An Update on Where "Jury Duty" Star Ronald Gladden Is Today

Ronald Gladden thought he was just doing his civic duty, with a few cameras following along. Like all the other participants in the documentary-style comedy series "Jury Duty," which premiered on Amazon Freevee on April 7, Gladden plays himself in the show — but unlike the others, who are all actors, Gladden actually thought he was participating in a documentary about a real trial.

"Jury Duty," though, is most definitely not about a real trial. Co-created by "The Office"'s Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, the show stars James Marsden, a group of actors, and the unsuspecting Gladden as jurors in a three-week Los Angeles trial. Out of the 12 jurors, Gladden is the only one who isn't aware that he's in a carefully plotted comedy series.

30-year-old Gladden is a solar contractor hailing from San Diego, CA, per Collider. According to his Instagram, he seems to enjoy spending time with his corgi, Meatball. He also was in a relationship at the time of filming, though his girlfriend apparently was in on the joke and helped persuade Gladden to give up his phone while the show was being made.

"We did not think someone today would be so cool about giving up their cell phone. And in fact, Ronald's girlfriend apparently helped us out with that," said director Jake Szymanski in an April 8 interview with Primetimer. "Because the night before, he had been talking to his girlfriend at home, and he said, 'You know, it's getting really serious. They're talking about sequestering us.' And she told him, 'Oh, that means they'll take away your cell phone, if they're sequestering you.'"

Still, when asked if he was single in an April 19 feature with GQ, Gladden smoothly avoided giving an answer. "Ooh, it's a solid question," he told the outlet. "You know, I'd love to answer as many as I can, but what's the world without an enigma?"

Gladden's "Jury Duty" journey began when he answered a Craigslist ad asking for participants to take part in a documentary about the judicial process. "My current position was ending. I knew probably two or three months in advance that I was gonna need to be looking for something else," he told GQ of why he answered the ad. "I was basically looking online anywhere and everywhere for just something else. I was looking on ZipRecruiter, LinkedIn, Indeed, Facebook, you name it. I didn't really have a preference. And so when I stumbled upon this, what intrigued me was it was an opportunity to have an experience I'd never had before. They were gonna pay for everything: hotel, food, lodging, travel expenses."

Gladden was one of about 4,000 applicants who sent a video, said executive producer Nicholas Hatton in an April 6 interview with NationalWorld. Gladden was eventually chosen for his likability. "We really wanted them to have a connection with Ronald, we didn't ever want him to feel like he was the butt of the joke, or that we were punching down," Hatton said.

It seems like Gladden's life hasn't changed all that much since the show aired. He told Primetimer in an April 7 feature that he's still working as a project manager in construction in San Diego, and said that he hasn't even spoken much about his unique experience making the series. "I'm not the type of person where I'm used to the focus being on me, so I didn't want to bring it up weeks in advance and talk about it all the time," he told the outlet. "I didn't tell anyone about it, I didn't post about it, I've literally just kept living my life as if it didn't happen."

One thing has changed, though: he's kept in touch with many of the jurors he met during the filming process, and apparently, attends more live shows than he used to now that he has a host of new actor pals. "I love all of them. And it's more than just the cast that you see on there," he told GQ. "I'm talking about cameramen, PAs, technicians, all of 'em."

In the GQ interview, Gladden also assured his host of new fans that he's not going to change himself despite his newfound fame — though he's not exactly sure what's next. "I'm definitely gonna keep on being Ronald, but as far as changes in my life, up until [the premiere], nothing had changed in my life because I was basically living like this [show] didn't happen," he said. "I had to keep the whole thing a secret. Now that it's out and it's getting such a positive reaction, I don't know where my life is gonna go. I'm not opposed to pursuing opportunities that come from this. I just never would've imagined that it would've gotten the attention it did."

All eight episodes of "Jury Duty" are now streaming on Amazon Freebee.