20 actors who trained at Juilliard

Alan Tudyk is one of those actors whose name people might know but with whom they may not be overly familiar since he has been so prolific as a voice actor, particularly for Disney. He has lent his voice talents to films like Frozen, Zootopia, and Moana. However, he has made some very notable appearances on television, including on the short-lived series Firefly. He has also appeared in such series as Arrested Development and movies like Dodgeball, A Knight’s Tale, and I, Robot. He enrolled in Juilliard but ultimately left without a degree. 

After starting in the theater, Sara Ramirez became more of a household name thanks to their lengthy appearance on the long-running series Grey’s Anatomy, in which they portrayed the character Callie Torres. They are particularly noted for being a trailblazer in terms of bisexual representation on television, particularly since their character was on the series for eleven seasons. They continued to build up a public profile, thanks to their performances in such series as Madam Secretary and And Just Like That…, and they have also appeared on the stage. They graduated from Juilliard in 1997.

Throughout his long career, the late David Ogden Stiers showed he was capable of acting in almost any genre and in almost any medium, whether live-action or animation, television or film. For many Disney fans, he will be long remembered as the voice of the fussy clock Cogsworth in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, as well as the villainous Governor Ratcliffe in Pocahontas and the Archdeacon in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. For many, though, he will always be the stuffy patrician surgeon Charles Emerson Winchester III in the hit series MASH. He graduated from Juilliard in 1972.

Before a riding accident left him paralyzed, Christopher Reeve was most famous for playing the beloved superhero Superman in the Superman films released throughout the 1970s and 1980s. However, this shouldn't blind audiences to his remarkable range as an actor, and he delivered some stunning performances in a number of other films, including as a charming but possibly sociopathic playwright in the dark comedy Deathtrip  (in which he co-starred with Michael Caine). He was as comfortable on the big and small screens as on the stage. This is no surprise since he attended Juilliard in the 1970s. 

The late Andre Braugher won legions of fans thanks to his memorable and indelible portrayal of the stoic Captain Holt on the popular sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Braugher could command any scene he was in, and Captain Holt allowed him to showcase his formidable comedy chops. However, he had already shown tremendous talent as a dramatic actor, thanks in no small part to his role in the crime drama Homicide: Life on the Street, as well as a number of appearances on both the big and the small screen. He graduated from Juilliard in 1988. 

If there's one role that Kelsey Grammer is known for, it's Frasier Crane. Not only did Grammer create the role for the long-running sitcom Cheers, but he also fully developed him for the very enduring Frasier. Though the series originally ended in 2004, it was subsequently revived in the 2020s, with Grammer returning to the role. However, Frasier isn't the only role he's known for, and for many, he will always be the beloved voice of the nefarious Sideshow Bob of The Simpsons fame. He attended Juilliard but was ultimately expelled. 

Christine Baranski has one of the most eclectic careers of anyone of her generation, and she has recently become particularly beloved thanks to her role as Agnes van Rhijn in The Gilded Age. However, her fans know that she has long been a staple of both stage and screen. On stage, she has appeared in a number of productions, including The Real Thing and Rumors, while she has also had supporting roles in such beloved films as The Birdcage, and she has starred in TV series like The Good Fight. She graduated from Juilliard in 1974.

Throughout her career, Jessica Chastain has shown remarkable versatility. She has appeared in a number of high-profile films, including The Help, Zero Dark Thirty, and The Eyes of Tammy Faye (the former two won her Academy Award nominations). She has also made a number of important television appearances, including co-starring with Oscaar Isaac in the miniseries Scenes from a Marriage. She graduated from Juilliard in 2003, and in addition to appearing on the big and the small screens, she has appeared on a number of stage shows, including in a revival of The Heiress. 

These days, Anthony Mackie is probably best known for portraying the character Sam Wilson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He has gone from being The Falcon to the New Captain America during the character's tenure. Mackie has excelled at imbuing the character with a grim stoicism and sense of honor that sets him apart from many of the other characters in the franchise. However, he has also appeared in a number of other films, including the LGBTQ+ drama Brother to Brother. Moreover, he has also appeared on stage in several productions. He graduated from Juilliard after being a part of Group 30.

Oscar Isaac has slowly but surely solidified his reputation as one of the most versatile actors of his generation. He is capable of delivering a strong performance in almost any genre, from sci-fi blockbuster epics such as Dune: Part One (in which he played the noble but doomed Duke Leto Atreides) to haunting and moving TV dramas like Scenes from a Marriage (in which he plays the husband, Jonathan Levy). And, of course, he was one of the three main characters of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, in which he plays Po Dameron. Isaac graduated from Juilliard in 2005. 

