J. B. Blanc

Apart from the bullying from his peers, he sought mentorship from his "little revolutionary English teachers" and performed in school plays, namely Gilbert and Sullivan musicals and an American work, The Zoo Story by Edward Albee. One supportive teacher encouraged him to audition for the National Youth Theatre in London which, to 16-year-old Blanc, was "another world for us [in Yorkshire]." His audition proved successful and in 1987 at 18, he was accepted at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), the youngest person to do so that year. The drama institution was where he first met Victoria Harwood and he graduated in 1990. After a short sabbatical travelling, he then made his debut in professional theatre.

Blanc then reunited with Lizzie Play director Rufus Norris and playwright Deirdre Strath for a modern re-telling of Sleeping Beauty, retitled Waking Beauty, which opened at the Arts Threshold in mid-January 1995. Antonia Quirke, reviewing for The Stage, named the production "anarchic," commenting that "the action [of the story] was 'devised by the company'" within five weeks of rehearsals, even though Strath was credited for the writing. The cast replaced traditional fairytale dress with Reebok boots and hand-crafted wigs made of straw, which Quirke found "inspirational." The production was noteworthy, she added, for its "joyous exposure of the tricky little perversions frequently smudged in mainstream fairytales." Blanc also appeared in Love for Love, directed by Jon Harris at the New End Theatre in August 1995. Critic Paul Taylor of The Independent was unimpressed with the small stage placed closely to the audience's seats, the casting, which he felt was uneven and lacking chemistry between scenes, or the quality of line deliveries, which he described as "screamingly high pitch[ed]." However, he was partial to some of the performances, namely the leads and Blanc, writing: "[T]here are some extremely enjoyable characterisations, particularly that of Jean-Benoit Blanc as Valentine's blunt sailor brother, a nautical image-addict. [...] Arriving in Act 3, he comes as a tonic after all the mincing landlubbers."

In late 1996, he joined the Royal National Theatre company of Sir Peter Hall's self-prescribed "first thriller" Oedipus the King, called "the most influential play ever" by the Lincolnshire Echo, which premiered in Greece's Epidaurus Theatre before transferring to the Olivier Theatre. Re-adapted and translated by Ranjit Bolt, Hall's version had the cast wear masks and opted for "20th-century colloquialisms and irony [...] a very rich translation," quoted Hall, "which encourages the actors' intensity." The production was well-received and promoted nationally where it was revived with the original cast for Radio 4 in March 1997. He would also feature in an adaptation of Anton Chekhov's The Duel at the Lyric Studio in May 1997, starring Paul McEwan as Layevsky who raged "virtually against everyone" in the ensemble, "even the wonderfully jolly and philanthropic Doctor Samolyenko" interpreted by Blanc. The Times' James Christopher thought Blanc had "bluff appeal [as] a big-hearted army doctor who lets his alcoholic friend abuse his bar tab." In autumn 1997, he would go on to work with Howard Davies in his National Theatre revival of Arnold Wesker's Chips with Everything as the Second Corporal and showcased his musical talents by alternating in the orchestra, performing guitars and vocals. Variety, in a positive assessment, identified the cast as "a crackerjack [which] charge[d] ahead [...] even when the writing doesn't rise to the production," concluding: "Not since Noises Off has a cast's physical dexterity elicited such applause."

Blanc would eventually make his foray into professional opera, appearing in director Sarah Alexander's Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci at the Opera Holland Park Theatre in June 1998. Blanc's "well-rehearsed choral movement," said a review for The Stage, "provides a vivid impression of Sicilian village life," which played to a full house.

For over a decade, he almost exclusively worked in theatre before he dropped acting temporarily. He mentioned that on stage work "is the 'real stuff' because it's the best job in town, but I could barely pay my bills." For a time, he worked odd jobs, including construction work and in the sales department at a web design company to earn a stable income, where he recalled feeling miserable. "I was a part of this corporate world and it was horrible." He later elaborated on why he quit acting: "Even when you're working in professional theatre and I worked in some great theatres, including The National Theatre, it's still hard to make money."

