# Adam Brody

Adam Jared Brody (born December 15, 1979) is an American actor. His breakout role was as Seth Cohen on the Fox television series The O.C. (2003–2007). For his performance as Noah in the Netflix romantic comedy series Nobody Wants This (2024), he earned a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series (Musical/Comedy) and won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.
Brody has appeared in films including Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), Thank You for Smoking (2005), In the Land of Women (2007), and Jennifer's Body (2009). In the 2010s, Brody had supporting roles in comedies including Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) and Sleeping with Other People (2015), and dramatic films such as Lovelace (2013). He appeared in a number of television series during this time, and starred in and produced the television series StartUp (2016–2018).
Brody has also appeared in the DC superhero film Shazam! (2019) and its sequel Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023), and in the thriller films Ready or Not (2019) and Promising Young Woman (2020). He also starred in the mystery film The Kid Detective (2020) and the Hulu miniseries Fleishman Is in Trouble (2022).

## Early life

Brody was born in San Diego, California, to Valerie Jill (née Siefman), a graphic artist, and Mark Alan Brody, an attorney. He has younger twin brothers, Sean and Matthew (born 1985). His parents, both Jewish, are originally from Detroit. Brody had a bar mitzvah ceremony and grew up celebrating Jewish holidays.
Brody grew up in suburban San Diego, where he attended Wangenheim Middle School and Scripps Ranch High School and received "poor grades". He spent much of his time surfing, admitting that he "pretty much lived at the beach".
Brody attended community college at MiraCosta College for one year, dropping out at the age of 19; he then moved to Hollywood to become an actor.

## Acting career

After a year of training and auditioning, Brody landed the role of Barry Williams in the television film Growing Up Brady (2000) and appeared in the Canadian comedy series The Sausage Factory. In 2001, he had a minor role in American Pie 2. Brody's first major television role came in 2002, when he was cast in a recurring role on the third season of the comedy-drama series Gilmore Girls as Dave Rygalski, Lane's bandmate and love interest.
In 2003, Brody appeared in the movie Grind and the music video for "Too Bad About Your Girl" by the Donnas. That year, he was cast in his breakout role as Seth Cohen on the teen drama series The O.C., where he reportedly improvised some of the character's comedic dialogue. The role turned him into a teen idol, with the character described by the Los Angeles Times as "TV's sexiest geek" and by Time as having "redefined" the screen persona of "unapologetic" nerdiness. Brody was the first male on the cover of Elle Girl.
In 2005, Brody had a supporting role in the film Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and played a Hollywood studio assistant in the film adaptation of Thank You for Smoking (2006). His next film role was in the romantic comedy In the Land of Women (2007), as a writer who returns to his mother's Michigan hometown to take care of his sick grandmother. He did not have to audition for the part, but was almost unable to appear in the film because of scheduling conflicts with the second season of The O.C.; the film's director pushed filming back eight months because he wanted Brody to star. The O.C. ended its run in 2007 after four seasons. Brody had said that he was "not unhappy" with the show's cancellation, and that although he was "fortunate" to be on a successful series, he was also glad to "not be on it for 10 years".
After the end of The O.C.'s run, Brody turned to a full-time film career. In 2007, he appeared in supporting roles in the films Smiley Face and The Ten. In 2009, he starred in Boaz Yakin's drama Death in Love and in Diablo Cody's horror film Jennifer's Body. In 2010, he appeared in Kevin Smith's film Cop Out, and then in The Romantics. In July 2010, it was announced that he had worked play Deputy Ross Hoss in Scream 4, which was released in April 2011. In 2011, he voiced Woodie in the MTV animated series Good Vibes, and appeared in The Oranges.
In January 2012, it was announced that Brody had joined the cast of Lovelace, a biopic about late 1970s porn star Linda Lovelace, directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman. Brody portrayed Harry Reems. He starred in Some Girl(s), which premiered at the 2013 SXSW Festival. He appeared in Life Partners (2014). In 2015, he appeared in Sleeping with Other People and starred as Billy Jones in Direct TV's sitcom Billy and Billie.
In 2016, Brody starred in Sony Crackle's drama series StartUp. He played the older version of Jack Dylan Grazer's character in the superhero film Shazam! and starred in the thriller Ready or Not, directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett for Fox Searchlight. The films were released in April and August 2019, respectively, both to positive reviews. Brody has also appeared as Max Larssen in the eight-part drama Curfew, beginning in February 2019. In 2024, he co-starred in the first season of Netflix’s Nobody Wants This as Rabbi Noah Roklov who starts dating Kristen Bell’s character, Joanne, a shiksa. His performance earned him a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy.

