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 (2007) 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[citation needed] was born in Palo Alto, California[citation needed] 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 August of 2011, Franco starred in the horror comedy film Fright Night alongside Colin Farrell and Toni Collette; a remake of the 1985 film of the same name which received positive reviews from critics and went on to make over $41 million worldwide.

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

Television

Video games

Web

Awards and nominations

External links

• at IMDb