Derek Mears (born April 29, 1972) is an American actor and stuntman. Often appearing in horror and science-fiction titles, he came to prominence for portraying Jason Voorhees in the 2009 reboot of Friday the 13th. His film roles also include The Hills Have Eyes 2 (2007), Predators (2010), Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011), Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013), and Alita: Battle Angel (2019). On television, he played the title character on the DC Universe series Swamp Thing (2019).
Early life Mears was born on April 29, 1972, in Bakersfield, California. He performed improv comedy at ComedySportz in Bakersfield. He graduated from Highland High School in Bakersfield in 1990. Early on in life, Mears had a severe case of the auto-immune disease alopecia universalis, causing him to lose almost all his body hair.
Career Mears has numerous credits both as a stuntman and as an actor. He had minor roles in The Tick, ER, Alias, Nash Bridges, Men in Black II, The Shield, CSI: NY, My Name Is Earl, Mr. & Mrs Smith, CSI: Miami, Community, and The Hills Have Eyes 2. His stunt credits include the films Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Blades of Glory, and TV series such as Angel and Bones.
Mears had his breakthrough lead role in the 2009 Friday the 13th film. He was recommended to the producers, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form of Platinum Dunes, by make-up and special effects guru Scott Stoddard, who created the new look for Mears' character, Jason Voorhees. Due to Mears' height at he is one of the tallest actors who have portrayed Jason, beside Ken Kirzinger, who stands at a similar height to Mears. He was nominated for an MTV Movie Award in the category for Best Villain for his portrayal of Voorhees, but lost to Heath Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight.
Mears did a lot of research on child development to flesh out the role of Camp Crystal Lake's notorious resident serial killer:
He is contracted to return for either another Friday the 13th sequel or another film by Platinum Dunes. If Mears reprises his role as Jason, he will be only the second person to portray the character more than once, next to Kane Hodder. He portrayed a Predator in the 2010 science fiction horror film sequel Predators.
Mears appeared in Ultraforce 2 on the Superego podcast. He also appeared in the American sitcom Community in the episode "Romantic Expressionism". He appeared as a zombie, credited as "Master-at-Arms", in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
Mears appeared with other horror actor Tyler Mane of Rob Zombie's Halloween in Compound Fracture.
On June 5, 2013, it was reported that Warner Bros. had relinquished their film rights to the Friday the 13th series to Paramount as part of a deal that allowed Warner Bros. to co-produce Interstellar.Warner Bros. Gives Up 'Friday the 13th' Rights to Board Christopher Nolan's 'Interstellar', The Hollywood Reporter One week later, Mears revealed that Paramount was working with Platinum Dunes to make a new installment "as fast as possible".
In a series of adverts for the insurance company Direct Line shown in 2021, Mears portrayed the character RoboCop.
Filmography Year Title Role Notes1995 The Demolitionist Chuck X 1999 Wild Wild West "Metal Head"/Stunts 2003 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl Cursed crew member 2004 The Shield Crazyhouse TV series (one episode) E.R. Joseph TV series (one episode)2005 Cursed Werewolf Minor role Zathura: A Space Adventure Lead Zorgon 2006 The Hills Have Eyes Larry Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest Assistant of Davy Jones Pro-Life The Father 2007 Blades of Glory Josh Cameo The Hills Have Eyes 2 Chameleon Minor role 2008 Semi-Pro Himself Resident Evil: Degeneration Curtis Miller/G 2009 Friday the 13th Jason Voorhees Lead role His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th Himself Documentary film2010Predators Classic Predator Lead role2010–2011Community KickpuncherEpisodes:"Intro to Political Science""Romantic Expressionism"2011 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Master-at-Arms Arena Brutus Jackson 2013 Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters Edward Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters Cyclops Truth In Journalism Bullseye Hatchet III Tyler Hawes 2013 Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th Himself Documentary film 2013–2014 Comedy Bang! Bang! Irate Fan / Executioner / Mr. Hellman Episodes:"Pee Wee Herman Wears a Halloween Costume""Patton Oswalt Wears a Black Blazer & Dress Shoes""Lizzy Caplan Wears All Black & Powder Blue Espadrilles"2013 Grimm Krampus Episode: Twelve Days of Krampus2014 Dead Snow 2: Red vs. Dead Stavarin Mighty Med Catastrophe Episode: There's a Storm Coming Lost Time Mr. Elliot PsyTerror / Aliens Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Dojo Ninja 2015 Freaks of Nature Wolf 2016 Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping Limo Driver Live by Night Donnie Gishler Red vs. Blue Ruben Lozano Voice (web series); Episodes:"Call""Consequences" RWBY Corsac Albain Voice; Web seriesEpisode: "Menagerie" Phantasm: Ravager Tall Dwarf Deleted Scene2017 From Jennifer Butch Valentine Twin Peaks Renzo TV series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Kree Captain Episode: "Orientation: Part 1" 2018 The Flash Sylbert Rundine / Dwarfstar Episodes:"Honey I Shrunk Team Flash""True Colors" 2019 Alita: Battle Angel Romo Swamp ThingSwamp Thing Main role 2020 Legends of Tomorrow Cameo, "Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part 5"2022The Guardians of Justice Awesome Man TV series2024'Salem's Lot Hubert Marsten 2025Shelby Oaks Tarion
Awards and nominations +YearAwardCategoryNominated workResult2009MTV Movie & TV AwardsBest VillainFriday the 13thScreen Actors Guild AwardsOutstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
References
External links
Interview with Derek Mears at SuicideGirls.com FEARnet Interview with Derek Mears