Jason James Richter | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 29, 1980 |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Notable work |
|
Jason James Richter (born January 29, 1980) [1] is an American actor and musician. He is best known for his role in the Free Willy film series as Jesse, the boy who befriends Willy the orca. [1]
Richter was born on January 29, 1980.
Richter starred as Jesse in Free Willy (1993), a role for which he was chosen out of more than 4,000 candidates. [2]
His other films include Cops & Robbersons , The NeverEnding Story III , Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home , Laserhawk , Free Willy 3: The Rescue , and The Setting Son. He also reprised his role as Jesse in the music video for Michael Jackson's "Childhood", which was featured in Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home . In 2021, he appeared in the thriller The Little Things , his first studio film since the Free Willy films. Between the Free Willy roles, he had TV guest roles on Sabrina, the Teenage Witch , Rugrats and The Client .
Following his appearance in Ricochet River, Richter took a decade long hiatus from acting where he was the bassist Fermata. [3]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Free Willy | Jesse Greenwood | |
| 1994 | Cops & Robbersons | Kevin Robberson | |
| 1994 | The NeverEnding Story III: Return to Fantasia | Bastian | |
| 1995 | Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home | Jesse Greenwood | |
| 1997 | Free Willy 3: The Rescue | ||
| 1997 | The Setting Son | Big Bully | |
| 1997 | Laserhawk | Zach Raymond | |
| 2001 | Ricochet River | Wade | |
| 2009 | Tekken | Bonner's Associate | Also assistant director |
| 2013 | The Quiet Loud | Paul | Short film; also director, writer & producer |
| 2014 | Life's a Pitch | Jimmy | TV film |
| 2016 | Vicious | Jeff | Also producer |
| 2017 | Last Rampage | Brawley | Also associate producer |
| 2017 | 3 Solitude | Elliot | |
| 2017 | High & Outside: A Baseball Noir | Johnny | |
| 2018 | Inhumane | Dr. Aaron Graybor | |
| 2018 | Remember the Sultana | Corporal Erastus Winters/ Corporal William Norton/ Private John Zazier (voice) | |
| 2018 | 818 | Alex | |
| 2018 | Driver | Alexander Hutchins | |
| 2019 | The Brawler | John Olson | |
| 2019 | Infidelity | Garret Walker | |
| 2021 | The Little Things | Detective Williams | |
| 2021 | Last Call | Saville | |
| 2023 | Natty Knocks | Leo | |
| 2023 | Nothing to See Here | Daniel | |
| 2024 | Final Heist | TBA |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Movie Magic | Himself | Episode: "Aqua Animatronics" |
| 1996 | The Client | Chris Love | Episode: "The Morning After" |
| 1997 | Sabrina the Teenage Witch | Dante | Episode: "Dante's Inferno" |
| Rugrats | Ringo the Bull | Episode: "He Saw, She Saw/Piggy's Pizza Palace" | |
| 2001 | Mega Movie Magic | Himself (archive footage) | Episode: "Free Willy 2/Independence Day" |
| 2009 | Bones | Clown No. 2 | Episode: "Double Trouble in the Panhandle" |
| 2011 | Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior | Matthew Keane | Episode: "Nighthawk" |
| Year | Title | Role | Artist | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | "Childhood" | Jesse | Michael Jackson | Nicholas Brandt |
| 2018 | "Pink Honey" | Tall Man | Houses | Brook Linder |
| Award | Year | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Young Artist Awards | 1994 | Best Youth Actor Leading Role in a Motion Picture: Drama | Free Willy (shared with Edward Furlong for A Home of Our Own ) | Won | [4] |
| MTV Movie & TV Awards | 1994 | Breakthrough Performance | Free Willy | Nominated | [5] |
| Best Kiss | Free Willy(shared with Keiko) | Nominated | [6] |