Penn Badgley was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Lynne Murphy Badgley, a newspaper reporter, and Duff Badgley, a carpenter. He spent his childhood years divided between Richmond, Virginia, and Seattle, Washington.
In Seattle, he became involved with the Seattle Children's Theater and did voice-overs for a children's radio station, discovering his passion for acting through these experiences. This passion led him to Hollywood one summer, where he landed an agent and secured his first major break by guest-starring on the popular TV show "Will & Grace" in 1998.
After relocating with his mother to Los Angeles, Badgley secured several recurring roles on the TV show "Daddio" in 2000.