After being contacted by an agent he knew in the U.K. for a role in a Hollywood production, he left his corporate job and was cast as the Italian bandit, Luigi Vampa in The Count of Monte Cristo for Touchstone Pictures, which he has named fondly as "the movie that brought me to America." Reviews were generally positive. Critic Walter Chaw expressed that Blanc "as [the] insouciant pirate king" Vampa was "a character greatly expanded from the novel though still underused." Roger Moore of Desert Dispatch felt that Blanc's performance was "droll in the extreme," calling his line deliveries "classic."

According to the production extras that came with the American DVD release of R.O.D the TV, Blanc commented: "When [voice director Taliesin Jaffe] talked to me about the character of Joker in Read or Die [after working on L/R], I had to stop myself from saying 'yes!' before he'd finished the pitch. What actor wouldn't jump at the chance to play the gentleman villain?" Behind the scenes, Blanc juggled his skills as an actor and teacher, working closely as an accent coach with some of the non-British cast, namely Jessica D. Stone who played Joker's youngest field agent, Junior, in order to perfect their dialects. Blanc would interpret his character, Joker beyond an archetype for which he was given an Anime Dub Recognition (ADR) Award for the December 2004 release of Volume 4, adding that "like most evil people, he sincerely believes in his cause and each action he takes seems to him to be the most natural thing in the world." Due to this approach, Way Jeng of Mania emphasized that "Joker's cool demeanor is very natural" in an otherwise "fantastic [dub]." He added that Blanc exhibited "one of the most appealing performances [of the show]. It's soft but carries a subtle edge" that wasn't afraid to delve into bitterness, explaining that his "sinister side provides the most enjoyable moments." By the finale, Jeng believed that "Joker's calm focus and unwavering vision [whenever his] obsession bubbles to the surface [...] have made him an extremely compelling villain" that avoided the trap of feeling "overplayed [...] which grounds the character." Anime Insider expressed similar sentiments. "Joker [has a] vision of a future free from crime and suffering [...] at the cost of all other culture and even all individual thought, and [he] does not hesitate to kill, lie, steal, cheat and even burn books to get there... all with a smile on his lips."

In 2005, Blanc appeared in a guest-starring role in Season 12 of NYPD Blue, portraying Alex Stratis, the son of a Greek immigrant and coffee shop owner who was murdered under mysterious circumstances. Amanda Wilson in a review admitted that episode fourteen was not "much to write home about," though the performances by the ensemble cast were singled out. "The story was crafted and acted well enough," she said, "prior to [the] revelation [about Alex's father] to make the moment something of a shocker." Additionally, he was set to appear in the film, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, though his scenes were ultimately cut. The same year, his voice was featured in the Electronic Arts game, James Bond 007: From Russia with Love in the role of Pedro Armendáriz with a Turkish-Latin accent, which was released in November on PlayStation 2.

He returned to the stage in L.A., appearing in the ensemble of the World War II drama, iWitness, presented by Center Theatre Group and directed by Barry Edelstein at the Mark Taper Forum in April 2006, which is set in 1943 within the confines of a single set — a Berlin prison — and was based on the final days and execution of Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian farmer who was arrested and killed for refusing to support the Nazi Party; one "incriminating" act that he was accused of involved his defiance for not putting on their uniform. Joshua Sobol, the playwright, composed the play in his native Israel during the ongoing war between Israel and Palestine, drawing parallels to Jägerstätter and his comrades who wanted no part in the military occupation of Palestine. The Hollywood Reporter lauded the production, naming Blanc's performance as Sgt. Bastian "first-rate." Theatre critic Jeff Favre felt the opposite, writing that the acting was melodramatic and the tone too bleak for its nearly two-hour runtime, especially Blanc's prison guard stories of the guillotine told to the protagonist to dissuade him from his inevitable sentence. He was also cast as the supporting character Leon in Tristan & Isolde, directed by Kevin Reynolds and released by 20th Century Fox in January 2006.

