Which actor played Paul Pfeiffer on The Wonder Years?

Josh Saviano played Paul Pfeiffer on The Wonder Years.

Paul is Kevin Arnold’s best friend and one of the series’ central supporting characters. He is portrayed as intelligent, academically successful, and frequently troubled by severe allergies. Although Kevin and Paul are close during the early seasons, their friendship becomes more complicated as they enter high school and begin developing different interests and social circles.

The series follows Kevin’s adolescence from 1968 through 1973, with adult Kevin narrating memories of his suburban childhood. Paul provides both comic contrast and emotional depth, including storylines about school, family expectations, religion, dating, and the pressures of growing up. The finale reveals that Paul eventually attends Harvard and becomes a lawyer.

Saviano was a child actor when the ABC series premiered in 1988. After The Wonder Years ended in 1993, he largely left acting, attended Yale University, and became a lawyer. A persistent urban legend claimed that Paul Pfeiffer was played by Marilyn Manson, but the character was played by Saviano throughout the original series.