Josie Totah is an immensely talented actor, writer and comedian with a gift for bringing dynamic characters to life. As she fearlessly evolves her body of work with each new project, Totah is fast proving to be one of Hollywood’s most engaging and sought after young talents. Totah has been recognized by numerous prestigious publications including being named to The Hollywood Reporter’s Top 30 Stars Under 18, Forbes 30 Under 30 (Hollywood), Teen Vogue’s 21 Under 21, Out Magazine OUT100 and Seventeen Magazine’s 6 Women Under 21 Who Are Changing the World.
Josie recently starred in Amazon’s half hour pilot, GOOD PEOPLE, created by Whitney Cummings and Lee Daniels. The pilot focuses on three generations of women, played by Lisa Kudrow, Whitney Cummings and Totah, all working in the ombudsman’s office of a college. Josie is Talulah, the smart, brash Generation Z voice of social injustice. The pilot also co-stars Greg Kinnear, Martin Short and Ian Harding.
Totah is most known for her starring role in NBC’s comedy television series CHAMPIONS created by Mindy Kaling and Charlie Grandy. The series focuses on a charismatic 15-year-old, ‘Michael’ (Totah), who is sent to live with his estranged father ‘Vince’ (Anders Holm) who is living the bachelor dream in New York City. Totah received critical acclaim for the role and was deemed the breakout star of the series, garnering instant affection from fans and critics.
Totah can be seen starring alongside Adam Devine in Walt Disney Pictures’ MAGIC CAMP. The young adult comedy follows a former magician who returns to his youth camp to reignite his career. In Summer 2017 she was also seen in Columbia Pictures & Marvel Studios’ SPIDERMAN:HOMECOMING as ‘Seymour.’ Totah also appeared in Chris Kelly’s debut feature OTHER PEOPLE opposite Jesse Plemons, Molly Shannon, Bradley Whitford and Zach Woods, which was released in September 2016. The film premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival where Totah received rave reviews for her riveting performance and was included in Variety’s 2016 Breakout Stars portfolio, InStyle Magazine’s 10 Rising Stars to Watch and a Most Inspirational Person at Sundance.
In 2015, Totah starred in the sixth and final season of Fox’s hit series GLEE as ‘Myron Muskovitz’, a strong-armed prodigy and child tyrant in one. This follows her performance in Disney Channel’s Kids’ Choice nominated series JESSIE, for which Totah received a 2014 Young Artist nomination for Best Performance in a TV Series-Recurring Young Actor 10 & Under.She starred in several notable television series including: Comedy Central’s The Other Two, CBS’ Primetime Emmy nominated series 2 BROKE GIRLS, Fox’s Golden Globe nominated comedy NEW GIRL, TV Land’s Primetime Emmy nominated comedy THE EXES, Disney’s Primetime Emmy nominated animation series SOFIA THE FIRST, as well as recurring in the Netflix series, No Good Nick. She also starred in ABC’s comedy BACK IN THE GAME alongside James Caan and Maggie Lawson.
In addition to her career in front of camera, Totah is a television and film writer. At the age of 15, she sold her first television pitch to Universal Television/NBC. The single camera sitcom with the working title AUNT NANCY, based on her real life aunt, had Totah set to produce alongside Adam and Naomi Scott, as well as star in it. She is currently working on new scripts and original projects, all while attending Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media.
Totah is also an LGBTQ activist who regularly appears on panels discussing LBGTQ rights and inclusion of LGBTQ characters in film and television. Totah was recognized by the Human Rights Campaign who honored her with the prestigious Visibility Award in 2018 and the Upstander Award in 2019. She was named by Out Magazine to Out100. Totah is also a celebrity ambassador for GLAAD and GLSEN where she serves as a member of the GLSEN Game Change Council.
