DJ Qualls

Donald Joseph Qualls was born on June 10, 1978, in Nashville, Tennessee, and raised in Manchester, Tennessee. At the age of 14, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, undergoing two years of treatment that resulted in his cancer entering remission. He later attended King’s College London, studying English literature before returning to Tennessee, where he began acting in local theater productions. During this period, fashion photographers David LaChapelle and Steve Klein discovered him, leading to modeling work for Prada and various advertising campaigns.

Qualls made his feature film debut in 2000 with ‘Road Trip,’ portraying the shy and geeky Kyle Edwards. This role was followed by appearances in ‘Cherry Falls’ (2000) and ‘Chasing Holden’ (2001). His career progressed with notable roles including Dizzy Gillespie Harrison in ‘The New Guy’ (2002), Rat in ‘The Core’ (2003), and Shelby in ‘Hustle & Flow’ (2005), for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination. He expanded his filmography with roles in ‘I’m Reed Fish’ (2006), ‘Delta Farce’ (2007), and ‘Amigo’ (2010).

In television, Qualls has held main roles as Police Officer Davey Sutton in ‘Memphis Beat’ (2010–2011) and Billy Nugent in ‘Legit’ (2013–2014). He gained significant recognition for his recurring role as eccentric hunter Garth Fitzgerald IV in ‘Supernatural’ (2011–2020), and as Citizen Z on ‘Z Nation’ (2014–2018), and Ed McCarthy on ‘The Man in the High Castle’ (2015–2018). His career has continued with projects such as ‘Buster’s Mal Heart’ (2016), ‘Creepshow’ (2019), and ‘Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities’ (2022). In January 2020, Qualls publicly came out as gay, and in May 2024, he announced his engagement to fellow actor Ty Olsson.