Who is Grant Gustin? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Also Known As: Thomas Grant Gustin

Age: 34 Years, 34 Year Old Males

Family:

father: Tom Gustin

mother: Tina Haney

siblings: Gracie Gustin, Tyler Gustin

Born Country: United States

Actors American Men

Height: 6'0" (183 cm), 6'0" Males

U.S. State: Virginia

Notable Alumni: Elon University

City: Norfolk, Virginia

More Facts

education: Elon University

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Childhood & Early Life

Thomas Grant Gustin was born on January 14, 1990, in Norfolk, Virginia. His mother, Tina Haney, is a pediatric nurse and his father, Thomas Gustin, is a College Professor. He has an older brother named Tyler and a younger sister named Gracie.

He started tap dancing at the age of eight, after being influenced by the 1952 American musical comedy film 'Singin' in the Rain'. As a child, he used to act out movie scenes with his siblings. He eventually started participating in community theatre and worked in over 30 musicals.

He attended the 'Governor's School for the Arts' program in Norfolk for Musical Theater when he was still in high school. He also performed regularly with Hurrah Players Incorporated, a theater organization in Virginia, for nearly a decade.

He graduated from Granby High School in 2008. It was during his sophomore year in high school when he started going to New York to watch plays and realized that acting is a viable career choice for him. He later attended the BFA Music Theater Program at Elon University in North Carolina.

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Career

While at Elon University, Grant Gustin auditioned for a Broadway Revival Tour production of 'West Side Story' and got selected for the role of Baby John. He left school in 2010, and performed in the play for a year.

During this time, he met his manager who got him a role in 'Glee', the popular Fox TV musical comedy. He soon moved to Los Angeles to shoot for the television series. He portrayed the role of Sebastian Smythe, an openly gay member of the Dalton Academy Warblers, and appeared on TV for the first time on November 8, 2011.

Gustin, who has been interested in musical theatre as a child, performed the duet 'Smooth Criminal' along with 'Glee' co-star Naya Rivera in January 2012. The song was part of the episode 'Michael' in the show's third season, and featured on-screen musical guests 2Cellos.

In May 2012, he worked on the television film for the Lifetime network, 'A Mother’s Nightmare', which was shot in Canada. The same year, he bagged a major role in the indie film 'Affluenza'.

Between 'Glee' and 'The Flash', Grant Gustin made a guest appearance in the television show 'CSI: Miami' in 2012, and got a recurring role in the 2013 series '90210'. In 2012, he also auditioned for the role of Finnick Odair in 'The Hunger Games' film series, but lost the role to Sam Claflin.

He landed his iconic character of Barry Allen, a.k.a. The Flash, in September 2013. However, he initially got only a guest role in the other DC superhero series 'Arrow'. He eventually got his own pilot, 'The Flash', which premiered in October 2014.

In 2017, he landed a major role in the indie movie 'Krystal' alongside Academy Award winner Kathy Bates.

Major Works

'The Flash', which is regarded as one of the best television shows, made Grant Gustin a household name instantaneously. Originally intended to be a 13-episode series, the show's success made the producers increase the episode count of the first season to 23. Its pilot show became the second-most watched premiere in the history of The CW. The show has been praised unanimously by critics. The season was renewed for a ninth season in March 2022.

Awards & Achievements

Grant Gustin has won two Teen Choice Awards for his role as Barry Allen in the TV series 'The Flash'. In 2015, he won the 'Choice TV: Breakout Star' award, while in 2016, he received the award for 'Choice TV Actor Fantasy/Sci-Fi'.

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He won the 'Breakthrough Performance Award' in the Saturn Awards 2015, for 'The Flash'. He also got nominations for 'Best Actor on Television' twice in 2015 and 2016.

His cover version of the song 'Smooth Criminal' from 'Glee' peaked at number 26 at 'Billboard' Hot 100. It also ranked 10th at 'Billboard' Digital Songs chart and 28th at 'Billboard' Canadian Hot 100 chart.

Personal Life & Legacy

Grant Gustin was in a relationship with dancer and model Hannah Douglass.

In April 2017, he got engaged to Instagram star Andrea LA Thoma and in December 2018, they got married. In 2021, they welcomed their first child, a daughter named Juniper Grace.

He is very close to his mother and considers himself a "Mama's boy". He is very fond of her cooking and says it is probably the most Virginian thing about him. He has a brother named Tyler and a sister named Gracie.

Trivia

Grant Gustin, who played an openly gay character in the Fox television series Glee, has actually been 'gay-bashed' in school, even though he is straight. He was more interested in theatre and tap dancing, and didn't hang out with other students who were into sports. That made him the target of other students in his school and made his childhood awful.

In October 2011, he posted his phone number on his 'grantgust' Twitter account by mistake and received over 20 calls from his fans within 10 minutes. He changed his phone number within 5 minutes by contacting network provider AT&T.

Famous for his superhero character, Flash, who moves at a superhuman speed, Gustin was called 'thunder foot' in school because he could run fast and kick the ball very far. However, he admits that his onscreen stunts are a mix of green-screen effects and computer graphics.

He has been a fan of another DC superhero, Superman. Gustin, who has a number of tattoos all over his body, has a tattoo on his left forearm which reads, "Superman ... I love him" in his mother's handwriting.

Grant Gustin Biography