Benjamin McKenzie Schenkkan(born September 12, 1978) is an American actor and commentator. He is best known for his starring television roles asRyan Atwoodon the teen dramaThe O.C.(2003–2007), Ben Sherman on the crime drama Southland (2009–2013), andJames Gordonon the crime dramaGotham(2014–2019).After graduating in Economics and International Relations at the University of Virginia, he moved to New York in order to devote his attention to acting. There he received first in off-Broadway productions different roles, before moving to Los Angeles and was hired there for a starring role in the television series The OC, with the fourth season came to an end on 22 February 2007. For his portrayal of Ryan Atwood in the series he won several awards between 2003 and 2007.He made his film debut in the Academy Award-nominated filmJunebug(2005), before appearing in films including88 Minutes(2007),Goodbye World(2013),Some Kind of Beautiful(2014), andLine of Duty(2019).He has been married to actress Morena Baccarin since 2017; they have 2 children. His uncle is actor and Pulitzer Prize winner Robert Schenkkan; his second cousin is actress Sarah Drew.