Editing Wil Wheaton (section)

==Acting career==
===Early work and ''Stand By Me''===
Wheaton made his acting debut in the television film ''[[A Long Way Home (1981 film)|A Long Way Home]]'' (1981), which starred [[Timothy Hutton]].<ref name="auto1">{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1986-08-21-8603020609-story.html |date=August 21, 1986 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220629203544/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1986-08-21-8603020609-story.html |archive-date=June 29, 2022 |title=Teen actor Wheaton wants no part of trash |author=Kirk Honeycutt |newspaper=Chicago Tribune}}</ref> He voiced the character of Martin in the animated film ''[[The Secret of NIMH]]'' (1982), the film adaptation of [[Robert C. O'Brien (author)|Robert C. O'Brien]]'s book ''[[Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH]]'' (1971).<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2009/07/a-new-secret-of-nihm/|title=A New Secret of NIMH|magazine=Wired |date=July 29, 2009 |url-access=limited |last1=Donahoo |first1=Daniel |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425080727/https://www.wired.com/2009/07/a-new-secret-of-nihm/ |archive-date= April 25, 2023 }}</ref> Wheaton also appeared in ''[[Hambone and Hillie]]'' (1983), ''[[The Buddy System (film)|The Buddy System]]'' (1984) (opposite [[Richard Dreyfuss]] and [[Susan Sarandon]]), and ''[[The Last Starfighter]]''.<ref name="auto1"/> He had a few lines in ''Starfighter'' which were ultimately cut from the theatrical release, but Wheaton is still visible in several scenes.<ref name="io9">{{cite web |url=https://gizmodo.com/everything-you-never-knew-about-the-making-of-last-star-1602703884|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230112104321/https://gizmodo.com/everything-you-never-knew-about-the-making-of-last-star-1602703884|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 12, 2023|title=Everything You Never Knew About the Making of ''The Last Starfighter'' |author=Plummer, Ryan |publisher=[[Io9]] |date=July 10, 2014 |access-date=March 23, 2015}}</ref>

Wheaton first gained widespread attention for his work in ''[[Stand by Me (film)|Stand by Me]]'' (1986), the film adaptation of [[Stephen King]]'s novella ''[[The Body (novella)|The Body]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Book vs. Movie: Stand By Me (The Body by Stephen King) |date=May 1, 2012 |work=The Readventurer |url=http://www.thereadventurer.com/-home/book-vs-movie-stand-by-me-the-body-by-stephen-king |access-date=March 9, 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=16 Nostalgic Facts About ''Stand by Me'' |last=Cormier |first=Roger |date=August 6, 2015 |work=Mental Floss |url=http://mentalfloss.com/article/67025/16-nostalgic-facts-about-stand-me |access-date=March 9, 2018 }}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite web |title='Stand By Me': A Love Letter To Childhood Innocence |date=August 6, 2011 |work=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2011/08/06/139025610/stand-by-me-a-love-letter-to-childhood-innocence |access-date=March 9, 2018 }}</ref> In ''Stand by Me'', Wheaton played the lead role of Gordie Lachance, a 12-year-old storyteller mourning the loss of his elder brother.<ref name="auto"/> In her review of the film, Sheila Benson of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote that "Wheaton makes Gordie's 'sensitivity' tangible, but not effete. He's a gem".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-stand-by-me-review-20160820-snap-story.html|title=From the Archives: 'Stand by Me' is a summer standout|date=August 8, 1986|website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> In addition to being successful at the box office,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://metro.co.uk/2016/08/22/stand-by-me-30th-anniversary-15-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-movie-6074110/|title=Stand By Me 30th anniversary: 15 things you may not know about the movie|first=Jon|last=O'Brien|date=August 22, 2016}}</ref> ''Stand by Me'' was nominated for the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/photo-stand-by-me-cast-168878|title=PHOTO: 'Stand by Me' Cast Reunites 25 Years Later|website=The Hollywood Reporter|date=March 17, 2011 |access-date=October 21, 2019|archive-date=October 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021003101/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/photo-stand-by-me-cast-168878|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/stand-me|title=Stand By Me|website=www.goldenglobes.com|access-date=October 21, 2019|archive-date=October 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021003102/https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/stand-me|url-status=live}}</ref> and became known as a coming-of-age classic.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/news/stand-by-me-30th-anniversary-oral-history-corey-feldman-1201824490/|title='Stand by Me' Oral History: Rob Reiner and Cast on River Phoenix and How Coming-of-Age Classic Almost Didn't Happen|first1=Brent|last1=Lang|date=July 28, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/stand-by-me-at-30-why-this-stephen-king-movie-is-timeless-93647/|title='Stand by Me' at 30: Why This Stephen King Movie Is Timeless|first1=Charles|last1=Bramesco|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=August 22, 2016}}</ref>

