Jon Gries Net Worth, Wife, Family, Wiki Biography. Married?

• 62-year-old American actor, director and writer
• Growing up in Glendale, California with art-obsessed parents
• Acting debut at age 11 in 'Will Penny' with Charlton Heston
• Notable roles in 'More American Graffiti', 'The Monster Squad', 'Real Genius', 'Martin', 'Lost', 'Napoleon Dynamite', and 'Seinfeld'
• Net worth is approximately $2 million

Known for movies

Taken (2008)
as Casey

Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
as Uncle Rico

Men in Black (1997)
as Van Driver

Taken 2 (2012)
as Casey

Who is Jon Gries?

Born in Glendale, California, on 17 June 1957, under the air sign of Gemini, Jonathan Francis Gries is a 62-year-old American actor, director and writer. He is sometimes credited as Jonathan/Jonathon Gries and Jon Francis, depending on the project he’s involved in. As he’s been acting for more than 50 years now, there’s no genre, situation or demand that’s too challenging for him. Jon is perhaps best known for being Uncle Rico in “Napoleon Dynamite”, and Roger Linus in “Lost”. We could also see him in seminal titles such as “Monster Squad”, “Martin”, “Real Genius” and, unbeknownst to most – “Seinfeld”. Coming from an art-obsessed family, he knew what he wanted to be from the get go and exceeded all expectations by becoming one of the most respected names in show business.

Early Life an Education: Growing Up in California

Jon was raised in his birthplace by very famous parents – his mother, Mary Eleanor Munday, was a popular actress in the last century, amassing roles in cult classics such as “Ghost Dad”, “The Twilight Zone” and “The Golden Hawk”. Thomas Stephen Gries, a prominent producer, writer and director, was his father. A man respected throughout Hollywood, Gries Sr. introduced his son to the art of acting at a very young age. ‘Our house was not your average household’, Jon recalls. ‘There were movie scripts all over the place, and often my dad’s celebrity friends would stop by for a chat or a meeting.’ With exposure to such an artistic environment, he had little choice but to follow the footsteps of his influential parents. As for his education, Jon Gries attended an unspecified high school in his hometown, matriculating in 1975.

Given the fact that he devoted his life to acting, he forewent his college education and never looked back. Throughout the years, he attended several seminars and programs in France, Britain and other countries. His will to learn and improve as an actor have turned him into a living legend, with his peers having only kind words about him.

Career Beginnings: Working with Charlton Heston, More American Graffiti, Real Genius and More

While most actors need years of small-time roles to work with big names, Jon didn’t. At the tender age of 11, he was thrown into the fire by being cast as Horace in the hit Charlton Heston film “Will Penny”. Even though his father Thomas was both the writer and director, young Gries impressed Heston and the rest of the crew with his composure and maturity. Despite the success of his debut, he put acting aside in order to complete his education. In 1976, as a fresh high school graduate, he made appearances in “Helter Skelter” and “Born of Water”, followed by a series of roles in various popular TV shows and movies.

Hooooly shit look what I just found!! pic.twitter.com/gv2KwAQaym

— jon gries (@jongries) May 23, 2018

This was a rather interesting development, as he didn’t face any significant difficulties when it came to picking roles. “More American Graffiti”, “Swap Meet” and “Sunnyside” were the most important of the bunch. Critics began writing about him, which lead to more directors and producers wanting to work with him. While Jon wasn’t a star by any means, but his talent was evident.

Gaining Recognition: The Monster Squad, September Gun, Real Genius, TerrorVision and More

The 1980s were an important period for Gries. He started the decade off with supporting roles in “The White Shadow”, “The Texas Rangers” and “Joysticks”. People were wondering why he was silent in 1982, but they found out the answer when he caught everyone’s attention by having five critically praised roles, especially in “September Gun” and “High School U.S.A.” His jam-packed schedule stayed pretty much the same, with seminal parts in “The Monster Squad”, “Number One with a Bullet”, and even an appearance in “The Twilight Zone”.

