# Anthony Rapp

Anthony Deane Rapp (born October 26, 1971) is an American actor and singer who originated the role of Mark Cohen in the Broadway production of Rent. Following his original performance of the role in 1996, he reprised it in the film version of the show and the show's United States tour in 2009. He also performed Charlie Brown in the 1999 Broadway revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown and originated the role of Lucas in the musical If/Then in 2014. From 2017 to 2024, he played Commander Paul Stamets on the television series Star Trek: Discovery.
Rapp is also known for accusing actor Kevin Spacey of sexual misconduct in 2017 during the #MeToo movement over an alleged event from 1986. The same allegation generated an unsuccessful civil case in 2022 where a jury found Spacey not liable.

## Early life

Rapp was born on October 26, 1971, in Chicago, Illinois to Mary Lee (née Baird) and Douglas Rapp and raised in nearby Joliet. After his parents' divorce in 1974, he was raised by his mother, a nurse. His older brother is playwright, novelist and filmmaker Adam Rapp. He also has an older sister.
Rapp participated in community theater as a child and won awards for his singing in junior high school. He attended Joliet West High School and theatre camp at Interlochen Arts Camp in Michigan. He moved to New York in 1989 to attend New York University as a film student, but dropped out after a semester.

## Career

Rapp first performed on Broadway in 1981 in The Little Prince and the Aviator, a musical based on Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's novel The Little Prince. It closed during previews. He made his screen debut in the ensemble of the 1987 film Adventures in Babysitting, directed by Chris Columbus, who later directed Rapp in the film version of Rent. Rapp has appeared in several movies and Broadway shows. His notable roles include such films as Dazed and Confused, A Beautiful Mind, School Ties, Road Trip, Six Degrees of Separation (stage and film versions), The Beach Boys: An American Family, and Danny Roane: First Time Director.
Rapp played Mark Cohen in the off-Broadway and original Broadway casts of Jonathan Larson's musical Rent. For his audition, he sang R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion", and received his callback in September 1994. After offering him the role, Jonathan Larson wrote new songs for the production with Rapp's voice in mind. Rapp reprised the role in the film adaptation, released on November 23, 2005. He returned to the stage version with original cast member Adam Pascal, from July 30 to October 7, 2007. Rapp, Pascal and fellow original cast member Gwen Stewart also participated in a national tour of Rent beginning January 6, 2009.
Rapp released a solo CD, Look Around, in 2000. In 2006, he published a memoir about Rent and his relationship with his mother, Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and the Musical Rent, which he spent six years writing. Rapp developed a one-man stage show with music based on the memoir beginning in 2007, later performing it at such locations as the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. A recording of the show was released on December 11, 2012, by PS Classics.
In 2005, Rapp played The Doctor in the world premiere of Feeling Electric (later the Broadway musical Next to Normal) at the New York Musical Theatre Festival. During Next to Normal's Off-Broadway run in 2008, he worked as assistant director to Michael Greif, who had directed him in Rent, and wrote the introduction to the published script.
Rapp played Lucas in If/Then, starring fellow Rent alum Idina Menzel. It opened at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C., began previews on Broadway on March 5, 2014, and opened on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theater on March 30. In July, Rapp had to miss performances due to a knee injury and surgery. It closed on March 22, 2015. Rapp reprised the role in the 2015-2016 National Tour with Menzel and the rest of the main Broadway cast.
Rapp also appeared in "Psych: The Musical", an episode of the TV series Psych, which premiered on USA Network on December 15, 2013. In 2016, Rapp was cast in Star Trek: Discovery as Lt. Commander Paul Stamets, the first openly gay character in the Star Trek television series. It was Rapp's first television regular role; while he had watched some Star Trek as a child, he watched "curated lists" of episodes from the multiple series to prepare for the role.

## Personal life

Rapp had a close relationship with his mother, who was battling cancer during the beginning of the off-Broadway and Broadway transfer of Rent. He visited her on weekends. She died at age 55 in 1997. He credits her for instilling values of justice and respect in him.
In 2012, Metro Weekly referred to Rapp as "one of the first openly gay men on Broadway". He came out to his mother at 18, and by her death in 1997 she had grown comfortable with it. In a 1997 interview with Oasis magazine, he explained his sexual identity as "queer" rather than "gay":
   I don't want to get into labels, but I've never labeled myself except to say I'm queer. The thing that's been most important to me to be out about is that I have been in loving relationships with men ... I haven't said "I am gay." Because the truth is that I've also been in love with women, although the truth is I do think I'm primarily homosexual.
He has also identified as "bisexual" and "four-and-a-half" on the Kinsey scale. He has cited working with Larry Kramer as a young man (in Kramer's play The Destiny of Me) for his commitment to activism and "liv[ing] an open life".
Rapp is a "die hard" Chicago Cubs fan and co-hosts the baseball podcast The Clubhouse. At the Cubs game on August 29, 2016, he threw the first pitch and sang the Star Spangled Banner. He enjoys playing poker and video games.
In November 2019, Rapp announced his engagement to his partner, Ken Ithiphol. They have two children, both born via surrogacy.

