Matthew Paul Walsh (born October 13, 1964)
is an American comedian and actor, best known for his role as Mike McLintock in ''
Veep
''Veep'' is an American political satire comedy television series that aired on HBO from April 22, 2012, to May 12, 2019. The series was created by Armando Iannucci as an adaptation of his sitcom ''The Thick of It''. The protagonist of ''Veep'' ...
'' for which he received two
Primetime Emmy Award
The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...
nominations. He is a founding member of the
Upright Citizens Brigade
The Upright Citizens Brigade is an improvisational and sketch comedy group that emerged from Chicago's ImprovOlympic in 1990. The original incarnation of the group consisted of Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, Matt Walsh, Adam McKay, ...
sketch comedy troupe, with which he co-starred in the
original television series and
the 2015 reboot. He also previously starred in short-lived comedy programs such as ''
Dog Bites Man'' and ''
Players'', and was a correspondent on ''
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
''. He has also appeared in films such as ''
Road Trip
A road trip, sometimes spelled roadtrip, is a long-distance journey on the road. Typically, road trips are long distances travelled by automobile.
History
First road trips by automobile
The world's first recorded long-distance road trip by t ...
'' (2000), ''
Bad Santa
''Bad Santa'' is a 2003 American Christmas black comedy film directed by Terry Zwigoff and written by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa. It stars Billy Bob Thornton, with a supporting cast of Tony Cox, Lauren Graham, Brett Kelly, Lauren Tom, Joh ...
'' (2003), ''
School for Scoundrels School for Scoundrels may refer to:
* ''School for Scoundrels'' (1960 film), a British comedy film starring Ian Carmichael, Terry-Thomas and Alistair Sim
* ''School for Scoundrels'' (2006 film), an American film based on the above, featuring Bil ...
'' (2006), ''
Role Models'' (2008), ''
The Hangover
''The Hangover'' is a 2009 American comedy film directed by Todd Phillips, co-produced with Daniel Goldberg, and written by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore. It is the first installment in ''The Hangover'' trilogy. The film stars Bradley Cooper, E ...
'' (2009) and ''
The Do-Over
''The Do-Over'' is a 2016 American buddy action comedy film directed by Steven Brill, and written by Kevin Barnett and Chris Pappas. The movie follows Charlie (David Spade) and Max (Adam Sandler) after Max fakes their deaths in order to start t ...
'' (2016).
Early life
Walsh was born in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, subdivision_name ...
, the fourth of seven children of Dick and Audrey Walsh. He graduated from
Hinsdale South High School
Hinsdale South High School, or HSHS, and locally referred to as "South," is a public four-year high school located at the corner of 75th Street and Clarendon Hills Road in Darien, Illinois, a southwestern suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the Unit ...
in 1982. While in high school he played on the football team as a backup tight end. He attended
Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois. It was founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895, by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld as part of an expansion of the state's system ...
, where he graduated with a degree in
Psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...
, also spending a year studying abroad in
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
at
Salzburg College
Salzburg College (or simply SC) is a small, private Austrian institution specialized on study abroad and located in Salzburg, Austria. Students (primarily from the US) come to Salzburg College to study:
* History and Political Science
* Communicati ...
.
Career
After college, Walsh took
improvisational comedy
Improvisational theatre, often called improvisation or improv, is the form of theatre, often comedy, in which most or all of what is performed is unplanned or unscripted: created spontaneously by the performers. In its purest form, the dialogue, a ...
classes in Chicago, where he became a regular performer at the
Annoyance Theater
The Annoyance Theatre, or Annoyance Productions, is a theatre and associated ensemble based in Chicago, Illinois, that deals mainly in absurd and outrageous humor. Many people who have performed with the ensemble have gone on to become successf ...
and
ImprovOlympic
iO, or iO Chicago, (formerly known as "ImprovOlympic") is an improv theater and training center in central Chicago, with a former branch in Los Angeles, called iO West and in Raleigh, North Carolina called iO South. The theater taught and hosted ...
, and studied under
Del Close
Del Close (March 9, 1934 – March 4, 1999) was an American actor, writer, and teacher who coached many of the best-known comedians and comic actors of the late twentieth century. In addition to an acting career in television and film, he was ...
. In 1991, he met comedian
Matt Besser
Matthew Gregory Besser (born September 22, 1967) is an American actor, comedian, director, producer, and writer, best known as one of the four founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy troupe, who had their own show on Comedy ...
