Joshua Granville Leonard (born June 17, 1975) is an American actor, producer, writer, and director, known for his role in ''

The Blair Witch Project ''The Blair Witch Project'' is a 1999 American psychological horror film written, directed, and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez. One of the most successful independent films of all time, it is a " found footage" pseudo-docume ...

'' (1999). He has since starred in films such as '' Madhouse'' (2004), '' The Shaggy Dog'' (2006), '' Higher Ground'' (2011), '' The Motel Life'' (2012), '' Snake and Mongoose'' (2013), '' If I Stay'' (2014), '' The Town That Dreaded Sundown'' (2014), '' 6 Years'' (2015), and '' Unsane'' (2018).

Early life

Leonard was born in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, the son of Joann, an author, and Robert Leonard, a theater professor at

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

. He was raised in

State College, Pennsylvania State College is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough and Home rule municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule municipality in Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a college town, home to the University Park, Pennsylvania, University Park ...

. Leonard obtained his GED and at age 16 travelled to Chiapas, Mexico, where he taught at an elementary school and volunteered at an anthropological institute. Leonard then spent time in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, where he developed an interest in photography, before settling in

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 ...

at age 19.

Career

In 1997, Leonard auditioned for and landed one of the three principal roles in the found footage horror film ''

''. Although he reportedly only earned an initial salary of $500, the experience proved rewarding in other ways as the film combined acting and photography. The film premiered at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

. Leonard has since appeared in numerous films and television shows as an actor, including

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

's television film '' Live from Baghdad'', the drama film '' Things Behind the Sun'' directed by

Allison Anders Allison Anders (born November 16, 1954) is an American independent film director whose films include '' Gas Food Lodging'', '' Mi Vida Loca'' and '' Grace of My Heart''. Anders has collaborated with fellow UCLA School of Theater, Film and Telev ...

, the comedy film '' The Shaggy Dog'' with

Tim Allen Timothy Alan Dick (born June 13, 1953), known professionally as Tim Allen, is an American actor and comedian. He is known for playing Tim "The Toolman" Taylor on the ABC sitcom ''Home Improvement'' (1991–1999) for which he won a Golden Gl ...

, the drama film '' Men of Honor'' with

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor, director, and film producer. He is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of List of awards and ...

and Cuba Gooding, Jr., and the psychological thriller film '' Bitter Feast'' with

Larry Fessenden Laurence T. Fessenden (born March 23, 1963) is an American actor, producer, writer, director, film editor, and cinematographer. He is the founder of the New York based independent production outfit Glass Eye Pix. His writer/director credits inclu ...

. In 2009, he starred in the Independent Spirit Award-winning film '' Humpday'', for which he won Best Actor at the Gijón International Film Festival. Leonard has also appeared on the acclaimed

series '' Hung'' and the Showtime series '' United States of Tara''. Leonard directed the short film ''The Youth in Us'', which was shown at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. Art documentary ''Beautiful Losers'' followed, winning the Grand Jury Prize at CineVegas in 2008. He has also directed music videos for many popular acts, su9 Cch as Morcheeba, Harper Simon, and Fitz and the Tantrums, as well as teaching directing and acting at The

New York Film Academy New York Film Academy – School of Film and Acting (NYFA) is a Private college, private For-profit higher education in the United States, for-profit film school and Drama school, acting school based in New York City, Los Angeles metropolitan ar ...

, UC Irvine, and Academia Internacional de Cinema in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, Brazil. In 2011, Leonard starred in Vera Farmiga's directorial debut drama film '' Higher Ground'', playing a religious man at odds with his wife (Farmiga). He also co-wrote, directed and starred in '' The Lie'', a devilish morality tale adapted from the story by acclaimed author T. C. Boyle. The project co-starred Mark Webber, Jess Weixler, and Jane Adams, and was well received by audiences and critics. Leonard next appeared alongside

Dakota Fanning Hannah Dakota Fanning (born February 23, 1994) is an American actress. Fanning is known for her roles in blockbuster films and independent features, both as a child actor and as an adult. Her accolades include nominations for a Golden Globe A ...

in '' The Motel Life'' (2012). The following year, he starred alongside Carol Kane and Natasha Lyonne in the dark comedy film ''Clutter'', and co-starred in the sports film '' Snake and Mongoose''. In 2014, Leonard co-starred in the drama film '' If I Stay'', directed by R. J. Cutler and based on the novel of the same name by Gayle Forman. Leonard was then cast in the third season of A&E's drama-thriller series '' Bates Motel'' as James Finnigan, a psychology professor and a love interest for Norma Louise Bates. In 2015, he had a co-starring role in the romantic drama film '' 6 Years'', directed by Hannah Fidell, which premiered at

South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

. In December 2015, it was reported that

Marisa Tomei Marisa Tomei ( , ; born December 4, 1964) is an American actress. She gained prominence for her comedic performance in '' My Cousin Vinny'' (1992), which earned her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She received further nominations ...

and Timothy Olyphant would star in the Leonard-directed drama film '' Behold My Heart''.

Personal life

In January 2015, Leonard announced his engagement to actress

Alison Pill Alison Pill (born November 27, 1985) is a Canadian actress. A former child actress, Pill began her career at age 12, appearing in numerous projects before transitioning to adult roles with a breakthrough role in the television series '' The Bo ...

. They were married on May 24, 2015, in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Their daughter, Wilder Grace Leonard, was born on November 19, 2016.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leonard, Joshua 1975 births 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male television actors American male film actors Film directors from Texas Living people Male actors from Houston Male actors from Pennsylvania Montgomery College alumni People from State College, Pennsylvania