Ben McKenzie — biography, films, roles and trivia

Biography

Benjamin McKenzie Schenkkan (born September 12, 1978) is an American actor and commentator. He is best known for his leading television roles: Ryan Atwood in the teen drama The O.C. (2003–2007), Ben Sherman in the crime drama Southland (2009–2013), and James Gordon in the crime drama Gotham (2014–2019).

After graduating from the University of Virginia with a degree in Economics and Foreign Affairs, he moved to New York to devote himself to acting. There he got his first roles in off-Broadway productions before moving to Los Angeles, where he was hired for the lead role in the television series The O.C., whose fourth season ended on February 22, 2007. For his portrayal of Ryan Atwood in the series, he received several awards between 2003 and 2007.

He made his film debut in the Oscar-nominated film Junebug (2005), after which he appeared in such films as 88 Minutes (2007), Goodbye World (2013), Something Beautiful (2014), and The Debt Line (2019).

Since 2017 he has been married to actress Morena Baccarin; they have two children. His uncle is actor and Pulitzer Prize winner Robert Schenkkan; his third cousin is actress Sarah Drew.

Filmography

1

2025 Motor City Detective Kent

Interesting facts

8

1
Uncle Benjamin (Robert Schenkkan) is a famous screenwriter who won the Pulitzer Prize.
2
Attended Austin High School. Graduated in 1997.
3
Has a daughter - Frances Laze Setta Schenkkan (born 03/02/2016).
4
Despite the fact that MacKenzie did not choose a profession in his field, he is very interested in economics and political relations: he follows elections, goes to rallies, and often discusses this in interviews and outside of them.
5
His real name is Benjamin MacKenzie Schenkkan. When registering with the actors' guild, Ben learned that Ben Schenkkan was already on the lists, so he took the surname MacKenzie.
6
He graduated from Virginia State University with a degree in international relations and economics and received a bachelor's degree in international economics. But then his acting instincts took over and he moved to New York to become an actor.
7
Ben's father is Pete Schenkkan, a lawyer, and his mother is Frances, a poet. The actor has two brothers, Nate and Zach.
8
According to Ben himself, he took the lead role in "The O.C." for two reasons: he liked Ryan's conflict with the society around him and he needed to pay his rent.