Jonathan David Bennett was born on June 10, 1981, in Rossford, Ohio, and discovered a passion for performing at a young age. He began his television career in 2001 with a recurring role on All My Children. He then landed his career-defining part as Aaron Samuels in the 2004 Paramount film Mean Girls. 

Bennett built a second act at Hallmark Channel, where he became one of the network’s most prolific holiday stars. In 2020, he starred in The Christmas House, Hallmark’s first film featuring a gay married couple seeking to start a family. He followed with The Holiday Sitter in 2022, the network’s first gay-led romantic comedy, and several other holiday films. He also made his Broadway debut in Monty Python’s Spamalot in 2024.  

On the hosting front, Bennett launched Hallmark’s first-ever reality competition series, Finding Mr. Christmas, in October 2024, judging aspiring leading men competing for a role in a holiday film. He has also hosted Cake Wars, Halloween Wars, and Battle of the Decades on Food Network.