===''Star Trek''===
[[File:Gates with Wil Wheaton Star Trek Cruise III Jan 2019.jpg|thumb|Wheaton with ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation|TNG]]'' co-star [[Gates McFadden]] (who played his mother on the show) in January 2019]]
Wheaton played Wesley Crusher, a "boy genius and [[Starfleet]] hopeful",<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/star-trek-tng-why-wesley-crusher-hated/|title=Star Trek: Why The Next Generation's Wesley Crusher Was So Hated|date=March 18, 2021|website=CBR}}</ref> during the first four seasons of ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]''.<ref name="auto2">{{cite web|url=https://comicbook.com/news/happy-birthday-wil-wheaton-turns-44-years-old/|title=Happy Birthday! Wil Wheaton Turns 44 Years Old|website=Comicbook.com|date=September 6, 2017 }}</ref> He appeared in an additional four episodes of the remaining three seasons. The Wesley Crusher character is a "polarizing" character; while some Star Trek fans love him, others are vocal about their hatred for the character.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://heavy.com/entertainment/star-trek/gene-roddenberry-loved-wesley-crusher/|title=Why 'Star Trek's' Creator Loved Wesley Crusher|first=Robin|last=Zabiegalski|date=May 31, 2021}}</ref><ref name="auto2"/> Wheaton commented about his critics in a 2004 interview for WebTalk Radio:
{{Blockquote | Later, I determined that the people who were really, really cruel – like the [[Usenet]] weenies – really are a statistically insignificant number of people. And I know, just over the years from people who've e-mailed me at my website and people who I've talked to since I started going to ''Star Trek'' conventions again in the last five years, that there are so many more people who really enjoyed everything about the show, including my performance, including the character.<ref>{{cite web | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081224071024/http://www.webtalkguys.com/091804.shtml | archive-date = December 24, 2008 | url = https://webtalkguys.com/091804.htm | title = From Star Trek: Next Generation to Geek Blogger |last=Greenlee |first=Dana |date=September 18, 2004 | publisher = Web talk guys}}</ref>}}

Wheaton left ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'' due to concerns over how the production team addressed a scheduling conflict related to his wish to appear in the 1989 film ''[[Valmont (film)|Valmont]]''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Elvy |first=Craig |url=https://screenrant.com/star-trek-wil-wheaton-wesley-crusher-left-season-4/ |title=Star Trek: Why Wil Wheaton (Wesley Crusher) Quit TNG |publisher=Screenrant.com |date=April 29, 2021 |access-date=February 14, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|author=Noah Shachtman |url=https://www.wired.com/2001/12/wheatons-trek-to-respectability/ |title=Wheaton's Trek to Respectability |magazine=WIRED |date= |access-date=February 14, 2022}}</ref>

Wheaton returned to ''Star Trek'' in 2002, 2022 and 2024, reprising his Wesley Crusher role in cameo appearances in ''[[Star Trek: Nemesis]]'', the season 2 finale of ''[[Star Trek: Picard]]'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wilwheaton.net/2022/05/welcome-home-wesley/|title= Welcome home, Wesley |first=Wil|last=Wheaton|date=May 5, 2022}}</ref> and as a voice actor in the second season of the animated show ''[[Star Trek: Prodigy]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last=Dinh |first=Christine |date=July 23, 2024 |title=WARP FIVE: Wil Wheaton on the Original Prodigy Returning to Star Trek |url=https://www.startrek.com/en-un/news/warp-five-wil-wheaton-return-of-wesley-crusher |website=Star Trek}}</ref>

===Post-''Star Trek''===
[[File:Wil Wheaton.jpg|thumb|Wheaton in 2001]]
Wheaton played Joey Trotta in the action film ''[[Toy Soldiers (1991 film)|Toy Soldiers]]'' (1991). After leaving ''Star Trek'', he moved to [[Topeka, Kansas]], to work for [[NewTek]], where he helped to develop the [[Video Toaster]] 4000 doing product testing and quality control<ref name="avclub">{{Citation | first = Nathan | last = Rabin | contribution-url = https://www.avclub.com/wil-wheaton-1798208240 | contribution = Wil Wheaton | type = interview | title = [[The A.V. Club]] | date = November 20, 2002}}</ref><ref>{{Citation | url = http://geeksofdoom.com/2008/05/29/conversations-with-god-wil-wheaton/ | title = Conversations with GoD | contribution = Wil Wheaton | publisher = Geeks of Doom | access-date = May 2, 2009 | date = May 29, 2008}}</ref> and later used his public profile to serve as a [[technology evangelist]] for the product.<ref name="wired05">{{Cite magazine |last=Jacobs |first=Stephen |date=May 1, 1994 | url = https://www.wired.com/1994/05/flying-toasters/ | title = Flying Toasters | magazine = Wired | volume = 2 | issue = 5}}</ref>

