{{short description|Canadian actor (born 1985)}} {{Use Canadian English|date=May 2020}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2020}} {{Infobox person | name = Ben Lewis | image = Ben Lewis at a CFC event in L.A. 2018 (40065303585).jpg | caption = Lewis in 2018 | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1985|09|30}} | birth_place = Toronto, Ontario, Canada | occupation = Actor | years_active = | spouse = {{marriage|[[Blake Lee]]|2016}} }} '''Ben Lewis''' (born September 30, 1985) is a Canadian actor known for his role as the adult version of [[William Clayton (Arrowverse)|William Clayton]] in the last two seasons of ''[[Arrow (TV series)|Arrow]]''. He also played [[List of Scott Pilgrim characters#Other Scott|Other Scott]] in ''[[Scott Pilgrim vs. the World]]'' and Bobby Beckonridge in ''[[Degrassi: The Next Generation]]''.
==Early life, family and education== {{expand-section|date= December 2025}} Lewis is a graduate of the [[National Theatre School of Canada]].<ref name=deadline />
== Career == One of his earliest roles was in a guest starring role as Teddy Jones Jr., a [[ranch hand]] who kills his father's murderers, on ''[[Murdoch Mysteries]]'' in 2009,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Teddy Jones Jr. - Murdoch Mysteries |url=https://www.tvmaze.com/characters/275962/murdoch-mysteries-teddy-jones-jr |website=TV Maze |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Murdock Mysteries Rewatch: (S02E01) Mild, Mild West |url=https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/murdoch-mysteries-rewatch-s02e01-mild-mild-west/ |date=January 16, 2017 |website=Geek Girl Authority |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref>
Lewis played Bobby Beckonridge in the tenth season of ''[[Degrassi: The Next Generation]]'', which he acknowledged was one of the biggest roles of his career up to that point.<ref name=tvaddict /> He recounted that he had auditioned for the Canadian rite-of-passage show several times without success, and that he had not been invited to the first round of auditions for Bobby because they had been looking for a younger actor, getting the chance to audition when they didn't find anyone.<ref name="tvaddict">{{Cite news |title=Spotlight on Ben Lewis: Degrassi's Latest Bad Boy |work=The TV Addict |url=https://www.thetvaddict.com/2010/07/22/spotlight-on-ben-lewis-degrassis-newest-bad-boy/ |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref> Bobby is an abusive boyfriend with some personal baggage, and Lewis said that co-star [[Annie Clark (actress)|Annie Clark]], who played Bobby's girlfriend Fiona, was the key to helping him perform this.<ref name=tvaddict />
In ''Scott Pilgrim vs. the World'', Lewis played [[List of Scott Pilgrim characters#Other Scott|Other Scott]], the boyfriend of Scott Pilgrim's roommate Wallace Wells.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Arrow Casts Scott Pilgrim Alum in Spoilery Season 7 Role |url=https://www.cbr.com/arrow-ben-lewis-older-william-queen/ |date=October 17, 2018 |first= Noah |last= Dominguez |website= [[Comic Book Resources]] |access-date= 2025-12-16}}</ref> Jeff Bayer's review of the film in ''The Scorecard Review'' gave the cast of the film 10/10, noting that "Scott's bandmates are even better. [[Alison Pill]], who you may remember from ''[[Milk (2008 American film)|Milk]]'' and Ben Lewis as the other Scott, steal every moment they are on screen. It's just an amazing cast of characters that support this film".<ref>{{Cite web |first= Jeff | last= Bayer |title=Scott Pilgrim vs. The World |url=https://thescorecardreview.com/tsr/review/film-reviews/2010/08/13/scott-pilgrim-vs-the-world/12600 |website=The Scorecard Review |date=August 13, 2010 |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref> Lewis [[Twitter|tweeted]] that "[Scott Pilgrim] profoundly changed my life. <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Edgar Wright]]<nowiki>]</nowiki> seeing fit to include me in this cast was an honour & the greatest vote of confidence a young actor could've asked for."<ref>{{Cite tweet |title=#ScottPilgrim profoundly changed my life. @edgarwright seeing fit to include me in this cast was an honour & the greatest vote of confidence a young actor could've asked for.pic.twitter.com/MwfPf6ibtk |number= 1263288013859090433 |last=Lewis |first=Ben |date=May 20, 2020 |user= benlewishere |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200521020700/https://twitter.com/benlewishere/status/1263288013859090433 |archive-date=May 21, 2020 |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref>