In November 2007, due to his background living in North Yorkshire, he was brought on as a dialect coach for the American premiere of the English play, The History Boys, directed by Paul Miller at the Ahmanson Theatre, which the Yorkshire Post noted would be "interesting to judge how successful he has been" once the play opened in the States, acknowledging Blanc's Yorkshire upbringing, though arguing that Yorkshire has a wide range of accents spread across a few miles, from Sheffiled to Holme Valley. Blanc commented that the origin of an accent was the core to authenticity, not the sounds alone, which he instilled in the young American cast — all deriving from various backgrounds and U.S. states — in an intense rehearsal that lasted five weeks, plus a full reading that was scheduled at the Music Center in early October. As homework, Blanc produced a CD for the cast to practice vocal exercises when not in the rehearsal space as well as assigned viewings of such films as The Full Monty. Reportedly, some of his choices in exercises were less appropriate with a single goal in mind: "[W]ith a little practice you'll be able to say any word that rhymes with 'luck' like a dyed-in-the-wool Sheffielder," which the cast treated with humour, even when criticized profanely when blundering through their dialects repeatedly. Although he had originally signed onto the production for two weeks, his role as a coach was extended all the way through dress rehearsals. The play opened on 14 November and ran until early December. Later that month, he co-starred in the L.A. Theatre Works' production, Major Barbara, directed by Dakin Matthews at the Skirball Cultural Center. He worked as a dialect coach once again for The Fountain Theatre's production of Victory, directed by Stephen Sachs, opening in January and closing on March 9, 2008, which transferred to Los Angeles after well-received stagings in South Africa and the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland, respectively in 2007.

In 2009, an English dub licensed by Viz Media of mangaka Naoki Urasawa's critically-acclaimed Monster was set to air on Syfy's Ani-Mondays Block as well as the Chiller television network. Later in the season, Blanc was featured as Roberto, Johan Liebert's unhinged follower and survivor of the Cold War experiment, Kinderheim 511. The themes and characters have been widely praised. Carl Kimlinger of Anime News Network positively received the "veracity" of the Japanese voice cast as well Viz's English version. "Viz goes for a similar level of anal fidelity," he said. "Their English adaptation is one of their most carefully cast and deliberately accurate in recent memory. [...] The performances range from good [...] to superb." Writing for CBR, Daniella Fois interpreted of the series finale that "Roberto's sole anchor that keeps him from completely drowning in nihilism [is his childhood memory of hot cocoa]," thus, adding layers to his role as a secondary villain. However, she noted, Roberto's memory "is also the same reason that Johan deems him unworthy to see the scenery for a doomsday. Because Roberto, unlike Johan, is not truly empty. He only claims to be." Blanc was also featured as the hero's deceased father, Alighiero in Visceral Games' Dante's Inferno, released by Electronic Arts in early 2010, and joined the American production of The Train Driver, a play by South African writer Athol Fugard, as a dialect coach for the Africaans dialects, which was directed by Stephen Sachs at the Fountain Theatre from October through December 2010.

In 2012, he starred as Al Capone in the 1920s short film, The Lift, directed by Lyndon Barrois. At the 14th Annual Independent Filmmakers Showcase Film Festival held in Santa Monica, Blanc was awarded Best Actor for his performance. He also joined the creative team of The Fountain Theatre, working as a dialect coach for the Los Angeles premiere of the play, In the Red and Brown Water. The same year, he lent his voice to the English dub of the French animated film, A Cat in Paris, playing a low-time criminal, Victor Costa who is responsible for leaving the heroine fatherless. Writing for ScreenAnarchy, critic Jim Tudor called Blanc a "fiend [who] is an intrinsically watchable loon." He praised his take on a gangster, saying his performance "at least in spirit [hails] from the Joe Pesci/Goodfellas school of psycho mob nut with his own crazed obsession." Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times was notably mixed in her review, believing the film struggled in finding its tone, not knowing when to "be serious or silly," though went on to single out the animation and characterizations, which were boasted by recognizable performances. Gil Mansergh, on the other hand, was left confused by Blanc's depiction, pointing out that Costa is, obviously, meant to be French — "albeit with a Cockney accent."

