Ryan Dillon (born May 25, 1988) is an American puppeteer. He has performed Elmo on Sesame Street since 2013. He has served as a puppeteer for The Jim Henson Company and The Muppets.
Early life and career Dillon was born on May 25, 1988, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a young puppeteer, he came to the attention of Sesame Street producers when he attended an audition as a high school student. In 2005, he took time away from school during his senior year to participate in the production of season 37. In 2013, he succeeded Kevin Clash as the performer for Elmo following Clash's resignation from Sesame Street in November 2012. Beginning in 2019, he succeeded Richard Hunt as Don Music.
Dillon has taught classes in television puppetry at Pennsylvania State University, and various schools and centers in the United States. He has served as a puppet performer for Kraft MilkBite commercials, Julie's Greenroom, The Muppets Take the Bowl, The Muppets Take the O2, the Nickelodeon webseries Ask Sylvia, and John Tartaglia's ImaginOcean (2010).
In March 2017, Dillon was nominated for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming.
Filmography
+YearsTitleRoleNotes2005–presentSesame StreetElmo, Don Music2014–2017The Furchester HotelElmo, Guinea Pig (ep. 12), Mail Bird (ep. 68), Christmas Elf on Phone (ep. 68), Mr. Peckwood (ep. 74), Cat Bride (ep. 96)2016The Toycracker: A Mini-Musical SpectacularElmoTV short; uncredited2019Sesame Street's 50th Anniversary CelebrationDon Music, Elmo, Lefty the Salesman, Roosevelt Franklin (puppetry only)2020–2021The Not-Too-Late Show with ElmoElmo2022–presentMecha BuildersMecha Elmo (voice)2026The Muppet ShowGuest Starring Muppet Performer
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result Refs 2023 Children's and Family Emmy AwardsOutstanding Puppeteer PerformanceSesame Street 2025
References
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