Lewis subsequently landed television roles in ''[[Designated Survivor (TV series)|Designated Survivor]]'', ''[[The Handmaid's Tale (TV series)|The Handmaid's Tale]]'',<ref name=CFC /> ''[[Chasing Life]]'' and ''[[Suits (American TV series)|Suits]]''. In 2018 he joined the [[DC Comics]] superhero television show ''[[Arrow (TV series)|Arrow]]'' in its seventh season as the recurring character [[William Clayton (Arrowverse)|William Clayton]], and became a main character for the eighth and final season. Lewis' William is an adult version of the Arrow's son, portrayed as a child by Jack Moore, who appears in a future timeline.<ref name="deadline">{{Cite web |title='Arrow': Ben Lewis Upped To Series Regular For Final Season |url= https://deadline.com/2019/07/arrow-arrowverse-cw-ben-lewis-upped-to-series-regular-stephen-amell-1202647554/ |last=Boucher |first=Geoff |date=July 17, 2019 |website=Deadline |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref>
In 2019 he finished filming a role for the movie ''[[The High Note]]''.<ref name=deadline /> During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], Lewis joined the website [[Cameo (website)|Cameo]] to raise money for charities.<ref>{{Cite web |title=I joined Cameo to raise money for coronavirus relief and immediately ruined everything |url=https://www.cbc.ca/arts/i-joined-cameo-to-raise-money-for-coronavirus-relief-and-immediately-ruined-everything-1.5551545 |last=Lewis |first=Ben |date=May 1, 2020 |website=CBC |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref> He has also written and directed short films, including ''Apart from Everything'' and ''Zero Recognition'', and wrote for the web series ''This Week Had Me Like''.<ref name="CFC">{{Cite web |title=Ben Lewis |url= http://cfccreates.com/alumni/2419 |website=CFC Creates |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref>
In 2020 Lewis starred opposite his real-life husband [[Blake Lee]] in the romantic comedy television film ''[[The Christmas Setup]]''.<ref name= cusack> {{cite news |url= https://www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/article/the-christmas-setup-filmed-in-ottawa-and-almonte-lauded-as-holiday-rom-com-with-representation/ |title= The Christmas Setup filmed in Ottawa and Almonte, lauded as holiday rom-com with representation |last= Cusack |first= Leanne |date= December 18, 2020 |publisher= [[CJOH-DT]]| website= ctvnews.ca| location= Ottawa| access-date= 2025-12-16}}</ref>
== Personal life == Lewis is openly gay, and came out to his parents when he was seventeen.<ref name=Pride /> He is married to actor [[Blake Lee]], whom he met in the [[Grauman's Chinese Theatre]] bathroom at the ''Scott Pilgrim vs. the World'' premiere after being told they had mutual friends. Lee had been attending as [[Aubrey Plaza]]'s friend. Lewis and Lee began a long-distance relationship between [[Los Angeles]] and [[Toronto]]. They have a dog, Todd.<ref name="Out">{{Cite web |title=For Blake Lee & Ben Lewis, A Chance Encounter in the Men's Room Became an Eight-Year Love Affair |url=https://www.out.com/out-exclusives/2018/1/10/blake-lee-ben-lewis-chance-encounter-mens-room-became-eight-year-love-affair |date=January 10, 2018 |website=Out | first= Jason |last= Lamphier |access-date= 2025-12-16}}</ref>
Lewis has publicly criticized the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]] for not casting [[LGBT]]+ actors; in a 2019 interview with ''[[Attitude (magazine)|Attitude]]'' he said, "How many fucking [[Avengers (comics)|Avengers]] are there at this point, and not one gay actor in the bunch." ''Attitude'' noted that Lewis overlooked [[Tessa Thompson]], a queer actress who plays the bisexual Avenger [[Valkyrie (Marvel Comics)|Valkyrie]], in his comments.<ref name="attitude">{{Cite web |title='Arrow' star Ben Lewis urges Marvel to cast a gay actor as MCU's first LGBTQ superhero |url=http://attitude.co.uk/article/arrow-star-ben-lewis-urges-marvel-to-cast-a-gay-actor-as-mcus-first-lgbtq-superhero/21037/ |date=May 24, 2019 |website=Attitude |access-date=May 30, 2020 |archive-date=February 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200214174722/https://attitude.co.uk/article/arrow-star-ben-lewis-urges-marvel-to-cast-a-gay-actor-as-mcus-first-lgbtq-superhero/21037/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> In the same interview, Lewis praised the ''Arrow'' producers for "[giving] more [[coming out|out]] actors [...] a platform to succeed".<ref name=attitude /> His ''Arrow'' character was given a coming-out scene after Lewis specifically requested they write it into the show.