, with whom he began performing stand-up comedy. Along with
Matt Besser
Matthew Gregory Besser (born September 22, 1967) is an American actor, comedian, director, producer, and writer, best known as one of the four founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy troupe, who had their own show on Comedy ...
,
Amy Poehler
Amy Poehler (; born September 16, 1971) is an American comedian, actress, writer, producer, and director. After studying improv at Chicago's Second City and ImprovOlympic in the early 1990s, Poehler co-founded the improvisational-comedy tro ...
, and
Ian Roberts, he is a founding member of the
Upright Citizens Brigade
The Upright Citizens Brigade is an improvisational and sketch comedy group that emerged from Chicago's ImprovOlympic in 1990. The original incarnation of the group consisted of Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, Matt Walsh, Adam McKay, ...
improv comedy troupe and played "Trotter" in the troupe's sketch comedy series, which ran for three seasons on
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...
. Before the show, the UCB comedy foursome had already been doing improv shows at their theatre in New York, which used to be a burlesque house before they remodeled it to become a theatre. To date, they have founded four successful Upright Citizens Brigade comedy theaters located in New York at UCB Chelsea and The East Village UCB, and Los Angeles with UCB Franklin and UCB Sunset.
Besides his sketch work with the Upright Citizens Brigade, Walsh is also known for his memorable supporting roles in popular comedy films in recent years including ''
Old School'', ''
Starsky & Hutch'', ''
Be Kind Rewind
''Be Kind Rewind'' is a 2008 buddy comedy film written and directed by Michel Gondry, and starring Jack Black, Mos Def, Melonie Diaz, Danny Glover, Mia Farrow and Sigourney Weaver. The film first appeared on January 20, 2008 at the 2008 Sund ...
'', ''
Ted
TED may refer to:
Economics and finance
* TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar
Education
* ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association
** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey
** Transvaal Education Depa ...
'', and ''
Keeping Up with the Joneses
Keeping is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Charles Keeping (1924–1988), British illustrator, children's book author and lithographer
* Damien Keeping (born 1982), Australian rules football coach
* Frederick Keeping (1867 ...
''. Walsh also wrote and starred in the cult indie-comedy ''
Martin & Orloff
''Martin & Orloff'' is a 2002 feature film written by and starring Matt Walsh and Ian Roberts, best known as half of the Upright Citizens Brigade comedy troupe, along with Ian's wife Katie Roberts. The film was produced and directed by Lawrence ...
'', especially ''
The Hangover
''The Hangover'' is a 2009 American comedy film directed by Todd Phillips, co-produced with Daniel Goldberg, and written by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore. It is the first installment in ''The Hangover'' trilogy. The film stars Bradley Cooper, E ...
''. In The Hangover, he plays a doctor who, when asked directions, replies, "It's at the corner of 'get a Map' and 'Go F__ yourself.'" In addition, he was also a correspondent on ''
The Daily Show
''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form from ...
'' from 2001 to 2002, and made regular appearances in comedy sketches on ''
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien. NBC aired 2,725 episodes from September 13, 1993, to February 20, 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and music ...
'' and
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
's ''
Human Giant
''Human Giant'' is a sketch comedy show, starring writer/performers Aziz Ansari, Rob Huebel, and Paul Scheer, and directed primarily by Jason Woliner. The show ran for two seasons on MTV. In interviews, the group has mentioned that they were o ...
'' as well as starring in the Comedy Central
mockumentary
A mockumentary (a blend of ''mock'' and ''documentary''), fake documentary or docu-comedy is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events but presented as a documentary.
These productions are often used to analyze or comment on c ...
series ''
Dog Bites Man'' in the summer of 2006. Walsh has the distinction of having appeared in several
Todd Phillips
Todd Phillips (né Bunzl, born December 20, 1970) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He began his career in 1993 and directed films in the 2000s such as ''Road Trip (film), Road Trip'', ''Old School (film), Old School'', ...
comedy films, most often playing characters aptly named "Walsh".
In 2010, Walsh created the improvised comedy series ''
Players'' for
Spike TV
Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles.
The channel was o ...
. Walsh (creator, writer, director and executive producer of the show) stars in the series alongside his Upright Citizens Brigade partner
Ian Roberts, as two brothers who run a sports bar together. The show aired for one season, concluding on August 14, 2010.