### Accusations against Kevin Spacey

In October 2017, Rapp alleged in an interview with BuzzFeed that actor Kevin Spacey made an unwanted sexual advance toward him in 1986, when Rapp was 14 and Spacey was 26. At the time, Rapp and Spacey were both appearing in Broadway shows – Rapp in Precious Sons, Spacey in Long Day's Journey into Night – and Spacey invited Rapp to a party at his home. Rapp said that at the end of the evening, an apparently drunk Spacey "picked [him] up like a groom picks up the bride over the threshold", placed him on the bed, and held him down while tightening his grip on him. "He was trying to seduce me", Rapp said. "I don't know if I would have used that language. But I was aware that he was trying to get with me sexually." Rapp added that he met with a lawyer to discuss possible legal action, but was told there was no case worth pursuing. He had previously discussed the incident in a 2001 interview with The Advocate, but Spacey's name was redacted from publication to avoid legal disputes and public outing. Rapp claimed he was inspired to come forward in 2017 after the effects of the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse allegations with the support of his family, boyfriend, and representatives; however, text message evidence shown during Rapp's trial against Spacey showed that Rapp had reported his allegation about Spacey to BuzzFeed before Lupita Nyong'o, whom Rapp previously credited for inspiring him to come forward.
In response, Spacey posted on Twitter that he did not remember the encounter but said that he was "beyond horrified to hear his story", and offered Rapp the "sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior". After the BuzzFeed article, at least 14 other people came forward to accuse Spacey of sexual misconduct, ultimately leading to him losing his starring role on House of Cards and involvement in other projects. Rapp faced harassment and criticism for the accusation. On September 9, 2020, he sued Spacey for sexual assault, sexual battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress under the Child Victims Act, which extended New York's statute of limitations for civil suits related to child sexual abuse. Rapp sought $40 million in damages. Joining Rapp in the suit against Spacey was a man who requested to remain anonymous who accused Spacey of sexually abusing him in 1983, when he was 14 and Spacey was 23. On October 20, 2022, a jury found Spacey not liable.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1987 | Adventures in Babysitting | Daryl Coopersmith | |
| 1989 | Grave Secrets | Jamie | |
| 1989 | Far from Home | Pinky Sears | |
| 1992 | School Ties | Richard "McGoo" Collins | |
| 1993 | Dazed and Confused | Tony Olson | |
| 1993 | Six Degrees of Separation | Ben | |
| 1996 | Twister | Tony | |
| 1996 | The Mantis Murder | Unknown | |
| 1997 | David Searching | David | |
| 1999 | Man of the Century | Timothy Burns | |
| 2000 | Road Trip | Jacob Schultz | |
| 2001 | Cruise Control | Mirror Man | Short |
| 2001 | A Beautiful Mind | Bender | |
| 2002 | Paradisco | L'ami américain | Short |
| 2004 | Open House | Barry Farnsworth | |
| 2005 | Rent | Mark Cohen | |
| 2005 | Winter Passing | Dean | |
| 2006 | Danny Roane: First Time Director | Self | |
| 2007 | Let Them Chirp Awhile | Self | |
| 2007 | Blackbird | Unknown | |
| 2008 | Scaring the Fish | Gene | |
| 2009 | The Other Woman | Simon | |
| 2012 | Junction | Connor | |
| 2014 | Grind | Vincent | Short |
| 2015 | Not Again | Dr. Thom | Short |
| 2016 | Opening Night | Logan Joyce | |
| 2016 | Do You Take This Man | Daniel | |
| 2016 | bwoy | Brad | |
| 2022 | Scrap | Ben | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1990 | Sky High | Wes Hansen | TV movie |
| 1994 | Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker | Cadet Frederick G. Hodgson | TV movie |
| 1996 | The Lazarus Man | Verity | Episode: "Panorama" |
| 1997 | Spin City | Himself | Episode: "An Affair to Remember" |
| 1997 | The X-Files | Jeff Glaser | Episode: "Detour" |
| 2000 | The Beach Boys: An American Family | Van Dyke Parks | TV movie |
| 2004 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Matt Spevak | Episode: "Bound" |
| 2006–07 | Kidnapped | Larry Kellogg | 4 episodes |
| 2012 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Nathan Forrester | Episode: "Lessons Learned" |
| 2013 | Psych | Zachary Wallace Zander aka Z | Episode: "Psych: The Musical" |
| 2014 | It Could Be Worse | Casting Director | Episode: "Uncharted Territory" |
| 2015 | Stop the Bleeding | Buster | 2 episodes |
| 2015 | The Knick | Dr. Thurman Drexler | 3 episodes |
| 2017–2018 | The Good Fight | Glenn | 3 episodes |
| 2017–2024 | Star Trek: Discovery | Lt. Commander Paul Stamets | Regular cast/Lieutenant Paul Stamets (Mirror) 1st and 3rd season |
| 2018 | 13 Reasons Why | Pastor | Episode: "Bye" |
| 2019 | Carpool Karaoke: The Series | Himself | Episode: "Star Trek: Discovery Cast" |
| 2019 | Rent: Live | Himself | Cameo |
| 2020 | Equal | Harry Hay | Docuseries |
| 2021 | Celebrating America | Himself | Virtual Concert for the Inauguration of Joe Biden |

