# Hunter Parrish
**Hunter Parrish** (born 1987 in [Richmond, Virginia](https://www.edgepedia.org/richmond-virginia)) is an American actor and singer best known for playing Silas Botwin, the son of [Mary-Louise Parker](https://www.edgepedia.org/mary-louise-parker)'s character, on the Showtime comedy-drama *Weeds* from 2005 to 2012, and for his Broadway roles as Melchior in *[Spring Awakening](https://www.edgepedia.org/spring-awakening-musical)* and Jesus in the 2011 revival of *Godspell*.[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) • [2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) • [3](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/stars/hunter-parrish/profile/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1987, Richmond, Virginia, USA[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) |
| Signature TV role | Silas Botwin on Showtime's *Weeds* (2005–2012); main ensemble cast member in 102 episodes[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) |
| Broadway debut | Melchior Gabor in *Spring Awakening*, as a replacement at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre from August 11, 2008 to the closing on January 18, 2009[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) • [1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) |
| Broadway lead role | Jesus in the 2011 revival of *Godspell* at the Circle in the Square Theatre, October 13, 2011 to April 15, 2012[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) |
| Notable films | *Freedom Writers* (2007), *17 Again* (2009), *It's Complicated* (2009), *Still Alice* (2014)[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) |
| Later TV work | Douglas Rhodes in *Good Girls Revolt*, Clay Haas in *Quantico*, Father Andrews in *Ratched* (2020), Owen in *The Other Black Girl* (2023), Benton Wesley in *Scarpetta* (2026)[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) |
| Music | Appears on the 2011 *Godspell* (The New Broadway Cast Recording); released multiple singles in 2026, including "House of Games" and "Paper Thin Skin"[4](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/hunter-parrish/289428486) |
## Early life and start in acting
Parrish was born in Richmond, Virginia, in 1987, and is a [Plano, Texas](https://www.edgepedia.org/plano-texas), native by upbringing.[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) • [5](https://www.elle.com/culture/celebrities/a10750/hunter-parrish-boy-wonder-389188/) In 2003, after being discovered at a showcase in New York directed by Peter Seidman, he was offered professional representation. His screen debut came with a guest appearance on *The Guardian* (2003), followed by the film *[Sleepover](https://www.edgepedia.org/sleepover-film)* (2004), in which he played Lance Gregory.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/)
## Weeds and film career
**The defining role.** Parrish gained recognition as Silas Botwin on Showtime's *Weeds*, a comedy-drama about a suburban widow, Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louise Parker), who starts dealing marijuana to pay her bills. Parrish played her insecure 17-year-old son, forced to grow up quickly after his father's death.[6](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/hunter-parrish/) He was a main ensemble cast member for the series' entire run of 2005 to 2012, appearing in 102 episodes.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/)
His film work ran alongside the series. He played a geeky teenager in *RV* (2006) as Earl Gornicke, Ben Samuels, the only white student in an inner-city high school, in *Freedom Writers* (2007), a high school bully opposite [Zac Efron](https://www.edgepedia.org/zac-efron) in *17 Again* (2009), and Luke Adler, son to [Meryl Streep](https://www.edgepedia.org/meryl-streep) and [Alec Baldwin](https://www.edgepedia.org/alec-baldwin)'s characters, in Nancy Meyers's *It's Complicated* (2009).[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) • [6](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/hunter-parrish/) In 2014 he played Tom Howland, the son of Julianne Moore and Alec Baldwin's characters, in the Oscar-winning *Still Alice*.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) • [3](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/stars/hunter-parrish/profile/)
A near-miss shaped this period of his career. Parrish was a finalist for the lead role of Troy Bolton in Disney's *High School Musical*; in a 2009 interview he said that with the field narrowed to five candidates, he chose to fly to Vancouver to meet the director of a [Robin Williams](https://www.edgepedia.org/robin-williams) film rather than attend the last audition, and the part went to Zac Efron.[7](https://www.teenvogue.com/story/hunter-parrish-could-have-been-troy-bolton) He said he was happy Efron got the role, and joked that it was "kind of awesome" to kick the crap out of him on screen in *17 Again*.[7](https://www.teenvogue.com/story/hunter-parrish-could-have-been-troy-bolton)
