# Paul Walter Hauser

Paul Walter Hauser (born October 15, 1986) is an American actor. He played supporting roles in the films Super Troopers 2 (2018), Beats (2019), Adam (2020), Cruella (2021), Old Dads (2023), and Inside Out 2 (2024). In 2019, Hauser had his breakout performance as the title character in Clint Eastwood's drama film Richard Jewell. Hauser starred as murderer Larry Hall in the 2022 miniseries Black Bird, for which he won a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award. As an occasional professional wrestler, Hauser is signed to Major League Wrestling.

## Early life

Hauser was born on October 15, 1986, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and raised in Saginaw, Michigan. His parents are Deborah and The Rev. Paul Hauser, a Lutheran minister. He attended Valley Lutheran High School, with Keenan Rodammer a private parochial school in Saginaw. He attended Concordia University Chicago before dropping out to pursue a career in the entertainment industry.

## Career
### Acting

Hauser portrayed Shawn Eckhardt in the 2017 film I, Tonya, Dale in the 2010 film Virginia, and Keith in the television series Kingdom. Hauser was initially cast as an extra for Virginia as his acting debut, and complimented director Dustin Lance Black for his speech after winning the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 2009 for Milk (2008); this led to Black writing him a larger role in the movie.
He had the recurring role of Deshawn in the Amazon web series Betas, and in 2018 appeared as Lonnie Laloush in Super Troopers 2 and as Ivanhoe in BlacKkKlansman. He has also appeared as a guest star on the television series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The Night Shift, Superstore, Key & Peele, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Community, Blunt Talk, I Think You Should Leave, Bupkis, and Cobra Kai. In 2019, he starred in Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell, portraying the title role, Richard Jewell, the real life security guard who spotted the bomb at the Centennial Olympic Park bombing. In 2020, he starred in Songbird, a film based on the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2021, Hauser played Horace Badun in the crime comedy-drama Cruella, a Disney live-action prequel/spin-off of One Hundred and One Dalmatians.
Hauser also stars as Raymond Porter, better known by his nickname Stingray, in Cobra Kai. He plays a recurring character in Season 2, and a major anti-hero in Seasons 4 & 5.
Although known for his comedic turns, Hauser gained broad recognition and critical praise for his portrayal of the serial killer Larry Hall in the 2022 Apple TV+ true crime miniseries Black Bird, adapted from James Keene's memoir In with the Devil. Critic Nick Schager wrote of Hauser's performance, "even in a sea of maniacal villains, his Larry Hall stands out as a uniquely cunning madman, so unpredictable and unnerving as to be downright unforgettable."
In 2024, he voiced a lead role in the DreamWorks Animation film Orion and the Dark and the role of Embarrassment in the Pixar film Inside Out 2.
In 2024, Hauser became attached to the true-crime drama Fruitcake alongside Jennifer Garner; the lead role in a bio-pic about actor-comedian Chris Farley; a reboot of The Naked Gun franchise; the Marvel Cinematic Universe film The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025); a biographical film about Bruce Springsteen titled Deliver Me from Nowhere, in the role of guitar tech Mike Batlan; and the comedy Balls Up alongside Mark Wahlberg. An upcoming film of his is The Luckiest Man in America, in which he plays Michael Larson, a contestant accused of cheating on the game show Press Your Luck in 1984.

### Other work

In 2022, Hauser debuted as a rapper under the moniker Signet Ringer. He released his first EP, Murder for Higher, on July 8, 2022.
As a professional wrestler, he is signed to Major League Wrestling (MLW) and also makes sporadic appearances on the independent circuit.

