Ben Schwartz

Ben Schwartz is perhaps best known for portraying a fictional version of himself on the comedy web series "Jake and Amir" and for portraying Tom Haverford's friend Jean-Ralphio Saperstein on the sitcom "Parks and Recreation." Starting in 2012, he also starred as Clyde Oberholt in Showtime's television series "House of Lies."

He stars in "Middleditch and Schwartz," a two-person, completely improvised live show. Every performance is different and is made up on the spot. Additionally, he and Thomas Middleditch brought their improvisational talents to Netflix in the specials "Middleditch & Schwartz," which gained notable attention.

His feature film credits include "Peep World" with Rainn Wilson, Michael C. Hall, and Sarah Silverman, as well as "Everybody's Fine" with Robert De Niro. Schwartz has grown his repertoire with roles in "This Is Where I Leave You," "Outside In," "Turbo," "Runner Runner," "The Walk," and "Standing Up, Falling Down," where he starred alongside Billy Crystal and also served as an executive producer. In voice work, he is known as the voice of Sonic the Hedgehog in the film "Sonic The Hedgehog," which set records as the highest domestic grossing video game adaptation of all-time. He also voices characters in "Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," "DuckTales," "Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja," and the animated film "RUMBLE."

On television, Schwartz guest-starred as Jean-Ralphio Saperstein on NBC’s "Parks and Recreation" and continued as a lead in the Showtime show "House of Lies" with Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell. He ventured into science fiction with a role in J.J. Abrams' "Undercovers" and joined the ensemble cast of "Space Force" on Netflix. His voice work extended to series such as "BoJack Horseman" and the Disney+ original film "Flora and Ulysses."

Schwartz has been writing, directing, and acting in his own short films for some time. He had his own segment on HBO’s "Funny or Die Presents" called "Terrible Decisions with Ben Schwartz" and has appeared in multiple CollegeHumor sketches including the popular web series "Jake and Amir." He won the 2009 Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Special for coauthoring Hugh Jackman's opening number for the 81st Academy Awards.

An alumnus of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCBT), Schwartz continues to perform there regularly. He is a member of the improv group "Hot Sauce" with Adam Pally and Gil Ozeri, and their long-form improv show "Something Fresh" is performed at UCBT every month. Additionally, Schwartz delivered a commencement speech at Union College, demonstrating his engagement with academic and professional communities.