Editing Jason Ritter (section)

=== 2008–2016: Independent film roles ===

Following a supporting role in the satirical 2008 comedy ''[[The Deal (2008 film)|The Deal]]'', Ritter appeared briefly as [[Jeb Bush]] in the biographical drama ''[[W. (film)|W]]'', directed by [[Oliver Stone]]. On preparing for the role, he said, "I watched everything that I possibly could and read some books about [the] Bush family [and] Jeb".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2008/10/w_star_jason_ritter_on_becomin.html|last=Simon|first=Brent|title='W.' Star Jason Ritter on Becoming Jeb|work=Vulture|date=October 15, 2008|access-date=July 10, 2023}}</ref> That same year, he produced and starred in the independent dramedy ''[[Good Dick]]'' with his girlfriend at the time, [[Marianna Palka]], making her directorial debut.<ref name="LALovers">{{cite web|title=L.A. Is For Lovers: Jason Ritter & Marianna Palka |first=Whitney |last=Spaner |publisher=Paper Magazine |url=http://www.papermag.com/2009/01/la_is_for_lovers_jason_ritter_marianna_palka.php |date=January 2009 |access-date=October 26, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402163250/http://www.papermag.com/2009/01/la_is_for_lovers_jason_ritter_marianna_palka.php |archive-date=April 2, 2015 }}</ref> A look at the relationship between an introverted girl (Palka) and the video store assistant (Ritter) vying for her attention, the film drew a mixed reception,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/good_dick|title=Good Dick|work=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> but ''[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]''{{'}}s [[Anna Smith (critic)|Anna Smith]] was enthusiastic in her appraisal: "Ritter's character — a romantic reformed druggie — is one to root for, and [the film] entertains enough to get by, marking Palka and Ritter as talents to watch".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/good-dick-review/|last=Smith|first=Anna|title=Good Dick review|work=Empire|date=October 3, 2008|access-date=July 10, 2023}}</ref>

In 2010, Ritter began playing the recurring role of Mark Cyr on [[NBC]]'s
''[[Parenthood (2010 TV series)|Parenthood]]''. The performance earned him a nomination for the 2012 [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/parenthood-emmy-nominee-jason-ritter-talks-mark-sarahs-020033383.html|last=Masters|first=Megan|title=Parenthood Emmy Nominee Jason Ritter Talks Mark and Sarah's Future, New Foe Ray Romano|work=Yahoo!|date=July 20, 2012|access-date=July 10, 2023}}</ref> His next project was the 2011 independent comedy ''[[A Bag of Hammers]]'', where he starred as a felon who winds up taking care of a neglected child; in a mixed review, ''The Hollywood Reporter'' felt that its tone was "muddled", but believed it "starts off strong, offering funny, well timed dialogue between Sandvig [and] Ritter".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/a-bag-hammers-sxsw-film-167162/|title=A Bag of Hammers: SXSW Film Review|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=March 13, 2011|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> Also that year, he co-starred in ''[[The Perfect Family (2011 film)|The Perfect Family]]'', which critic [[Frank Scheck]] felt worked solely on the strength of its performances: "[[Kathleen Turner|Turner]] is deeply sympathetic as the religious matriarch ... while Ritter and [[Emily Deschanel|Deschanel]] are thoroughly believable as the grown children who love their mother despite her oft-expressed disapproval of their actions".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/perfect-family-tribeca-review-182222/|first=Frank|last=Scheck|title=The Perfect Family: Tribeca Review|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=April 26, 2011|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref>

Between 2012 and 2016, Ritter starred in the voice role of [[Dipper Pines]] on the [[Disney Channel]] animated series ''[[Gravity Falls]]'', a show about a pair of twins deciphering the weird goings-on in the mysterious titular town. The series was universally praised,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/gravity_falls/s02|title=Gravity Falls (2014 - 2016)|work=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> with Alasdair Wilkins of ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' calling it "funny, emotional, beautiful, and terrifying in equal measure".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/gravity-falls-has-the-perfect-ending-1798186581|first=Alasdair|last=Wilkins|title=Gravity Falls has the perfect ending|work=The A.V. Club|date=February 15, 2016|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> Ritter had prominent parts in five independent features between 2012 and 2013: ''[[The End of Love]]'', ''[[Free Samples]]'', ''I Am I'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://collider.com/jason-ritter-i-am-i-interview/|title=Jason Ritter Talks I AM I, How He Got Involved, Why the Kickstarter Campaign Was Successful, and More|first=Christina|last=Radish|date=June 17, 2014|website=Collider|access-date=November 14, 2023}}</ref> ''[[The Big Ask (film)|The Big Ask]]'', and ''[[The East (2013 film)|The East]]''. It was announced in February 2013 that he would star as Gavin in ''[[Us & Them]]'', a sitcom pilot based on the British television comedy ''[[Gavin & Stacey]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2013/02/jason-ritter-to-star-in-foxs-comedy-pilot-friends-family-430799/|last=Andreeva|first=Nellie|title=Jason Ritter To Star In Fox's Comedy Pilot 'Friends & Family'|work=Deadline|date=February 14, 2013|access-date=November 14, 2023}}</ref> While subsequently picked up as a series by [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]], ''Us & Them'' was cancelled before it could premiere,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tvline.com/2014/06/09/us-them-alexis-bledel-jason-ritter-fox-air-date/|title=''Us & Them'' Update: 6 Produced Episodes of Fox's Jason Ritter-Alexis Bledel Comedy Will Never Air|website=TVLine|first=Michael|last=Ausiello|date=June 9, 2014|access-date=September 30, 2018|archive-date=January 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150123014659/http://tvline.com/2014/06/09/us-them-alexis-bledel-jason-ritter-fox-air-date/|url-status=dead}}</ref> with the show's seven episodes eventually being released by [[Crackle (service)|Crackle]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tvline.com/2018/09/14/alexis-bledel-jason-ritter-us-and-them-streaming-sony-crackle-unaired-fox-sitcom/|title=Jason Ritter/Alexis Bledel Unaired Fox Sitcom Us & Them to Debut on Crackle|website=TVLine|first=Ryan|last=Schwartz|date=September 14, 2018|access-date=September 30, 2018}}</ref>

