Early life

Root was born in Sarasota, Florida, the son of Leona Estelle and Rolland Clair Root, a construction supervisor. Root likened his childhood to that of an "Army brat", as his family moved frequently while his father finished each construction project. Root graduated from Vero Beach High School in Vero Beach, Florida. He received his AA from the University of Florida, and trained in the BFA acting program. Root is of Welsh, Scottish, Cuban, Japanese, Spanish, Swiss and Maori ancestry.

Career

Among his most recognized television roles are eccentric billionaire Jimmy James on the sitcom NewsRadio and as the voice of depressed Army barber Bill Dauterive and Hank Hill's skirt-chasing boss Buck Strickland on the animated television series King of the Hill (Root originally auditioned for the role of Dale Gribble). He had a recurring role on the final two seasons of The West Wing as Republican campaign consultant Bob Mayer. His most recognizable film roles to date are as the mumbling, quirky Milton Waddams in Office Space, as the mild-mannered gymrat Gordon Pibb in Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, as Suds, a drunk sports writer, in Leatherheads, and as the dimwitted principal in the 2008 Judd Apatow produced comedy Drillbit Taylor.

Root is a favorite of the Coen Brothers. He has appeared in O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Ladykillers, and No Country For Old Men. Kevin Smith wrote a role in Jersey Girl specifically for Root.

Root reunited with Mike Judge in Idiocracy and has also portrayed NASA flight director Chris Kraft in the miniseries From the Earth to the Moon. He took on the biographical role of Richard A. Clarke in The Path to 9/11. He has also had many guest appearances in television programs across several genres. He was Klingon Captain K'Vada in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Unification" in 1991. In 1992, Root appeared on the TV series Night Court as Mr. Willard. In the 1993-1994 television season, Root appeared as a series regular as "R.O." on the Beau Bridges/Lloyd Bridges comedy/western series Harts of the West on CBS.

Root guest starred on Seinfeld, playing the role of a bank manager in the episode "The Invitations", handling Kramer's hello greeting issue. He had a role in Frasier in the episode "Detour" as the father of the family helping Frasier when his car broke down. In the CSI episode "Homebodies", he played the father of a rape victim. In addition, Root had a series regular role on the short-lived CBS series Ladies Man, which starred Sharon Lawrence, soon after she left NYPD Blue. He played Raymond, a hunting store owner involved in illegal gun trading, in the 1993 In the Heat of the Night episode "A Love Lost".

Root also has an active career as a voice artist. Aside from his roles in King of the Hill, he has played various characters in animated films, such as Ice Age, Finding Nemo, and Courage the Cowardly Dog. In other animated television, series regular roles include: Commander Chode in Tripping the Rift and Homebase in The X's. Additionally, he has provided guest-starring vocal talent in animated television series, like Chowder and Teen Titans. He recently lent his voice to Batman: The Brave and the Bold as Woozy Winks and The Penguin.

Recently, Root has appeared in HBO's series True Blood as a vampire named Eddie. He also had a multi-episode arc in the second season of Pushing Daisies on ABC, playing the mysterious Dwight Dixon. He appeared as Johnny Forreals, inventor of the word "boo-yah" on an episode of Comedy Central's The Sarah Silverman Program entitled "Cangamangus". He appeared in the 2009 comedy film The Men Who Stare at Goats as Gus Lacey. In 2010, he appeared in a multi-episode arc in Season 8 of the Fox television series 24 as a probation officer named Bill Prady, and in the FX television series Justified as the eccentric Judge Mike "The Hammer" Reardon. In 2011, he co-starred in Robert Redford's The Conspirator, playing John Lloyd, a key witness in the trial of alleged Lincoln conspirator Mary Surratt. In 2012 he began playing the role of Gaston Means in the HBO's acclaimed TV series Boardwalk Empire season 3. In an interview, Root said his favorite actors growing up were Walter Brennan, Marlon Brando, Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier, and Robert Mitchum. His favorite actors now are Tom Hanks, Christopher Plummer, Christopher Walken and Denzel Washington. His favorite actresses growing up were Katherine Hepburn, Geraldine Page, Elizabeth Taylor, and Julie Harris. His favorite actresses now are Meryl Streep, Laura Linney, Hilary Swank, and Amy Adams.

