Gaten Matarazzo
Gaten Matarazzo | |
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![]() Matarazzo at the 2022 Tony Awards | |
Born | Gaetano John Matarazzo III September 8, 2002 |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2011–present |
Gaetano John Matarazzo III[2] (/ˈɡeɪtən ˌmætəˈræzoʊ/; Italian: [ɡaeˈtaːno mataˈrattso]; born September 8, 2002)[3] is an American actor. He began his career on the Broadway stage as Benjamin in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (2011–12) and as Gavroche in Les Misérables (2014–15).[4] Matarazzo gained recognition for playing Dustin Henderson in the Netflix science-fiction-horror drama series Stranger Things (2016–present). He also hosted the Netflix show Prank Encounters (2019–2021).
Early life
Gaetano John Matarazzo III was born on 8 September 2002, in New London, Connecticut, to Gaetano Jr. and Heather Matarazzo (no relation to the actress of the same name),[5] but raised in Little Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, and is of Italian descent. He was born with cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD).[6] He has an older sister and a younger brother.[7]
Career
He pursued vocal training at Starlight Performing Arts Center in New Jersey. In 2011, he competed and won third place with his vocal solo titled “Ben” at the Starpower Talent Competition Nationals in Uncasville, Connecticut.[8] His first professional credit was in the Broadway musical Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, for which he was cast as a replacement in 2011. Following the production, he took part in a special "Cast of 2032" professional youth performance of Godspell at Circle in the Square Theatre in 2012.[9] In 2013, he joined the Les Misérables 25th Anniversary Tour in the United States in the role of Gavroche; the following year, he played the same role in the Tony-nominated 2014 Broadway revival of the musical.
Matarazzo made his screen acting debut in a 2015 episode of The Blacklist. After he was cast as Dustin Henderson in Stranger Things, the character's background was modified to have CCD as well.[10] The show's first season premiered in July 2016 to critical acclaim. Over the next several years, Matarazzo also appeared in music videos and various reality and competition shows. On May 11, 2018, it was announced that he was cast in the animated film, Hump.[11]
He began hosting the Netflix hidden camera series Prank Encounters in 2019; he also served as an executive producer. That year, he also appeared in the Hollywood Bowl production of Into the Woods. He provided the voice of Buba in The Angry Birds Movie 2.[12]
In 2022, it was announced that Matarazzo would return to Broadway, joining the final cast of the musical Dear Evan Hansen as Jared Kleinman.[13] He starred in the Paramount+ film Honor Society with Angourie Rice, which was released on July 29, 2022. [14] He voiced as the dragon in Cartoon Saloon's film adaptation of Ruth Stiles Gannett's novel My Father's Dragon.[15]
Philanthropy
He uses his platform to raise awareness of CCD and fundraise for CCD Smiles, an organization that helps cover costs of oral surgeries for people with CCD.[16]
In February 2020, he was as part of Andrew Barth Feldman & Adrian Dickson’s Star Wars musical parody fundraiser SW: A New(sical) Hope to help raise funding for NEXT for AUTISM.[17] Matarazzo joined the cast of Elf for a virtual table reading on December 13, 2020 in support of the Democratic Party of Georgia's campaign in the 2021 Georgia runoff elections.[18]
On April 6, 2021, Matarazzo participated in an hour-long charity Among Us stream on The Tonight Show's Twitch account with Jimmy Fallon, Questlove, Tariq Trotter, Captain Kirk Douglas, Sykkuno, Valkyrae, Corpse Husband, and his Stranger Things co-star Noah Schnapp, with proceeds going towards Feeding America.[19] In December 2021, he played Dungeons and Dragons with Jack Black and other stars in the Lost Odyssey: Promised Gold livestream event that benefited Extra Life and the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.[20]
During the first week of November 2022, he performed in the musical Parade to ensure that the performing arts can be enjoyed at an affordable rate for fans at the New York City Center.[21]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role |
---|---|---|
2019 | The Angry Birds Movie 2 | Bubba (voice) |
2022 | Honor Society | Michael Dipnicky |
My Father's Dragon | Boris the Dragon (voice) |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | The Blacklist | Finn | Episode: "The Kenyon Family (No. 71)" |
2016–present | Stranger Things | Dustin Henderson | Main role |
2017 | Ridiculousness | Himself | Episode: "Scarediculousness" |
Lip Sync Battle | Episode: "The Cast of Stranger Things" | ||
2018 | Drop the Mic | Episode: "Darren Criss vs. Gaten Matarazzo / Chandler Riggs vs. Chad Coleman" | |
2019–2021 | Prank Encounters | Host and executive producer | |
2021 | Nickelodeon's Unfiltered | Episode: "Be My Valentine" | |
Waffles and Mochi | Casey the Electrician | Episode: "Mushroom" |
Music videos
Year | Title | Artist | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
2017 | "Swish Swish" | Katy Perry (feat. Nicki Minaj) | [22] |
"Lost Boys Life" | Computer Games (Darren & Chuck Criss) | [23] | |
2020 | "Meet Me On The Roof" | Green Day | [24] |
Theater
Year | Title | Role | Venue | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2011–12 | Priscilla, Queen of the Desert | Benjamin | Palace Theatre | Broadway replacement | |
2012 | Godspell | Jesus | Circle in the Square Theatre | Special performance | |
2012 | Radio City Christmas Spectacular | Ben | Rockettes' 85th Anniversary Celebration Tour | US tour | [25] |
2013 | Les Misérables | Gavroche | 25th Anniversary Tour | North American tour | [26] |
2014–15 | Gavroche / Petit Gervais | Imperial Theatre | Broadway | ||
2019 | Into the Woods | Jack | Hollywood Bowl | Special performance | [27] |
2022 | Dear Evan Hansen | Jared Kleinman | Music Box Theatre | Broadway replacement | |
Parade | Frankie Epps | New York City Center | Special performance |
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2017 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a Digital TV Series or Film – Teen Actor | Stranger Things | Nominated | [28] |
2017 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Won | [29] | |
2017 | Shorty Awards | Best Actor | Won | [30] | |
2018 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated | [31] | |
2018 | MTV Movie & TV Awards | Best On-Screen Team (with Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp and Sadie Sink) | Nominated | [32] | |
2019 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Summer TV Actor | Nominated | [33] | |
2020 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated | [34] | |
2022 | Saturn Awards | Best Performance by a Younger Actor (Streaming) | Nominated | [35] |
References
- ^ "9 Things You Didn't Know About Gaten Matarazzo III (Stranger Things)". October 24, 2017.