In equal measure, Gries was in both films and series, slowly establishing himself as one of the premier supporting actors in the industry. In such a short period, he managed to build up his portfolio more than most actors manage over the course of several decades. It’s also worth noting his performances in “Kill Me Again”, “Pucker Up and Bark Like a Dog”, amongst the many credits he had in the 1980s. The first part of the 1990s decade included stints in “L.A. Law”, “Quantum Leap” and “Baskersfield P.D.”. At this time, he was finally handed the opportunity to showcase character development in a recurring role.

1990s and 2000s: Martin, Beverly Hills 90210, Men in Black, The Pretender, Napoleon Dynamite and More

In 1992, John Bowman and Martin Lawrence wanted to work with Jon on “Martin”, a cult 1990s sitcom in which Lawrence himself was the star. Initially, they wanted to feature him in a few episodes, but fans immediately took a liking to Shawn McDermott, so we got to seem him a lot in the next few seasons.

Appearing in over 50 episodes, Gries showcased that he can handle complex characters and implement changes in his approach to individual scenes. Hollywood took notice of his talents, as he went on to appear in “The X Files”, “Beverly Hills, 90210”, “Chicago Hope” and even “Seinfeld”. By the mid-1990s, the man was everywhere. His second big role was as Broots in “The Pretender”; the story features Michael T. Weiss as a man who escaped from a government testing facility and has the ability to master any skill. When his time on the show concluded after 82 episodes, he mostly focused on movies, the most important of which was “Napoleon Dynamite”. Throughout the 2000s, we would rarely see Jon performing in TV shows, but when he did – he was nothing short of impressive.

Recent Works: Napoleon Dynamite (the series), The Bridge, Dream Corp LLC and More

After highly praised performances in “Lost”, “Cold Case” and “CSI: NY”, Gries was ready to leave his mark on the 2010s. He reprised his role as Uncle Rico in the “Napoleon Dynamite” TV series, but only as a voice actor. Later on, he would make appearances in “Supernatural”, “Dr. Fubalous”, “Skinwalker Ranch” and other movies and shows. In “The Bridge”, he was Bob for eight episodes before moving onto “Dream Corp LLC”. As the lead star of this Daniel Stessen-created show, he played the quirky and absent-minded genius who records and analyzes dreams of various patients. Despite being in the sixth decade of his career, Gries is showing no signs of slowing down. He regularly hosts panels, gives speeches at Comic Cons and interacts with fans. According to multiple reports, he is always kind and never refuses to take a picture or give an autograph. With several projects in the making, who knows what this seemingly ageless man has in store for us?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFRtkP0ysZc

Personal Life: Is Jon Gries Married? Does He Have Children?

Jon’s current love life is quite a mystery. In 2011, it became known that he was dating actress Kimberly Rose McConnell. They got together on 11 November that year and immediately set tabloids ablaze with frequent social media posts and public displays of affection. However, in late 2015, they seemingly dropped off the grid as a couple. Nobody knew what they were up to and they stopped showing up to events together. It’s obvious that they broke up at a certain point, but didn’t want to create a fuss around the whole thing. Because he’s never married and there wasn’t any controversy involving the opposite sex, there were rumors that he might, in fact, be gay. Gries himself stated that he is heterosexual, putting these allegations to rest. Still, he is a very private person, so don’t expect any of his relationships to be publicized. As for his siblings, Jon has one sister – actress Cary Gries.

Trivia and Fun Facts About Jon Gries

In 2004, fans noticed a strange parallel between two of Gries’ many roles. In 1989, he played a homeless guy in “Seinfeld”, and proceeded to steal Tupperware from another character. 15 years later, in “Napoleon Dynamite”, his character was a door-to-door Tupperware salesman! In “Lost”, his plays the father to Michael Emerson’s character. Unbeknownst to most, Emerson is three years older than him in real life. On multiple occasions, he tried to become a vegan, but was unable to completely get rid of meat and dairy. His dad’s stepfather is famous jazz virtuoso Muggsy Spanier. Also, he played a wolf-man hybrid on two separate occasions – in “The Monster Squad” and “Fright Night Part 2”.

View this post on Instagram

#filmfesttucson

A post shared by Jon Gries (@jongries) on Sep 8, 2019 at 4:52pm PDT

Net Worth: How Rich is Jon Gries?

