Conner Leavitt, TikTok’s Favorite Hype Husband, Is Taking His Own Bow in 11 to Midnight

Since The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives premiered on Hulu in 2024, Conner Leavitt (self-proclaimed “Instagram Husband” to Whitney Leavitt) has clinched his status as the show’s most beloved spouse.

Whether he’s slapping on a “Roxie Fart” tramp stamp to celebrate his wife’s Broadway box office record or painting himself green to cheer on her Wicked Night routine on Dancing With the Stars, Leavitt isn’t one to shirk his duties as an enthusiastic spectator. But when TikTok creators Cost n’ Mayor came calling with an offer to temporarily swap his seat in the crowd for a spot onstage, he couldn’t refuse.

Through May 27, Conner joins the cast of 11 to Midnight, Austin and Marideth Talenko’s off-Broadway dance show that peers in on a group of friends at a New Year’s Eve party. His character, a fantasy nerd with a big imagination, gets a wild routine to match, complete with wizardry that suits the finance professional-turned-burgeoning magician. Hear what Conner had to say about the Leavitt family’s theater era, this latest creative venture, and the next major one that’s on the horizon.

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Between Whitney’s Broadway run in Chicago and now your stage debut in 11 to Midnight, the Leavitts have become true show people. How has the theater community been treating you?
I feel like they’ve welcomed Whitney and I with open arms. Whitney worked so hard in Chicago, and I feel like the theater community saw that and really embraced her for it. She’s gonna be presenting an award at the Drama Desks, which is really cool, and I took as a signal that the theater community was like, “Hey, you’re one of us.”

How did this chance to join the cast of 11 to Midnight come to you?
Whitney and I were filming a brand deal, and Austin and Marideth sent Whitney a DM. They said, “Hey, Whitney. We don’t know if Conner would like to follow in your footsteps, but if he’s interested, we have an opening for a role in our off-Broadway play.” Whitney looked up at me, and I looked at her and was like, “Say yes right now! I would love to really push myself and go after this.” And she said, “All right, then let’s make it work.” I had six days to learn the whole show.

That’s intense for anyone, let alone someone without formal dance training. How did you feel on day one of rehearsal?
Overwhelmed.

Are you typically a “say yes now, figure it out later” kind of person?
Yeah, I would say I’m very much a person who wants experience, so I didn’t want to pass this up. I thought it would be so cool to get the opportunity to perform onstage, especially with talented dancers and actors and choreographers. But day one, they basically threw the kitchen sink at me. It felt like I was getting a boot camp in dance. And having incredible teachers like Austin and Marideth and Jake [Urban], who also helped me do a lot of the choreography, just made it approachable, made it doable, and we figured it out. It’s been a blast.

Between Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, Dancing With the Stars, and then her time in Chicago, Whitney’s relationship to performing is pretty thoroughly documented. How would you describe yours?
Growing up, I always loved magic. I would go to talent shows and I enjoyed seeing people amazed, I enjoyed seeing people laugh, I enjoyed seeing people have that wonder in their eye. And then it just kind of fell away. It felt like I had to put on my big boy pants and get a practical education. So I got a degree in mathematics and economics and got a tech job in finance, and I kind of put my performing and all of that to the side. Something I’ve always respected about my wife is she always chased after what she wanted. Basically, the whole world tells you, “You should go into accounting, economics, business.” But my wife kept chasing and chasing and chasing and it really inspired me. So when this came it just kind of reawakened something in me. And they let me do magic in the show!

How is magic folded into the character you play?
I play Austin’s cousin, and the cousin is meant to be nerdy, geeky, but proud of it. He’s not ashamed that he’s into Dungeons and Dragons and magic. So I think it plays really well into a lot of personal aspects of my life. I enjoy anime, I enjoy magic, I enjoy these fantasy worlds. So to be able to play a character that also encapsulates that and isn’t ashamed of it is a lot of fun.

You’re on the other side of the footlights now, but we have to talk about your talents as an audience member. You brought your A-game to both Dancing With the Stars and Chicago.
I think being in the audience is an art form in and of itself. I didn’t realize until my wife was on Dancing With the Stars how much the audience plays into the energy that you get back from the performers. So when I was putting on my custom Whitney-and-Mark shirts or when I painted myself green to look like Elphaba for Wicked night, or for Halloween when I dressed up as Napoleon Dynamite and wrote “Vote for Whitney” instead of “Pedro,” it’s funny how the audience started to feel like they could contribute to the show. The more energy and enthusiasm I could give to the performers, I felt like I was getting it back.  

How does it feel to now be on the receiving end of that energy?
Now I know what everyone’s talking about. When you have a great audience, all of a sudden I’m giving even more than I thought I had in the tank. When they’re excited, you want to give them more.

11 to Midnight is all about New Year’s resolutions and fresh starts, so what’s your resolution for this next phase of life?
I actually am working on a book. My New Year’s resolution was to finish writing this book by the end of the year, and I’m on track. So I’m very excited to make that announcement when the time comes.