Jason Mewes is an American television and film actor and producer
@Actors, Timeline and Life
Jason Mewes is an American television and film actor and producer
Jason Mewes born at
Jason Mewes married Jordan Monsanto on January 30, 2009. Their daughter Logan Lee was born on April 1, 2015.
Born on June 12, 1974 in Highlands, New Jersey, Jason Mewes was raised in a working-class colony by his mother, who was a drug addict and a convict. She stole credit cards and was involved in other criminal activities as well. Jason, as a child, had also accompanied her when she was involved in such activities. His mother died in 2002 after she contracted AIDS. Jason never knew his father.
He was exposed to drugs since his childhood. Eventually, he himself became a drug addict after he graduated from high school.
Jason Mewes’ filmmaker friend Kevin Smith played an important role in making him an actor. He found Jason a very witty and funny person, and knew that he would be successful in pursuing a career in acting. Jason first faced the camera in 1994, playing a foul-mouthed but likeable drug addict, ‘Jay,’ in Smith's low budget comedy ‘Clerks’, which was a hit.
The funny characters of ‘Jay’ and ‘Silent Bob’ (played by Smith) became so popular that the characters were used in four more films directed by Smith. These were ‘Mallrats’, ‘Chasing Amy’, ‘Dogma’, and ‘Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.’ Their characters appeared in ‘Scream 3’ as well.
In 1995, Jason was featured as ‘Jay’ in ‘Mallrats’, a comedy film which was written and directed by Smith. Smith had also planned a sequel, ‘MallBrats’ in 2015, but later in 2016, he announced that instead of a film, the sequel would be made into a 10-episode television series. However, the project got shelved, as Smith could not find a buyer.
In 1996, Jason Mewes starred in ‘Drawing Flies’, which was a comedy film written and directed by Malcolm Ingram and Matt Gissing. Jason appeared as ‘Jay’ again in ‘Chasing Amy in 1997. This romantic-comedy drama, written and directed by Smith, won two awards at the 1998 Independent Spirit Awards.
In 1999, he was again cast by Smith as Jay in the fantasy comedy film ‘Dogma’. In the same year, he appeared in three more films, ‘Spilt Milk’, ‘The Blair Clown Project’, and ‘Tail Lights Fade’, directed by Malcolm Ingram. He also provided his voice for a thief in the video game ‘Scarface: The World Is Yours’.
Jason Mewes has always talked openly about his long battle with drug abuse which started when he was a teen. He became addicted to heroin while he was shooting for ‘Chasing Amy’ and ‘Dogma’.
Smith admitted him to a rehabilitation clinic in 1997. In 1999, Mewes came to know that his mother had been diagnosed with AIDS. In an effort to get sober, he moved in with his mother, and started taking medication to ease the withdrawal symptoms.
In 1999 he was arrested in New Jersey for having heroin in his possession. As a probation sentence, he was ordered community service and drug counseling. In 2001, when he failed to make his routine appearance in the court, a warrant was issued for his arrest.
In 2002, following his mother’s death, things became worse for him. In April 2003, he surrendered at a New Jersey court and pleaded guilty for violation of probation sentence. He was put into a rehab program for six months. However, he was allowed to go to Los Angeles for film shootings with a warning that if he failed to appear in the court, he would be sent to prison for five years.
He then started living with Smith and his wife but soon he was evicted after he was caught using drugs again. During this period, he had stolen Smith's ATM card and withdrawn $1,100. He was also caught in a hotel with heroin. Smith admitted him in various rehab centers. When his condition became worse, Smith declined to cast him in ‘Jersey Girl’ in 2004.