Have you ever wondered how affluent this famous actor really is? According to authoritative sources, Jon Gries has a net worth of approximately $2 million, as of October 2019. While this amount of money might not seem much for such a seasoned actor, Jon never prioritized big paydays. ‘It’s not about the money’, he said on the topic. ‘It’s not about the prestige or being recognized. It’s about doing work that you really think has integrity.’ Given the fact that he’s still active, we can expect this number to change in the following years.

Online Presence

When compared to most actors, Jon isn’t particularly active on social media. He has a Twitter profile and is followed by 1,400 people, but hasn’t posted anything since September 2018.

Quotes

#	Quote
1	(On Get Shorty) I was probably the 250th person they saw for that. They saw Matthew McConaughey, Steve Buscemi, a lot of people. Getting it was kind of an anomaly. It's very difficult being nobody and getting a part in a movie like that. My personal feeling is that what I did in the audition didn't translate on film, and part of that was Barry Sonnenfeld's insecurity. There was so much dialogue, so he thought everything should be sped up. He kept saying, "Make it faster," and I think it lost something. When we had the cast and crew screening, there wasn't a peep from the audience. Barry was sweating profusely. He thought everyone hated it. I walked out of there thinking it was gonna be a big flop. Of course, seeing it now, I think it worked just fine, and we were all being too hard on it.
2	On Napoleon Dynamite (2004): The fun of this kind of experience, which I think, unfortunately, a lot of people in the film industry miss, is really the adventure of making a movie that is being nurtured almost like a child and having to go through a channel where there are not millions of hands kind of massaging it to the screen.
3	On his definition of success: It's not about the money. It's not about the prestige or being recognized. It's about doing work that you really think has integrity.

Facts

#	Fact
1	Played the role of a wolf man in 2 films, in The Monster Squad (1987) as Desperate Man (wolf man in human form) and in Fright Night Part 2 (1988) as Louie.
2	Brother of Cary Gries.
3	On Lost (2004) he played the father of Michael Emerson, who is actually 3 years older than him.
4	In one of his appearances on Seinfeld (1989), he plays a homeless man that refuses to give Kramer's (Michael Richards) Tupperware back. In Napoleon Dynamite (2004), his character is a door-to-door salesman of Tupperware-like products.
5	Does not drink milk and eats very little red meat.
6	Son of noted writer/director/producer Tom Gries and actress Mary Munday. His paternal step-grandfather was jazz musician Muggsy Spanier (who was married to Jon's grandmother, Ruth).

