Few television characters kept viewers guessing quite like Deran Cody in Animal Kingdom, and the actor who played him has a name that surprises people as often as his plotlines. Jake Weary’s birth name is Jacob, according to Wikipedia (community encyclopedia), and he was born on February 14, 1990. This profile sorts the confirmed parts of his story — real name, signature role, family background — from the details that are still fuzzy.

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Full Name: Jacob Weary · Date of Birth: February 14, 1990 (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia)) · Most Famous Role: Deran Cody in Animal Kingdom (IMDb biography (actor database))

Quick snapshot

1Confirmed facts
2What’s unclear
  • Height: no official figure appears in the profiles cited here (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
  • Marital status: no confirmed spouse is listed in the source set (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
  • Birthplace vs. upbringing: Trenton, New Jersey is listed as his birthplace, while some bios say Montclair (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia), IMDb biography (actor database))
3Timeline signal
  • February 14, 1990: born in Trenton, New Jersey (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
  • 2016–2022: played Deran Cody on Animal Kingdom (IMDb profile (actor database))
4What’s next
  • Post-Animal Kingdom work includes a reported role in How to Blow Up a Pipeline (IMDb biography (actor database))
  • His music and production credits remain active on his screen resume (IMDb profile (actor database))

Eight biography facts, one pattern: the public record is organized around his most famous screen role.

Label Value
Full name Jacob Weary (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
Date of birth February 14, 1990 (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
Place of birth Trenton, New Jersey, U.S. (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
Profession Actor, musician, singer-songwriter, producer (IMDb biography (actor database))
Most notable role Deran Cody, Animal Kingdom, 2016–2022 (IMDb profile (actor database))
Mother Kim Zimmer, Daytime Emmy-winning actress (New Jersey Monthly (state magazine))
Father A.C. Weary, described as an actor and director (IMDb biography (actor database))
Upbringing Raised in a show-business family in New Jersey (New Jersey Monthly (state magazine))

What is Jake Weary’s real name?

His legal birth name is Jacob Weary, according to the actor’s Wikipedia biography (community encyclopedia). His professional credits, on IMDb (actor database), consistently use the shorter form Jake.

Why does he use Jake instead of Jacob?

  • Professional name: Jake Weary, per his IMDb profile (actor database)
  • Birth-record name: Jacob Weary, per Wikipedia (community encyclopedia)

The reason for the shorter name is not covered in the main profiles cited here. What is consistent is the split: Jake is the public stage name, Jacob is the legal record.

The implication is simple: anyone searching for “Jake Weary real name” is really looking for the same person, with one name used for billing and one for official records.

What is Jake Weary’s most popular role?

His most recognized part is Deran Cody in the TNT series Animal Kingdom. His IMDb biography (actor database) names Deran as the role he is best known for, and TV Insider (TV guide outlet) dates his breakout to summer 2016.

What is Animal Kingdom about?

Why this matters

Animal Kingdom ran on TNT from 2016 to 2022 and became the role that anchored Weary’s resume.

In biography terms, the show is the marker that separates Weary’s earlier TV work from his main-series era. The TNT credit is the one most profiles highlight when they introduce him.

How long did he play Deran?

  • Summer 2016: breakout season begins, per TV Insider (TV guide outlet)
  • 2016–2022: series window listed on his IMDb profile (actor database)

That six-year run is the longest recurring stretch of his career in a single show, and it is the role most fans still associate with him.

The pattern: one role became the dividing line in his career, and every later profile still references it.

Is Jake Weary Kim Zimmer’s son?

Yes. According to Wikipedia (community encyclopedia), his mother is actress Kim Zimmer. New Jersey Monthly (state magazine) describes him as raised in a show-business family.

Who is Kim Zimmer?

  • Daytime Emmy Award-winning actress, according to New Jersey Monthly (state magazine)
  • Frequently connected to Guiding Light in coverage of Weary’s family (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))

Kim Zimmer is the most recognizable family name in Weary’s background, and her daytime-TV legacy shapes how his childhood is described in entertainment profiles.

