Hand to God's Michael Oberholtzer on Wanting to Be MacGyver & Goofing Off with Vince Vaughn

Age: “Older than my character.”

Hometown: Fort Wayne, IN

Current Role: A gut-busting Broadway debut as Timothy, a sullen high schooler who bullies the shy and puppet-possessed Jason in Hand to God.

Stage & Screen Cred: Oberholtzer has been involved with Hand to God since its off-Broadway incarnation and was featured in Second Stage Theatre's The Talls. He has appeared on screen in Delivery Man, The Americans and Law & Order.

“Growing up, I was the class clown. I was somebody who liked to perform and had a big personality. I can’t remember what my senior superlative was, but it was something like 'Most Likely to Have a Good Time.'”

“I wanted to be MacGyver when I grew up. I wanted to work for the Phoenix Foundation, travel the world and be a scientist. That’s what I wanted to do, and when I found out he was an actor, I was like, ‘Dammit. I guess I’ll be an actor.”

“My first paid acting job was with Young Playwrights Inc., and I framed my first check. It was only for like $150 but it was such a big deal for me. I sent it to my parents and was like, ‘Look! I’m doing this. I’m making money here.’”

“There was a bit of disappointment at first when Sarah Stiles, Marc Kudisch and I joined the cast [of Hand to God] off-Broadway. For whatever reason, they decided to recast those roles. It felt like a family was broken up, but we all love this play and feel committed to it.”

“Working with Vince Vaughn on Delivery Man was incredible. I hadn’t booked a job that entire year until that one. I really considered throwing in the towel. Then I get this part, I get to do a lot of improv with Vince—who couldn't have been better—and work on that level. It was a dream come true.”

“The thing that anchors me to Timothy is I understand the anger in this kid over being abandoned, and I can relate to the armor he puts on. But I wasn’t a dickhead in high school [laughs]. I was like an ambassador for everybody.”