Jaeden Martell

Jaeden Martell (né Lieberher; born January 4, 2003) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor, with roles in the comedy drama St. Vincent and science fiction film Midnight Special (2016). His performance in St. Vincent earned him a nomination for the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer. After playing the title character in the drama The Book of Henry (2017), Martell's breakthrough came with his portrayal of Bill Denbrough in the supernatural horror films It (2017) and It Chapter Two (2019). This led to further leading roles in horror films, such as The Lodge (2019) and Mr. Harrigan's Phone (2022).

Martell had a supporting role in Rian Johnson's mystery comedy Knives Out (2019). Venturing into projects with more mature themes, he played a reserved teenager accused of murder in the Apple TV miniseries Defending Jacob (2020). He has since starred in the comedy films Metal Lords (2022) and Y2K (2024).

Early life Martell was born on January 4, 2003, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Wes Lieberher, a Los Angeles–based executive chef, and Angela Teresa Martell. His maternal grandmother, Chisun Martell, is Korean.

Career Early work (20142016) In the first six years of his career, Martell was credited almost exclusively under his paternal family name, Lieberher. In 2019, he switched to his mother's surname, Martell.

Martell's first acting role was in a commercial for Hot Wheels. He appeared in several other commercials after that, including Google, Moneysupermarket.com, Liberty Mutual, Hyundai (for the 2013 Super Bowl), Verizon Fios and General Electric. His first major feature film role was in 2014's St. Vincent, where he starred alongside Bill Murray. Martell garnered a nomination for the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer for his role in the film.

In 2015, Martell appeared in Cameron Crowe's comedy drama Aloha, after Murray had recommended him to Crowe for the role.

In March 2019, Martell joined the cast of the Apple TV+ miniseries Defending Jacob, based on the 2012 novel byWilliam Landay. Also in 2020, it was confirmed by Martell that he was in pre-production for Tunnels, playing the younger siblings of a gun violence victim; however, the film has not yet garnered a release date.

In September 2021, Martell portrayed Morty Smith in a series of promotional interstitials for the two-part fifth season finale of Rick and Morty. In February 2021, he joined the cast of Netflix's Metal Lords. In October 2022, he portrayed Craig in the Netflix film Mr. Harrigan's Phone written and directed by John Lee Hancock, based on the Stephen King short story from the If It Bleeds collection. In 2023, he was cast in the A24 film Y2K.

Filmography Film

Television +Television Year Title Role Notes 2015 American Dad! Peter Junior (voice) Episode: "My Affair Lady" 2015–2016 Masters of Sex Johnny Masters Recurring role (seasons 3–4) 2020 Defending Jacob Jacob Barber Main role 2021 Calls Justin Episode: "Mom" 2023 Barry John Berkman (older) Episode: "wow"

Other +Other Year Title Role Notes 2021 Rick and Morty Morty Smith Promotional campaigns

Awards and nominations + Awards and nominations for Jaeden Martell Year Award Category Work Result 2014 Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards Youth in FilmSt. Vincent Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards Best Performance by a Youth in a Lead or Supporting Role – MaleSt. Vincent 2014 Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Best Youth PerformanceSt. Vincent 2015 Critics' Choice Movie Awards Best Young Actor/ActressSt. Vincent 2015 Online Film & Television Association Best Youth PerformanceSt. Vincent 2018 MTV Movie & TV Awards Best On-Screen Team (with Sophia Lillis, Jack Dylan Grazer,Wyatt Oleff, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Chosen Jacobs and Finn Wolfhard) It