He would return to the world of Hellsing with the release of the OVA, Hellsing Ultimate which aimed to readapt the manga faithfully (compared to the thirteen-episode television series), reprising his dual roles as the Cheddar Priest and Enrico Maxwell, respectively. The majority of the original cast and crew reunited for the Japanese production as well as the American team heading the translation. New Generation Pictures was again responsible for the English dub with Taliesin Jaffe serving as ADR director and Jonathan Klein producing. "It was the first voice gig I did in the U.S.," said Blanc on the DVD extras. "[Enrico is] slightly Italian, dangerous, fantastically fun to play, ingratiating while he's killing you, he's just a great character." Commenting on his return to the franchise, Blanc was quoted: "[Hellsing Ultimate is] bigger and camper [sic] and there's more of Enrico Maxwell which, you know, I'm always happy with. [...] It's good to come back to something that feels familiar, and yet it's having its boundaries pushed further and further."

Though only ten episodes long, each episode held a one-hour runtime with a lengthy production period that spanned seven years, switching between several animation studios and two American distributors. The first set of episodes premiered in late 2006, dropping physically on DVD (though scheduled inconsistently) until it aired on Starz Edge in early 2008. The show later appeared on Adult Swim's Toonami block, which ran all segments until late 2014; the final two episodes were eventually given a DVD and Blu-Ray release the same year. Bamboo Dong of Anime News Network felt that the OVA was "pretty incredible." However, he criticized the quality of the English dub, saying: "[F]ans were psyched that some of the British characters were recorded using British voice actors [in the original TV series] but that wasn't done across the board," emphasizing the weakness of K.T. Gray's South London dialect. A British reviewer held a similar perception, commenting: "It doesn't matter when the majority of the main cast are of British origin when the voices are still filtered through a Hollywood mindset of what UK accents should be." Despite the criticisms, Behind the Voice Actors would award the English dub with a Best Vocal Ensemble nod as well as individual nominations for some of the cast, including a Best Male Supporting Vocal Performance for Blanc in 2012.

He would later portray Alfred Pennyworth in the Cartoon Network series, Beware the Batman, which was promoted at San Diego Comic-Con along with the game, Saints Row IV, and aired from 2013 to 2014. The show was praised for its "predictably solid" vocal performances as well as the individual personalities the cast embedded in their characters, recognised by the Pennsylvania publication, Reading Eagle. As Deacon Frost in the anime adaptation of the Marvel Comics property Blade, Wichita Anime Examiner thought that Blanc "did a great job voicing him as he has this low growl of a voice." While the majority of the performances for Marvel Anime's Iron Man title received criticism from the Chicago Geek Culture Examiner for the lack of believability, John Eric Bentley was noted for being "spot on" as Nick Fury as well as Blanc as Ezekiel Stane, who's performance was "properly creepy." He had also aided the development of a sci-fi/action web series project, Subject 5 through the promotional "Subject Five Con," created by artist LaQuita Cleare.

In 2021, it was announced that Blanc had joined the voice cast of Arcane, based on the characters and lore of the popular game, League of Legends. He was one of a few cast members who were asked to return from the original game, though as a different character, filling the role of Vi and Powder's adoptive father, Vander, the "peacemaker" of the Lanes who meets a horrific end early in the series as he is betrayed by his "brother," Silco. Co-creator Christian Linke commented of the casting: "There is definitely a family of voice acting talent that has been part of the League of Legends world who were happy to find ways to bring them back in Arcane." Blanc would return in Season 2 as the voice of Warwick and a younger Vander in flashbacks. Cameryn Barnett of Collider praised the writing and animation of Vander/Warwick, noting that his "beastly return [in Season 2] marks a tragic end for his character." Likewise, The Quinnipiac Chronicle argued that the voice acting for Season 2 was so realistic that viewers would be hard pressed to forget that the characters were only drawings, yet still manage to be believable and relatable.