Jonathan Bennett debuted as J.R. Chandler on All My Children in 2001, staying with the show until the following year. His most recognizable role came in 2004 when he starred in Mean Girls. In the iconic film, he played Aaron Samuels, alongside Another World alum Lindsay Lohan (Allie). Soap Hub had the opportunity to chat with Bennett on the red carpet at That’s 4 Entertainment’s Christmas Con.
Key Takeaways
- Bennett starred on All My Children from 2001-2002 as J.R. Chandler.
- Bennett shared the screen with Lindsay Lohan in Mean Girls.
- Bennett is widely recognizable on the Hallmark Channel.
- Bennett is married to Jaymes Vaughan.
Host With The Most
The actor has just wrapped a run as the host and co-creator of Finding Mr. Christmas for Hallmark and has starred in several films, both holiday and non-holiday, for the network. He started his run on the network in 2017’s Love at First Glance and has led more than 15 others. The actor married Jaymes Vaughan on March 19, 2022. Bennett also reached a holiday milestone this year, marking the 10th year he has hosted the Times Square New Year’s Eve Celebration webcast for the Times Square Alliance. Additionally, Bennett has hosted numerous food competition shows on The Food Network, including Holiday Wars, Cupcake Wars, and Halloween Wars.
Bennett has attended every Christmas Con in New Jersey, which began in 1999, and has often served as host. This year, he lit the tree with One Life to Live alum Brandon Routh (Seth) and actress Kimberly Sustad.
“Train”-ing Ground
Bennett’s road to AMC was unique. After graduating from Otterbein College, the actor was on a train to New York City, where he was discovered by an agent. Six months later, he made his debut as J.R. His post-soap career included replacing actor Ryan Reynolds, taking over the role of Van Wilder in the 2009 film Van Wilder: Freshman Year. In 2014, the actor competed in season 19 of Dancing with the Stars alongside General Hospital alum Antonio Sabato Jr. (Jagger). In 2019, Bennett entered the Big Brother house on Celebrity Big Brother, where one of his fellow contestants was Dina Lohan, mother to his Mean Girls co-star Lindsay.
If you would like to attend Christmas Con 2026, tickets will go on sale on Saturday, January 17, at noon and can be purchased on That’s 4 Entertainment’s website.
