Though his striking good looks may have made Jonathan Bennett an object of affection for the “plastics” in Mean Girls, his talent and commitment are what have lead them to his becoming one of the most sought after actors in Hollywood.
Diversifying his talent, he released a best-selling Mean Girls parody Burn Cookbook, became a fan favorite on the likes of “Dancing with the Stars” and “Celebrity Big Brother,” which helped pave the way to various high-profile hosting gigs inclusive of Food Network’s “Battle of the Decades” and ratings powerhouse “Halloween Wars.”
He’s parlayed the success of “The Christmas House” franchise into a two picture deal with Hallmark Media for which he starred in and produced their “Wedding of a Lifetime” and “The Holiday Sitter” vehicles; the latter of which garnered the network yet another GLAAD Media Award nomination.
Bennett’s first foray into a studio film was, in fact, Paramount’s smash hit Mean Girls from producer Lorne Michaels and writer Tina Fey in which he starred opposite Lindsay Lohan. In the romantic comedy Lovewrecked, Bennett transitioned into the love interest of Amanda Bynes. He has since starred as Bo Duke in Warner Bros. prequel to The Dukes of Hazzard; the comedy romp Bachelor Party Vegas with Kal Penn; the title role of National Lampoon’s Van Wilder: Freshman Year, in FOX’s sequel to the hit comedy, Cheaper by the Dozen as Steve Martin’s antagonistic son-in-law; and reunited with Cheaper co-star Hilary Duff for The Haunting of Sharon Tate. Also to his credit is the original telefilm, Harvest of the Heart, which was one of the first vehicles to film amidst the pandemic, the indie feature, Potato Dreams of America which premiered at SXSW, and most recently, the romantic comedy The Plus One alongside Cedric the Entertainer.
Bennett executive produced and starred in the film Authors Anonymous opposite Kaley Cuoco, continued to wear his producing hat as well as carry a supporting role in the feature Pawn with Ray Liotta and Academy Award-winner Forest Whitaker. Additionally, he starred in the indie drama Do You Take This Man opposite Anthony Rapp, in IFC Films’ dramatic thriller Submerged, the comedy Do Over, the crime thriller Paid in Full, the indie comedy The Assistants, Slightly Single in L.A. with Simon Rex and Jenna Dewan, the drama Memorial Day with James Cromwell, the thriller Cats Dancing on Jupiter, the romantic comedy Divorce Invitation opposite Jamie-Lynn Sigler, the comedy Take Me to Tarzana, the romance Mining for Ruby with Mischa Barton, as well as a pair of Lifetime telefilms “Romantically Speaking” opposite “Glee’s” Heather Morris and the lead role in Music High. Bennett took Best Actor honors at the 2003 Palm Beach International Film Festival for his lead role in the independent feature Season of Youth.
Another trio of Hallmark original telefilms, “Love at First Glance” opposite Amy Smart and Adrian Grenier, “Christmas Made to Order” and a reunion with Mean Girls co-star Lacey Chabert in “Elevator Girl” round out his impressive list of film projects.
Additionally, after hosting MTV’s “Copycat” competition series, he again joined the Viacom family with recurring arcs on VH1’s “Hit the Floor” and MTV’s “Awkward.” Additional hosting duties have included Food Network’s “Cake Wars” and “Holiday Wars,” Times Square’s New Year’s Eve Countdown, as well as his role with NBC’s Winter Olympic coverage.
Outside of an arc on Shondaland’s “Station 19”, the occasional guest star roles on the likes of “Fantasy Island,” “Supergirl,” “Deception,” “Cane” Dick Wolf’s “Law & Order: SVU,” David E. Kelley’s “Boston Public,” “Smallville,” “Veronica Mars,” “The Glades,” “Eastwick” and Bennett’s firs and only foray into series television was on the Emmy Award-winning “All My Children” after less than a month of having moved from his native Ohia to New York City.
Bennett currently resides outside of Los Angeles with his husband, Jaymes Vaughan, and their beloved pup, Bradley. The two recently made history by being the first gay couple to grace the cover of The Knot and also co-host iHeart’s GLAAD Media Award-nominated PrideCast Podcast.
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