Justin Bartha

Justin Bartha

Bartha in 2011
Born Justin Lee Bartha
July 21, 1978
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Occupation Actor
Years active 1998–present
Spouse(s) Lia Smith (m. 2014)
Children 1

Justin Lee Bartha (born July 21, 1978) is an American actor, known for his roles as Riley Poole in the National Treasure film series, Doug Billings in The Hangover trilogy, and David Sawyer in the NBC comedy series The New Normal.

Personal life

Bartha was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and moved to West Bloomfield, Michigan, when he was eight.[1] His father, Stephen, is a real estate developer, while his mother, Betty, is a school teacher. He has one older brother, Jeffrey. Bartha was raised in a Reform Jewish family.[2][3][4] He attended Camp Walden in Cheboygan, Michigan, for 5 years as a child. After he graduated from West Bloomfield High School in 1996, he moved to New York City and studied acting at New York University.[5] Bartha dated actress Ashley Olsen from 2008 to 2011.[6][7] He married personal trainer Lia Smith on Oahu, Hawaii on January 4, 2014.[8] On April 13, 2014, Smith gave birth to their daughter, Asa Charlotte.[9]

Career

Bartha began his film career behind the camera as a production assistant on the film Analyze This. His acting debut came with his first film, 54, as a clubgoer. He wrote and directed a short film, Highs and Lows with Darrell M. Smith as co-producer, which was shown at the South by Southwest Film Festival in 2003.[10] Additionally, he wrote, produced, and starred in an MTV pilot called The Dustin and Justin Show.[10]

Bartha had major roles in the critically bashed Gigli and Carnival Sun in 2003 before his co-starring role in National Treasure (2004) as Riley Poole, which launched him into the mainstream.[11]

In 2006, Bartha had roles in Failure to Launch and NBC's Teachers which only aired six episodes.

In November 2007, Bartha was cast in an indie comic-drama, Holy Rollers. His character lures a young Hasidic Jew (Jesse Eisenberg) into becoming an ecstasy dealer. Filming began in New York in the spring of 2008, and the film was released in 2010.[12] Bartha also starred alongside Catherine Zeta-Jones in the Bart Freundlich film, The Rebound which is about a 25-year-old man who starts a romance with his older single mother neighbor, the film began shooting in April 2008 in New York and finished in June. In the The Hangover comedy film series, he played Doug Billings, one of the "Wolfpack" members who goes on weekend trips with the trio. After a wild nights of partying, he goes missing and his friends frantically search everywhere for him.

Bartha starred as Max in the Broadway revival of the play Lend Me a Tenor by Ken Ludwig. He performed alongside Tony Shalhoub, Anthony LaPaglia, Brooke Adams, and Jan Maxwell. A farcical comedy, it was directed by Stanley Tucci and started previews at the Music Box Theatre on March 11, 2010, with the official opening date on April 4, 2010. In 2011, Bartha signed on to star in the premiere of Zach Braff's play All New People at Second Stage Theatre. All New People began June 28 and ran through mid-August. Anna Camp, David Wilson Barnes and Krysten Ritter co-starred in this production under the direction of Peter DuBois.[13] In February 2012, Bartha signed on to co-star on the NBC comedy pilot The New Normal.[14] On May 7, 2012, NBC ordered the project to series.[15] The show was centered around a gay couple (played by Bartha and Andrew Rannells) and the surrogate mother (Georgia King) they selected to bear their child. It premiered on September 11, 2012,[16] but was officially cancelled the next year on May 10, 2013.[17]

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1998 54 Clubgoer Uncredited
1999 Tag Kip Woffard Short film
2003 Gigli Brian
2002 Carnival Sun Brian Short film
2004 Strip Search N/A Television film
2004 National Treasure Riley Poole
2005 Trust the Man Jasper Bernard
2006 Failure to Launch Ace
2007 National Treasure: Book of Secrets Riley Poole
2008 New York, I Love You Justin Segment: "Randy Balsmeyer"
2009 Hangover, TheThe Hangover Doug Billings
2009 Jusqu'à toi Jack Also executive producer
2009 Rebound, TheThe Rebound Aram Finklestein
2010 Holy Rollers Yosef Zimmerman
2011 Hangover Part II, TheThe Hangover Part II Doug Billings
2011 Dark Horse Richard
2013 Hangover Part III, TheThe Hangover Part III Doug Billings
2013 CBGB Stiv Bators
2015 Sticky Notes Bryan Filming
Television
Year Title Role Notes
2006 Teachers Jeff Cahill Main cast; 6 episodes
2009 WWII in HD Jack Werner (voice) Miniseries; 5 episodes
2012–2013 New Normal, TheThe New Normal David Sawyer Main cast; 22 episodes

Trivia

The word "Justin Bartha" is on a list of "Kenneth's TV No-No Words" on the satirical television show 30 Rock.

References

  1. "Double Take". Retrieved July 4, 2009. Bartha, 27, whose family belonged to Temple Israel, where he had his bar mitzvah.
  2. "EXCLUSIVE: Jesse Eisenberg and Justin Bartha Take Flight in Holy Rollers". MovieWeb. May 21, 2010. Retrieved May 21, 2010.
  3. "Justin Bartha Interview for Holy Rollers". The Cinema Source. May 20, 2010. Retrieved August 11, 2012.
  4. Mester, Ilan (June 10, 2010). "Justin Bartha Talks Holy Rollers, Hangover 2". Shalom Life. Retrieved June 26, 2010. To prepare for the part, Bartha – who is Jewish – ...
  5. Wigney, James (March 13, 2010). "The Rebound Ace". Sunday Herald Sun. Retrieved May 21, 2010.
  6. Shira, Dahvi (March 9, 2013). "Ashley Olsen and Justin Bartha Split". People.
  7. "Justin Bartha confirms split with Ashley Olsen". Life & Style. May 24, 2011.
  8. "Report: Justin Bartha Marries Lia Smith". People. January 5, 2014.
  9. Monde, Chiderah (April 21, 2014). "Justin Bartha, wife Lia Smith welcome first child together: report". NEW YORK DAILY NEWS. Retrieved June 4, 2014.
  10. 10.0 10.1 "Justin Bartha Biography". Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  11. "Justin Bartha Interview, National Treasure 2". MoviesOnline. Retrieved July 4, 2009.
  12. Goldstein, Gregg (November 18, 2007). "Drug-dealing Jews inspire comic drama". Reuters. Retrieved November 5, 2007.
  13. "Justin Bartha, Anna Camp Sign On for Zach Braff's Off-Broadway Play". Broadway.me. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
  14. Ausiello, Michael (February 22, 2012). "Scoop: Hangover's Justin Bartha Joins Ryan Murphy's NBC Comedy Pilot The New Normal". TV Line. Retrieved August 11, 2012.
  15. "'The New Normal': NBC Orders Ryan Murphy Comedy And J.J. Abrams Drama To Series". The Huffington Post. May 7, 2012. Retrieved August 11, 2012.
  16. Goldman, Eric (June 14, 2012). "NBC Sets Fall Premiere Dates: Community, The Office and More". IGN.com. Retrieved August 11, 2012.
  17. Heredia, Gustavo (May 13, 2013). "'The New Normal' Star Justin Bartha Talks About The Show's Cancelation". huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved May 21, 2013.

External links