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Gillian Jacobs

Acting

Born October 19, 1982 · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Also known as Gillian MacLaren Jacobs · ג'יליאן ג'ייקובס

Biography

Gillian Jacobs (born October 19, 1982) is an American film, theatre and television actress, best known for her role as Britta Perry on the NBC comedy series Community. Jacobs was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her mother, Martina Magenau Jacobs, was a Carnegie Mellon University director of alumni relations at the Heinz College. Her father, William F. Jacobs Jr., was an investment banker.She was raised in the Pittsburgh suburb of Mt. Lebanon. She is of French, German, Irish, and Scottish descent. Her family owned the Jackson Koehler Eagle Brewery, established in 1847 in Erie, Pennsylvania, where her grandfather, John Martin Magenau Jr., served as President and CEO until its closure in 1978. Jacobs began studying acting at the age of eight, and attended acting classes on Saturdays at the Pittsburgh Playhouse while growing up.She performed with the Pittsburgh Public Theater, where she was a perennial contender in the Public's Shakespeare Monologue Contest, leading her to be cast as Titania in its production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. After graduating from Mt. Lebanon High School in 2000, Jacobs moved to New York City, New York to attend the Juilliard School, where she was a member of the Drama Division's Group 33. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in 2004.

Awards & recognition

  • Critics' Choice Television AwardBest Comedy Supporting Actress · 2012 · nominated

Filmography50+ titles

Dish It Out

as Self - Guest

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire

2020as Self - Contestant

Wylde Pak

2025as Alice Kelly (voice)

Rick and Morty

2013as Supernova (voice)

INVINCIBLE

2021as Eve (voice)

Regular Show

2010as BluRay (voice)

The Bear

2022as Tiffany Jerimovich

Fringe

2008as Joanne Ostler

Community

2009as Britta Perry

HarmonQuest

2016as Chip

The Venture Bros.

2003as Marsha Backwood (voice)

Star Trek: Lower Decks

2020as Barbara Brinson (voice)

Long Story Short

2025as (voice)

The Good Wife

2009as Sonia

Robot Chicken

2005as (voice)

Law & Order: Criminal Intent

2001as Sue Smith

Mr. Polaroid

2025as Self - Narrator (voice)

RuPaul's Drag Race

2009as Self - Guest Judge

Aqua Teen Hunger Force

2000as Carl's Wife (voice)

Carol & the End of the World

2023as (voice)

Injustice

2021as Harley Quinn (voice)

The Greatest Event in Television History

as Sonny

Fear Street: Part Two - 1978

2021as C. Berman / Adult Ziggy

Justice League Action

2016as Roxy Rocket (voice)

Tim and Eric's Bedtime Stories

2013as Young Patient

Fear Street: Part Three - 1666

2021as Adult Ziggy / C. Berman

Love

2016as Mickey Dobbs

American Dad!

2005as Christie (voice)

Minx

2022as Maggie

Ten Year Old Tom

2021as Dakota (voice)

Black or White

2014as Fay

Fear Street: Part One - 1994

2021as C. Berman (voice)

The Twilight Zone

2019as Annie

Royal Pains

2009as Tess Frimoli

Harmontown

2014as Self

Seeking a Friend for the End of the World

2012as Waitress / Katie

Is It Cake? Halloween

as Self - Judge

Gary

2026as Tiffany Jerimovich

Transatlantic

2023as Mary Jayne Gold

The Contractor

2022as Brianne

Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again

2022as Erica Daley (voice)

Come Play

2020as Sarah

Angie Tribeca

2016as Becky Bunker

Don't Think Twice

2016as Samantha

Girls

2012as Mimi-Rose Howard

Match Game

as Self - Panelist

Monsters vs. Aliens

2013as Sta'abi (voice)

Comedy Bang! Bang!

2012as Self

Gardens of the Night

2008as Leslie

Aquaman: King of Atlantis

as Mera (voice)