- ^ Matarzzo at Stranger Things' Gaten Matarazzo III Goes Undercover on Reddit, YouTube and Twitter. GQ (www.youtube.com). July 1, 2019. Event occurs at 00:46. Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
It's actually Gaetano John Matarazzo the third.
- ^ "UPI Almanac for Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019". United Press International. September 8, 2019. Archived from the original on September 9, 2019. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
…actor Gaten Matarazzo III in 2002 (age 17)
- ^ "Les Misérables". Playbill. Retrieved August 18, 2016.
- ^ Forde, Kisha (July 27, 2022). "Is Gaten Matarazzo Related to The Princess Diaries' Heather Matarazzo? See Her Hilarious Response". E! Online.
- ^ Ro, Crystal (August 5, 2016). "Dustin from "Stranger Things" loves showing off his fake teeth in real life, and obviously it's adorable". HelloGiggles.com. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved July 28, 2017.
- ^ Santilli, Morgana (June 28, 2019). "The untold truth of Gaten Matarazzo". Looper.com. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^ "2011 Uncasville Results". Archived from the original on December 29, 2011. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
- ^ Blank, Matthew (May 7, 2012). "PHOTO CALL: Meet "The Godspell Cast of 2032"". Playbill. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
- ^ "Stranger Things: What Happened to Gaten Matarazzo's Teeth?". Inverse. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ "Simon Pegg, Gaten Matarazzo of Stranger Things to Face Off in Hump". Variety. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
- ^ @gatenm123 (July 16, 2019). "So excited to announce that I'm in #AngryBirdsMovie2!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "'Stranger Things' Star Gaten Matarazzo Sets Broadway Return in 'Dear Evan Hansen'". May 25, 2022.
- ^ Cordero, Rosy (January 18, 2022). "Awesomeness Films Greenlights 'Honor Society' Starring Angourie Rice, Gaten Matarazzo And Christopher Mintz-Plasse". Deadline. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
- ^ "Kilkenny animation company Cartoon Saloon goes global again with new Netflix adventure". RTÉ. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
- ^ "Press & Videos". CCD Smiles. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
- ^ "Gaten Matarazzo, Will Roland and More Join Andrew Barth Feldman's SW: A NEW(SICAL) HOPE". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
- ^ "Elf Reunion: Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel and More Stars Unite for a Virtual Table Read for Charity". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
- ^ Peters, Jay (April 6, 2021). "Jimmy Fallon played Among Us with streamers and the cast of Stranger Things in Twitch debut". The Verge.
- ^ "IGN & D&D Present Lost Odyssey: Promised Gold - How to Watch and What to Expect". IGN. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
- ^ "2022 Annual Gala Presentation: Parade". New York City Centre. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- ^ Bell, Sadie. "Here Are All the Cameos From Katy Perry's 'Swish Swish' Music Video". Billboard. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
- ^ "Darren Criss Taps 'Stranger Things' Star For Computer Games' 'Lost Boys Life' Video". Fuse.
- ^ "Gaten Matarazzo Stars in Green Day's Adorable New Video". Exclaim.
- ^ BRETZ, MARK, Staff. "Radio City Christmas Spectacular: Musical Review". Ladue News. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Les Misérables Tour: 25th Anniversary". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
- ^ "Patina Miller, Gaten Matarazzo, Shanice Williams Will Star in Hollywood Bowl's Into the Woods". Playbill. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
- ^ "38th Annual Awards". Young Artist Association. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
- ^ Nolfi, Joely (December 14, 2016). "SAG Awards nominations 2017: See the full list". Entertainment Weekly.
- ^ "9th Annual Shorty Awards". Shorty Awards. April 25, 2017.
- ^ Gonzalez, Sandra (January 17, 2018). "The full list of the 2018 SAG Awards nominees". CNN. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
- ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (May 3, 2018). "MTV Movie & TV Awards: 'Black Panther,' 'Stranger Things' Top Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on May 3, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
- ^ Swift, Andy (July 8, 019). "Teen Choice Awards: Stranger Things Leads Final Wave of 2019 Nominations". TVLine. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
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(help) - ^ "SAG Award Nominations: The Complete List". Variety. December 11, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Saturn Awards Nominations: 'The Batman', 'Nightmare Alley', 'Spider-Man', 'Better Call Saul' Top List". Deadline Hollywood. August 12, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
External links
- 2002 births
- 21st-century American male actors
- American people of Italian descent
- American male film actors
- American male stage actors
- American male television actors
- American male voice actors
- American male child actors
- Living people
- Male actors from Connecticut
- Male actors from New Jersey
- People from Little Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey
- Shorty Award winners