## Other works

Aside from acting, Brody is credited as a musician and writer; he says that he "writes screenplays and songs during [his] spare time." In 2003, he wrote and produced the short film Home Security.
In 2005, Brody, along with Nathaniel Castro, Bret Harrison, and Brad Babinski, formed the Los Angeles–based rock band Big Japan, with Brody as the drummer. Their first release, Music for Dummies, was digitally released through Nightshift Records on August 23, 2005. The four-piece indie band played gigs at pubs and festivals from 2005 to 2007 such as The Knitting Factory, Bamboozle Left, The Roxy, Spaceland, and The Viper Room.
In 2007, Brody, with Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo, co-wrote a comic-book miniseries for DC's Wildstorm Comics titled Red Menace. The limited series had six issues and was collected into a trade paperback. Since 2010, Brody has played drums in the project band The Shortcoats; they released their first EP, This Time Last Year, on October 4, 2011. Their song "Morning, Shipwreck," which Brody co-wrote, is featured in the sitcom Ben and Kate and the 2015 film The Meddler.

## Personal life

Brody is a secular Jew and is non-religious. He has described himself as a "faux intellectual" and is a member of the Democratic Party. He has joined voting action campaigns including Swing Left.
In March 2010, Brody met actress Leighton Meester while filming The Oranges in Westchester, New York. They were engaged in November 2013 and married in a private ceremony on February 15, 2014. Their first child, a daughter, was born in 2015. In 2020, they revealed they were expecting their second child, a son who was born later that year. In January 2025, their home was destroyed by the Palisades Fire.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1999 | Random Acts of Violence | Student | |
| 2001 | According to Spencer | Tommy | |
| 2001 | American Pie 2 | High school guy | Unrated version |
| 2002 | The Ring | Male teen #1 / "Kellen" | |
| 2003 | Grind | Dustin Knight | |
| 2003 | Home Security | Greg | Short film; also writer and producer |
| 2003 | Missing Brendan | Patrick Calden | |
| 2005 | Mr. & Mrs. Smith | Benjamin Danz | |
| 2005 | Thank You for Smoking | Jack Bein | |
| 2007 | In the Land of Women | Carter Webb | |
| 2007 | Smiley Face | Steve the Dealer | |
| 2007 | The Ten | Stephen Montgomery | |
| 2008 | Death in Love | Talent agent | |
| 2009 | Jennifer's Body | Nikolai Wolf | |
| 2010 | Cop Out | Barry Mangold | |
| 2010 | The Romantics | Jake | |
| 2011 | Damsels in Distress | Charlie Walker | |
| 2011 | The Oranges | Toby Walling | |
| 2011 | Scream 4 | Ross Hoss | |
| 2012 | Seeking a Friend for the End of the World | Owen | |
| 2012 | Revenge for Jolly! | Danny Fidazzo | |
| 2013 | Baggage Claim | Sam | |
| 2013 | Lovelace | Harry Reems | |
| 2013 | Some Girl(s) | The Man | |
| 2013 | Welcome to the Jungle | Chris | |
| 2014 | Growing Up and Other Lies | Rocks | |
| 2014 | Life Partners | Tim | |
| 2014 | Think Like a Man Too | Isaac | |
| 2015 | Sleeping with Other People | Sam | |
| 2016 | Showing Roots | Bud | |
| 2016 | Yoga Hosers | Ichabod | |
| 2017 | CHiPs | Clay Allen | |
| 2017 | Big Bear | Eric | |
| 2018 | Isabelle | Matt Kane | |
| 2019 | Jay and Silent Bob Reboot | Chronic-Con Hot Topic salesman | |
| 2019 | Shazam! | Freddy Freeman (adult) | |
| 2019 | Ready or Not | Daniel Le Domas | |
| 2020 | The Kid Detective | Abe Applebaum | |
| 2020 | Promising Young Woman | Jerry | |
| 2020 | The Last Blockbuster | Himself | |
| 2022 | Scream | Partygoer | Voice cameo |
| 2022 | My Father's Dragon | Bob | Voice |
| 2023 | Shazam! Fury of the Gods | Freddy Freeman (adult) | |