### Theatre

| Year | Production | Role | Notes |
| 1981–1982 | The Little Prince and the Aviator | The Little Prince | Broadway; never opened |
| 1982 | Youth is Broken | Unknown | Off-Broadway |
| 1982 | Evita | Children's Chorus member | Regional, became National Tour |
| 1982 | The King and I | Louis | National Tour |
| 1986 | Precious Sons | Freddy | Broadway; Mar. 20 – May 10 |
| 1990–1992 | Six Degrees of Separation | Ben | Broadway; Nov. 8, 1990 – Jan. 5, 1992 |
| 1992 | The Destiny of Me | Alexander Weeks | Off-Broadway |
| 1993 | Sophistry | Jack Kahn | Off-Broadway |
| 1994 | Trafficking in Broken Hearts | Bobby | Off-Broadway |
| 1995 | Raised in Captivity | Dylan Taylor Sinclair/Roger | Off-Broadway |
| 1995 | Rent | Mark Cohen | Off-Broadway |
| 1996–1997 | Rent | Mark Cohen | Broadway |
| 1997 | Rent | Mark Cohen | National Tour |
| 1998 | Rent | Mark Cohen | West End, London |
| 1998 | Bright Lights, Big City | Unknown | Off-Broadway |
| 1999 | You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown | Charlie Brown | Broadway; Feb. 4 – Jun. 13 |
| 2001 | Nocturne | The Son | Berkeley Repertory Theatre; written by brother Adam Rapp |
| 2002 | Henry V | King Henry V | Commonwealth Shakespeare Company |
| 2003 | Hedwig and the Angry Inch | Hedwig Robinson | City Theatre |
| 2003 | Private Jokes Public Places | William | Off-Broadway |
| 2004 | Little Shop of Horrors | Seymour Krelbourn | National tour |
| 2005 | The 24 Hour Plays | Trisan | Broadway; special benefit production |
| 2005 | Feeling Electric | Dr. Madden | New York Musical Theatre Festival; earlier version of Next to Normal |
| 2006 | Rent | Mark Cohen | Broadway; 10th anniversary reunion concert |
| 2007 | Rent | Mark Cohen | Broadway; Jul. 30 – Oct. 7 |
| 2007 | Spalding Gray: Stories Left to Tell | Performer | Off-Broadway |
| 2007–2014 | Without You | Himself | One-man show with music based on his memoir |
| 2008 | Some Americans Abroad | Henry McNeil | Off-Broadway |
| 2009 | Rent | Mark Cohen | National tour |
| 2012 | POP! | Andy Warhol | City Theatre |
| 2014–2015 | If/Then | Lucas | Broadway; Mar. 30, 2014 – Mar. 22, 2015 |
| 2015–2016 | If/Then | Lucas | National tour; Oct. 13, 2015 – Aug. 15, 2016 |
| 2022-2023 | Without You | Himself | Off-Broadway: One-man show with music based on his memoir |

### Discography

| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1996 | Rent (original Broadway cast recording) | Solos on twenty-two tracks |
| 1999 | You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (new Broadway cast recording) | Solos on nine tracks |
| 2000 | Look Around | Solo album |
| 2012 | Without You (original cast recording) | Solo album |
| 2014 | If/Then (original Broadway cast recording) | Solos on six tracks |
| 2016 | Acoustically Speaking: Live at Feinstein's/54 Below | Solos on fourteen tracks; live concert with Adam Pascal |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2019 | Star Trek Online: Awakening | Paul Stamets | |
| 2023 | Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical | Orpheus | |