Dave Franco

David John Franco (born June 12, 1985) is an American actor and filmmaker. He began his career with small roles in films such as Superbad and Charlie St. Cloud (2010). Following a starring role in the ninth season of the comedy series Scrubs (2009–2010), Franco had his film breakthrough with a supporting role in the buddy comedy film 21 Jump Street (2012).

Franco has also starred in Fright Night (2011), Now You See Me (2013) and its sequels Now You See Me 2 (2016) and Now You See Me: Now You Don't (2025), Neighbors (2014) and its sequel Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (2016), Nerve (2016), The Disaster Artist (2017), and Day Shift (2022). In 2020, he made his directorial debut with The Rental, starring his wife Alison Brie. The pair also starred together in Together (2025).

Early life and education David John Franco was born in Palo Alto, California to Betsy Lou (née Verne; born 1947), a poet, children's book author, and editor, and Douglas Eugene Franco (1948–2011), who ran a nonprofit agency and a business; the two met as students at Stanford University. Franco's father was of Portuguese (from Madeira) and Swedish descent. Franco's mother is Jewish (of Russian Jewish descent); her parents had changed the surname from "Verovitz" to "Verne". Franco's paternal grandmother, Marjorie (Peterson) Franco, is an author of young adult books. Franco's maternal grandmother, Mitzie (Levine) Verne, owned the Verne Art Gallery, a prominent art gallery in Cleveland, and was an active member in the National Council of Jewish Women. Franco grew up in California with his two older brothers, James and Tom, both of whom are also actors.

Franco studied at the University of Southern California, and originally envisioned himself as a high school teacher teaching creative writing, until his sophomore year, when his brother James's manager guided him to a theater class, and he began to take an interest in acting. Franco first became interested in filmmaking while working at a video rental store when he was 14; he was paid in free movie rentals, as he was under the legal working age.

Career 2000s In 2006, Franco made his acting debut on The CW drama television series 7th Heaven. He subsequently appeared in television shows such as Do Not Disturb and Young Justice. Franco also had noticeable roles in films, including Superbad and The Shortcut. In May 2008, he was cast in a major occurring role in the CW teen drama television series Privileged. The series premiered on September 9, 2008, to 3.1 million viewers. Ratings continued to slip each week, with the series' sixth episode reaching 1.837 million viewers. The CW did not renew the series for a second season due to low ratings.

In August 2009, Variety announced Franco had been cast in a regular role for the ninth season of the ABC sitcom Scrubs. Portraying the role of Cole Aaronson, Franco went on to appear in all thirteen episodes of the ninth season and received praise from critics for his performance; however, the ninth was the final season of the series.

2010s

MTV Networks' NextMovie.com named Franco one of its "Breakout Stars to Watch For" in 2011.

In April 2012, Shalom Life ranked him and his brother James at number 2 on its list of "the 50 most talented, intelligent, funny, and gorgeous Jewish men in the world". In March 2012, Franco starred in the Columbia Pictures action comedy film 21 Jump Street, based on the 1987 television series of the same name.

In 2013, he co-starred in the zombie romance film Warm Bodies, an adaptation of the best-selling novel of the same name. The same year, Franco appeared in the ensemble crime thriller film Now You See Me.

Franco's 2014 roles included the Seth Rogen comedy Neighbors and a cameo appearance in 22 Jump Street. For the former, Franco won an MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo, alongside Zac Efron. A pre-planned skit performed during their acceptance speech, involving both of them dressed as Robert De Niro characters and squeezing each other's crotches, sparked media backlash. In 2015, he co-starred with Vince Vaughn and Tom Wilkinson in the comedy Unfinished Business.

In 2016, he reprised prior roles in the sequels Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising, as Pete, and Now You See Me 2, as Jack Wilder. The following year, Franco appeared in the well-received comedy The Little Hours, and the acclaimed biographical comedy-drama, The Disaster Artist, which was directed by James Franco.

In 2018, Franco starred in the addiction drama 6 Balloons opposite Abbi Jacobson, for Netflix. Franco then had a small role in If Beale Street Could Talk, directed by Barry Jenkins. In 2019, a film that had been shot in 2014 was released, titled Zeroville; Franco portrayed the role of actor Montgomery Clift. He next featured in the action-thriller 6 Underground, directed by Michael Bay.

2020s In 2020, Franco made his directorial debut on the horror-thriller The Rental, from a screenplay he wrote alongside Joe Swanberg. It was released on July 24, 2020. In 2022, Franco featured in the main cast of the Apple TV+ mystery comedy series The Afterparty. The supernatural body horror film Together, which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, featured Franco and his wife, Alison Brie, in the leading roles.

