Gus Halper | |
|---|---|
 Gus Halper as Erik Menendez in Law & Order True Crime (2017) | |
| Born | July 2, 1992 |
| Education | University of North Carolina School of the Arts |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Spouse |
Emma Geer (m. 2023) |
| Mother | Deann Simmons Halper |
Gus Halper (born July 2, 1992) is an American actor best known for his roles in the series Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders (2017), Fear the Walking Dead (2021), and Law & Order: Organized Crime (2022–2023), and in the films Goat (2016) and Rustin (2023).[1][2][3][4] He also appeared in the 2016 off-Broadway production of the musical Ride the Cyclone, playing Mischa Bachinski.[5]
Early life and education
Halper was born on July 2, 1992 in Manhattan, New York City.[6] His mother, Deann Simmons Halper, is an actress and theater director.[7][8] Halper graduated from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, which his mother had previously attended, in 2014.[9]
Career
In 2014, while studying at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Halper played Romeo in the university's production of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.[10] After graduating, he starred in the ABC television film The Kingmakers as Eli, a young man who infiltrates an Ivy League university to investigate his sister's death.[11] The following year, Halper appeared alongside Nick Jonas and Ben Schnetzer in Goat, which was produced by James Franco.[4] The same year, he portrayed Ukrainian teenager Mischa Bachinski in an off-Broadway production of Ride the Cyclone at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.[5]
In 2017, Halper portrayed convicted murderer Erik Menendez in the eight-part series Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders[1], as well as starred for six episodes as Mikey Scaramucci in Happy! until 2018. A year later, he appeared in an episode of Ramy, then five episodes of both Jett and Dickinson. In 2020, Halper then starred in one episode of the series Love Life and appeared as Blaze in the film Holler, alongside Jessica Barden.[12] In 2021, he appeared in an episode of Evil as Graham Lucian and two episodes of Fear the Walking Dead as Will.[2] A year later, Halper appeared as Teddy Silas, a construction foreman, in Law & Order: Organized Crime.[13] In 2023, he portrayed social democratic activist Tom Kahn, the assistant and lover of civil rights activist Bayard Rustin, in the biographical film Rustin.[3]
In 2019, Halper was cast as Brendan Lalor in the workshop for the musical Sing Street, which then officially premiered its off-broadway run at the New York Theatre Workshop on December 16th and closed on January 26th, 2020.[14] Following the hiatus of the Broadway transfer due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he reprised his role as Brendan for the cast recording that was released in April 2020.[15]
Personal life
Halper married actress Emma Geer on October 15, 2023.[16] The couple had a baby in early 2026.[17]
Credits
| † | Denotes productions that have not yet been released |
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Rémy | Emmanuel Rémy | Short film | |
| 2015 | Ricki and the Flash | Impatient Traveler | ||
| 2016 | Goat | Chance | [4] | |
| Couch | Jeff | Short film | ||
| 2017 | Guy | Guy | Short film | |
| 2018 | Maine | Dragon | ||
| 2019 | Cold Pursuit | Bone | ||
| Safe Space | Jacques | Short film | ||
| 2020 | Holler | Blaze | ||
| Winning Streak | Tyson Drake | Short film | ||
| 2023 | Rustin | Tom Kahn | [3] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | The Suite Life of Hudson & James | Warren | Voice; 1 episode | |
| 2014 | Galyntine | Kyree | TV Movie | |
| 2015 | Public Morals | Sergio Tedesco | 4 episodes | |
| The Kingmakers | Eli | TV Movie | [11] | |
| 2016 | Power | Alby | 3 episodes | |
| Chicago P.D. | Oliver Tuxhorn | Episode: "300,000 Likes" | ||
| 2017 | Mercy Street | Episode: "Southern Mercy" | ||
| Law & Order True Crime | Erik Menendez | 8 episodes | [1] | |
| 2017–2018 | Happy! | Mikey Scaramucci | 6 episodes | |
| 2018 | Madam Secretary | Nathan Cleminger | Episode: "The Chaos Game" | |
| 2019 | Ramy | Shawn | Episode: "Do the Ramadan" | |
