Oscar Nunez

Óscar Núñez (born November 18, 1958), sometimes credited as Oscar Nunez, is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as the Dunder Mifflin accountant Oscar Martínez on NBC's The Office and its spin-off The Paper. The accolades he has received include two Screen Actors Guild Awards and a Daytime Emmy Awards, alongside a Primetime Emmy Award nomination.

He was a member of the Groundlings and later became a regular cast member on The Office. He also created and co-starred in the Comedy Central series Halfway Home in 2007, and in 2014 co-starred in the short-lived USA Network comedy series Benched. Since 2018, he has appeared in a series of State Farm commercials.

Early life and education Núñez was born in Colón, Cuba. Núñez's mother, a dentist, and father, a lawyer, attended school at the University of Havana while Fidel Castro was a student there. The family moved first to Caracas, Venezuela, in 1960 and then to the United States. His family moved to Boston when he was two years old and then to Union City, New Jersey, when he was four. He became a naturalized American citizen in 1964. He is bilingual, speaking English and Spanish. Núñez attended various colleges in New York, including the Fashion Institute of Technology and the Parsons School of Design. He became a certified dental technician after studying at the Magna Institute of Dental Technology.

Career Núñez started his comedy career in New York, performing over 300 shows with The Shock of the Funny theater company. The troupe was active in the East Village for several years. In addition to his work with Shock, Núñez appeared in theater in New York and Washington, D.C. before moving to Los Angeles in the mid 1990s. In L.A., he joined the Groundlings and performed in their Sunday Company. While with the Groundlings, he wrote and starred in a production called "Smooth Down There."

In 1997, Núñez graduated from the Warner Brothers Comedy Writer's Workshop. In 1999, he was a finalist in the ABC Latino Writers Project.

In 1998, he appeared on the game show Match Game but was not a winner. Núñez was Adam Carolla's stand-in on The Man Show.

Núñez's television credits include Malcolm in the Middle, 24, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Reno 911!, The District and Mad TV, in addition to his role on The Office. He won the 2007 Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Broadband Comedy for The Office: The Accountants. He was also the creator and executive producer of the Comedy Central series Halfway Home, in which he co-starred as the character Eulogio Pla.

His film credits include The Italian Job (as a security guard), Reno 911!: Miami, and When Do We Eat?. In 2009, Núñez played the role of Ramon, the caterer, stripper, soda jerk, and finally clergy performing the wedding ceremony in The Proposal. In 2012, Núñez played the role of Jose Baez, an attorney in the Lifetime movie Prosecuting Casey Anthony.

Núñez appeared as one of eight judges in the 2010 Miss USA Contest, posing a question about the Arizona undocumented immigrant law to Miss Oklahoma USA, Morgan Elizabeth Woolard. Núñez was booed by the audience before finishing the question; however he asked the audience to wait until he finished the question before they reacted. Although Woolard replied that she supports the law as a state rights issue, she added that she is against racial profiling.

In 2014, Núñez co-starred alongside Eliza Coupe and Jay Harrington in the short-lived USA Network comedy series Benched.

In 2016, Núñez appeared as a regular in the TBS comedy series, People of Earth.

In 2018, Núñez portrayed State Farm Insurance Agent Cole Perez in a series of commercials.

In July 2018, Núñez took on the role of Desi Arnaz, starring in the world premiere production of I Love Lucy: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Sitcom, a behind-the-scenes stage comedy about I Love Lucy by Gregg Oppenheimer (son of series creator Jess Oppenheimer). Recorded before a live audience at the UCLA's James Bridges Theater, the L.A. Theatre Works production aired on public radio and has been released on Audio CD and as a downloadable mp3.

From 2019 to 2020, Núñez portrayed Assistant Principal Carlos Hernandez on the Netflix original comedy series Mr. Iglesias.

In 2025, Núñez began reprising his role as Oscar from The Office in its spinoff, The Paper, with the character now working at a Toledo, Ohio-based newspaper. The show began airing on Peacock on September 4 that year. On September 25, 2025, Nuñez appeared on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire alongside his co-star from The Office, Kate Flannery. He and Flannery went on to win the million-dollar top prize, becoming only the fourth celebrities and the seventeenth overall to do so, splitting $500,000 each for their respective charities, Philabundance and Planned Parenthood.

