Ryan Jerome McCartan (born June 14, 1993) is an American actor and singer. He is known for creating the role of Jason "J.D." Dean in the original off-Broadway cast of Heathers: The Musical. His Broadway credits include Fiyero Tigelaar in Wicked, Prince Hans in Frozen and Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby.
On screen, McCartan starred as Brad Majors in the 2016 Fox musical television film The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again. He also played the recurring role of Diggie Smalls on the Disney Channel sitcom Liv and Maddie (2013–2017).
Early life McCartan was born on June 14, 1993, in Excelsior, Minnesota, and graduated from Minnetonka High School in 2011 where he had been part of the Minnetonka Theatre. His father, Conn McCartan, was the principal at Eden Prairie High School in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, until his retirement in June 2023.
Career McCartan began his career with a minor part in the stage version of High School Musical in 2007. In 2011 he starred in the titular role in Minnesota's first regional production of The Phantom of the Opera. That same year, he won Best Performance by an Actor at the Jimmy Awards, given out by The Broadway League to the top performers in high school musical productions.
McCartan originated the role of Jason Dean in the original off-Broadway cast of the musical Heathers, from March through August 2014. He previously played the role in the 2013 premiere of the musical in Los Angeles. In July 2013, McCartan began playing the recurring role of Diggie on the Disney Channel comedy Liv and Maddie. He remained on the show until its finale on March 24, 2017.
In 2015, he starred in the direct-to-video film R.L. Stine's Monsterville: Cabinet of Souls. In 2015, Dove Cameron and McCartan formed a pop duo called The Girl and the Dreamcatcher, and their first video was released in October 2015. The pair broke up in October 2016.
In 2016 McCartan was cast in the lead role of Brad Majors in the 2016 Fox musical television film The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again.
In mid-2018 he originated the lead role of Eddie Corbin in the new musical Mutt House at the Kirk Douglas Theatre. On September 11, 2018, McCartan made his Broadway debut as Fiyero in the musical Wicked. He remained with the show until May 12, 2019.
In August 2019 he played Lt. Cable in South Pacific at the Aspen Music Festival. Also in 2019, he starred as Mac in Roundabout Theatre Company's new musical Scotland PA. In November 2019 he made his solo show debut at Feinstein's/54 Below. In April 2020, he hosted the Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS viewing of 25 Years of Disney Broadway.
He joined the cast of Frozen on Broadway as Hans in February 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all Broadway theatres were closed in March. During 2022, he played Hans in the U.S. National tour of Frozen; his final performance was on September 4, 2022.
In October 2022, McCartan was cast as Kyle Reed in The Winchesters, a spin-off of Supernatural. In June 2023, McCartan starred as Tony in a production of West Side Story at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. In November 2023, he starred as Cletis in the off-Broadway production of Lone Star. In September 2024, he took on the titular role in Randy Newman's Faust at The Soraya in Los Angeles, California.
McCartan joined the cast of The Great Gatsby on Broadway in January 2025, replacing Jeremy Jordan in the title role. In May 2026, he was expected to star in West Side Story as Tony as a part of the Washington National Opera at the Lyric Baltimore and Music Center at Strathmore.Masseron, Meg Ryan McCartan, Shereen Pimentel Will Star in Washington National Opera's West Side Story, Playbill, February 17, 2026
Personal life McCartan began dating actress and singer Dove Cameron, his Liv & Maddie co-star, in August 2013. He officially announced that Cameron was his fiancée on April 14, 2016. The relationship ended in October 2016.
In October 2017, McCartan began dating Samantha Fekete, with whom he ran a YouTube channel called The Stage Door, previously known as Sam & Ryan. In September 2023, they ended their romantic relationship but planned to continue running The Stage Door together. They soon discontinued the channel.
In 2014, McCartan tweeted that he has had Type-1 diabetes since age six. In 2019, he stated in an interview that he had been sexually abused by a theatre mentor when he was 12.
McCartan has self-identified as either queer or bisexual.
