Jeremy Allen White's Transformation Is Turning Heads
There's no denying that actor Jeremy Allen White's star has been on the rise in recent years. As his fans already know, a huge part of that has to do with acclaimed TV series "The Bear," in which he plays chef Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto. Since its debut in 2022, "The Bear" has become a huge hit with both critics and viewers alike; as of spring 2024, White has filled several spots on his award shelf, with the actor winning three SAG Awards, two Golden Globes, two Critics Choice Awards, and a Primetime Emmy.
White, who was previously been best known for his 11 seasons as Lip Gallagher on Showtime's "Shameless," admitted he's been overwhelmed by the attention and acclaim he's been receiving for "The Bear." "I always felt like I was a good enough actor to be on a TV show or something," he mused in an interview with Vogue. "I think that's what I sort of expected: I'll work and always be on a show, and I felt very content with and grateful for even just that. I certainly didn't expect ... this."
"This," of course, is reflected in his rise to the upper echelons of Hollywood, catapulting from supporting player in an ensemble cast to award-winning headliner. And while the sky is the limit for this talented actor, how he got there is a story as fascinating as any of his films or TV shows.
His original goal was to become a dancer
Born in Brooklyn in 1991, Jeremy Allen White's parents were aspiring actors who moved to New York City with the hope of appearing on Broadway. Those dreams fell by the wayside with the arrival of their son, leading his father to start his own business, filming legal depositions, while his mother pursued a career in education.
His parents' desire to perform was something that was passed on to White. "I trained as a dancer when I was young — jazz, ballet, tap," White explained to Interview Magazine, revealing that he still enjoyed it. "Going out dancing with friends is my favorite thing to do," he shared. "I break out all my old moves." White was just 11 when he abruptly ceased his dance training when he felt that instruction in his middle school wasn't at the level he felt it should be. "I didn't think it was serious enough for me," he recalled for GQ. "So obnoxious."
After turning his back on dance, he gravitated toward his school's drama department. Dance, however, remains a part of his repertoire. "I tap all the time ... it's like a nervous tic or something ..." he told Variety, revealing his tendency to break into a soft-shoe shuffle before a take. "I've had ADs, PAs, fellow actors always ask, 'What is going on there?' And I'm like, 'I don't know exactly, but I am tap dancing. I don't know why I am, but I am.'"
School was never his strong suit
During his teen years, Jeremy Allen White's interest in acting intensified. He came to realize that was where his future lay — and that school wasn't contributing a whole lot to getting him where he wanted to go. "I wasn't a bad kid, I just hated school," he told GQ of his desire to drop out. "I knew it wasn't going to help me."
His parents, however, weren't entirely onboard with the notion of him quitting school. Eventually, he was accepted into the Professional Performing Arts School, a highly respected school in Manhattan where he studied acting.
The school clearly made a big impression on White; when funding concerns in 2024 threatened to force the school to axe its theater department, he and fellow alum Alicia Keys were among those who rallied to raise money. While Keys donated $60,000, White shared a plea on his Instagram Story, linking to a GoFundMe that was launched to raise enough cash to keep the theater department afloat. "This is where I went to high school, it's an incredible program with some incredible teachers," White wrote in a caption (via X, formerly known as Twitter), indicating that he'd already made a donation.
He first met his future wife when they were both teenagers
While attending the Professional Performing Arts School, 14-year-old Jeremy Allen White met fellow student — and future spouse — Addison Timlin. "I was instantly very much into her and she, me too, I think," he told GQ. "But she had a boyfriend. I was just so clumsy about all that stuff. And then she went to a different school and I was really broken up."
The two reconnected years later, in 2013, and began dating. Discussing their relationship — then in the early stages — with Harper's Bazaar, Timlin said, "We have a nice foundation from being friends for a long period of time, and then it took a hard right turn into romance." They married in 2019, in a courthouse ceremony that was witnessed by Dakota Johnson and her boyfriend, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin. By then, the two were already parents — their first child arrived in 2018, and they welcomed their second in 2020.
When White won a Golden Globe in 2023, Timlin took to Instagram to offer congratulations. In her message, she reminisced about the when she'd first watched him act. "When we were 14 years old and I saw you perform for the first time in drama class, I couldn't take my eyes off of you," she wrote.
He began landing acting gigs as a teenager
One of the more unique facets of the Professional Performing Arts School is that it not only taught students various performing arts, but also provided professional opportunities. Thanks to this, Jeremy Allen White was able to continue his education when he began booking acting roles in plays, films, and television. That included credits in the indie movies "Beautiful Ohio" (2006), "The Speed of Life" (2007), and "Afterschool" (2008). He also appeared in two episodes of "Law & Order," playing different characters in 2007 and 2008 episodes; he then guest-starred in a 2010 episode of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit."