Personal life Núñez is married to actress Ursula Whittaker, and they have one child.

Filmography

Film

Television + Year Title Role Notes 2000 Curb Your Enthusiasm Male Parking Attendant Episode: "Interior Decorator" 2001 Grounded for Life Security Guard Episode: "I Wanna Be Suspended" 2002–2003 Malcolm in the Middle Ranch Hand 2 episodes 2003 Still Standing Tim Episode: "Still Hairdressing" Reno 911! Captain Dwayne Hernandez 2 episodes 24 Pilot Episode: "Day 3: 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m." 2005–2013 The Office Oscar Martínez Main cast; 189 episodes 2006 Reno 911! "Spanish Mike" Alvarez Episode: "Spanish Mike Returns" 2007 Halfway Home Eulogio Pla 10 episodes 2010 Fred: The Movie Lorenzo Television film 2011–2012 Bob's Burgers Cha-Cha / Pepe (voice) 2 episodes 2013 Prosecuting Casey Anthony Jose Baez Television film Family TreeDiscount Car Rental AgentEpisode: "Indians" It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Sudz Manager Episode: "The Gang Tries Desperately to Win an Award" 2014 New Girl Doug Episode: "Cruise" Bad TeacherLouisEpisode: "Life Science" Benched Carlos 12 episodes 2015 Comedy Bang! Bang! FBI Agent José González Episode: "Maya Rudolph Wears a Black Skirt & Strappy Sandals" Adam Ruins Everything Benny Episode: "Adam Ruins Work" Romantically Speaking Carl Television film 2015–2019 Life in Pieces Dr. James Changa 2 episodes 2016 Brooklyn Nine-Nine Dr. Porp Episode: "9 Days" iZombie Stan Mendoza Episode: "Eternal Sunshine of the Caffeinated Mind" Mutt & Stuff Claude Puppe Episode: "Lights! Camera! Bark!" Shameless Rick Encarnacion 2 episodes Bad InternetJimEpisode: "Your Search History Revealed" BoondoggleEduardoEpisode: "The Course" Uncle BuckHectorEpisode: "The Interrogation" Liv and Maddie Mr. Beelick Episode: "Sorta-Sisters-A-Rooney" 2016–2017 People of Earth Father Doug 15 episodes 2018 American HousewifeRupert the CopEpisode: "Midlife Crisis" 9-1-1GuillermoEpisode: "Point of Origin" Worst Cooks in America: Celebrity Edition Himself 5 episodes (season 13) 2018–2019 3Below: Tales of Arcadia Sergeant Costas (voice) 9 episodes 2019 Those Who Can'tJohnsonEpisode: "Yes We Scan" NCIS: Los Angeles Lionel Fernandez Episode: "No More Secrets" Where's Waldo? Wizard Featherbeard (voice) Episode: "Costa Rica... In Color!" 2019–2020 Mr. Iglesias Assistant-Principal Carlos Hernandez 18 episodes 2020 Home Movie: The Princess Bride Inigo Montoya Episode: "Chapter Three: The Cliffs of Insanity" Social Distance Miguel Villareal Episode: "A Celebration of the Human Life Cycle" The GoldbergsTedEpisode: "Airplane!" 2021 No Activity(voice)Episode: "It's Not a Cult!" Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist Dr. Tesoro 3 episodes2022The G Word with Adam ConoverVarious3 episodes Out of Office X Fernandez TV movie 2022–2025 Firebuds Chef Fernando (voice) 12 episodes 2023 Lucky Hank Dean Jacob Rose 6 episodes 2024 Solar Opposites Oscar (voice) Episode: "Live Die Repeat Device (Formerly Known as the Edge of Tomorrow Device)" 2025–present The Paper Oscar Martinez Main role2026 Rick and Morty Antonio (voice) Episode: "Rick Days, Seven Nights" Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness General Santa Anna Episode: "Buzz"

Awards and nominations