How old is Brennan Lee Mulligan?
If you've ever watched a guy in a flannel shirt describe a sentient corn person with the intensity of a Shakespearean actor, you know Brennan Lee Mulligan. But a question that pops up a lot—usually right after he drops a monologue that makes you want to run through a brick wall—is just how old is Brennan Lee Mulligan?
Brennan was born on January 4, 1988. Since we’re currently in the thick of January 2026, he just celebrated his 38th birthday.
Thirty-eight. It’s a bit of a "Goldilocks" age in the entertainment world, isn't it? He’s old enough to have the "elder millennial" fatigue about the state of the world, but young enough to still have the manic energy required to run sixteen different Dimension 20 campaigns while simultaneously taking over the DM chair for Critical Role’s fourth campaign.
The Math of a Dungeon Master
Most people feel like Brennan has been around forever. Honestly, in internet years, he has. He didn't just wake up one day and decide to be the king of actual play. He’s been honing this specific, weird craft since he was a literal child.
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His mom, the legendary Elaine Lee (who wrote the Starstruck comics, for the real nerds out there), introduced him to Dungeons & Dragons when he was just nine years old. By ten, he was already DMing. If you do the math, Brennan has been running games for roughly 28 years.
That’s more experience than some professional pilots have in the air. It explains why he can pivot on a dime when a player like Ally Beardsley rolls a Natural 20 and completely derails a three-hour combat encounter. He’s not just "good" at it; he’s been doing it for nearly three-quarters of his life.
Why age actually matters for his career
You might wonder why people care about his age beyond just curiosity. In the niche world of TTRPGs (Tabletop Role-Playing Games), there’s a massive generational shift happening.
Brennan sits right in the middle of it. He’s part of that cohort that remembers life before high-speed internet but was young enough to jump on the digital wave when CollegeHumor was the titan of online comedy.
- 2005: He graduated from SUNY Ulster at just 17. Yeah, he was a philosophy prodigy.
- 2017: He officially joined CollegeHumor as a writer.
- 2018: Dimension 20 launched, changing the trajectory of his life.
- 2025: He signed a massive three-year development deal with Dropout.
By 38, he’s managed to survive the collapse of the "old" internet and become the face of the "new" subscription-based model that Dropout (formerly CollegeHumor) has pioneered.
A busy year for a 38-year-old
Right now, in 2026, Brennan is arguably at the peak of his powers. If you've been following the news, you know he’s recently taken the reins of Critical Role Campaign 4 from Matthew Mercer. That’s a huge deal. It’s basically the equivalent of a new quarterback taking over for a Hall of Famer.
While he’s busy over at Critical Role, he hasn't abandoned his home base. He’s still the executive producer of Dimension 20, and he’s currently playing a character in the new campaign of Worlds Beyond Number, where Aabria Iyengar has taken over as the Game Master for the latest arc.
The "Prodigy" Narrative
There’s this funny thing about Brennan where people assume he’s either 25 or 50. There’s no in-between.
Part of that is the beard. Part of it is the way he talks about labor unions and late-stage capitalism with the weariness of a Victorian chimney sweep. But the truth is, he’s just a very disciplined 38-year-old who spent his twenties teaching improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB).
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Think about that for a second. While most people in their twenties were figuring out how to pay rent, Brennan was teaching people how to be funny on command. That "expert" energy he carries? It’s not just a vibe. It’s a decade of teaching experience in one of the most high-pressure comedy environments in the world.
What most people get wrong
The biggest misconception about how old Brennan Lee Mulligan is—or rather, what that age signifies—is the idea of "overnight success."
It took a long time for the world to catch up to what he was doing. He was writing superhero webcomics like Strong Female Protagonist back in 2012. He was appearing in one-off sketches as a "random cop" years before Game Changer was even a glimmer in Sam Reich's eye.
His 38 years are a roadmap of someone who stayed in their lane until the lane finally became a highway.
What to watch next
If you want to see the evolution of his work now that you know the timeline, here is what you should check out:
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- The "Early" Years: Look up his old sketches on the Dropout archives—specifically "Tide CEO." It’s the 2019 Webby-winner that proved he could carry a monologue like no one else.
- The Masterclass: Watch Exandria Unlimited: Calamity. He was 34 when he ran that, and many consider it the greatest "actual play" series ever recorded.
- The Current Era: Tune into the newest episodes of Critical Role Campaign 4 to see how he’s handling the most high-profile gig of his career at 38.
The takeaway here isn't just a number. It's the fact that Brennan Lee Mulligan has spent nearly three decades preparing for this exact moment. He isn't just "old enough" to do the job; he's exactly where he's supposed to be.
Keep an eye on the Dropout schedules for the upcoming Dimension 20 season announcements, as his new development deal means we're likely to see even more experimental shows featuring him both in front of and behind the camera this year.