Wallace Shawn is a prominent American actor, playwright, and essayist. Born in 1943 in New York City to a Jewish family, he is the son of longtime The New Yorker editor William Shawn and journalist Cecille Shawn. He studied history at Harvard University and economics and philosophy at Oxford University. His longtime partner is writer Deborah Eisenberg.
As an actor, Shawn is known for mainstream film and television roles, including Vizzini in “The Princess Bride” (1987) and the voice of Rex in the “Toy Story” franchise. As a playwright, his works explore political ethics, power, and human complicity, including “Aunt Dan and Lemon” (1985) and “The Designated Mourner” (1996), both of which won Obie Awards for Playwriting. He also co-wrote and starred in the 1981 philosophical film “My Dinner with Andre,” directed by Louis Malle.
Shawn is a longtime member of the Advisory Board of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and frequently uses his public profile to protest Israeli military policy and U.S. foreign support for the occupation of Palestinian territories. In October 2023, Shawn joined hundreds of Jewish activists at a massive sit-in inside the Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., organized by JVP. Wearing a black T-shirt printed with the slogan “Not In Our Name”, he was subsequently arrested by U.S. Capitol Police alongside over 300 demonstrators for civil disobedience.
Addressing the military conduct in Gaza, Shawn made headlines during a January 2025 interview comparing the actions of Israeli leadership to historic atrocities, stating that Israelis were “doing evil that is just as great as what the Nazis did. And in some ways, it’s worse, because they kind of boast about it. Hitler had the decency to try to keep it secret… the Israelis are almost proud of it, and it’s demonically evil.” Shawn is also one of the signatories of the 2025 public statement, “Global Jewish Call on the UN and World Leaders to Sanction Israel.”