Born: September 18, 1975
Age: 49
Birthplace: Fairfax, Virginia, U.S.
Daniel Jason Sudeikis (/sᵿˈdeɪkɪs/ sə-DAY-kis; born September 18, 1975) is an American actor, comedian and screenwriter. He began his career in improv comedy. In 2003, he was hired as a sketch writer for Saturday Night Live and was a cast member from 2005 to 2013. He has appeared on television in 30 Rock, The Cleveland Show, Eastbound & Down, and other shows. He is also known for his roles in the films Hall Pass (2011), Horrible Bosses (2011), Epic (2013), We're the Millers (2013), Horrible Bosses 2 (2014) and delved into dramatic territory with Race (2016).
Sudeikis was born Daniel Jason Sudeikis in Fairfax, Virginia. His mother, Kathryn (née Wendt), was formerly a travel agent at Brennco and was president of the American Society of Travel Agents. His father, Daniel Joseph Sudeikis, is a vice president of business development. His uncle (mother's brother) is actor George Wendt, who is best known for his role as Norm Peterson on Cheers, and his maternal grandmother's father was photographer Tom Howard. Sudeikis is of Lithuanian and Irish descent on his father's side, and German and Irish ancestry on his mother's.
As a child, Sudeikis moved with his family to Overland Park, Kansas, which he has described as his hometown.
Sudeikis occasionally referenced Kansas in Saturday Night Live sketches. He is also a longtime Kansas Jayhawks fan and has worked University of Kansas themes and well-known Lawrence, Kansas, locations into several sketches on SNL.
He was born with anosmia, leaving him with no sense of smell and virtually no sense of taste.
Sudeikis began performing at ComedySportz (now Comedy City) in Kansas City. After moving to Chicago, Sudeikis studied at the Annoyance Theatre and ImprovOlympic, where he was one of the founding members of the long-form team J.T.S. Brown.
He was later cast in The Second City's National Touring Company, and also performed with Boom Chicago in Amsterdam. In the early 2000s, he became a founding member of Second City Las Vegas. He continues to frequently perform at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre's weekly improv show ASSSCAT 3000 in New York City.
In 2003, while a regular performer at Second City Las Vegas, Sudeikis was hired as a sketch writer for Saturday Night Live, and would occasionally make bit appearances as audience members or extras. In May 2005, he became a featured player on the show, and was upgraded to repertory status at the beginning of the show's 32nd season on September 30, 2006. In July 2013, Sudeikis announced that he was leaving Saturday Night Live.
Sudeikis had a recurring role on the NBC series 30 Rock with friend Tina Fey in early 2007, appearing in a total of seven episodes. He played Floyd DeBarber, a love interest of Tina Fey's character Liz Lemon. He made another appearance as Floyd in a 2008 episode, and appeared again in the Valentine's Day episode airing February 11, 2010, along with Jon Hamm and Dean Winters. Sudeikis last appeared in three episodes towards the end of the show's 4th season in 2010.
Sudeikis did voice work for the videogame Grand Theft Auto IV, playing the role of right-wing radio host Richard Bastion. He also appeared in the 2008 comedy What Happens in Vegas, playing the role of Cameron Diaz's character's ex-fiancé. In July 2008, Sudeikis co-starred with Bill Hader and Joe Lo Truglio in the Lorne Michaels-produced web-series The Line on Crackle.
Sudeikis appeared in the film The Bounty Hunter, released in March 2010. He co-starred alongside Jennifer Aniston and Gerard Butler, playing a colleague of Aniston's character, who falls in love with her.
Sudeikis was a voice actor on the FOX animated comedy series The Cleveland Show. Sudeikis provided the voice for Holt Richter, Cleveland's wannabe hipster neighbor, as well as the voice of Terry Kimple, Cleveland's hard-partying high school buddy, who now works with Cleveland at the cable company. After previously being credited as a recurring guest in season one, Sudeikis was bumped up to a series regular beginning in season two.
In May 2010, Sudeikis joined the cast of the 2011 Seth Gordon comedy Horrible Bosses, which also starred Jamie Foxx, Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, Colin Farrell, Charlie Day, and Jason Bateman. Sudeikis co-hosted WWE Raw with Going the Distance co-stars Charlie Day and Justin Long on August 16, 2010, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Sudeikis also played his first lead film role, alongside Owen Wilson, in the 2011 Farrelly brothers comedy Hall Pass. He had worked with Day when he played the role of Schmitty on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and reprised the role on that show's 7th season finale.
