Little-Known Facts About Jonah Hill

Little-Known Facts About Jonah Hill

“I really care about this stuff, I care about movies, and you just have to be strong and don't be stupid; freedom of choice is a big responsibility, and I'm lucky enough not to have to just take any movie to pay the rent, so there's no need to be greedy.” – Jonah Hill

We hope you’re ready to learn some more about the actor, comedian, and producer Jonah Hill.


Jonah Hill Facts

1. Sounds Cleaner

The actor was actually born Jonah Hill Feldstein.

Jonah Hill at the 10 Directors to Watch brunch 2014Joe Seer, Shutterstock

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2. Homeward bound

Unlike many actors, who had to make the move to L.A., Hill was born there and moved to New York City for school. Clearly, he found his way home.

Portrait Photo Jonah Hill of At the premiere of "Moneyball" in TorontoJosh Jensen, Flickr

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3. Educated man

After graduating high school, Hill attended Bard College, The New School and the University of Colorado Boulder.

Old Main on the University of Colorado at Boulder campusMECU, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

4. Bunk buddies

Jonah Hill used to be roommates with Justin Long.

Actors Justin Long and Jonah Hill pose at the Premiere Of Sony Pictures' "Walk Hard: The Dewy Cox Story"Frazer Harrison, Getty Images

5. Connections

Hill’s father Richard Feldstein was an accountant and he handled the books for major clients like Guns N’ Roses.

Music group Guns N' Roses pose for a portrait on May 7, 1988, at the Detroit State Theater in Detroit, Michigan.Icon and Image, Getty Images

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6. Family business

Jonah has a sister Beanie, who is an actress, and a brother Jordan, who manages musicians such as Robin Thicke and Maroon 5.

Portrait Photo of Jonah Hill at "Maniac" Season 1 PremiereSteven Ferdman, Getty Images

7. How you living?

Hill grew up in an affluent Los Angeles neighbourhood of Cheviot Hills, where he continues to live today.

Club Circle Park in the Cheviot Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.Jfc4me, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

8. Green Lantern

Jonah Hill was the voice of the Green Lantern in The Lego Movie.

A visually captivating still taken from a pivotal moment in the animated film The Lego Movie (2014)Warner Bros., The Lego Movie (2014)

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9. What happens in Vegas

Hill turned down one of the leading roles in The Hangover to work with Jay and Mark Duplass in Cyrus.

2010 Sundance Film Festival - "Cyrus" PortraitsMatt Carr, Getty Images

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10. Half the man he used to be

Hill started noticeably dropping weight in 2011, allegedly doing so not just for his health, but to be able to get more serious roles.

Portrait Photo of Jonah Hill at Beverly Hilton, Beverly Hills, CAs_bukley, Shutterstock

11. He went Platinum

Jonah Hill is Jewish and had a Bar Mitzvah – the theme of which was “Jonah Goes Platinum.”

Portrait Photo of Jonah Hill at the 69th Berlinale International Film FestivalDenis Makarenko, Shutterstock

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12. Nancy rules

No joke, Jonah Hill has a tattoo on his left forearm that says “Nancy rules” – as a tribute to his grandmother.

Portrait Photo of Jonah Hill in SohoAlo Ceballos, Getty Images

13. Pastor Hill

Jonah Hill officiated Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo’s wedding in 2014.

Jonah Hill (R) and Adam Levine attend 2010 NBA Playoffs GameNoel Vasquez, Getty Images

14. Shakespeare

Jonah started writing his own plays in college and would perform them at the Black and White bar in New York. His work gave him a small following, which made him realize that he wanted to be a movie actor.

Actor Jonah Hill arrives at the premiere of Fox Searchlight's "The Darjeeling Limited"Michael Buckner, Getty Images

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15. Famous friends

Hill was friends with Dustin Hoffman’s children, Rebecca and Jake, who introduced him to their father. It was through the Hoffmans that Hill made his big screen debut in I Heart Huckabees.

Actor Dustin Hoffman at the IFP's 27th Annual Gotham Independent Film AwardsMike Coppola, Getty Images

 

16. Faceted

Hill always had a passion for writing. At some point he was penning a screenplay with his friend and I Heart Huckabees co-star Jason Schwartzman. Then he was writing a screenplay for Sony called Pure Imagination, about a man who develops an imaginary friend after a traumatic incident. Who knows? Maybe we’ll be seeing a Jonah Hill film some time in the future.

Portrait Photo of Actor Jonah Hill at the 2010 San Diego Comic ConGage Skidmore, Flickr

17. Anything for Marty

Jonah Hill is a huge fan of Martin Scorsese. He even agreed to be paid the minimum SAG salary of $60,000 just to be in The Wolf of Wall Street.

Actor Jonah Hill attends the 2014 Variety Screening Series of 'The Wolf of Wall Street'Angela Weiss, Getty Images

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18. Stand up

Hill is a vocal opponent of the Russian anti-gay laws and has spoken out against them publicly in alliance with the Human Rights Campaign.

Jonah Hill speaks at The New Yorker Festival 2016Thos Robinson, Getty Images

19. Why not?

Before Jonah decided to be an actor, he actually wanted to be a hip-hop producer.

Portrait Photo of Jonah Hill in East Village New York CityLiam Goodner, Shutterstock

20. Nailed it

After making the transition to more serious acting roles, Hill was nominated for his very first Golden Globe and Academy Award for his role in Moneyball (2011).

A visually captivating still taken from a pivotal moment in the film Moneyball (2011)Columbia, Moneyball (2011)

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21. The Simpsons appearance

It wasn’t quite a cameo, but Hill voiced the character Andy Hamilton on The Simpsons back in 2009.

A visually captivating still taken from a pivotal moment in the television series The Simpsons (1989-)FOX, The Simpsons (1989-)

22. Speaking of The Simpsons

When he was a kid, Jonah loved the Simpsons as much he asked his parents if they could move to the fictional town of Springfield.

"Taste Of Springfield" Press Event At Universal Studios HollywoodAlberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images

23. Good ol' Judd

Jonah Hill made a brief appearance in Judd Apatow’s directorial debut The 40-Year-Old Virgin, then he scored a larger supporting role in Knocked Up. It was also with the help of Apatow (and Seth Rogen) that Hill landed his first leading role in Superbad.

A visually captivating still taken from a pivotal moment in the film Superbad (2007)Columbia, Superbad (2007)

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24. Seth Rogen collaborations

Jonah Hill and Seth Rogen have appeared in 7 films together.

Actor Jonah Hill (L) and roast master Seth Rogen onstage during The Comedy Central RoastJason Merritt, Getty Images

25. Quite the wager

Jonah Hill made a bet with Channing Tatum that 21 Jump Street would not make more than $35 million in its opening weekend, promising to kiss the tip of Tatum’s penis if he lost. Well… The movie made $36 million in its opening weekend.  No word on whether the payment has been collected.

Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum onstage during the 73rd Annual Golden Globe AwardsHandout, Getty Images

Sources:  1, 2, 3, 4


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