Javier Muñoz is an American actor and singer. He is most notable for his Broadway performances as Usnavi de la Vega in the 2008 musical In the Heights and Alexander Hamilton in the 2015 musical Hamilton, in which he played the titular role from July 11, 2016, until January 14, 2018.
Early life and education
Muñoz was born to a Puerto Rican family and raised in the Linden projects of East New York, Brooklyn.[1][2][3] He was the youngest of four sons, and the only of his siblings to pursue a professional career in the arts.[1]
Muñoz's early roles include Ziad in Kari Floren's The Porch at Altered Stages in New York and other off-Broadway productions.[6][7] He was in the 2006 New York Musical Theatre Festival production of All Is Love. He abandoned acting and took a full-time job as a manager at the restaurant 441⁄2 in Hell's Kitchen before he landed a role in In the Heights.[2] His role was cut from the show during rehearsals, but he stayed on as a member of the ensemble.[2]
On February 16, 2009, Muñoz took the male lead of Usnavi de la Vega in In the Heights.[8][9] Theater critic Robert Feldberg wrote that he preferred Muñoz in the role over Lin-Manuel Miranda, stating that the romance between Usnavi and Vanessa seemed "more believable" and the performance was "emotionally persuasive".[10]
In 2015, Muñoz began performing as an alternate for the role of Alexander Hamilton in Miranda's Broadway production of Hamilton. By spring 2016, he appeared in the role every Sunday and on select weekdays.[11][12][13][14][15] He played the role of Hamilton the night President Barack Obama and his family attended the show.[16][17] He assumed the role full-time on July 11, 2016.[18] He was temporarily replaced by Jevon McFerrin following a February 2017 injury, and returned on March 21, 2017.[19]
In 2017, he joined the panel of Justin Baldoni's talk show Man Enough.[20]
In 2018, Muñoz was announced as a recurring guest star on the third season of Shadowhunters.[24]
Personal life
Muñoz is a gay man, a cancer survivor, and has lived with HIV since 2002.[25]
On October 15, 2017, Muñoz became part of the MeToo movement, sharing that he had been a victim multiple times.[26]
In March 2018, Muñoz received backlash following tweets where he lashed out, seemingly unprovoked, at fans. He issued a public apology in April, noting that the phrasing of a tweet caused him to recall an incident where he received anonymous hate mail at his building, leading to fear and distress.[27][28][29]