Walsh currently hosts the podcast ''Bear Down'' with comedian
Scot Armstrong
Scot Armstrong is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. He is credited with writing or co-writing numerous comedy films, including '' Old School'', '' The Hangover: Part II'', ''Semi-Pro'', ''Road Trip'', and many others. He is als ...
(screenwriter of ''Old School'') where they discuss their favorite football team
The Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
and do sports-themed comedy bits such as fake call-ins and in-character interviews. The podcast has also featured appearances by comedians such as
Horatio Sanz
Horacio Sanz (born June 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Horatio Sanz, is a Chilean-born American actor and comedian. He was a cast member on '' Saturday Night Live'' from 1998 to 2006.
Early life
Sanz was born on June 4, 1969 in Sant ...
,
Ian Roberts,
Joseph Nunez, and
Matt Price
Matt Price (15 October 1961 – 25 November 2007) was an Australian journalist and newspaper columnist.
Price was from Western Australia and was educated at Newman College, Churchlands and the University of Western Australia, from which ...
.
In 2010, Walsh had recurring roles on the
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
comedy series ''
Outsourced'' and on the
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
comedy series ''
Hung
Hung may refer to:
People
* Hung (surname), various Chinese surnames
* Hùng king, a king of Vietnam
People with the given name Hung include:
* Hung Huynh, Vietnamese-American chef, winner of the third season of the television show ''Top Chef''
...
''. In 2012, he began co-starring as Mike McLintock in the HBO series ''
Veep
''Veep'' is an American political satire comedy television series that aired on HBO from April 22, 2012, to May 12, 2019. The series was created by Armando Iannucci as an adaptation of his sitcom ''The Thick of It''. The protagonist of ''Veep'' ...
'', for which he was nominated for the
in 2016 and 2017. During that year, Walsh portrayed
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.
From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlins ...
in ''
The Dead Authors Podcast
''The Dead Authors Podcast'' is an improvised comedy and faux-historical podcast hosted by Paul F. Tompkins in character as H.G. Wells, with special written material provided by Ben Zelevansky. The show ran from 2011 until 2015. In each episode ...
''.
Walsh directed his first feature film ''
High Road
High Road or The High Road may refer to:
Film and television
* ''High Road'' (film), a 2012 comedy by Matt Walsh
* The Lady of Scandal, a 1930 American pre-Code film, also known as The High Road
* The High Road (1915 film), a lost silent film
...
'', an indie-comedy he co-wrote with Josh Weiner. The film was released on March 6, 2012. Walsh co-wrote his second film, ''A Better You'', with
Brian Huskey
Brian Huskey (born September 8, 1968) is an American character actor, comedian, and writer. He is best known for his roles in comedy programs such as '' People of Earth'', ''Childrens Hospital'', ''Veep'', and ''Another Period''. He also provides ...
, who also stars in the film.
In the movie ''
Into the Storm'', Walsh stars as Pete Moore, who is the driver of the
Tornado Intercept Vehicle
The Tornado Intercept Vehicle 1 (TIV 1) and Tornado Intercept Vehicle 2 (TIV 2) are vehicles used to film with an IMAX camera from very close to or within a tornado. They were designed by film director Sean Casey. Both TIVs have intercepted numero ...
nicknamed "Titus."
He appeared in the MyCareer mode in the basketball simulation game ''
NBA 2K17
''NBA 2K17'' is a 2016 basketball simulation video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It is the 18th installment in the ''NBA 2K'' franchise and the successor to ''NBA 2K16''. It was released worldwide on September 20, ...
''.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
*Audio interview on
The Sound of Young America
''Bullseye with Jesse Thorn'' (formerly ''The Sound of Young America'') is a public radio program and podcast based in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, California, and distributed by National Public Radio (NPR). The weekly show is currently h ...
MP3 LinkInterviewed by Josh Fultonon Improv Resource Center
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Matt
1964 births
Living people
Male actors from Chicago
American male film actors
American film directors
American podcasters
American male screenwriters
American stand-up comedians
American male television actors
American television directors
American television writers
American male voice actors
Northern Illinois University alumni
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors
American sketch comedians
American male television writers
Upright Citizens Brigade Theater performers
Screenwriters from Illinois
Comedians from Illinois
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
American game show hosts