• Birth Name — Jonathan Drew Groff • Born — 26 March 1985 • Birthplace — Lancaster, Pennsylvania, U.S. • Occupation — * Actor • singer • Years Active — 2002–present • Known for — * Spring Awakening • Glee • Hamilton • Frozen • Merrily We Roll Along • Just in Time

Jonathan Drew Groff was born into a Mennonite family on March 26, 1985, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to Julie and Jim Groff, a standardbred horse trainer and driver. He has an older brother, David, who is president and COO of WebstaurantStore. 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 the title character in the film Mary Poppins (1964), 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 pursue a career in theater. In his teens, Groff took part in many community productions in his hometown of Lancaster. At seventeen, he directed and starred in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown at a high school theater 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.

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". • Illustration — Groff in 2006 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. In 2007, Groff also lent his vocal talents to record the roles of Rolf Gruber & Friedrich von Trapp in the Salzburg Marionette Theatre's production of The Sound of Music, which premiered on November 7 in Dallas, Texas. This recording is still used by the company for their performances in Salzburg, Austria. 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 [that] helps 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."

In October 2017, Groff starred in the Netflix crime thriller series Mindhunter, created by Joe Penhall and executive produced by David Fincher and Charlize Theron. In the series, Groff portrays Federal Bureau of Investigation agent Holden Ford, a serial killer profiler in the Behavioral Science Unit interviewing and investigating real-life serial killers and murder cases. His character is loosely based on the real-life John E. Douglas, one of the first criminal profilers in FBI history. Groff and co-stars Holt McCallany and Anna Torv also starred in the second season of the series, which premiered on August 16, 2019. The series and Groff's performance were critically acclaimed. RogerEbert.com called it "Netflix's best drama", and Collider wrote that Groff's performance was "exceptionally affecting as Holden" and that "Groff has always had a talent for making his characters empathetic." For his performance, Groff won a Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series. Season three has since been put on hold indefinitely as Fincher, who directed and produced much of the series, elected to focus on other projects, although he may one day revisit the project. In July 2017, Groff starred as Jase Connolly in the first podcast musical, 36 Questions, written by Chris Littler and Ellen Winter based on The New York Times article "The 36 Questions That Lead to Love" and a 1997 psychological study on interpersonal closeness. The three-act podcast, released by Two-Up Productions, follows the story of an estranged husband (Groff) and wife (played by Jessie Shelton) trying to salvage their marriage with the titular set of 36 questions. On July 23, 2017, Groff performed in a one-night only symphonic concert production of Sondheim on Sondheim at the Hollywood Bowl. From January 20 to 22, 2018, Groff starred as the titular character in the off-Broadway production of The Bobby Darin Story, a three-day concert and biographical retelling of the life of 1950s singing icon Bobby Darin, presented as part of the Lyrics & Lyricists series at 92nd Street Y and directed by Alex Timbers. The production was met with great critical reception, with Michael Ridel writing in the New York Post that Groff "moves with the ease and slyness of Darin". From September 17, 2019, to January 19, 2020, Groff starred in the off-Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors at the Westside Theatre as Seymour Krelborn, a florist who raises a plant with a thirst for human flesh, alongside Christian Borle and Tammy Blanchard. The revival, directed by Michael Mayer, received rave reviews; The Hollywood Reporter wrote that Groff was "never-better... hilarious, endearing and in tremendous voice" and that he "disappears into a role he was born to play". Groff was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album as part of the cast recording of Little Shop of Horrors. Groff also won an Outer Critics Circle Award, and he received a Lucille Lortel Award nomination and Drama League Award nomination for his performance. In November 2019, Groff reprised his role as Kristoff in the sequel film Frozen 2, singing a solo song for the movie titled "Lost in the Woods". In January 2020, Frozen 2 surpassed the first installment, becoming the highest-grossing animated film of all time. Groff also reprised the character in the 2017 short Olaf's Frozen Adventure and the video game Kingdom Hearts III in 2019. Groff's Broadway performance of King George III in Hamilton was featured in the film production on Disney+ released on July 3, 2020. In 2021, the film of the musical received a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture of a Musical or Comedy. Groff received a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Supporting Role in a Limited Series or Movie for his performance in the Disney+ live stage recording for his performance in the film. His performance went viral due to his tendency to spray spit while singing. In December 2020, it was announced Groff would be joining the cast of Invincible as Rick Sheridan, an Amazon Prime Video adult animated superhero series based on the comics of the same name created by Robert Kirkman, with the first episodes expected to be released on March 26, 2021. In December 2019, it was announced Groff would join the cast for The Matrix Resurrections, the fourth installment of The Matrix franchise, alongside Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, portraying former Agent Smith (replacing Hugo Weaving). It was released in theaters and on HBO Max on December 22, 2021. In 2021, it was announced Groff would be executive producing a concert documentary following the fifteen-year reunion of the original Broadway cast of Spring Awakening. The documentary, entitled Spring Awakening: Those You've Known, premiered on HBO on May 3, 2022. In addition, he hosted the documentary Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age on PBS. In November 2020, Deadline announced Groff would star as Brian in Molly and the Moon, a musical film alongside Frozen co-star Kristen Bell. In March 2021, Netflix announced Groff would star in the live-action/animation hybrid series Lost Ollie directed by Peter Ramsey based on William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg's book Ollie's Odyssey. The series premiered on Netflix on August 24, 2022. Groff voices the title role of Ollie, a lost toy searching for the boy who lost him. Groff starred in the role of Franklin Shepard in the 2022 New York Theatre Workshop off-Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along alongside Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez. In December 2022, it was announced that he would reprise his role in the first Broadway revival of the musical in fall of 2023, for which he received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. In March 2022, Deadline announced Groff had been cast in M. Night Shyamalan's horror film Knock at the Cabin. In 2023, Groff was announced as a guest star in the fourteenth series of Doctor Who. In 2024, Groff co-starred with Karan Soni in the romantic comedy film A Nice Indian Boy, playing Jay Kurundkar opposite Soni's character Naveen Gavaskar. In 2025, Groff starred on Broadway in Just in Time, a musical about Bobby Darin, for which he received his fourth Tony Award nomination. He worked on a concert version of the project with director Alex Timbers in 2018 when titled The Bobby Darin Story. In September 2026, Groff will play Rosalind in an all-male production of William Shakespeare's As You Like It for the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon, directed by the RSC's co-Artistic Director Daniel Evans.