Throughout his teen years, White continued to rack up roles in film and television, laying the groundwork for his future success.
One youthful ambition he never did get to fulfill, however, was to act in a Broadway production; ironically, it was his ongoing success in television that closed the door on those dreams, at least temporarily. In a 2023 interview with GQ, White revealed that he was in discussions to potentially star on Broadway in early 2025. "I guess I just want to see what it feels like," he explained.
He landed his breakout role right out of high school
In 2010, Jeremy Allen White had recently graduated from high school and was unsure of what direction his life would take. "I was living at home at the time, and my folks were like, 'You're going to have to get a real job soon,'" White recalled for Interview Magazine. It was during this period that he auditioned for a role in an upcoming Showtime comedy titled "Shameless."
He was cast as Phillip "Lip" Gallagher in the pilot for "Shameless." "I was so stoked just to get the pilot and go out to L.A., I didn't even think about it going beyond that," he recalled. "And then when it got picked up for the first season and then again for the second season, I was just amazed that I got to live with a character for that long. That really doesn't happen for a lot of actors." The show proved to be a hit, returning for a third season, then a fourth, eventually ending its run in 2021 after 11 seasons.
Interestingly, White initially wanted to portray a different Gallagher brother. "When I was auditioning for 'Shameless,' I was auditioning for both Lip and Ian throughout the auditioning process. I really wanted to play Ian," White revealed to Variety. "I really chased Ian, and I remember being disappointed when they said, 'Actually, it's this guy,'" he said of the role going to co-star Cameron Monaghan.
He felt a bit lost when Shameless ended after 11 seasons
Jeremy Allen White literally grew into adulthood on the set of "Shameless," with viewers watching his character's journey over the course of its 11 seasons. While White is well aware of how important the show was to launching his career, he was also relieved when it finally ended. "I love everybody that was a part of it, and the experience was incredible," he told GQ. "But I'm not sure if shows are meant to go that long."
In fact, he admitted that he began to worry about the implications of being trapped in one role for so many years. "There was a period where I stopped feeling like an actor and I started feeling like I was just here to do this show," he added. "When it was going to end, I was questioning: Maybe I do just exist on this show. What else is there? Am I an actor? I was definitely having a lot of doubt when I was finishing 'Shameless.'"
On the flip side of that, being part of a beloved ensemble cast had raised his profile significantly; when "Shameless" ended, White now had the star power to headline his own show when an opportunity arrived to star in a new TV series that would propel him to even greater heights.
He went deep to prepare for his role in The Bear
When Jeremy Allen White signed on for "The Bear," the uncertainty he was feeling after the end of "Shameless" dovetailed perfectly with what his character was going through as Carmy — a renowned chef who'd cooked in Michelin-starred restaurants only to return home to Chicago to take over his family's struggling sandwich shop. "We kind of found each other at a similar place," White told GQ of the symbiosis between actor and character he experienced. "He knew he's really gifted at this thing, but he could be painfully insecure about his abilities as well," he said. "I was feeling a little insecure at the end, too."
A stickler for authenticity, White felt that in order to play a chef, he needed to learn how to cook like one — or at least make it look like he could — by enrolling in Pasadena's Institute of Culinary Education. "I had two months before we shot the pilot, and I was working really hard," he explained in an interview with People. "I had a station set up in my hotel room, and every night I was trying to do 30 minutes to an hour of knife work before I'd go to bed."
He got jacked for The Iron Claw while starring in The Bear
While working on "The Bear," Jeremy Allen White had also been training for a big-screen role in "The Iron Claw." In order to play professional wrestler Kerry Von Erich in the biopic, White hit the gym hard, ultimately packing on an impressive 40 pounds of muscle.
For White, building up his physique for the movie required serious dedication. "I didn't know what I was doing," White confessed during an appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" "I knew I had to eat more, so I ate more. I knew I had to lift heavy things, so I lifted a lot of heavy things," he added.
Given that his wrestling scenes for "The Iron Claw" featured him wearing nothing but a small pair of trunks, he admitted that constant level of near-nudity took some getting used to. When an Entertainment Tonight reporter claimed the actor seemed "pretty confident with his minimal wardrobe," White responded: "I was NOT confident ... I got confident, I guess. Seven days of running around in your underwear, and you get used to it, you know."
He split with his wife and dated a Spanish superstar
In May 2023, Us Weekly reported that Jeremy Allen White's wife, Addison Timlin, filed for divorce. As part of their joint custody agreement, White agreed to be tested for alcohol consumption whenever he was looking after their two young daughters, and would also attend a minimum of two Alcoholics Anonymous meetings each week.
