Justin Cornwell

Justin Michael Cornwell kicked off his acting career at Chicago Shakespeare Theater after studying theater at the University of Louisville—yeah, he’s got legit stage chops. Once he landed in Chicago, dude didn’t waste time, picking up roles on stage and sneaking into TV and film gigs, sometimes just a blip on the screen, but hey, you gotta start somewhere. Then 2016 happened and boom, he landed a lead role opposite Bill Paxton (yep, *that* Bill Paxton, RIP legend) on CBS’s “Training Day.” Not a bad way to break out, right? Since then, Cornwell’s basically been on a roll. He showed up in Netflix’s “Jingle Jangle,” which, if you missed it, is a wildly colorful musical with some serious holiday spirit. Then he was in “The Umbrella Academy”—superhero weirdness all over the place—and popped up in Peacock’s “Bel-Air,” the dramatic reboot of that classic 90s sitcom. He’s not slowing down either; 2025’s gonna see him sharing scenes with Tom Hardy in the Netflix action-thriller “Havoc.” Pretty wild to go from the stage to throwing punches on screen with Hardy, but that’s Cornwell for you. Oh, and acting isn’t the only thing in his bag. The guy writes and produces—look out for “Million Dollar Bet” dropping internationally in 2024. Plus, he’s deep into music and illustration, because apparently sleeping isn’t necessary when you’re that creative. All in all, Cornwell’s one of those rare types who seems to do everything and actually makes it look easy.