In 2019, Groff purchased a home next to his father's horse farm in Christiana, Pennsylvania. He splits his time between Pennsylvania and New York City.

Groff was diagnosed with melanoma in his early 20s and underwent surgery for removal. He abstains from using social media and is a practitioner of Transcendental Meditation.

Groff publicly came out as gay when asked by a Broadway.com reporter during the National Equality March in October 2009. He later shared his experience with coming out, discussing the pain of being closeted and the knowledge that disclosing his sexuality could have negative ramifications on his career. He has also expressed how much he values being a role model for young people as an out actor, and has advocated the importance of sharing coming-out stories. Groff was initially hesitant to accept the lead role in the gay television series Looking, citing insecurities around being typecast in gay roles, but he ultimately found the experience rewarding: "Living in that world and talking about gay issues was truly life-altering for me and made me so much more comfortable in my own skin". On June 29, 2014, Groff was a grand marshal at the New York City Gay Pride Parade. In April 2015, Groff was honored by the Point Foundation with the Point Horizon Award honoring a "trailblazer who has taken a leadership role as an advocate" of LGBTQIA communities. In December 2015, he was honored by Equality Pennsylvania with the Bayard Rustin Award, which "recognizes a Pennsylvanian who is continuing the work to ensure that the LGBT community will be visible, accepted, and celebrated in our society". In 2017, Groff was named Out100's Entertainer of the Year, celebrating impactful LGBTQ+ public figures.

In 2009, Groff dated actor Gavin Creel. From 2010 to 2013, Groff was in a relationship with actor Zachary Quinto. Groff dated New Zealand choreographer Corey Baker from 2018 to 2020. As of 2026, Groff is in a relationship with someone who is outside the acting industry.