Throughout the 2010s, Adam Driver proved himself to be one of the most talented and imposing actors of his generation. Though he first came to prominence in the HBO series Girls, he soon achieved even greater success thanks to his role in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, in which he played the role of the villain/antihero Kylo Ren. He graduated from Juilliard in 2009. Since then, he has gone from success to success. He has appeared in various genres, ranging from blockbusters such as Star Wars to more intimate dramas like Marriage Story. 

Viola Davis is a true titan of acting. She graduated from Juilliard in 1993, and she quickly showed herself to possess a formidable screen and stage presence. She received a great deal of acclaim for her role in The Help, and she leveraged this into even greater fame and success on the big and the small screens, with one of her most notable roles being the morally compromised lawyer in the ABC series How to Get Away with Murder. She has been the recipient of many awards, achieving EGOT status in February 2023.

Phillipa Soo is well-known for her Tony-nominated role Hamilton, in which she played the role of Eliza Hamilton, the wife of Alexander, who endures his philandering ways and his seemingly bottomless desire for fame and success. She has also appeared in other stage roles, including the revival of Camelot. However, in recent years, she has made a move into various television series, including the series Dopesick and Shining Girls. Like many other successful actors of her generation, she trained in the acting program at Juilliard, and she graduated in 2012. 

Danielle Brooks can seemingly do it all. One of her most notable recent performances, of course, is in the movie adaptation of the musical The Color Purple, in which she plays the force of nature that is Sofia. However, she also proved to be a formidable presence on the stage, where, in fact, she also played Sofia in a revival of The Color Purple. Arguably, her highest-profile role, however, was in the hit Netflix series Orange is the New Black, in which she played Tasha "Taystee" Jefferson. She graduated from Juilliard in 2011.

Throughout his career, Lee Pace has slowly shown himself to be a remarkably versatile actor. He has appeared in everything from indie dramas to blockbusters and sitcoms to cerebral sci-fi dramas. He is one of those actors with an indefinable but unmistakable screen presence, whether playing a haughty king like Thranduil in The Hobbit or a tormented emperor in a series like Foundation. It's probably unsurprising that he was a graduate of Juilliard, where he acted in several plays and was part of a class that included such other notable stars as Anthony Mackie and Tracie Thoms.

Finn Wittrock has had a productive relationship with Ryan Murphy. In addition to appearing in several seasons of American Horror Story, beginning with Freak Show. Even before that, however, he had already shown his acting skills due to a role in the soap opera All My Children. He would go on to have several other collaborations with Murphy, including the series The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story and Ratched. He attended and graduated from Juilliard in 2008, and, in addition to his screen work, he has also starred in a number of theater productions. 

Many people know Glenn Howerton as the slightly deranged (and unrepentantly narcissistic) yet devilishly handsome Dennis Reynolds on the long-running sitcom It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. He helped to develop the series alongside show creator Rob McElhenney (who plays Mac on the show). However, he has been in a number of other television series and films, including the sitcom A.P. Bio, on which he starred from 2018 to 2021, as well as the critically well-received series BlackBerry. Adding to his fame, he also graduated from Juilliard with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1996.

There's no question Patti LuPone is one of the first ladies of the American stage, and she has appeared in such high-profile musicals as Evita, Sunset Boulevard, and Gypsy. However, she has also made a number of forays into television, making notable guest appearances on such successful sitcoms as Frasier and Will & Grace. Moreover, she has played a prominent role in a number of the series created by Ryan Murphy, including American Horror Story and Pose. She has the distinction of being among the first graduates of Juilliard's Drama Division. Some of her classmates included David Ogden Stiers and Kevin Kline.

Robin Williams was one of the great comedic and dramatic talents of his generation, and he brought remarkable humanity to every one of his characters, even those that were villainous. He trained at Juilliard for several years in the 1970s, but he ultimately left the school before graduating. After attaining success due to his role in the sitcom Mork & Mindy, he would go on to appear in a wide variety of films over the course of his career, and he would also lend his voice to the Genie in Disney’s Aladdin, which would become one of his most beloved roles. 

Rutina Wesley burst onto the scene with her starring role in the HBO series True Blood, in which she plays the complicated character of Tara Thornton, the best friend of main character Sookie Stackhouse. It was a juicy role for Wesley, and it gave her a chance to put her skills learned at Juilliard — from which she graduated in 2005 — to good use, and she would go on to become one of the best characters in the series. She would go on to continue showcasing her considerable talents in the drama series Queen Sugar, which ran from 2016 to 2022.