Pictures

All pictures

Movies

Actor

Title	Year	Status	Character
Around June	2008		Murry
So Long Jimmy	2008		Levi Franklin
South of Heaven	2008		Hood 1
Bar Starz	2008		Ricky Fabulous
Taken	2008/I		Casey
The Comebacks	2007		Barber
September Dawn	2007		John D. Lee
Fathom	2007	Short
Bicentennial Curious	2007	Short	Mick Jones
American Pastime	2007		Ed Tully
Frank	2007/I		Colin York
Car Babes	2006		Gary
The Astronaut Farmer	2006		FBI Agent Killbourne
Stick It	2006		Brice Graham
The Sasquatch Gang	2006		Chilcutt
Last Best Chance	2005	Video	Bernard Wheeler
Waterborne	2005		Ritter
Confessions of an Action Star	2005		Donald Buckheim
Carnivàle	2003-2005	TV Series	Texas Ranger
Las Vegas	2004	TV Series	Greg Walker
Napoleon Dynamite	2004		Uncle Rico
The Rundown	2003		Harvey
The Snow Walker	2003		Pierce
The Big Empty	2003		Elron
Northfork	2003		Arnold
24	2002	TV Series	Joseph Wald
The Pretender: Island of the Haunted	2001	TV Movie	Broots
Jackpot	2001		Sunny Holiday / Glen Allen Johnson
The Beatnicks	2001		B Cool
ER	2001	TV Series	Defense Attorney Marty Nesmith
The Pretender 2001	2001	TV Movie	Broots
The Pretender	1996-2000	TV Series	Broots
Twin Falls Idaho	1999		Lawyer Jay Harrison
Seinfeld	1995-1998	TV Series	Rusty Homeless Man
Mitzi & Joe	1997		Joe
The Maze	1997		Dr. Holmes
Men in Black	1997		Van Driver
Casualties	1997		Bill Summers
Race Against Time: The Search for Sarah	1996	TV Movie	Steve
Get Shorty	1995		Ronnie Wingate
Strange Luck	1995	TV Series	Henry Bloom
Chicago Hope	1995	TV Series	Jack Kimball
Beverly Hills, 90210	1994	TV Series	Mr. Trilling, Dope Dealer Dope Dealer
The X-Files	1994	TV Series	Salvatore Matola
Martin	1992-1994	TV Series	Shawn McDermott Shawn
Bakersfield P.D.	1993	TV Series	Ray Coombs
Ed and His Dead Mother	1993		Rob Sundheimer
Four Eyes and Six-Guns	1992	TV Movie as Jonathan Gries
L.A. Law	1992	TV Series	Dr. Harold Benson
Fever	1991	TV Movie	Bobby
Quantum Leap	1989-1991	TV Series	Flash McGrath / Roscoe
The Grifters	1990		Drunk's Friend (as Jonathan Gries)
Rainbow Drive	1990	TV Movie	Azzolini
Tour of Duty	1990	TV Series	Maj. Rex Chapman, USAF
Jake and the Fatman	1990	TV Series	Lenny Maddox
Falcon Crest	1990	TV Series	Stone
Pucker Up and Bark Like a Dog	1989		Max (as Jonathan Gries)
Kill Me Again	1989		Alan Swayzie (as Jonathan Gries)
Guns of Paradise	1989	TV Series	Emmett
Tattinger's	1988	TV Series	Rick Jurasky
Fright Night Part 2	1988		Louie (as Jonathan Gries)
Che's Revenge	1987	Short	Jack (as Jonathan Gries)
Cagney & Lacey	1987	TV Series	Hands Callahan
The Monster Squad	1987		Desperate Man (as Jonathan Gries)
The Twilight Zone	1987	TV Series	Nick Gatlin (segment "Shelter Skelter")
Number One with a Bullet	1987		Bobby Sweet (as Jonathan Gries)
Running Scared	1986		Det. Tony Montoya (as Jonathan Gries)
TerrorVision	1986		O.D. (as Jonathan Gries)
Real Genius	1985		Lazlo Hollyfeld (as Jonathan Gries)
High School U.S.A.	1984	TV Movie	Leo Bandini (as Johnathan Gries)
High School U.S.A.	1983	TV Movie	Dirty Curt (as Jonathan Gries)
The Jeffersons	1983	TV Series	Frank
September Gun	1983	TV Movie	Brian Brian (as Jonathan Gries)
The Powers of Matthew Star	1983	TV Series	Brad
Joysticks	1983		King Vidiot (as Jonathan Gries)
The White Shadow	1980	TV Series	Uri Kogenski
240-Robert	1979	TV Series	Brad
Swap Meet	1979		Doug
More American Graffiti	1979		Ron (as Jonathan Gries)
Sunnyside	1979		Wild Child (as Jonathan Gries)
Mulligan's Stew	1977	TV Series	Adams
The Chicken Chronicles	1977		Tom (as Jonathon Gries)
Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn	1977	TV Movie uncredited
Helter Skelter	1976	TV Movie	William Garretson
Born of Water	1976		Friend
Will Penny	1967		Horace (button) (as Jon Francis)
The Knife Thrower		pre-production	Circus Manager
All About the Money	2016		Jon Waters
Dream Corp LLC	2016	TV Series	Dr. Roberts
Falsely Accused	2016/I		Gus
The Axe Murders of Villisca	2016		Greg
Dice	2016	TV Series
Durant's Never Closes	2016		Dizzy Dean
A Country Called Home	2015		Tyler (uncredited)
Endgame	2015/I		Principal Thomas
Pass the Light	2015		Franklin
Americons	2015		Billy
Brothers	2014/VIII	Short	Ronnie
Dream Corp LLC	2014	TV Movie	Dr. Roberts
Taken 3	2014	Mark Casey
The Bridge	2013-2014	TV Series	Bob
The Last Survivors	2014		Carson
After We Rest	2014	Short	Mr. Norman
Locker 13	2014		Archie (segment "title story")
Faults	2014		Terry
Eternity: The Movie	2014		Barry Goldfield, Jr.
Criminal Minds	2014	TV Series	Clifford Walsh
Skinwalker Ranch	2013		Hoyt
A True Story	2013		Richard Simpkins
Bad Turn Worse	2013		Sheriff Shep
Byron's Theme	2012	Short	Butcher
Supernatural	2010-2012	TV Series	Martin Creaser
Hitman: Absolution	2012	Video Game	Skurky (voice, as John Gries)
Taken 2	2012		Casey
Noobz	2012		Greg Lipstein
BlackBoxTV	2012	TV Series	Dad
Napoleon Dynamite	2012	TV Series	Uncle Rico
Unicorn City	2012		Shadowhawk
Deep in the Heart	2012		Dick Wallrath
Dr. Fubalous	2012	TV Series	Dr. Reed
Hawaii Five-0	2011	TV Series	Liam Miller
Redemption: For Robbing the Dead	2011		Tom Sutter
Not Quite College	2011		Tone Cash
Natural Selection	2011		Peter
5 Time Champion	2011		Melvin Glee
Pearblossom	2010	Short	Harry
Nikita	2010	TV Series	The Engineer
Psych	2010	TV Series	Strabinsky
Sons of Anarchy	2010	TV Series	Magoo
Good Intentions	2010/I		Sherriff Ernie
Lost	2007-2010	TV Series	Roger Linus
Crazy on the Outside	2010		Edgar
A Lone Star State	2009	Short	Wyatt Kinney
The Smell of Success	2009		Early Dunchamp
Elsewhere	2009		Mr. Tod
CSI: NY	2008	TV Series	Jim Warren