Filmography +Film roles Year Title Role Notes 2015 Summer Forever Liam Monsterville: Cabinet of Souls Hunter Direct-to-video film 2016 Emma's Chance Jacob Murphy The Standoff Farrell Bennett 2018 The Forbidden Cure Dr. Max Gerson Nominated for Best Short Film at Burbank International Film Festival 2022 Love You Anyway Daniel Direct-to-video film Only Good Feelings Benny Post-production
+Television roles Year Title Role Notes 2011 Extremely Decent Jeff Television film 2013The Middle Ryan Episode: "Valentine's Day IV" Monday Mornings Daniel Episode: "The Legend and the Fall" 2013–2017 Liv and Maddie Digbert "Diggie" Smalls Recurring role;27 episodes 2014 Last Man Standing Matt Episode: "Tasers" Royal Pains William "Cinco" Phipps V Recurring role (season 6);4 episodes 2015 Austin & Ally Billie Episode: "Duos & Deception" 2016 The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again Brad Majors Television film 2017 Midnight, Texas Jeremy 2 episodes: "Riders on the Storm", "The Virgin Sacrifice" Freakish Oliver "Ollie" Keller Recurring role (season 2);5 episodes 2018Love Daily Dylan Episode: "Love and Cheese" 2018-2019Princess Rap Battle Mad Hatter 2 digital episodes 2022-2023 The Winchesters Kyle Reed Recurring role;4 episodes
Theatre credits Year Title Role Notes 2007 High School Musical on Stage! Ensemble Cargill Stage, Minneapolis, Minnesota2010 The Master Butchers Singing Club Franz Waldvogel Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying J. Pierrepont Finch Won a Jimmy Award 2011 The Phantom of the Opera The Phantom of the Opera Minnetonka High School in Minnetonka, Minnesota 2013Heathers: The MusicalJason "J.D." Dean Hudson Backstage Theatre in Los Angeles, California 2014 Off-Broadway at New World Stages 2018 Mutt House Eddie Corbin The Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City, California 2018–2019 Wicked Fiyero Tigelaar Gershwin Theatre:September 11 – December 30, 2018January 22 – May 12, 20192019South PacificLieutenant Joseph Cable, USMCAspen Music Festival in Aspen, ColoradoScotland, PAMac Off-Broadway at Laura Pels Theatre 2020FrozenPrince Hans St. James Theatre:February 18 – March 11, 2020 2022 U.S. National Tour: March 17 – April 17, 2022July 12 – September 4, 20222023 West Side Story Tony Lyric Opera of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois Lone Star Cletis Off-Broadway at the Theatre Row Building2024 The Imaginary Invalid Cléante Florence Gould HallRed Bull Theater The Imaginary Invalid Follies Young Ben Carnegie Hall Faust Henry Faust The Soraya in Los Angeles, California2025The Great GatsbyJay GatsbyBroadway Theatre:January 21 – November 9, 20252025–2026Jay Gatsby(alternate)Broadway Theatre:November 28 – December 27, 2025January 26 – March 2, 2026The Great Gatsby at the Broadway Theatre credits AboutTheArtists2026Jay GatsbyBroadway Theatre:March 8 – 29, 2026Gans, Andrew Eva Noblezada Will Return to Broadway's The Great Gatsby in February; Reeve Carney Joins Cast in March Playbill, January 14, 2026July 27, 2026 – PresentGans, Andre. "Ryan McCartan Returns to Broadway's The Great Gatsby July 27; Senzel Ahmady Joins Cast", Playbill, July 27, 2026West Side StoryTony Lyric Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland Music Center at Strathmore in Bethesda, Maryland * Credits in bold indicate Broadway venues
Discography
Studio albums Title Details Heart Attack Released: October 13, 2015 Format: CD Label: Minty Swirl Records
Soundtrack albums + Title Album details Heathers: The Musical Released: June 10, 2014 Format: CD, digital download, streaming Label: Yellow Sound Label The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again Released: October 21, 2016 Format: CD, Digital download, streaming Label: Ode Sounds & Visuals
Extended plays Title DetailsThe Opposite Released: May 18, 2018 Format: Digital download, streaming Label: Ryan's Gate MusicSeventh Avenue Released: September 20, 2019 Format: Digital download, streaming Label: Ryan's Gate Music
Singles Title Year Album "When You Went Away" 2017 rowspan="3" "Everything" "Right Now" "Changed My Mind" 2018 The Opposite "He Don't Know You" "Acting Like You Don't" 2019 Seventh Avenue "High and Low" 2020 "Politician" 2021 "Pink and Green"
Promotional singles Title Year Album "You Can't Unlove Me" 2014
Other appearances Title Year Other artist(s) Album "Ours To Lose" 2015 Megan Nicole, Anna Grace Barlow, Alyson Stoner Summer Forever "About Tonight" Megan Nicole "Big Time" "Pulled Back Down" 2020 Within Earshot, Britney Johnson Within Earshot: Anthems For The In-Between "This Nearly Was Mine" 2021 R&H Goes Pop!
Music videos Title Year Director "This Nearly Was Mine" 2021 Jeff Barry & Shawn Willis
Awards In 2011, he received a Jimmy Award for Best Performance by an Actor. In May 2025, he was nominated for a Broadway.com Audience Choice Award in the category of Favorite Replacement Actor for his performance in The Great Gatsby.Death Becomes Her, Maybe Happy Ending, Oh, Mary! and More Earn Nominations for the 2025 Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards Broadway.com, May 5, 2025
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