| 2023 | River Wild | Trevor | Direct-to-video |
| 2023 | American Fiction | Wiley Valdespino | |
| 2024 | The Gutter | Building Inspector | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1999 | The Amanda Show | Greg Brady | Episode: "When Brady's Attack" |
| 2000 | City Guys | Customer #1 | Episode: "Makin' Up is Hard to Do" |
| 2000 | Family Law | Noel Johnson | Episode: "My Brother's Keeper" |
| 2000 | Go Fish | Billy | Episode: "Go Student Council" |
| 2000 | Growing Up Brady | Barry Williams | TV movie |
| 2000 | Judging Amy | Barry Gilmore | Episode: "Romeo and Juliet Must Die – Well, Maybe Just Juliet" |
| 2000 | Undressed | Lucas | 3 episodes |
| 2000–2001 | Once and Again | Coop | 3 episodes |
| 2000–2002 | The Sausage Factory | Zack Altman | Main cast |
| 2001–2004 | Grounded for Life | Brian | 2 episodes |
| 2002 | Smallville | Justin Gaines | Episode: "Crush" |
| 2002–2003 | Gilmore Girls | Dave Rygalski | Recurring role (season 3) |
| 2003–2007 | The O.C. | Seth Cohen | Main cast |
| 2004 | MADtv | Seth Cohen | Episode 9.22 |
| 2006 | The Loop | Keith MacDonald | Episode: "The Rusty Trombone" |
| 2011 | Good Vibes | Woodie Stone | Main cast; voice role |
| 2013 | Burning Love | Max | Main cast (season 2) |
| 2013 | House of Lies | Nate Hyatt | 3 episodes |
| 2013 | Kroll Show | Joel Faizon | Episode: "Ice Dating" |
| 2013 | The League | Ted Rappaport | 4 episodes |
| 2014 | New Girl | Berkley | Episode: "Exes" |
| 2014 | The Cosmopolitans | Jimmy | Pilot |
| 2015 | Billy and Billie | Billy Jones | Main cast |
| 2016–2018 | StartUp | Nick Talman | Main cast; also producer |
| 2018 | Urban Myths | Jack Lemmon | Episode: "Marilyn Monroe and Billy Wilder" |
| 2019–2020 | Single Parents | Derek | Guest role (season 1); recurring role (season 2) |
| 2019 | Curfew | Max Larssen | 4 episodes |
| 2020 | Mrs. America | Marc Feigen Fasteau | Episode: "Phyllis & Fred & Brenda & Marc" |
| 2022 | Fleishman Is in Trouble | Seth Morris | Miniseries; main cast |
| 2024 | Nobody Wants This | Noah | Main cast |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 2004 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actor: Drama | The O.C. | Won |
| 2004 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV: Breakout Actor | The O.C. | Nominated |
| 2004 | Gold Derby Awards | Drama Supporting Actor | The O.C. | Nominated |
| 2005 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV: Chemistry (shared with Rachel Bilson) | The O.C. | Won |
| 2005 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actor: Drama | The O.C. | Won |
| 2005 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Male Hottie | Adam Brody | Nominated |
| 2006 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actor: Drama | The O.C. | Won |
| 2010 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Movie Actor: Horror/Thriller | Jennifer's Body | Nominated |
| 2014 | Acapulco Black Film Festival | Best Ensemble Cast | Baggage Claim | Nominated |
| 2018 | British Horror Film Festival | Best Actor | Isabelle | Nominated |
| 2021 | Vancouver Film Critics Circle | Best Actor in a Canadian Film | The Kid Detective | Nominated |
| 2024 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | American Fiction | Nominated |
| 2025 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy | Nobody Wants This | Nominated |
| 2025 | Satellite Awards | Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical Series | Nobody Wants This | Nominated |
| 2025 | Critics' Choice Television Awards | Best Actor in a Comedy Series | Nobody Wants This | Won |
| 2025 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series | Nobody Wants This | Nominated |