Actor Biography

John Cho voices Bandit, a potential love interest for Petey and a cult member since childhood whose mother was a high-ranking member, in Freeform's new animated comedy "Praise Petey."

One of our most dynamic actors and a New York Times Best-selling author, Cho's esteemed career has spanned over two decades. He has continued to deliver compelling performances in both film and television, positioning him as one of the first Korean American actors in the mainstream to break through business and cultural barriers.

Cho's debut book, "Troublemaker," was released in March of 2022 and, in its first week, landed on both The New York Times and IndieBound bestseller lists. The book also was named one of the "Best Children's Books of the Year So Far" on Amazon. "Troublemaker" is a galvanizing middle-grade offering that follows the 1992 Los Angeles riots through the eyes of 12-year-old Korean American Jordan Park, whose parents own a liquor store. When Jordan's father leaves to check on the store amid mounting unrest, Jordan and his friends set out on a perilous journey to help his dad, and Jordan is forced to face the racism plaguing his own community.

Upcoming, Cho stars in season two of Apple TV+'s hit murder-mystery-comedy series "The Afterparty." He recently wrapped production opposite Katherine Waterstone in "They Listen," a horror film directed by Chris Weitz for Blumhouse and Sony Pictures. This marks the 11th collaboration between Cho and Weitz, with past projects including "American Pie" and "American Reunion." He also recently starred in the Amazon Studios' father-daughter dramedy "Don't Make Me Go."

Additionally, Cho executive-produced Erick Oh's animated short film "Namoo." "Namoo," which translates in Korean to "tree," is a hand-painted narrative poem inspired by the passing of Oh's grandfather. The short follows the beautiful and heartbreaking moments of a man's life from beginning to end. "Namoo" appeared on the 2022 Oscar®'s shortlist and was Annie Award-nominated in the categories Best Special Production and Best Character Animation in 2021.

On the big screen, Cho starred in Aneesh Chaganty's film "Searching," which garnered him an Independent Spirit Award Best Male Lead nomination. The film, named one of the National Board of Review's top 10 independent films of 2018, premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, winning two awards and singling out Cho's performance as one of the best of the festival. Cho was also seen starring in Kogonada's "Columbus," opposite Haley Lu Richardson. Variety raved about Cho's performance and his "untapped ability as a captivatingly sincere leading man." The film was nominated for four Gotham Awards and three Independent Spirit Awards, including Best First Feature.

Cho previously lent his voice to the father in the Oscar-nominated "Mirai" and in Sony Pictures Animation's "Wish Dragon" alongside Jackie Chan and Constance Wu. "Wish Dragon" was later nominated for an Annie Award in the category of Best Character Animation – Feature.

Cho first came into the spotlight in the 1999 hit comedy "American Pie" and the sequel, "American Reunion." He starred as Harold Lee opposite Kal Penn in the cult comedies "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle," "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay" and "A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas." Cho went on to star in the iconic role of Lt. Hikaru Sulu in the motion picture reboots of the legendary "Star Trek" franchise, appearing in all three films: "Star Trek" and "Star Trek Into Darkness" for J.J. Abrams and "Star Trek Beyond" directed by Justin Lin.

Additional film credits include Sony's "The Grudge," opposite Demian Bichir and Andrea Riseborough; the recent Hollywood-set noir "Gemini," opposite Lola Kirke and Zoe Kravitz; "The Oath," written and directed by Ike Barinholtz; Seth Gordon's "Identity Thief," opposite Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman; Ryan Eggold's "Literally, Right Before Aaron"; Len Wiseman's remake of the classic "Total Recall"; Mora Stephens' "Zipper"; Paul Weitz' "Grandma" and "American Dreamz"; Justin Lin's "Better Luck Tomorrow"; Ho Yim's "Pavilion of Women"; Steven Soderbergh's "Solaris"; and Best Picture Oscar winner "American Beauty."

On television, Cho recently starred in the live-action series for Netflix "Cowboy Bebop," based on the worldwide phenomenon from the original Japanese animated series in 1997. He was also seen in the CBS All Access reboot of "The Twilight Zone," in which he starred opposite of Allison Tolman and Jacob Tremblay for one episode. Additional credits include the leading role in FOX's "The Exorcist," "Sleepy Hollow" and "Kitchen Confidential"; ABC's "Selfie," opposite Karen Gillan, and "Flash Forward"; NBC's "Go On"; and the Weitz brothers' "Off Centre."

Born in Seoul, Korea, and raised in Los Angeles, California, Cho began acting while studying English literature at the University of California, Berkeley. He toured the country with his first show, "The Woman Warrior," an adaptation of the renowned memoir by Maxine Kingston. Other stage roles include the part of Laertes in the Singapore Repertory Theater's production of "Hamlet" and a variety of shows for East West Players.