| Jett | Neal | 5 episodes | ||
| Dickinson | Joseph | 5 episodes | ||
| 2020 | Love Life | Danny Two Phones | Episode: "Danny Two Phones" | |
| 2021 | Evil | Graham Lucian | Episode: "I is for IRS" | |
| Fear the Walking Dead | Will | 2 episodes | [2] | |
| 2022–2023 | Law & Order: Organized Crime | Teddy Silas | 8 episodes | [13] |
| 2026 | The Beauty | Ashley Sanders | Episode: "Beautiful Chimp Face" | |
| TBA | Criminal † | Ricky Lawless | [18] |
Web
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Today in New York | Co-writer, co-producer | [19] | |
| 2022 | The Lip Sync Fables | Prince | [20] |
Theater
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Romeo and Juliet | Romeo | UNCSA production | [10] |
| 2016 | Ride the Cyclone | Mischa Bachinski | Off-Broadway | [5] |
| 2019–2020 | Sing Street | Brendan Lalor | Off-Broadway | [21] |
Discography
Cast recordings
- 2020: Sing Street (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
References
- ^ a b c Cordero, Rosy (August 12, 2022). "'Law & Order: Organized Crime': Camilla Belle And Gus Halper Board Season 3". Deadline. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
- ^ a b c Bonomolo, Cameron (July 24, 2021). "Fear the Walking Dead Returns in October With New Cast Members for Season 7". ComicBook. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Gus Halper Talks New Netflix/Obama Production, Rustin". Wonderland. December 6, 2023. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
- ^ a b c Chitwood, Adam (September 6, 2016). "Goat Red-Band Trailer: James Franco Gets Wild in Hazing Drama". Collider. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Meet the Cast of MCC's Ride the Cyclone". Playbill. October 26, 2016.
- ^ "Gus Halper - Movies, TV, and Bio". Amazon Prime Video. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ Clary, Sheela (July 18, 2022). "Great Barrington Public Theatre is growing by leaps and bounds". The Berkshire Edge. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ "Who We Are". Great Barrington Public Theater. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ Upton, Melissa; Roos, Dave (November 10, 2015). "Drama alumnus Gus Halper digs deep to land major roles". University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ a b Felder, Lynn (March 27, 2014). "This 'Romeo and Juliet' is beautiful, funny". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie (March 13, 2015). "Newcomer Gus Halper Lands The Lead In ABC Pilot 'The Kingmakers'". Deadline. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (May 4, 2021). "'Holler' Trailer: Jessica Barden Tries To Break Free From "Life Below The Poverty Line" In Drama From IFC Films". Deadline. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
- ^ a b Boles, Melissa (July 29, 2024). "10 Most Disturbing Law & Order: Organized Crime Villains (So Far)". CBR. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ "World Premiere of Sing Street Extends at New York Theatre Workshop". Playbill. Archived from the original on June 15, 2025. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
- ^ "Check Out the New Music Video for 'Riddle of the Model' From the Broadway-Bound Sing Street". Playbill. Archived from the original on November 12, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
- ^ "Emma Geer & Gus Halper - wedding registry". MyRegistry.com. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
- ^ "UNCSA Pickle Pair Alums". Retrieved March 6, 2026.
- ^ Cordero, Rosy (June 10, 2024). "Ed Brubaker's 'Criminal' Adds Gus Halper, Aliyah Camacho & Michael Mando". Deadline. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
- ^ "Alumni write and produce dark, comedic mini-web series about NYC experiences". www.uncsa.edu. Retrieved January 24, 2026.
- ^ Brunner, Raven (July 19, 2022). "JJ Niemann, Kennedy Kanagawa, Joshua Morgan, More Join Web Series Lip Sync Fables". Playbill. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
- ^ "Game of Thrones' Brenock O'Connor, Zara Devlin, and More to Star in World Premiere of Sing Street Off-Broadway". Playbill. Archived from the original on July 9, 2025. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
External links
- Gus Halper at IMDb
