Matt Young's long form biography.
Matt Young is an LGBTQIA+ American-born, Australian stage and screen actor living in regional Queensland.
Matt is one of the stars of David Cook's debut feature HEART OF THE MAN (2024) and the current cinematic release ARRANGED LOVE.
An original Australian cast member of THE PRODUCERS, the Mel Brooks musical, Matt began his career touring the USA, Canada and Europe in musicals including ON THE TOWN, A CHORUS LINE and THE WIZARD OF OZ.
As an Australian theatre actor, recent highlights include the self-devised UP YOUR BUM, NO BABIES (Remembering Stories from the Gay Ghetto) at QTOPIA as part of Sydney Pride Festival 2024, regional QLD productions of THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE and MAMMA MIA and the national tour of ANNIE, and roles in the Matilda Award nominated musical YANK! and the Australian premeire of Guillem Clua's SMILEY, a gay rom-com from Spain. In 2021, Matt revisited THE PRODUCERS, in the role of Max Bialystock for Altitude Theater.
Memorable television and film appearances include playing James Cook in the multiple award winning CAPTAIN COOK: OBSESSION AND DISCOVERY (2007), and as Graham's Dad in the ground breaking documentary GAYBY BABY (2015). Other tv credits include the Hallmark Channel’s A SUMMER TO REMEMBER and PEARL IN PARADISE, HBO’s THE PACIFIC, TBS’s WRECKED and Australia’s THE HUNDRED WITH ANDY LEE.
He made his film choreography debut with Mitch Davis’s THE OTHER SIDE OF HEAVEN 2. He was the Fiji casting director for the 2020 Netflix hit series #blackAF, and has been a casting associate and crew member for many international productions in Fiji.
Matt is the founder of Tukuna Acting Club in Fiji and Outback Queensland, and has taught for Darlo Drama, NIDA Open Program, FIlm Fiji, The Factory Acting Studio, and Mackay's Central Queensland Conservatorium of Music, where he also directed/choreographed THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD and SONG CONTEST, THE ALMOST EUROVISION EXPERIENCE.
Short form biography
Matt Young is a US born, Australian LGBTQIA+ actor best known for playing James Cook in the multiple award winning CAPTAIN COOK: OBSESSION AND DISCOVERY and as Graham's Dad in the documentary GAYBY BABY. On tv, he's been seen in Hallmark's A SUMMER TO REMEMBER and PEARL IN PARADISE, TBS's WRECKED, and HBO's THE PACIFIC. Professional theater credits include the original Australian casts of THE PRODUCERS and YANK!, as well as productions of ANNIE, KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN and the Matilda Award nominated GOODBYE MISS MONROE. He was the film choreographer for THE OTHER SIDE OF HEAVEN 2 and director/choreographer for THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD and SONG CONTEST, THE ALMOST EUROVISION EXPERIENCE for Mackay's Central Queensland Conservatorium of Music and Fiji casting director for Netflix's #blackAF. He can currently be seen in David Cook's debut independent feature film HEART OF THE MAN, as well as the Australian/South Asian rom com ARRANGED LOVE.