Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman

Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman was born on October 21, 1984, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and was adopted at 12 days old. He grew up in Rimbey, Alberta, a small town that he has described as predominantly Caucasian and focused on oil, gas, farming, and ranching. His early life experiences as a biracial gay man in this environment shaped his perspective. By age 15, he began his modeling career, initially in Calgary, and later traveled internationally, working in Europe, South Africa, and across North America. He shot campaigns for brands such as Levi’s and American Apparel. At 19, he moved to Vancouver, where he began to seriously pursue acting. He later moved to New York for seven years before relocating to Los Angeles in September 2016.

Bowyer-Chapman made his feature film debut in “Shock to the System” (2006). His career progressed with roles in television series like “Noah’s Arc” and “The L Word,” and a recurring role in Syfy’s “Stargate Universe” from 2009 to 2011. He also lent his voice to the animated series “Iron Man: Armored Adventures” as Black Panther. A significant turning point in his career came with his portrayal of Jay, an ambitious producer, in the Peabody Award-winning and Emmy-nominated Lifetime series “UnREAL” (2015–2018). He co-starred opposite Robert De Niro and Zac Efron in the comedy “Dirty Grandpa” (2016) and appeared in the Lifetime original movie “Love by the 10th Date” (2017).

In 2018, Bowyer-Chapman joined the cast of FX’s “American Horror Story: Apocalypse” for three episodes. He became a prominent figure in reality television as a guest judge on “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and later as one of the main judges on the first season of “Canada’s Drag Race” (2020), where he won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Host or Presenter in a Factual or Reality/Competition Series in 2021. He hosted an episodic conversational podcast series titled “JBC Presents: Conversations with ‘Others'” where he explored themes of ‘otherness’. He continues to advocate for inclusivity and representation, notably creating the Bramon Garcia Braun (BGB) scholarship for LGBTQ actors of color. More recently, he has been featured in the Disney+ series “Doogie Kameāloha, M.D.” (2021–2023).