Does Jake Weary have siblings?

These sibling names are less firmly documented than his parents. They belong in the “reported, not verified” column because they come from a fan-maintained database rather than a major entertainment outlet.

The implication: Weary’s family background is a genuine show-business lineage, even if some smaller details survive only in secondary databases.

Timeline signal

  • February 14, 1990: Born in Trenton, New Jersey (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
  • Summer 2016: Breakout as Deran Cody begins (TV Insider (TV guide outlet))
  • 2016–2022: Plays Deran Cody on Animal Kingdom (IMDb profile (actor database))

The pattern: one role marks his public timeline more heavily than any other event in his biography.

Confirmed facts

  • Birth name is Jacob Weary (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
  • Born February 14, 1990 (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))
  • Played Deran Cody in Animal Kingdom (IMDb biography (actor database))
  • Mother is Kim Zimmer (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia))

These are the details most profiles repeat without contradiction.

What’s unclear

  • Height: not listed in the profiles cited here
  • Marital status: no confirmed spouse appears in the source set
  • Birthplace vs. upbringing: Wikipedia lists Trenton, New Jersey; IMDb bio says he is from Montclair (Wikipedia (community encyclopedia), IMDb biography (actor database))
  • Sibling details: names appear only in a fan-maintained database (CelebsFacts (celebrity profile site))
  • A low-confidence name-variant note appears in Polish Wikipedia (language edition), so the full legal-name record is not perfectly consistent across sources
The catch

The center of Weary’s biography is solid, but the edges — height, spouse, siblings — are exactly where databases disagree.

The pattern: the gaps in Weary’s biography are mostly personal details not captured in standard databases.

What the sources say

Jake Weary is described as a musician, singer-songwriter, and music producer as well as an actor.

— IMDb biography (actor database)

Weary was raised in a show-business family.

— New Jersey Monthly (state magazine)

Summary

Jake Weary’s story is now tied to Deran Cody, but his working life includes music, a famous mother, and a screen career that started before the TNT hit. For viewers who came looking for his real name and family, the verified core is clear. The less-documented corners — height, marital status, sibling names — should be read with caution. If the family angle is what brought you here, the Scott Caan and Eric Winter profiles cover similar ground. For Animal Kingdom fans, the choice is clear: watch his newer film roles now, including the reportedly listed role in How to Blow Up a Pipeline, or spend the next Q&A catching up.

For Jake Weary, the fan questions are the same across every page — name, height, family, hair — and the honest answers split between verified and still-open.

Additional sources

imdb.com, es.wikipedia.org, prettylittleliars.fandom.com, themoviedb.org, amazon.com, tvtropes.org

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Frequently asked questions

How tall is Jake Weary?

A verified height does not appear in the IMDb biography or the other profiles used here, so any specific number circulating online is unconfirmed.

Who raised Jake Weary?

According to New Jersey Monthly, he was raised in a show-business family. Wikipedia lists his parents as Kim Zimmer and A.C. Weary, an actor and director.

Is Deran wearing a wig in Animal Kingdom?

The profiles cited for this article do not mention a wig for Deran, so that costume detail remains unconfirmed.

Are Craig’s tattoos real in Animal Kingdom?

Tattoo authenticity is not documented in the actor profiles cited for this article, so it stays in the unverified-fan-detail category.

Is Kim Zimmer still acting?

Her most frequently cited role in coverage of Weary is Guiding Light. The current profiles do not list a renewed schedule, so “still acting” cannot be confirmed from those sources.

What else has Jake Weary played in?

According to TV Insider, he has appeared in As the World Turns; according to a CelebFacts profile, he has a credit in the Fred franchise; and his IMDb biography highlights the reported role in How to Blow Up a Pipeline.

Bottom line: The pattern: the questions fans ask are the same across every page — name, height, family, hair — and the honest answers split between verified and still-open.