Later that year, in October, rumors began to emerge that White was dating Spanish singer Rosalía when they were photographed together while shopping for flowers at a Los Angeles-area farmers market. The following month, they were spotted together again, this time smoking cigarettes. "Rosalía and Jeremy Allen White have recently started dating," a source told Us Weekly at the time. "They started out as just friends, but things have turned romantic recently." They were subsequently seen holding hands and hugging, with the Daily Mail publishing photos of the two kissing while on a hike. Then, in March 2024, the two traveled together to Chicago.
He wasn't sure how to react to becoming a thirst trap
Not long after showing off his buff bod in "The Iron Claw," White stripped down to his tighty whities for a Calvin Klein advertising campaign in January of 2024. That campaign played an instrumental role in Jeremy Allen White's transformation from award-winning actor to bona fide sex symbol. "I didn't see this in my future necessarily," he told GQ. "Who grows up thinking, 'Yeah, I'll be in a Calvin Klein campaign?'"
According to White, he continued to feel that way even after he'd signed on. "In my head, I was just like, 'I can't see myself on a billboard. I shouldn't be here.' Just real imposter syndrome," he admitted. In preparation for the shoot, he veered away from his "Iron Claw" fitness regimen by embarking on a ton of cardio, including calisthenics, jumping rope, and pushups.
The enterprise proved to be lucrative for Calvin Klein, thanks to White's exploding popularity. As Women's Wear Daily reported, within its first 48 hours, the campaign generated $12.7 million worth of media exposure for the brand. Still, the whole thing remained somewhat surreal for the actor. "It is bizarre doing a Calvin Klein ad and now it is even more bizarre having it had come out," White told reporters after winning his second Golden Globe, as reported by ET.
Is he really the grandson of Gene Wilder?
Piercing blue eyes, a head full of thick, curly hair, and a somewhat prominent nose. That description aptly fits Jeremy Allen White, but also comedic actor Gene Wilder, star of such Hollywood hits as "Blazing Saddles," "Young Frankenstein," and "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory." The similarity did not go unnoticed on social media, where numerous people came to believe that Wilder — who died in 2016 at age 83 — was White's grandfather.
White addressed that during an appearance on "Late Night with Seth Meyers," when Meyers showcased a "clickbait" photo of Wilder and White, boasting the headline, "These Grandchildren Look Exactly Like Their Celebrity Grandparents." Asked if he ever clicked through the feature, White replied, "Well, no, 'cause I know that that's not my grandfather."
Appearing with his "The Iron Claw" co-stars Zac Efron and Harris Dickinson — alongside some adorable puppies — in a BuzzFeed video, White laid that rumor to rest once and for all. "I'm not related to Gene Wilder," he declared. "I think a lot of people think I am." Efron was apparently unaware of that rumor. "That's hilarious!" Efron responded, adding, "I kinda see it."
Reports claimed he was cast as a rock god in a biopic
In March 2024, Variety reported about a potential new project that promised to raise Jeremy Allen White's Hollywood profile even further. According to that report, White was in preliminary discussions for a new project in which he would portray rock legend Bruce Springsteen; the film would focus on the making of Springsteen's groundbreaking and critically acclaimed 1982 album "Nebraska," his first stripped-down, all-acoustic album.
At the time, no deals had yet been signed, but director Scott Cooper — whose films have included "Crazy Heart" and "The Pale Blue Eye" — was reportedly attached to direct. The prospective film was said to be titled "Deliver Me From Nowhere," based on the book of the same name.
That confirmed an earlier report, from Showbiz411, that Springsteen himself was collaborating with Cooper on getting the movie made; at that time, there was no mention of who'd be playing the Boss on the big screen.
Don't expect to see him play a big-screen superhero
Thanks to the gym-built physique he attained for "The Iron Claw," Jeremy Allen White already has the bulked-up, muscular bod that would be ideal for playing a superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, some comments the actor made about those types of movies would suggest it to be highly unlikely.
As White revealed in an interview with Variety, he's not a fan of the superhero genre, something that came across loud and clear when he was in preliminary discussions involving one of those films. "I had a meeting for a kind of Marvel-y movie, and I had an attitude," White admitted. "I think I played it all wrong." In fact, he recalled, he made no secret of his disdain for superhero movies when he asked, "Tell me about why should I do your movie." The studio execs he was meeting with, he noted, offered a pithy response. "They were like, 'F*** you.' And I was like, 'Right on,'" he said.
While he conceded that superhero films attract top-tier talent on both sides of the camera, he still questioned the artistic integrity of portraying make-believe heroes with imaginary powers who originated in the pages of comic books. "I am confused at how the pinnacle of an actor's career has ended up in that place," he mused.