Jake Johnson - Directors, Timeline and Childhood

Jake was born Mark Jake Johnson Weinberger on May 28, 1978 in Evanston, Illinois, US. He was named after his uncle, who passed away young due to a road accident, just a year prior to Jake’s birth.

Jake, along with his siblings Dan and Rachel, was raised by his mother. His mother, Eve Johnson, was an artist and his father, Ken Weinberger, was a car dealer. Unfortunately, his parents got divorced when he was still very young. However, Jake developed a strong relationship with his father later in his life.

Jake belongs to a mixed origin. His father is an Ashkenazi Jewish whereas his mother is a mix of English, Irish, and Polish Catholic origin.

Jake went to New Trier High School in Winnetka from where he graduated before enrolling himself at the University of Iowa. While he was in high school, Jake dropped the surname inherited from his father and replaced it with his mother’s maiden name.

Jake was an excellent sportsman. He became a member of Sunday Men's Basketball League and competed in many games.

During his university days, Jake developed an interest towards writing. He wrote a play in an attempt to earn an admission into the Dramatic Writing Department of Tisch School of the Arts, NYU. As it was the topmost institute for playwright and performing arts, Jake’s admission into the school gave him confidence and ultimately helped his acting and writing career.

In 2002, Jake won two prizes for his writing skills. He won the John Golden Playwriting Prize and earned the Sloan Fellowship for Screenwriting.

His next aim was to put his scripts to use on a stage. He wrote the script for the play ‘Cousins’ which was produced by Ensemble Studio Theater.

Jake was associated with Midwesterners, a sketch comedy club, for five long years and performed at many notable venues like Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre and Surf Reality. Jake made major contributions towards structuring, scripting and presenting the acts while he was associated with the club.

Jake also had to take up a few odd jobs to support his lifestyle. He worked as a waiter at a local casino, which he later described as a horrible experience as he was into graveyard shifts. He also worked as a production assistant.

While he was in Los Angeles, Jake did a lot of theatre. He signed a contract with Samantha Daniels, an agent from an entertainment agency.

Jake made his main stream acting debut in 2007 when he appeared in the web series ‘Derek and Simon: The Show’. The same year, he appeared in television shows like ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ and ‘The Unit’.

In 2008, Jake made his film debut when he played a cameo role in the action flick, ‘Redbelt’. The first lead role that he did was in the rom-com ‘Paper Heart’ which released in 2009. In the film, Jake played a documentary filmmaker named Nicholas Jasenovec who accompanies his co-filmmaker, Michael Cera, and together they set out on a journey that eventually helps them in finding their respective love. The film catered only to a specific set of audience and received mixed reactions from critics.

The same year, he appeared in a single episode titled ‘Love Always’ in the crime drama series ‘Lie to Me’. ‘Ceremony’, a family drama was the next big thing for Jake. Though the film had some well-known actors like Michael Angarano and Uma Thurman, Jake managed to grab the spotlight with his heart-warming performance.

He then played the role of Jesus Christ in the 2011 stoner comedy film, ‘A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas’. In the same year, he also played a minor role as Eli in the rom-com, ‘No Strings Attached’.

Jake was then cast in the American sitcom TV series ‘New Girl’. The show made Jake a household name which gave him the much needed recognition. ‘New Girl’ also provided him with an opportunity to play a fully-fledged comedy role in television.

He was adored for his portrayal of Nick Miller. Nick is a poor guy who fails in almost everything he gets into, including relationships. The show was a big hit and ran successfully for six seasons. The producers of the show and the channel in which it was aired had some unresolved issues which caused the cancellation of its seventh season.

The show brought Jake his first nomination for Teen Choice Award under the category Best Actor Comedy. He then received many other nominations for the show at various award ceremonies under several categories. He was also nominated for the TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy.

In 2013, Jake played the lead role in yet another comedy film. He starred alongside Olivia Wilde in ‘Drinking Buddies’. Jake played the role of Luke who is a colleague of Kate, played by Olivia. They both work in a beer brewery and are crazy drunkards, but share an amazing chemistry.

Jake made his voice acting debut with the 2014 computer-animated comedy film ‘The Lego Movie’. He then lent his voice for a host of animated movies and television shows like ‘High School USA’, ‘BoJack Horseman’, ‘We Bare Bears’, ‘Comrade Detective’ and ‘Smurfs: The Lost Village’.

Jake had a significant role in the adventure science fiction flick ‘Jurassic World’ which released in 2015. He played the role of Lowery Cruthers, the one who is equipped with all the information about the park. The same year, he debuted as a scriptwriter for the comedy film ‘Digging for Fire’. He also co-wrote the film along with Swanberg.

The duo once again joined hands for the 2017 comedy film ‘Win It All’. Jake also played the lead role in the film. He played Eddie Garrett who tries to get out of his addiction for gambling. He then worked alongside Tom Cruise in the 2017 adventure flick ‘The Mummy’.

Jake is currently busy filming for his next comedy film ‘Tag’ which is expected to hit the screens in 2018.

Jake is married to an artist named Erin Payne since 2016. Erin and Jake are blessed with twin daughters.

Jake has always been secretive about his relationships and the news of him getting married came across as a shock to many of his fans.

Jake Johnson has been in the industry for more than a decade and has done numerous films and television series. That sums his net worth to a whopping 2 million US Dollars.