Soundtrack

Title	Year	Status	Character
Napoleon Dynamite	2012	TV Series performer - 1 episode
Deep in the Heart	2012	arranger: "Under The Bottle" / performer: "Under The Bottle" / producer: "Under The Bottle" / writer: "Under The Bottle"
The Big Empty	2003	writer: "SILVER PIECES"
Twin Falls Idaho	1999	writer: "Wish"

Producer

Title	Year	Status	Character
Second Coming	2012/II	co-producer
Pickin' & Grinnin'	2010	producer
Northfork	2003	associate producer
Jackpot	2001	co-producer
Twin Falls Idaho	1999	associate producer

Director

Title	Year	Status	Character
Coker		attached announced
Pickin' & Grinnin'	2010
The Pretender	2000	TV Series 1 episode

Composer

Title	Year	Status	Character
Pickin' & Grinnin'	2010

Music Department

Title	Year	Status	Character
Sunday	2016	Short music engineer completed

Self

Title	Year	Status	Character
You're So Cool Brewster! The Story of Fright Night	2016	Documentary	Himself
Teens Wanna Know	2015	TV Series	Himself
Full Burn	2014	Documentary short	JJ Perry
Featured by Fameus	2013	TV Series	Himself
The Playboy Morning Show	2012	TV Series	Himself
48 Hours	2008	TV Series documentary	Himself - Witness
The 20th IFP Independent Spirit Awards	2005	TV Special documentary	Himself
Napoleon Dynamite: Still Gallery	2004	Video documentary short	Himself
Make the Movie Live the Movie	2004	TV Movie documentary	Himself
The 19th Annual People's Choice Awards	1993	TV Special	Himself - Accepting Award for Favourite New Television Comedy Series

Archive Footage

Title	Year	Status	Character
Lost: Destiny Calls	2009	TV Movie	Roger Linus (uncredited)

Awards

Won Awards

Year	Award	Ceremony	Nomination	Movie
2012	Filmed in Utah Award	Filmed in Utah Awards	Best Supporting Actor: Feature	Unicorn City (2012)

Nominated Awards

Year	Award	Ceremony	Nomination	Movie
2005	Independent Spirit Award	Independent Spirit Awards	Best Supporting Male	Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
2005	Teen Choice Award	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Movie Blush Scene	Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
2005	Teen Choice Award	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Movie Sleazebag	Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
2005	Teen Choice Award	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Movie Rumble	Napoleon Dynamite (2004)