While Groff was beginning his professional career in theater, he volunteered for the nonprofit Broadway Cares, and he has continued to perform in and support fundraisers for the organization throughout his career. Groff is a longtime supporter of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, serving as an Event Chair for the charity's 14th Annual New York Benefit Gala in 2015. Other charities he has supported include the Point Foundation, Habitat for Humanity, Actors Fund of America, Theatre Development Fund, Hispanic Federation Emergency Assistance Fund, and Color of Change, through which he participates in benefit performances and fundraisers, often recording personal voicemails as his Frozen characters Kristoff and Sven for auction winners. In August 2020, Groff joined the Hamilton cast in organizing the virtual fundraiser event Ham4Change for organizations working to end systemic racism, raising over $1 million for the Equal Justice Initiative, African American Policy Forum, Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective, Black AIDS Institute, Color of Change, Dance4Hope, Know Your Rights Camp, Law Enforcement Accountability Project, Until Freedom, and When We All Vote. Groff has performed in numerous charity benefits for theater institutions, including the 52nd Street Project, Tectonic Theater Project, Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, Playwrights Horizons, and more. He has expressed a passion in encouraging youth theater; Groff has taught master classes in acting and musical theatre for young actors with the New York Film Academy, Broadway Workshop, Temple University, Young Actors' Theatre Camp, and the National YoungArts Foundation, among others. On October 3, 2020, Groff participated in a virtual event for the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. On October 16, 2020, Groff, along with the rest of the original Hamilton cast, participated in a virtual fundraiser event for the Biden Victory Fund, in support of Democratic candidate Joe Biden for the 2020 presidential election. On December 13, 2020, Groff and fellow Hamilton cast-member Sasha Hutchings hosted a virtual holiday concert fundraiser to support the campaigns of Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock in the Georgia Senate runoff elections. In October 2024, it was announced that Groff had joined the Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS Board of Trustees.

• Year — Title — Role — Notes — Ref. Reference • 2007 — One Life to Live — Henry Mackler — 11 episodes • 2008 — Pretty/Handsome — Patrick Fitzpayne — Unaired pilot • 2010–2015 — Glee — Jesse St. James — Recurring role; 15 episodes • 2012 — The Good Wife — Jimmy Fellner — Episode: "Live from Damascus" • Boss — Ian Todd — Main cast; 10 episodes • 2014–2015 — Looking — Patrick Murray — Lead role; 18 episodes • 2014 — The Normal Heart — Craig Donner — Television film • 2016 — Looking: The Movie — Patrick Murray — Television film • LEGO Frozen Northern Lights — Kristoff (voice) — Television special • 2017–2019 — Mindhunter — Holden Ford — Lead role; 19 episodes • 2018 — The Simpsons — Actor Playing Bart (voice) — Episode: "Bart's Not Dead" • 2020 — Hamilton — | King George III of the United Kingdom — Filmed recording of 2016 Broadway musical • 2021 — Invincible — Rick Sheridan (voice) — Episode: "You Look Kinda Dead" • 2022 — And Just Like That... — Dr. Paul David — Episode: "Diwali" • Life & Beth — Travis — Episode: "Pancakes" • Spring Awakening: Those You've Known — Himself — Documentary, also executive producer • Lost Ollie — Ollie (voice) — Lead role • 2024–2025 — Doctor Who — Rogue — 2 episodes • 2025 — Étoile — Kevin — Episode: "The Slip"

• Year — Title — Role — Venue — Notes — Ref. Reference • 2002 — Honk! — Ugly • 2004 — Bat Boy: The Musical — Bat Boy • 2005 — Fame — Nick Piazza — North Shore Music Theatre • In My Life — u/s J.T. & Nick, Swing, Dance Captain — Music Box Theatre — Broadway debut • 2006 — Spring Awakening — Melchior Gabor — Atlantic Theater Company — Off-Broadway • 2006–2009 — Eugene O'Neill Theatre — Broadway • 2007 — Hair — Claude Hooper Bukowski — Delacorte Theater — 40th Anniversary Concert • 2008 • Prayer for My Enemy — Billy Noone — Playwrights Horizons — Off-Broadway — • 2009 — The Singing Forest — Gray Korankyi, Walter Rieman — Off-Broadway • ' — Dionysus — Delacorte Theater • 2010–2011 — Deathtrap — Clifford Anderson — Noël Coward Theatre — West End debut • 2011 — ' — Danny Larsen — MCC Theater — Off-Broadway • 2012 — Red — Ken — Mark Taper Forum • 2013 — L.A. Theatre Works • ' — Frederic — Delacorte Theater • 2015 — Hamilton — King George III — Off-Broadway • How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying — J. Pierrepont Finch — Royal Festival Hall — West End • ' — Gordon Michael Schwinn — New York City Center — Encores! • 2015–2016 — Hamilton — King George III — Richard Rodgers Theatre — Broadway • 2017 — Sondheim on Sondheim — Performer — Hollywood Bowl • Hair — Claude Hooper Bukowski — Lincoln Center — Jazz at Lincoln Center • 2018 — ' — Bobby Darin — 92nd Street Y — Off-Broadway Concert • 2019–2020 — Little Shop of Horrors — Seymour Krelborn — Westside Theatre — Off-Broadway revival • 2021 — Spring Awakening — Melchior Gabor — Imperial Theatre — Broadway Reunion Concert • 2022–2023 — Merrily We Roll Along — Franklin Shepard — New York Theatre Workshop — Off-Broadway revival • 2023 — Gutenberg! The Musical! — The Producer — James Earl Jones Theatre — Broadway one night cameo • 2023–2024 — Merrily We Roll Along — Franklin Shepard — Hudson Theatre — Broadway revival • 2025–2026 — Just in Time — Bobby Darin — Circle in the Square Theatre — Broadway • 2026 — As You Like It — Rosalind — Royal Shakespeare Theatre — Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-upon-Avon

