Jason Bateman (born January 14, 1969 in Rye, New York) is an American actor.

First popular in the 1980s, one of his earliest major roles was on the drama, Little House on the Prairie. He later became a teen idol (in shows such as Silver Spoons, It's Your Move , and The Hogan Family ), his career went into decline for almost a decade before he landed one of the lead roles on the FOX television comedy Arrested Development.

Recently, he has appeared in Dodgeball as an ESPN 8 commentator and Starsky & Hutch as Vince Vaughn's business partner. He also recently did commentary on the 2004 Republican National Convention for The Majority Report with Arrested Development co-star David Cross.

Bateman was awarded the Golden Globe in 2005 for "Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy" for his work in the first season of Arrested Development. He guest-hosted NBC's Saturday Night Live on February 12, 2005.

His older sister is Family Ties star Justine Bateman.