
Jon Cryer
Department: Acting
Biography
Jonathan Niven Cryer (born April 16, 1965) is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He is the son of actress–singer Gretchen Cryer. He made his motion picture debut in the 1984 romantic comedy No Small Affair, but gained greater fame as "Duckie" in the 1986 John Hughes-scripted film Pretty in Pink. In 1998, he finished writing and producing the independent film Went to Coney Island on a Mission from God... Be Back by Five, which was well received. Even though he gained some fame by starring in these films, it took several years to find success on television; the shows he had starred in (The Famous Teddy Z, Partners and The Trouble with Normal) did not last very long. In 2003, he was cast as Alan Harper on the CBS hit comedy series Two and a Half Men, opposite Charlie Sheen, for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award in 2009. He received three earlier Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his work on the show.
Known For

Morgan Stewart's Coming Home
1987

Pretty in Pink
1986

Stay Cool
2011

Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
1987

Shorts
2009

Holy Man
1998

Dudes
1987

O.C. and Stiggs
1987

Hot Shots!
1991

Hiding Out
1987

Unstable Fables: 3 Pigs and a Baby
2008

No Small Affair
1984

Weather Girl
2009

The Pompatus of Love
1996

Company
2011

John Hughes: Life Moves Pretty Fast
2012

Ass Backwards
2013

Heads
1994

Hit by Lightning
2014

BRATS
2024

Glam
1998

The Waiter
1993

Tortured
2008

Rap Master Ronnie: A Report Card
1988

Must See TV: An All Star Tribute to James Burrows
2016

Due Date
2010

Went to Coney Island on a Mission from God... Be Back by Five
1998

Danny Phantom: Reality Trip
2006

Big Time Adolescence
2020

Plan B
1997

Penn & Teller Get Killed
1989

Cannes Man
1996

18½
2022

Noon Wine
1985

Metro Chase
2005

The Little Pageant That Could
2024

Two Guys and a Girl
1998

The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003

The Tony Danza Show
2004

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
2000

American Dad!
2005

Family Guy
1999

Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003

Hey Joel
2003

The View
1997

Two and a Half Men
2003

E! True Hollywood Story
1996

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992

Crisis Aftermath
2019

Danny Phantom
2004

Dharma & Greg
1997

The Practice
1997

The Trouble with Normal
2000

Partners
1995

The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
2005

The Famous Teddy Z
1989

Getting Personal
1998

The Outer Limits
1995

Retrosexual: The '80s
2004

The Soup
2004

Becker
1998

Mom
2013

Amazing Stories
1985

American Dad!
2005

NCIS
2003

The Late Late Show with James Corden
2015

Extended Family
2023

Hercules
1998

Devoured
2022

Drop the Mic
2017

Who Do You Think You Are?
2010

Password
2022

The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale
2018

The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019

The Reichen Show
2005

The Rosie O'Donnell Show
1996

Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014

Supergirl
2015

Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television
2017

The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022

Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009

Hannah Montana
2006

Will & Grace
2017

Batwoman
2019

On Air with Ryan Seacrest
2004

The Flash
2014

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
2016

Arrow
2012

Mr. Show with Bob and David
1995

Big Brother
2000

Justice League Action
2016

Conan
2010

aka Charlie Sheen
2025

People's Choice Awards
1975

The Great Indoors
2016

Tony Awards
1956