[[File:Jason Ritter Paleyfest 2013.jpg|thumb|left|215x215px|Ritter at the 2013 [[Paley Center for Media|Paleyfest]]]]

Ritter's appearance in ''[[Wild Canaries]]'' (2014), a throwback to classic [[whodunit]]s, was met with praise: [[Justin Chang]] of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' called the film "eventful, plot-driven [and] fun", adding that "[[Kevin Corrigan|Corrigan]] and especially Ritter are solid in their hefty supporting roles".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2014/film/festivals/sxsw-film-review-wild-canaries-1201128518/|title=SXSW Film Review: 'Wild Canaries'|work=Variety|first=Justin|last=Chang|date=March 10, 2014|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> He headlined the independent drama ''[[About Alex]]'' that same year, playing a young man who finds solace in a group of old friends after attempting to take his own life. In his review for ''[[RogerEbert.com]]'', Brian Tallerico said, "What's kind of refreshing about ''About Alex'' is that the predictable map through the clichés of this subgenre that seems to be charted in the opening scenes isn't quite followed", adding, "Ritter finds [the] emotional undercurrent that's often missing from these troubled characters. There's something honest in the way his voice quivers that makes his depression seem more genuine".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/about-alex-2014|first=Brian|last=Tallerico|title=About Alex|work=RogerEbert.com|date=August 8, 2014|access-date=July 13, 2023}}</ref>

Ritter had a supporting role as the main character's movie star ex-boyfriend in the 2015 comedy-drama ''[[The Meddler]]'', and began playing Lord Frederick Bellacourt—an illiterate twin—that same year on the acclaimed historical sitcom ''[[Another Period]]'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/another_period/s01|title=Another Period (2015)|work=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=July 11, 2023}}</ref> a parody of ''[[Downton Abbey]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/jun/23/another-period-downton-abbey-satire-comedy-centra|title=Another Period: historical TV parody takes the starch out of Downton Abbey|first=Brian|last=Moylan|date=June 23, 2015|website=The Guardian|access-date=November 14, 2023}}</ref> In their review of ''Period'', which ran for three seasons on [[Comedy Central]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2018/11/comedy-central-cancels-another-period-after-3-seasons.html|title=Comedy Central Cancels Another Period After 3 Seasons|first=Megh|last=Wright|date=November 29, 2018|website=Vulture|access-date=November 14, 2023}}</ref> ''The A.V. Club'' felt that Ritter brought "an earnestness" to the wacky material.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/another-period-nails-two-genres-at-once-1798184150|title= Another Period nails two genres at once|first=Kayla|last=Kumari Upadhyaya|date=June 23, 2015|website=The A.V. Club|access-date=November 14, 2023}}</ref> Next, he starred as a man suffering from [[retrograde amnesia]] in the post-apocalyptic drama ''[[Embers (2015 film)|Embers]]'' (2015); ''[[Sight and Sound]]'' critic Anton Bitel called it "a reflection of the human condition as philosophically compelling as it is emotionally intelligent", adding, "No film has either moved or provoked me as much this year".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/comment/festivals/lost-inner-space-ten-highlights-sci-fi-london|first=Anton|last=Bitel|title=Lost in inner space: ten highlights of Sci-Fi-London 2016|work=British Film Institute|date=April 28, 2016|access-date=July 12, 2023}}</ref> In 2016, Ritter co-starred in the well-reviewed ensemble comedy ''[[The Intervention (film)|The Intervention]]'' and received positive notices for his role in ''[[Carrie Pilby (film)|Carrie Pilby]]'', an adaptation of the [[Carrie Pilby|novel of the same name]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_intervention|title=The Intervention|work=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=November 15, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/carrie-pilby-review-bel-powley-toronto-1201856412/|first=Dennis|last=Harvey|title=Toronto Film Review: 'Carrie Pilby'|work=Variety|date=September 9, 2016|access-date=November 15, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://thefilmstage.com/tiff-review-carrie-pilby/|first=Jared|last=Mobarak|title=[TIFF Review] Carrie Pilby|work=The Film Stage|date=September 18, 2016|access-date=November 15, 2023}}</ref>