William Emerson Arnett (/ɑːrˈnɛt/; born May 4, 1970) is a Canadian actor, comedian and producer. He is best known for his roles as Gob Bluth in the Fox/Netflix series Arrested Development (2003–2006, 2013, 2018–2019) and as the titular character in the Netflix series BoJack Horseman (2014–2020). He has appeared in films such as Let's Go to Prison (2006), Blades of Glory (2007), Semi-Pro (2008), G-Force (2009), Jonah Hex (2010), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014) and its sequel Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016), and Show Dogs (2018).

His deep baritone voice has landed him numerous voice acting jobs, including Danny Phantom (2004–2007), Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006), Ratatouille (2007), Horton Hears a Who! (2008), Monsters vs. Aliens (2009), Despicable Me (2010), The Nut Job (2014), Teen Titans Go! To the Movies (2018), Dolittle (2020), Rumble (2021), Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022) and as Batman in the Lego Movie franchise.

Arnett has received seven Primetime Emmy Award nominations for his work in Arrested Development, 30 Rock, and BoJack Horseman. Since 2020 he has hosted the Fox reality series Lego Masters. Since July 2020, he has co-hosted the comedy podcast SmartLess alongside Sean Hayes and Jason Bateman. In 2022, he starred in a six-part improvised comedy series Murderville on Netflix.

Early life
Arnett was born in Toronto, Ontario, the son of Edith Alexandra "Alix" (Palk) and Emerson James "Jim" Arnett, who was a corporate lawyer and brewer, among other occupations. His parents were originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, and he has roots on both sides of his family in Manitoba going back many generations. Arnett has two older sisters and a younger brother. His father, a graduate of Harvard University and a corporate lawyer, served as the president and CEO of Molson Breweries from 1997 to 2000.

Arnett briefly attended Lakefield College School in Lakefield, Ontario, but was asked not to return after a semester for being a troublemaker. The Subway Academy II allowed him to take theatre classes at the Tarragon Theatre. He eventually graduated from Leaside High School and attended Concordia University, Montreal for a semester but dropped out. As a teenager, he was encouraged by his mother to pursue an acting career. He auditioned for commercials in Toronto and enjoyed acting. In 1990, he moved to New York City to study acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute. He appeared in plays in New York, and his first acting role was in Felicity Huffman's independent film Erie, which was filmed on the Erie Canal. As mentioned on the SmartLess podcast, A