Personal life

Franco began dating actress Alison Brie in 2012. In August 2015, the couple was engaged. On March 13, 2017, representatives for the couple confirmed that they had married in a private ceremony. Franco is Jewish.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2007 Superbad Greg the Soccer Player After Sex Sam 2008 Milk Telephone Tree #5 2009 Mark A Fuchsia Elephant Michael Short; also executive producer 2010 Greenberg Rich Charlie St. Cloud Sully 2011 Young Hart Crane Fright Night Mark 2012 Would You Dave Short; also writer 21 Jump Street Eric Molson 2013 Warm Bodies Perry Kelvin Now You See Me Jack Wilder 2014 The Lego Movie Wally Voice Cameo Neighbors Pete Regazolli 22 Jump Street Eric Molson Uncredited cameo 2015 Unfinished Business Mike Pancake 2016 Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising Pete Regazolli Now You See Me 2 Jack Wilder Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping Co-actor in the movie "Cube Theorem" Uncredited cameo Nerve Ian 2017 The Little Hours Massetto The Disaster Artist Greg Sestero The Lego Ninjago Movie Lloyd GarmadonVoice 2018 6 Balloons Seth If Beale Street Could Talk Levy 2019Zeroville Montgomery Clift 6 Underground David / Six (The Driver) 2020 The Rental Producer, writer and director 2021 Zola Producer 2022 Day Shift Seth 2023 Somebody I Used to Know Writer and director 2024 Love Lies Bleeding JJ Langston2025 Bubble & Squeak Norman Together Tim Brassington Also producer Regretting You Jonah Sullivan Also executive producer Now You See Me: Now You Don't Jack Wilder 2026 Idiots Mark Also producer Hoppers Titus (Insect King) Voice Raww Voice

Television Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2006 7th Heaven Benjamin Bainsworth Episode: "Highway to Cell" 2008 Do Not Disturb Gus 5 episodes 2008 Greek Brad “Gonzo” 6 episodes 2008–2009 Privileged Zachary 5 episodes 2009–2010 Scrubs Cole Aaronson 13 episodes 2011–2012 Young Justice Edward Nigma / Riddler (voice) Episodes: "Terrors" and "Usual Suspects" 2015 Other Space Chad Simpson Episodes: "Into the Great Beyond... Beyond" and "Getting to Know You" 2016 BoJack Horseman Alexi Brosepheno (voice) Episode: "Love And/Or Marriage" 2016–2017,2019 Easy Jeff 4 episodes 2018 Little Big Awesome Dave (voice) Episode: "Bed Follows/Gotta Get a Gimmick" 2021 The Now Ed Poole 14 episodes 2022 The Afterparty Xavier 7 episodes Pam & Tommy Executive producer only 2023–2025 Krapopolis Broseidon (voice) 7 episodes 2025 The Studio Himself 3 episodes Long Story Short Danny Wegbriet (voice) 5 episodes

Music videos Year Title Artist(s) Role 2022 "Bud (Mowing Down Vamps)" Jamie Foxx featuring Dave Franco, J Young MDK & Sam Pounds Seth "Bud (Remix)" Jamie Foxx featuring Dave Franco, J Young MDK, Sam Pounds and Snoop Dogg 2026 "Do Me Right" Mr. Fantasy Himself

Video games Year Title Voice roleRef. 2016 Marvel Avengers Academy Tony Stark / Iron Man

Web Year Title Role NotesRef. 2011 You're So Hot Himself Funny or Die short; also writer 2011 Go F*ck Yourself Himself Funny or Die short; also writer 2012 You're So Hot: Part Deux Himself Funny or Die short; also writer 2013 Dream Girl Himself Funny or Die short; also writer and director 2013 Real Life H-O-R-S-E! Himself Funny or Die short; also writer 2013 Chris & Daves Epic Adventure Himself Funny or Die series 2014 Hazing Himself Funny or Die short 2014 You're So Hot: Vol. 3 Beatrix Kiddo Funny or Die short 2015 Madden: The Movie Blade Johnson Madden NFL 16 promotional short

Awards and nominations Association Year Category Work Result Independent Spirit Awards 2022 Best Film Zola MTV Movie & TV Awards 2015 Best On-Screen Duo (shared with Zac Efron) Neighbors Primetime Emmy Awards 2022 Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series Pam & Tommy 2025 Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series The Studio