## Stage career
**Broadway debut.** In July 2008, while playing Silas on *Weeds*, Parrish was announced as the new Melchior in the Tony Award-winning musical *Spring Awakening*, succeeding Kyle Riabko.[8](https://playbill.com/article/weeds-star-parrish-to-join-broadways-spring-awakening-com-142787) He stepped into the role on August 11, 2008, and remained with the production at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre until its closing on January 18, 2009.[1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) TheaterMania's review called it a smashing Broadway debut, noting his "surprisingly expressive tenor voice" best showcased on "Left Behind" and praising his work as the golden-boy rebel Melchior Gabor.[9](https://www.theatermania.com/news/spring-awakening_15243/)
**Godspell.** Parrish returned to Broadway as Jesus in the first Broadway revival of *Godspell*, Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak's rock musical based on parables from the [Gospel of Matthew](https://www.edgepedia.org/gospel-of-matthew). Performances began October 13, 2011, at the Circle in the Square Theatre, and he remained with the production until April 15, 2012.[10](https://playbill.com/article/stage-to-screens-hunter-parrish-of-weeds-sees-the-light-in-godspell-com-183740) • [1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) He recorded the role on *Godspell* (The New Broadway Cast Recording) (2011), which includes his versions of "Beautiful City" and "All for the Best".[4](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/hunter-parrish/289428486)
**Other stage work.** His credits include Claude in the [Hollywood Bowl](https://www.edgepedia.org/hollywood-bowl) production of *Hair* (2014), opposite [Kristen Bell](https://www.edgepedia.org/kristen-bell) and Benjamin Walker; JD in the [Off-Broadway](https://www.edgepedia.org/off-broadway) *Good Grief* (2018) at the Vineyard Theatre; Jem Finch as a Broadway replacement in *To Kill a Mockingbird* at the Shubert Theatre from October 5, 2021 to the show's closing there on January 16, 2022; and Jesse Whitewater in *Gun & Powder* (2024) at Paper Mill Playhouse.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) • [1](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147) • [3](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/stars/hunter-parrish/profile/)
## Later television
From 2013 onward Parrish moved through recurring and main television roles: Jeffrey Grant in *The Good Wife* (2013–2014), Kyle Locke in *The Following* (2015), Josh Miller in *Hand of God* (2015), Douglas Rhodes in a main role across 10 episodes of Amazon's *Good Girls Revolt* (2015–2016), and Clay Haas in nine episodes of *Quantico*'s second season (2017).[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) He then played Alan Philips in *This Is Us* (2018), Father Andrews in Ryan Murphy's Netflix limited series *Ratched* (2020), and Owen in a main role across 10 episodes of Hulu's *[The Other Black Girl](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-other-black-girl)* (2023), based on Zakiya Dalila Harris's novel.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/) He next appears as Benton Wesley (Past) in *Scarpetta* (2026), in a main role spanning eight episodes.[2](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/)
## Music
Parrish has pursued recording alongside acting. In addition to the 2011 *Godspell* cast album, Apple Music lists a 2012 music video for "Sitting At Home" and a run of 2026 singles: "House of Games", "New Path Spark", "Paper Thin Skin", "Counting the Cost", and "Pine Tree Peace"; his listed genre is pop.[4](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/hunter-parrish/289428486) In a 2009 profile he said he wanted to record a folk album.[5](https://www.elle.com/culture/celebrities/a10750/hunter-parrish-boy-wonder-389188/)
## Casting and reception
Metacritic's aggregated television scores for Parrish's credits average 62, with his highest-scored series *The Good Wife* at 81 and his lowest *Hand of God* at 44; across his listed shows, 10 roles fall in the positive range and 7 in the mixed range.[11](https://www.metacritic.com/person/hunter-parrish/) His *Spring Awakening* debut drew praise from TheaterMania for its expressiveness,[9](https://www.theatermania.com/news/spring-awakening_15243/) while a Broadway World forum reviewer found his acting strong but his upper register strained, a mixed judgment typical of fan discussion around his transition from screen to musical theater.[12](https://forum.broadwayworld.com/thread/Robert-Reviews-Spring-Awakening)
## References
1. [Hunter Parrish – Broadway Cast & Staff, IBDB](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/hunter-parrish-480147)
2. [Hunter Parrish – Broadway & Theatre Credits, Bio, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Hunter-Parrish/)
3. [Hunter Parrish Biography, Broadway.com](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/stars/hunter-parrish/profile/)
4. [Hunter Parrish – Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/hunter-parrish/289428486)
5. [Hunter Parrish: Boy Wonder, Elle (2009)](https://www.elle.com/culture/celebrities/a10750/hunter-parrish-boy-wonder-389188/)
6. [Hunter Parrish – Actor, Singer, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/hunter-parrish/)
7. [Hunter Parrish In High School Musical?, Teen Vogue (2009)](https://www.teenvogue.com/story/hunter-parrish-could-have-been-troy-bolton)
8. ["Weeds" Star Parrish to Join Broadway's Spring Awakening, Playbill (2008)](https://playbill.com/article/weeds-star-parrish-to-join-broadways-spring-awakening-com-142787)
9. [Spring Awakening review, TheaterMania (2008)](https://www.theatermania.com/news/spring-awakening_15243/)
10. [Stage to Screens: Hunter Parrish of "Weeds" Sees the Light in Godspell, Playbill (2011)](https://playbill.com/article/stage-to-screens-hunter-parrish-of-weeds-sees-the-light-in-godspell-com-183740)
11. [Hunter Parrish – Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/person/hunter-parrish/)
12. [Robert Reviews Spring Awakening, BroadwayWorld forum](https://forum.broadwayworld.com/thread/Robert-Reviews-Spring-Awakening)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames P to Ph*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license