Afterward, he returned to Los Angeles, attended acting school for five years, and then re-entered the acting world.<ref name="nerdist63">{{Citation |title=Wil Wheaton |work=Nerdist |date=Nov 2011 |number=63  |type=podcast |url=http://www.nerdist.com/2011/02/nerdist-podcast-63-wil-wheaton/ |access-date=December 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130127085852/http://www.nerdist.com/2011/02/nerdist-podcast-63-wil-wheaton/ |archive-date=January 27, 2013 |at=8 min }}</ref><ref name="Wil Wheaton2004">{{Cite book|first=Wil|last=Wheaton|title=Just a geek: unflinchingly honest tales of the search for life, love, and fulfillment beyond the Starship Enterprise|year=2004|publisher=O'Reilly|location=Sebastopol, CA|isbn=0-596-00768-X|page=[https://archive.org/details/justgeek0000whea/page/9 9]|url=https://archive.org/details/justgeek0000whea/page/9}}</ref>

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Wheaton appeared in several [[independent film]]s, including the award-winning ''[[The Good Things (film)|The Good Things]]'' (2001), in which he portrays a frustrated Kansas [[Toll road|tollbooth]] worker.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Good Things |url=http://wilwheaton.net/2002/03/the_good_things/ |website=WIL WHEATON dot NET |date=March 15, 2002 |access-date=January 15, 2020}}</ref> For his performance in ''[[Jane White Is Sick & Twisted]]'' (2002) he received the award for Best Actor at the [[Melbourne Underground Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Winners Of The 2002 MUFF Awards|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030829073751/http://www.muff.com.au/2002/news.html#awards|url=http://www.muff.com.au/2002/noflash_index.html|archive-date=August 29, 2003|date=July 25, 2002|publisher=Melbourne Underground Film Festival}}</ref>

Wheaton regularly portrayed a fictionalized version of himself on ''[[The Big Bang Theory]]'', becoming a recurring guest star and then side character on the show.<ref>{{Cite web |title=MSN |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/entertainment/news/the-big-bang-theory-s-8-best-side-characters-ranked/ar-BB1kOvpF?apiversion=v2&noservercache=1&domshim=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1&batchservertelemetry=1&noservertelemetry=1 |access-date=2024-11-09 |website=www.msn.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Gibbons |first=Ben |date=2023-12-29 |title=12 Best Guest Stars In The Big Bang Theory |url=https://screenrant.com/big-bang-theory-best-guest-stars/ |access-date=2024-11-09 |website=ScreenRant |language=en}}</ref>

In June 2024, Wheaton announced that he was retired from on-screen acting.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wilwheaton.net/2024/06/happy-retirement-to-me/|title=happy (on camera acting) retirement to me|date=June 5, 2024}}</ref>

===Voice work===
[[File:Will Wheaton Q&A Panel (49662155558).jpg|thumb|Wheaton at Q&A Panel Galaxy Con Richmond 2020]]
Wheaton is known for his voice acting career.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mlive.com/entertainment/2017/05/wil_wheaton_talks_star_trek_bi.html|title=Wil Wheaton talks 'Star Trek,' 'Big Bang Theory,' and living with depression|first=Edward |last=Pevos|date=May 18, 2017|website=mlive}}</ref> He voiced the role of Martin Brisby in ''[[The Secret of NIMH]]'' in 1981.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.serienjunkies.de/person/wil-wheaton/20498/|title=Wil Wheaton: Filme, Serien und Biografie|website=Serienjunkies}}</ref> In August 2021. Wheaton voiced the villainous John Juniper in the video game, ''[[I Expect You to Die 2: The Spy and the Liar]]''.<ref>{{cite web | last=Teuton | first=Christopher | title=Wil Wheaton Interview - I Expect You To Die 2: The Spy and the Liar | website=ScreenRant | date=August 19, 2021 | url=https://screenrant.com/i-expect-you-die-2-wil-wheaton-interview/ | access-date=February 25, 2023}}</ref>

===Television and web===
[[File:Wil Wheaton wOOtstock 2.4 04.jpg|thumb|left|Wheaton at [[W00tstock]] 2.4 in San Diego, July 2010]]
Wheaton appeared in 12 episodes in a recurring, guest-starring role on ''[[Eureka (2006 TV series)|Eureka]]'', playing Dr. Isaac Parrish, the head of the Non-Lethal Weapons Lab at Global Dynamics and a thorn in [[Douglas Fargo|Fargo]]'s side.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tvguide.com/news/wil-wheaton-guest-1016950/|title=Wil Wheaton to Guest-Star on Eureka|last=Abrams |first=Natalie |date=April 5, 2010 | work =TV Guide|access-date=December 20, 2021}}</ref> Wheaton also voices the character of the former scoutmaster and current sous-chef Earl Harlan in the popular dark, surreal-comedy podcast ''[[Welcome to Night Vale]]''.<ref>{{Citation |title=Welcome to Night Vale (Podcast Series 2012) - IMDb |url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt12026272/fullcredits |access-date=June 2, 2023}}</ref>