## Personal life

He married Amy Elizabeth Boland on July 23, 2020, in Los Angeles, California. Hauser and Boland have a son, Harris Boland Hauser, who was born on April 21, 2021, in Thomasville, Georgia. Their son was in his first movie, Bandit, when he was just 5 weeks old. On January 11, 2023, during his Golden Globes acceptance speech, he announced he and his wife were expecting their second son. Their son Jonah Maverick Hauser was born on April 1, 2023, at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, California.
Hauser is a Christian. He and his wife Amy were featured in a video series for online Christian multimedia movement I Am Second.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2010 | Virginia | Dale | |
| 2011 | Demoted | Bothered Salesman | Uncredited |
| 2012 | ..Forgotten, Detroit. | Davis | Short film |
| 2013 | iSteve | Pastey Jones | |
| 2017 | Locked Away | DJ #1 | |
| 2017 | I, Tonya | Shawn Eckhardt | |
| 2017 | Kiss Me When I’m Down | Robert | Short film |
| 2017 | The Corridor Defended | Frog | Short film |
| 2018 | Super Troopers 2 | Lonnie Laloush | |
| 2018 | BlacKkKlansman | Ivanhoe | |
| 2019 | Late Night | Eugene Mancuso | |
| 2019 | Beats | Terrence | |
| 2019 | Richard Jewell | Richard Jewell | |
| 2019 | Sheep | Sandy | Short film |
| 2019 | Heirloom | Ralph | Short film |
| 2020 | Adam | Trent | |
| 2020 | Da 5 Bloods | Simon | |
| 2020 | Eat Wheaties! | James Fisk | |
| 2020 | Songbird | Michael Dozer | |
| 2021 | Silk Road | Curtis Clark Green | |
| 2021 | Cruella | Horace Badun | |
| 2021 | Queenpins | Ken Miller | |
| 2022 | Delia's Gone | Bo | |
| 2022 | Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm | Elmer (voice) | |
| 2022 | The Magic of Passion | Howard | Short film |
| 2023 | Americana | Lefty Ledbetter | |
| 2023 | Old Dads | Tracy | |
| 2024 | Orion and the Dark | The Dark (voice) | |
| 2024 | Inside Out 2 | Embarrassment (voice) | |
| 2024 | The Instigators | Booch | |
| 2024 | The Luckiest Man in America | Michael Larson | Also executive producer |
| 2025 | The Fantastic Four: First Steps † | TBA | Post-production |
| 2025 | The Naked Gun † | Capt. Ed Hocken | Post-production |
| 2025 | Deliver Me from Nowhere † | Mike Batlan | Post-production |
| TBA | Balls Up † | TBA | Post-production |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2005 | Too Late with Adam Carolla | Various roles (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 2010 | Community | Student #3 | Episode: "Messianic Myths and Ancient Peoples" |
| 2010 | It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia | Richie | Episode: "Dee Reynolds: Shaping America's Youth" |
| 2010 | Lee Mathers | Keanu | Television film |
| 2013 | Key & Peele | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 2013 | D.I.R.T. Comedy | Juggalo | Episode: "The Boyfriend Experience: Girls & Ribs" |
| 2013 | Bush-League | Paul | Episode: "Scraps." |
| 2013–2014 | Betas | Dashawn | 4 episodes |
| 2014–2017 | Kingdom | Keith | 27 episodes |
| 2015 | The Night Shift | Oren Edwards | Episode: "Ghosts" |
| 2015 | Blunt Talk | Audience Member | Episode: "Who Kisses So Early in the Morning?" |
| 2016 | HR: Human Relations | Nakamura Fan | Episode: "Girl Buddy" |
| 2017 | Superstore | Vince | Episode: "Rebranding" |
| 2017 | A Midsummer's Nightmare | Nick Bottoms | Television movie |
| 2018–2019 | Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt | Tripp Knob | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | No Apologies | Daniel Cohen | Pilot |
| 2019–2025 | Cobra Kai | Raymond "Stingray" Porter | Recurring role (seasons 2, 4–6) |
| 2019 | WWE Smackdown | Himself | December 27, 2019 episode |
| 2020 | Reno 911! | Jeffy Renee Chisholm | 6 episodes |
| 2021 | Calls | Floyd (voice) | Episode: "Me, Myself & Darlene" |
| 2021 | I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson | Scott | Episode: "Everyone just needs to be more in the moment." |
| 2022 | The Late Show With Stephen Colbert | No One (Voice) | 1 episode |
| 2022 | Black Bird | Larry Hall | Main role; Miniseries |
| 2023 | AEW Dynamite | Himself | January 11, 2023 episode |
| 2023 | AEW Rampage | Himself | January 14, 2023 episode |
| 2023 | The Afterparty | Travis Gladrise | Main role (Season 2) |
| 2023 | Bupkis | Hauser | Episode: "Show Me the Way" |
| 2024 | Wrestling Revolver: Ready or Not! | Himself | Television special |
| 2025 | The Chosen Adventures | Sheep | |

## Accolades

| Year | Organizations | Category | Work | Result |
| 2020 | Astra Film Awards | Game Changer Award | Richard Jewell | Won |
| 2020 | Astra Film Awards | Breakthrough Performance Actor | Richard Jewell | Nominated |
| 2021 | Astra Midseason Film Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Cruella | Nominated |
| 2024 | Astra TV Awards | Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Streaming Movie | Black Bird | Won |
| 2025 | Children's and Family Emmy Awards | Outstanding Voice Performer in a Children's or Young Teen Program | Orion and the Dark | Nominated |
| 2023 | Critics' Choice Television Awards | Best Supporting Actor in a Movie/Miniseries | Black Bird | Won |
| 2019 | Detroit Film Critics Society | Breakthrough Performance | Richard Jewell / Late Night / Beats / 7 Days to Vegas | Nominated |
| 2021 | Garden State Film Festival | Best Ensemble (Feature) | 7 Days to Vegas | Won |
| 2023 | Golden Globe Awards | Best Supporting Actor – Limited or Anthology Series or Television Motion Picture | Black Bird | Won |
| 2019 | Indiana Film Journalists Association | Best Actor | Richard Jewell | Nominated |
| 2019 | National Board of Review | Breakthrough Performance | Richard Jewell | Won |
| 2024 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie | Black Bird | Won |
| 2021 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | Da 5 Bloods | Nominated |
| 2023 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series | Black Bird | Nominated |
| 2019 | Women Film Critics Circle | Best Actor | Richard Jewell | Nominated |