Filmography

Film

Film
Year	Film	Role	Other notes
1988	"Crocodile" Dundee II	DEA Agent (Toilet)
	Monkey Shines	Dean Burbage
1989	Black Rain	Berg
1990	Stanley & Iris	Mr. Hershey
	Ghost	Police Sgt.
1991	Guilty by Suspicion	RKO Guard
	V.I. Warshawski	Mickey
	Bed & Breakfast	Randolph
1992	Buffy the Vampire Slayer	Gary Murray
1993	Dave	Don Durenberger
	RoboCop 3	Coontz
	Extreme Justice	Max Alvarez
1995	Bye Bye Love	Awakened Neighbor
	Night of the Scarecrow	Uncle Frank/The Sherriff
1998	Krippendorf's Tribe	Gerald Adams
1999	Gut Feeling	Kane Cohen
	Office Space	Milton Waddams
	Natural Selection	Mr. Crenshaw	a.k.a. The Monster Hunter
	Bicentennial Man	Dennis Mansky - Head of NorthAm Robotics
2000	O Brother, Where Art Thou?	Radio Station Man
	Tripping the Rift	Chode	Voice only
2002	Ice Age	Frank / Start	Voice only
	The Country Bears	Zeb
	White Oleander	Michael	(scenes deleted)
2003	Finding Nemo	Bubbles	Voice only
	Grind	Cameron
2004	Raising Genius	Dwight Nestor
	The Ladykillers	Fernand Gudge
	Jersey Girl	Greenie
	Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story	Gordon
	Surviving Christmas	Dr. Freeman
	Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie	Vince Masters
2005	Just Friends	KC
2006	Cook-Off!	Morty Van Rookle
	Ice Age: The Meltdown	Aardvark Dad	Voice only
	Gretchen	Herb
	Idiocracy	Judge Hank "The Hangman" BMW
	The Frank Anderson	John Simon
	The Fox and the Hound 2	Talent Scout	Direct-to-video Voice only
2007	No Country for Old Men	Man who hires Wells
	Have Dreams, Will Travel	Sheriff Brock
	Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage	Bubbles	Voice only
	Sunny & Share Love You	Clive Anderson
2008	Mad Money	Glover
	Over Her Dead Body	Sculptor
	Drillbit Taylor	Principal Doppler
	Leatherheads	Suds
	Tripping the Rift: The Movie	Chode	Voice only
2009	Glock
	Bob Funk	Steve
	The Soloist	Curt Reynolds
	Imagine That	Fred Franklin
	The Men Who Stare at Goats	Gus Lacey
2010	Son of Mourning	Senator Lewis
	Unthinkable	Charlie
	The Conspirator	Witness
	Everything Must Go	Elliot
	Scooby-Doo! Camp Scare	Burt	Voice only
2011	Cedar Rapids	Bill Korgstad
	Rango	Doc and Merrimack	Voice only
	Red State	Sheriff Wynan
	J. Edgar	Arthur Koehler
2012	Big Miracle	Gov. Haskell
	The Company You Keep	Billy Cusimano
2013	Sweet Vengeance	Kingfisher	Sweetwater
	Superman: Unbound	Zor-El	Voice only
	The Lone Ranger	Habberman
2014	Selma	Al Lingo
2015	7 Chinese Brothers	George
	Trumbo	Hymie King
2016	Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates	Burt Stangle	Filming

