Gus Halper (born July 2, 1992) is an American actor best known for his roles in the series ''Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders'' (2017), ''

Fear the Walking Dead ''Fear the Walking Dead'' is an American post-apocalyptic horror drama television series created by Robert Kirkman and Dave Erickson for AMC. It is a spin-off to '' The Walking Dead'', which is based on the comic book series of the same na ...

'' (2021), and '' Law & Order: Organized Crime'' (2022–2023), and in the films ''

Goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the ...

'' (2016) and '' Rustin'' (2023). He also appeared in the 2016

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

production of the musical ''

Ride the Cyclone ''Ride the Cyclone'' is a 2008 musical with music, lyrics and book by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell. It is the second installment in Richmond's "Uranium Teen Scream Trilogy", a collection of three theatrical works, one not yet written, that t ...

'', playing Mischa Bachinski.

Early life and education

Halper was born on July 2, 1992 in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. His mother, Deann Simmons Halper, is an actress and theater director. Halper graduated from the

University of North Carolina School of the Arts The University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) is a public art school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It grants a high school diploma, in addition to both undergraduate and graduate degrees. Founded in 1963 as the North Carolina Sc ...

, which his mother had previously attended, in 2014.

Career

In 2014, while studying at the

, Halper played

Romeo Romeo Montague () is the male protagonist of William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. The son of Characters in Romeo and Juliet#Lord Montague, Lord Montague and his wife, Characters in Romeo and Juliet#Lady Montague, Lady Montague, he ...

in the university's production of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

''. After graduating, he starred in the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

television film ''The Kingmakers'' as Eli, a young man who infiltrates an

Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...

university to investigate his sister's death. The following year, Halper appeared alongside

Nick Jonas Nicholas Jerry Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Jonas began acting on Broadway at the age of seven, and released his debut single in 2002; this caught the attention of Columbia Records, where Jonas ...

and

Ben Schnetzer Ben Schnetzer is an American actor. He was nominated for two British Independent Film Awards for his performance in the film ''Pride'' (2014). His other films include ''The Book Thief'' (2013), '' The Riot Club'' (2014), and '' The Grizzlies'' ...

in ''

'', which was produced by

James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has starred in numerous films, including Sam Raimi's Spider-Man (2002 film series), ''Spider-Man'' trilogy (2002–2007), ''Milk (2008 American film), Milk'' (200 ...

. The same year, he portrayed Ukrainian teenager Mischa Bachinksi in an

production of ''

'' at the

Lucille Lortel Theatre The Lucille Lortel Theatre is an off-Broadway playhouse at 121 Christopher Street in Manhattan's West Village. It was built in 1926 as a 590-seat movie theater called the New Hudson, later known as Hudson Playhouse. The interior design is large ...

. In 2017, Halper portrayed convicted murderer Erik Menendez in the eight-part series '' Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders''. In 2021, he appeared in two episodes of ''

''. A year later, Halper appeared as Teddy Silas, a construction foreman, in '' Law & Order: Organized Crime''. In 2023, he portrayed activist

Tom Kahn Tom David Kahn (September 15, 1938 – March 27, 1992) was an American social democrat known for his leadership in several organizations. He was an activist and influential strategist in the Civil Rights Movement. He was a senior ad ...

in '' Rustin'', a film about

civil rights activist Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...

Bayard Rustin Bayard Rustin ( ; March 17, 1912 – August 24, 1987) was an American political activist and prominent leader in social movements for civil rights, socialism, nonviolence, and gay rights. Rustin was the principal organizer of the March on Wash ...

Personal life

Halper married actress Emma Geer on October 15, 2023.

Credits

Film

Television

Web

Theater

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Halper, Gus Living people 1992 births 21st-century American male actors American male television actors American male film actors Year of birth missing (living people)