Ryan Newman

Living… in sunny Los Angeles. Ryan is depressed, and one night he unsuccessfully tries to kill himself by taking a whole bottle of pills. The next day he wakes up unscathed, and his next-door neighbor Jenna asks him to watch her dog Wilfred, who Ryan sees as an Australian man wearing a dog suit. Ryan is unsure whether or not he is hallucinating. Regardless, this is the beginning of a long and fruitful friendship. 

Profession… unemployed. Ryan became a contract lawyer in part because of pressure from his father. His time as lawyer came to an end shortly before his attempted suicide. His uptight sister Kristen gets him a job at the hospital she works at, but he blows off his first day to get high with Wilfred.

Interests… smoking weed, drinking beer, playing table tennis, and hanging out with Wilfred. Growing up, Ryan won the high school state table tennis championship, and he’s pretty good. But ever since he met Wilfred, Ryan hasn’t had any interest in making new friends or finding new work, and instead spends his time cleaning up the many messes that Wilfred gets him into.

Relationship Status… single. Ryan has a massive crush on Jenna, but Jenna is dating Drew, the over-competitive beer salesman from Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Ryan sets up an account on LoveMatchDating.com and briefly dates Amanda, a pretty and somewhat insane biochemist, but Jenna is the only one for Ryan. He would like nothing more than for her relationship with Drew to go down in flames. 

Challenge… coping with his depression and his uncertain grip on reality. Hanging out with Wilfred imbues his life with newfound purpose in addition to great stress. Wilfred appoints himself a sort of life coach to Ryan, for better or for worse.

Personality… quiet, awkward, and non-confrontational. Ryan has a hard time dealing with Wilfred’s mood swings and antics. He finds it difficult to make time for his friends and family and comes off self-centered to others. He isn’t good at expressing himself, and he is easily embarrassed by his free-spirited mother. In pushing Ryan’s buttons, Wilfred seeks to bring him out of his shell.