Gillian Jacobs

Gillian MacLaren Jacobs (born October 19, 1982) is an American film, theatre and television actress, best known for her role as Britta Perry on the NBC comedy series Community.

Jacobs was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her mother, Martina Magenau Jacobs, was a Carnegie Mellon University director of alumni relations at the Heinz College. Her father, William F. Jacobs Jr., was an investment banker.She was raised in the Pittsburgh suburb of Mt. Lebanon. She is of French, German, Irish, and Scottish descent. Her family owned the Jackson Koehler Eagle Brewery, established in 1847 in Erie, Pennsylvania, where her grandfather, John Martin Magenau Jr., served as President and CEO until its closure in 1978.

Jacobs began studying acting at the age of eight, and attended acting classes on Saturdays at the Pittsburgh Playhouse while growing up.She performed with the Pittsburgh Public Theater, where she was a perennial contender in the Public's Shakespeare Monologue Contest, leading her to be cast as Titania in its production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. After graduating from Mt. Lebanon High School in 2000, Jacobs moved to New York City, New York to attend the Juilliard School, where she was a member of the Drama Division's Group 33. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in 2004.

Gillian Jacobs is known for work in acting across film and television. New Release currently presents 21 verified screen credits connected to this profile.

Selected work includes The Detour with David Chang (2026), The Musical (2026), Is It Cake? Halloween (2025), Dish It Out (2025), Wylde Pak (2025), Transatlantic (2023), Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again (2022), The Contractor (2022).

The recorded credits span 2009 to 2026, including 12 movies and 9 TV shows. The filmography below lists available titles, release years and known roles.

This profile is updated as additional verified information becomes available.