• Year — Title — Role — Notes — Ref. Reference • 2008 — The Battery's Down — Himself — Web series • Episode: "The Big Apple" • 2009 — Web series • Episode: "The Party's Over" • 2015 — One True Pairing (Season 1) — Dennis — Web series • Episode: "What's 'Your' Nickname" • 2016 — One True Pairing (Season 2) — Web series • 4 episodes • 2017 — 36 Questions — Jase — Podcast Musical • Released through Two-Up podcast channel

• Year — Title — Voice role — Ref. Reference • 2019 — Kingdom Hearts III — Kristoff • 2023 — Disney Speedstorm

• 2008: Broadway Nights by Seth Rudetsky • 2013: Red by John Logan • 2015: Frozen Fever by VA • 2019: The Killer Across the Table by John E. Douglas, Mark Olshaker • 2022: Everything Was Possible: The Birth of the Musical Follies by Ted Chapin

• Year — Title — Peak chart positions — Album • US — AUS — CAN — IRE — UK • 2010 — "Highway to Hell" — — — — — 88 — — — 89 — Glee: The Music, The Complete Season One • "Run Joey Run" — 61 — 64 — 45 — 12 — 27 • "Another One Bites the Dust" — 79 — — — 53 — 41 — 101 • "Bohemian Rhapsody" — — — — — — — — — — • "Hello" — 35 — 79 — 37 — 31 — 35 — Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers • "Total Eclipse of the Heart" — 16 — 28 — 17 — 3 — 9 • "Like a Virgin" — 87 — 99 — 83 — 47 — 58 — Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna • "Like a Prayer" — 27 — 28 — 27 — 2 — 16 • 2011 — "Rolling in the Deep" — 29 — — — — — — — 49 — Glee: The Music, Volume 6 • 2015 — "You'll Be Back" — — — — — — — — — — — Hamilton • "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in the region Footnotes

• 2006: Spring Awakening (Original Broadway Cast Recording) • 2010: Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna • 2010: Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers • 2010: Glee: The Music, Journey to Regionals • 2011: Glee: The Music, Volume 6 • 2013: Frozen (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) • 2015: Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording) • 2016: A New Brain (2015 New York Cast Recording) • 2017: 36 Questions: Songs from Act 1 – EP • 2017: 36 Questions: Songs from Act 2 – EP • 2017: 36 Questions: Songs from Act 3 – EP • 2017: Olaf's Frozen Adventure • 2019: Frozen 2 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) • 2019: Little Shop of Horrors (The New Off-Broadway Cast Album) • 2023: Merrily We Roll Along (New Broadway Cast Recording) • 2025: Just in Time (Original Broadway Cast Recording)

• 2007: "Now" from Dreaming Wide Awake: The Music of Scott Alan • 2015: "Prayer" from A View of the River: 7 Songs by Will Van Dyke & Jeff Talbott • 2015: "Making Today a Perfect Day" from Frozen Fever • 2019: "I'll Be Home for Christmas" by Lea Michele • 2021: "Love Me for an Hour" from Some Lovers (World Premiere Recording)