He hosted the 2011 MTV Movie Awards on June 5, 2011, at the Gibson Amphitheatre.
In 2012, Sudeikis had a recurring role on the third season of the HBO series Eastbound & Down playing Shane, Kenny Powers's battery mate on the Myrtle Beach Mermen, and Shane's twin brother, Cole.
Sudeikis became the voice for a line of advertisements of the Applebee's casual dining chain that began running in 2012.
Sudeikis features in the video for Mumford and Sons song "Hopeless Wanderer".
Sudeikis has portrayed Ted Lasso, a hapless American football coach brought to England to coach the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, as part of two promotional videos for NBC Sports in 2013 and 2014 for their coverage of the Barclays Premier League.
He is divorced from writer-producer Kay Cannon.
Sudeikis and actress Olivia Wilde became engaged in January 2013. They have one son, Otis Alexander, born April 20, 2014. In April 2016, Wilde announced she and Sudeikis were expecting their second child.
On May 11, 2012, Sudeikis' father's family history was traced on the NBC program Who Do You Think You Are?.
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | The Ten | Tony Contiella | |
2007 | Watching the Detectives | Jonathan | |
2007 | Meet Bill | Jim Whittman | |
2008 | The Rocker | David Marshall | |
2008 | Bang Blow & Stroke | David Marshall | Short film |
2008 | Semi-Pro | Nacho Fan | Cameo |
2008 | What Happens in Vegas | Mason | |
2010 | The Bounty Hunter | Stewart | |
2010 | Going the Distance | Box Saunders | |
2011 | Hall Pass | Fred Searing | |
2011 | A Good Old Fashioned Orgy | Eric Keppler | |
2011 | Horrible Bosses | Kurt Buckman | |
2011 | My Least Favorite Career | Kurt Buckman | Short film |
2011 | Surviving a Horrible Boss | Kurt Buckman | Short film |
2012 | The Campaign | Mitch Wilson | |
2013 | Movie 43 | Fake Batman | |
2013 | Drinking Buddies | Gene Dentler | |
2013 | Epic | Bomba (voice) | |
2013 | We're the Millers | David Clark | |
2014 | Horrible Bosses 2 | Kurt Buckman | |
2015 | Sleeping with Other People | Jake | |
2015 | Tumbledown | Andrew McDonnell | |
2016 | Race | Larry Snyder | |
2016 | Mother's Day | Bradley | |
2016 | The Angry Birds Movie | Red (voice) | |
2016 | Masterminds | Mike McKinney | |
2016 | The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea | Henry | In post-production |
2016 | Colossal | In post-production | |
2017 | Downsizing | Filming |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2003-13 | Saturday Night Live | Various | 168 episodes; also writer |
2007 | Wainy Days | Handsome David | Episode: "Plugged" |
2007-10 | 30 Rock | Floyd DeBarber | 12 episodes |
2008 | Childrens Hospital | Dr. Robert "Bobby" Fiscus | 2 episodes |
2008-12 | Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday | Various | 6 episodes |
2009-13 | The Cleveland Show | Various | 80 episodes |
2010-11 | It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia | Peter "Schmitty" Schmidt | 2 episodes |
2011-14 | Portlandia | Aliki / Kim | 2 episodes |
2011 | 2011 MTV Movie Awards | Himself (host) | TV special |
2012-13 | Eastbound & Down | Shane Gerald / Cole Gerald | 6 episodes |
2013 | Robot Chicken | Badtz-Maru / Farmer Smurf (voice) | Episode: "Papercut to Aorta" |
2015-present | The Last Man on Earth | Mike Miller | 12 episodes |
2016 | Son of Zorn | Zorn |
Year | Title | Voice | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2008 | Grand Theft Auto IV | Richard Bastion |
List of awards and nominations | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Award / Film Festival | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
2014 | 40th People's Choice Awards | People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie Duo | We're the Millers | Nominated | |
2014 MTV Movie Awards | MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance | We're the Millers | Nominated | ||
2014 Teen Choice Awards | Teen Choice Award for Choice Hissy Fit | We're the Millers | Nominated | ||
2015 | 2015 MTV Movie Awards | #WTF Moment | Horrible Bosses 2 | Nominated | |
Indiana Film Journalists Association Awards | Best Actor | Sleeping With Other People | Nominated |