<ref name="Pride">{{Cite web |title=William's 'Arrow' Coming Out Is One of the Highlights of the Series |url=https://www.pride.com/geek/2019/11/05/williams-arrow-coming-out-one-highlights-series |date=November 5, 2019 |website=Pride |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Arrow's Ben Lewis Pitched William's Coming Out Scene |url=https://comicbook.com/dc/news/arrows-ben-lewis-pitched-williams-coming-out-scene/ |website=Comicbook.com |access-date=May 30, 2020}}</ref> In relation to Lewis' character coming out, magazine ''[[Out (magazine)|Out]]'' also lamented that the [[DC Extended Universe]] only had one queer character.<ref>{{Cite web|title=A Major 'Arrow' Character Finally Confirmed 'I'm Gay'|url=https://www.out.com/television/2019/2/12/major-arrow-character-just-said-im-gay|date=February 12, 2019|website=Out|access-date=May 31, 2020}}</ref>
==Filmography== ===Film=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- |2008 |''[[Toronto Stories]]'' |Junkie | |- |rowspan="2"|2010 |data-sort-value="Shrine, The" | ''[[The Shrine (film)|The Shrine]]'' |Eric Taylor | |- |''[[Scott Pilgrim vs. the World]]'' |Other Scott | |- |rowspan="2"|2014 |''Don't Get Killed in Alaska'' |Dan | |- |''[[Pompeii (film)|Pompeii]]'' |Fulvius Fronto |(uncredited) |- |2020 |data-sort-value="High Note, The" | ''[[The High Note]]'' |Chad | |- |}
===TV=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" style="width:20em;" | Notes |- |2006 |data-sort-value="House Next Door, The" | ''[[The House Next Door (2006 film)|The House Next Door]]'' |Pizza Boy |(TV Movie) |- |2007 |''[[Stir of Echoes: The Homecoming]]'' |Max Cogan |(TV Movie) |- |2008 |data-sort-value="Russell Girl, The" | ''[[The Russell Girl]]'' |Jon Morrissey |(TV Movie) |- |2009 |''[[Murdoch Mysteries]]'' |Teddy Jones Jr. |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Mild Mild West" |- |rowspan="3"|2010 |''[[Aaron Stone]]'' |Conner Sullivan |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Run Aaron, Run" |- |''[[Lost Girl]]'' |Liam |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Fae Day" |- |''[[Unnatural History (TV series)|Unnatural History]]'' |Tramm Van Horn |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Maximum Insecurity" |- |2010-2011 |''[[Degrassi: The Next Generation]]'' |Bobby Beckonridge |(TV Series), 6 episodes |- |rowspan="2"|2011 |''[[InSecurity]]'' |Noah Johansson |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Spies of a Certain Age" |- |''[[Suits (American TV series)|Suits]]'' |Seth Keller |(TV Series), 3 episodes: "Dirty Little Secrets", "Tricks of the Trade" and "The Shelf Life" |- |2012 |''[[Beauty & the Beast (2012 TV series)|Beauty and the Beast]]'' |Peter Hollingsworth |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Out of Control" |- |2013 |''Long Story, Short'' (TV Series) |Greg Power |(TV Series), 2 episodes: "Crutches" and "Reality Sucks" |- |2014 |''[[Reign (TV series)|Reign]]'' |Father Benoit |(TV Series), 1 episode: "The Prince of the Blood" |- |2015 |''[[Chasing Life]]'' |Josh |(TV Series), 5 episodes |- |2016 |''[[Designated Survivor (TV series)|Designated Survivor]]'' |Carter |(TV Series), 1 episode: "The Enemy" |- |2017 |data-sort-value="Handmaid's Tale, The" | ''[[The Handmaid's Tale (TV series)|The Handmaid's Tale]]'' |Peter |(TV Series), 1 episode: "The Other Side" |- |rowspan="3"|2018 |''[[Insecure (TV series)|Insecure]]'' |Cody |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Familiar-Like" |- |''[[Ransom (TV series)|Ransom]]'' |Brian Smith |(TV Series), 1 episode: "Secrets and Spies" |- |''[[Wisdom of the Crowd]]'' |Joel |(TV Series), 1 episode: "The Tipping Point" |- |2018-2020 |''[[Arrow (TV series)|Arrow]]'' |Adult William Clayton |(TV Series), 20 episodes |- |2020 |data-sort-value="Christmas Setup, The" | ''[[The Christmas Setup]]'' |Hugo Spencer |(TV Movie) |- |TBA |''Married with Friends'' |Bo |Main role |}
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == *{{IMDb name|2313157}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Ben}} [[Category:1985 births]] [[Category:21st-century Canadian LGBTQ people]] [[Category:21st-century Canadian male actors]] [[Category:21st-century Canadian male writers]] [[Category:21st-century Canadian writers]] [[Category:Canadian gay actors]] [[Category:Canadian gay writers]] [[Category:Canadian male film actors]] [[Category:Canadian male television actors]] [[Category:Male actors from Ontario]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:National Theatre School of Canada alumni]]