Zach Braff

Zachary Israel Braff was born on April 6, 1975, in South Orange, New Jersey, where he grew up alongside the neighboring community of Maplewood. His father, Harold Irwin Braff (1934–2018), was a trial attorney, a professor and alumnus at Rutgers Law School, a founder of New Jersey's American Inns of Court, and an elected trustee of the National Inns of Court Foundation. His mother, Anne Hutchinson Maynard, worked as a clinical psychologist. His parents divorced and each remarried during his childhood. His father was born into a Jewish family, and his mother, originally Protestant, converted to Judaism before their marriage. Braff has described his upbringing as "very strong conservative/orthodox" in the Jewish faith, and he celebrated his bar mitzvah at Oheb Shalom Congregation. His older brother is author Joshua Braff, his brother Adam Braff is a writer and producer, and his stepsister Jessica Kirson is a stand-up comedian.

During his childhood in Maplewood, Braff attended Columbia High School, where he was a friend of future Fugees member Lauryn Hill. He was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder at age ten. He attended Stagedoor Manor, a performing arts training center for youth actors between the ages of ten and eighteen, where he met and befriended actor Josh Charles. He later studied film at Northwestern University's School of Communication, joined the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity, and graduated in the class of 1997.

Among Braff's earliest professional work was a role in High, a 1989 CBS television pilot that also featured Gwyneth Paltrow and Craig Ferguson but never aired. He appeared in an episode of the 1990s series The Baby-sitters Club and had a part in Woody Allen's 1993 film Manhattan Murder Mystery. In 1998, he appeared in a George C. Wolfe production of Macbeth at New York City's Public Theater.

Braff rose to widespread recognition through his role as John Michael "J.D." Dorian on the NBC/ABC medical comedy series Scrubs, which debuted in 2001 and ran through 2010. The role earned him a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2005, as well as three Golden Globe Award nominations between 2005 and 2007. He directed multiple episodes of the series, including its 100th episode, "My Way Home," and served as an executive producer during its ninth season while also appearing in six episodes. A reboot of Scrubs, produced by ABC and 20th Television, was confirmed by entertainment trade publications in 2025, with Braff attached to the project; its tenth season premiered on February 25, 2026.

In 2004, Braff made his directorial debut with Garden State, a film he also wrote, starred in, and produced. Shot in New Jersey on a budget of $2.5 million, the film earned more than $35 million at the box office and developed a cult following. At the 2005 Grammy Awards, the Garden State soundtrack won the Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media. His second feature film as director, Wish I Was Here, was released in 2014. He co-wrote the script with his brother Adam and partially financed the production through a Kickstarter campaign, reaching its $2 million goal within three days of launching on April 24, 2013. Braff also directed and starred in the film.

His other film credits as an actor include The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000), The Last Kiss (2006), The Ex (2006), and In Dubious Battle (2016). He provided the voice of the title character in the Disney animated film Chicken Little (2005), reprising the role in several Disney video games including Kingdom Hearts II and Chicken Little: Ace in Action. He also voiced the character Finley in Oz the Great and Powerful (2013). In 2020, Braff directed the short film In the Time It Takes to Get There, starring Alicia Silverstone and Florence Pugh, based on a poster created by Sam West, winner of an Adobe contest in 2018. He wrote, directed, and produced A Good Person (2023), a drama starring Morgan Freeman and Florence Pugh, released on March 24, 2023. In 2021, Braff received a Directors Guild of America Award nomination for directing the Apple TV+ comedy Ted Lasso, and was also nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for the Ted Lasso episode "Biscuits."

Braff has also worked as an executive producer on the documentary Video Games: The Movie and on The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014). He directed music videos for Gavin DeGraw's "Chariot," Joshua Radin's "Closer" and "I'd Rather Be With You," and Lazlo Bane's "Superman," the theme song from Scrubs. His music curation on film soundtracks contributed to broader recognition for artists including The Shins, a phenomenon referred to as "the Zach Braff effect."

On the stage, Braff wrote and starred in the dark comedy All New People, which premiered in New York City in 2011 before transferring to London's West End. His Broadway debut came in 2014, when he played the lead role in the musical adaptation of Woody Allen's Bullets Over Broadway.