Raymond Lee

Actor

Raymond Lee is an American TV actor who was best known for his roles on "Mozart in the Jungle" (Amazon, 2014- ) and "Here and Now" (HBO, 2018- ), the latter of which was created by "True Blood" (HBO, 2008-2014) mastermind Alan Ball. Born in New York City but raised primarily in Los Angeles, Lee had never intended on becoming an actor. In fact, as a young boy growing up in Los Angeles, he dreamt of playing professional basketball (the Lakers were his favorite team). When it came time for college, however, he quickly realized that he would never make it in the NBA, and settled on a career in kinesiology instead. He was attending Cal State Long Beach at the time and needed to pick an elective. So, almost on a whim, he chose a theater class, and instantly fell in love. After a couple classes Lee had found his new passion - acting - and immediately switched his major to theater. After graduating from Cal State Long Beach Lee embarked on a film and TV acting career in Hollywood. He waited tables at night and went on auditions during the day, all while landing a few bit parts in short films. His luck changed in 2012 when he nabbed a series of commercial roles, which in turn made it financially possible for him to quit his waiting job and pursue acting full-time. From there the roles began to pour in. In the ensuing years Lee nabbed guest spots on "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" (FX, 2005- ) and "Modern Family" (ABC, 2009- ), as well as a recurring role on the ABC political drama "Scandal" (ABC, 2012-18). Lee also played the character Arlen Lee on four episodes of Amazon's acclaimed series "Mozart in the Jungle," which further advanced his burgeoning acting career. Then in early 2018 Lee nabbed his breakout role when he was cast on the HBO comedy-drama "Here and Now." The series, which was created by Alan Ball and also starred Holly Hunter and Tim Robbins, premiered on the premium cable network in February of 2018.