Paul Reiser

Comedian, actor, television writer, author and musician Paul Reiser is one of Hollywood’s most prolific creatives—and he shows no signs of slowing down.

Reiser currently stars in two hit shows for Netflix: Stranger Things—the company’s biggest series of all time—where he plays Dr. Sam Owens, a role created by the Duffer Brothers specifically for him; and Chuck Lorre’s The Kominsky Method, for which he received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. Reiser received rave reviews for the latter, where he delivered a moving soliloquy on life and loss in a scene that MediaPost says “will stand… as one of the finest moments seen anywhere on television.” He also took his first step into bloody, superhero glory, joining Season 3 of Amazon Prime’s Emmy-nominated The Boys, playing “The Legend.”

This was a busy summer for Reiser. Upon finishing work on Hulu’s forthcoming eight-episode, sitcom-themed comedy series “Reboot” (series premiers September 20)—from Modern Family creator Steve Levitan— where he stars opposite Keegan-Michael Key, Johnny Knoxville and Judy Greer, Reiser was off to Ireland to shoot “The Problem with People,” an original comedy feature film which he wrote, produced, and stars in alongside Jane Levy and Colm Meaney.

The multi-faceted actor also revived one of his most iconic roles in the highly anticipated return of Mad About You, the long-running hit 90s comedy Reiser co-created and starred in with Helen Hunt. The Emmy, Peabody and Golden Globe-winning comedy ended in May 1999 and premiered 20 years later as a limited series on Spectrum Originals. All seven seasons of the original Mad About You and the re-visit are available for streaming on Amazon Prime.

Throughout his prolific career, Reiser has worked with both independent and mainstream filmmakers. Having earned acclaim for his supporting role in the Academy Award-winning film Whiplash, Reiser was also recently seen alongside Kevin Hart in the Netflix feature Fatherhood, John McDonagh’s War on Everyone and in frequent collaborator Jeff Baena’s “The Little Hours” and “Horse Girl,” which premiered at Sundance 2020, the fourth film the pair has worked on together. The veteran actor has garnered praise for notable performances in films such as Diner, Bye Bye Love, Aliens, One Night At McCool’s, Beverly Hills Cop I/II and The Thing About My Folks, which Reiser wrote for his co-star Peter Falk.

Reiser is a fixture behind the camera as well. He co-created and co-produced There’s Johnny!, a seven-episode series which originally streamed on Hulu and now streams on Peacock. The show, a fictional story set behind-the-scenes of Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show circa 1972, co-created with filmmaker David Steven Simon and co-produced with director David Gordon Green in conjunction with The Carson Company, premiered to critical praise, with Decider saying There’s Johnny! is “a television experience unlike any I’ve seen on TV in recent years” and “unfolds like a dream, a memory fondly recalled.”

As an author, Reiser’s first book, Couplehood, sold over two million copies and reached the number one spot on The New York Times bestsellers list. His subsequent books, Babyhood and Familyhood, were best sellers as well. Voted by Comedy Central as one of the Top 100 Comedians of All Time, Reiser regularly performs sold-out standup at venues nationwide with dates currently booked throughout 2022 and beyond.

A SUNY Binghamton graduate of its prestigious music program, Reiser co-wrote the theme song for Mad About You, “The Final Frontier,” with Grammy-winning producer Don Was, and released an album of original songs with British singer-songwriter Julia Fordham called Unusual Suspects. Over the course of his career, Reiser has received multiple Emmys, Golden Globes, American Comedy Awards and Screen Actors Guild nominations.

Reiser and his family reside in Los Angeles.

• Reiser has acted in between 20-36 films.
• Paul Reiser named his production company, Nuance Productions, after a famous speech his character gave in his 1982 comedy movie, Diner.
• This fall's tour follow Reiser’s return to stand-up last year after a near 20-year break, but it’s his love of the art form that pulls him back in. "I always tell people this, there are very few things that you can do in your 60s that are close to how you did them when you were 19," Paul said in a Forbes interview, "... and stand-up is one of the only ones really.” 
• 2022 marks another milestone year for the prolific actor, comedian, television writer, producer, author, and musician. His acting projects include the fourth season of Netflix’s mega-hit, Stranger Things; the upcoming eight-episode Hulu comedy series Reboot; and playing “The Legend” in season three of Amazon Prime’s The Boys. Reiser has also wrapped filming on The Problem with People, an original comedy feature he co-wrote and produced.
• Stranger Things: Netflix’s biggest series of all time, features Reiser as Dr. Sam Owens in seasons two and four (with a cameo in season three). Series creators the Duffer Brothers cite Reiser’s role as the villainous Carter Burke in James Cameron’s 1986 classic Aliens as an inspiration for season two and Reiser’s unforgettable character.
• Hulu’s upcoming eight-episode comedy series Reboot was created by Modern Family’s Steve Levitan and premieres on September 20. Reiser plays opposite Keegan-Michael Key (Key & Peele, Veep), Johnny Knoxville (MTV’s Jackass, The Dukes of Hazzard), and Judy Greer (Arrested Development, Californication) in this meta-story of fictional actors reuniting for a reboot of their career-defining sitcom.
• Amazon Prime’s Emmy-nominated dark superhero series---based on the comic of the same name---features Reiser in the against-type role of The Legend, a sleazy power player past his prime (the outrageous character is a fan-favorite). Reiser found inspiration for the part in the spirit of late Hollywood movie mogul Robert Evans.
• Reiser co-wrote and produced his recently-wrapped project, the original comedy feature The Problem with People. The story of two estranged cousins making amends for generations of family disputes and drama, it stars Reiser alongside Jane Levy (Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, Reiser’s Tonight Show-inspired series “There’s…Johnny!”) and Colm Meaney (Star Trek Deep Space Nine, Layer Cake). Stay tuned for updates.