Jonathan Lipnicki is most remembered for the breakout performance that stole the hearts of the world in Jerry Maguire. But what has he been doing since that role?
He was born in October of 1990 in Westlake Village, California to Joseph Lipnicki and Rhonda Rosen. They’re a proud Jewish family, and Jonathan is still very active in speaking out against antisemitism today.
Jerry Maguire
His very first role was in the 1996 hit film Jerry Maguire. The film starts Tom Cruise as a hot shot sports agent who has a moral epiphany and is subsequently fired from his job. As he’s making a scene on his way out of the office, Dorothy Boyd (Renee Zellweger) joins him as he swears to form his own agency. Lipnicki plays Ray Boyd, the only child of the single mother Dorothy. Throughout the film Jerry and Dorothy fall in love, and Lipnicki is featured in several heartwarming and scene-stealing scenes.
Success as a child actor
After he captured the attention of America in the film, he went on to star in several other movies and appear on television shows in the 90s and 2000s.
In 1996 he joined the cast of The Jeff Foxworthy Show after it switched networks and saw Foxworthy move across the country. He played Justin Foxworthy, one of Jeff’s sons who was added in during the second season of the show.
When he finished filming that, he starred as Alex Parker in the 1997 CBS show Meego. The show is about a 9,000-year-old alien who crash lands on Earth. He’s discovered by the three Parker children who keep him safe while he tries to fix his ship so he can return home. The show filmed 13 episodes and was cancelled midway through in the States, but it was aired internationally all the way through.
Stuart Little
Shortly after filming that, he took on one of his other most notable roles in 1999 as George in Stuart Little. The film stars Lipnicki alongside Geena Davis and Hugh Laurie as a family looking to adopt another child. They meet an outcast mouse named Stuart and decide to take him home. Stuart Little is harassed by the family cat, Snowbell, while he and the Littles try to find out what happened to his family. The film was picked up for a sequel in 2002 where Lipnicki reprised the role of George.
In between films he also stared in The Little Vampire and Like Mike. Lipnicki has told his Instagram followers about the incredible experiences he had filming both of the films and how grateful he was for the roles.
Why did he quit acting?
He took a short break from acting in 2005, only appearing in one episode of the TV series Monk, then returned in the 2010s and stared in several short films and b-movies.
He revealed in an interview with Variety that he disappeared from Hollywood, not because of school or other engagments, but because he wasn’t a good actor.
“I’m honest about that. And it was because [I] wasn’t a very good actor at one point."
“Because the great thing about being young, a kid, is there’s this nice inherent childlike wonder. And that’s why a lot of kids you see are quite talented."
During his hiatus from Hollywood, he enrolled in acting classes and began seriously studying the craft.
Aside from acting, he’s made appearances on reality TV as well. In 2018 he appeared on the British dating show Celebs Go Dating where he attempted to find love with the help of the match makers on the show.
He also appeared on Worst Cooks In America: Celebrity Edition in 2019. That season of the show was hosted by celebrity chefs Anne Burrell and Tyler Florence. Lipnicki was on team Burrell where she tried to teach him cooking basics to represent her in the final challenge where the finalists cook for restaurant critics. Lipnicki was consistently in the bottom two and was the fourth person kicked out of the bootcamp.
What is Jonathan Lipnicki doing now?
Lipnicki has a few projects in production right now. One of which is a slasher film called Camp Pleasant Lake, where he will play the brother of a young girl who was abducted years before the beginning of the film. The movie is about a group of horror fans who willingly stay at the camp where the crime took place.
He is also filming for the role of Sully in the upcoming film The Re-Education of Molly Singer, a film about a lawyer who is forced to re-enroll in her University to help her boss’ son. Not much is known about his character yet.
In 2021 he joined forced with former WWE superstar Barbie Blank (Kelly Kelly) to start a podcast called “The Comeback Kids” where they interview other child stars or celebrities who have faded from the public eye and find out where they are and what they’re doing. The aim of the podcast is to inspire listeners to persevere and follow their passions.
Lipnicki uses his platform to advocate for animal rights, breast cancer research, and The Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. His Instagram features countless pictures of him and his dogs, behind the scenes stories, and him practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (which he is a black belt of).
Personal Life
He’s currently in a relationship with comedian Nikki Black, who runs a comedy improve show called Protected Under Parody that performs monthly at Alamo Drafthouse in Los Angeles. Lipnicki has made appearances in the performance before.
He’s available on Cameo if you want him to send a special message to you or a loved one, and he even taught an acting workshop recently as well!
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