Television

Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1989	Cross of Fire	Beggs
1990	Wiseguy	Bishop	(1 episode, 1990)
	Roseanne	Peter Lundy	(1 episode, 1990)
	Jake and the Fatman	Hastings	(1 episode, 1990)
	The Young Riders		(1 episode, 1990)
	Head of the Class	Mr. Birch	(1 episode, 1990)
1991	Davis Rules	Porter	(1 episode, 1991)
	Golden Years	Major Moreland	(6 episodes, 1991)
	Home Improvement	Exterminator	(1 episode, 1991)
	The Torkelsons	Sheriff Bobby Clinton	(1 episode, 1991)
	Star Trek: The Next Generation	Captain K'Vada	(2 episodes, 1991)
1992	Night Court	Mr. Willard / Spirit of Death	(2 episodes, 1990-1992)
	A Woman Scorned: The Betty Broderick Story	Kevin McDonald
	Eerie, Indiana	Mr. Chaney	(1 episode, 1992)
	Her Final Fury: Betty Broderick, the Last Chapter	Kevin McDonald
	Murphy Brown	John Brophy	(1 episode, 1992)
	Civil Wars	Mrs. Caldecott's Lawyer	(2 episodes, 1992)
1993	Northern Exposure	Brother Timothy	(1 episode, 1993)
	The Golden Palace	Mr. Tucker	(1 episode, 1993)
	Quantum Leap	John Tremaine Jr.	(1 episode, 1993)
	Class of '61
	Black Widow Murders: The Blanche Taylor Moore Story	Dr. Kirby
	Sirens	George Bailey	(1 episode, 1993)
	Blossom	Louie	(4 episodes, 1993)
	In the Heat of the Night	Raymond Mercer	(1 episode, 1993)
1994	L.A. Law	Atty. Brandon McCafferty	(4 episodes, 1990-1994)
	NYPD Blue	IAB Sgt. Fulmer	(1 episode, 1994)
	Harts of the West	R.O	(15 episodes, 1993-1994)
	Party of Five	Football Coach	(1 episode, 1994)
	Sweet Justice		(1 episode, 1994)
	Diagnosis: Murder	Charlie Lane	(1 episode, 1994)
1995	NewsRadio	Jimmy James	(97 episodes, 1995-1999)
	Chicago Hope	Trumpet Playing Mental Patient	(1 episode, 1995)
	Cybill	Phil Asher	(1 episode, 1995)
	Christy	Clarence Sweetwater	(1 episode, 1995)
	VR.5	F.A.A. Negotiator	(1 episode, 1995)
	In the Line of Duty: Hunt for Justice	Jaan Laaman
1996	Seinfeld	Mr. Lager	(1 episode, 1996)
	The Lottery	Graham Dunbar
	Pandora's Clock	Mark Hastings
	The Road to Galveston	Ed Kirkman
1997
	From the Earth to the Moon	Chris Kraft	(5 episodes, 1998)
	Profiler	Houston Plant Manager	(1 episode, 1998)
	King of the Hill	Bill Dauterive, Buck Strickland	(256 episodes, 1997-2010)
1999	Superman: The Animated Series	Revered Amos Howell/Unity	(1 episode, 1999)
	The Sissy Duckling	Big Ducky
	Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot	Dr. Donovan	(unknown episodes)
2000	Buzz Lightyear of Star Command	Sheriff / Sentry #2	(3 episodes, 2000)
2001	Me & My Needs
	The Andy Dick Show	Manager of 98+1 Store	(1 episode, 2001)
	The Norm Show	Mr. Sweeney	(2 episodes, 2001)
	DAG	Senator Culpepper	(1 episode, 2001)
	Ladies Man	Gene	(30 episodes, 1999-2001)
	The Legend of Tarzan	Theodore 'Teddy' Roosevelt	(1 episode, 2001)
	Ed	George MacPherson	(1 episode, 2001)
2002	Dexter Prep	Charles
	The Proud Family	Mr. Andrews	(1 episode, 2002)
	Malcolm in the Middle	John Pratt	(2 episodes, 2002)
	Just Shoot Me!	Dr. Drake Kelson	(1 episode, 2002)
	Justice League	Cat Man	(2 episodes, 2002)
	According to Jim	Al Crannis	(1 episode, 2002)
2003	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Michael Kirkwood	(1 episode, 2003)
2004	Grounded for Life	Tony Bustamante	(3 episodes, 2002-2004)
	Frasier	Harbin	(1 episode, 2004)
	Brandy & Mr. Whiskers	Santa Claus	(1 episode, 2004)
2005	Kim Possible: So the Drama	Cowboy Gambler	(6 episodes, 2002-2005)
	Kim Possible	(Several)	(6 episodes, 2002-2005)
	Teen Titans	Val Yor	(1 episode, 2005)
2006	The X's	Homebase	(6 episodes, 2005-2006)
	The West Wing	Bob Mayer	(9 episodes, 2005-2006)
	The Path to 9/11	Richard Clarke
2007	Random! Cartoons	Lance	(1 episode, 2007)
	American Dad!	Dick / Dentist's Father	(7 episodes, 2005-2007)
	Slacker Cats	Tommy	(unknown episodes)
	Tripping the Rift	Chode	(39 episodes, 2004-2007)
2008	Head Case	Pat Jennings	(1 episode, 2008)
	Boston Legal	Ethan Melman	(1 episode, 2008)
	Chowder	Stilton/Dancer	(1 episode, 2008)
	The Sarah Silverman Program	Johnny Forrealz	(1 episode, 2008)
	Pushing Daisies	Dwight Dixon	(5 episodes, 2008)
2009	True Blood	Eddie	(4 episodes, 2008-2009)
	Californication	Ricardo Collini	(1 episode, 2009)
2010	24	Bill Prady	(3 episodes, 2010)
	The Defenders	Judge Taylor	(1 episode, 2010) "Pilot"
	Justified	Judge Mike Reardon	(5 episodes, 2010-2012)
	Batman: The Brave and the Bold	Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin	(4 episodes, 2010-2011)
	Louie	Dr. Heppa	(1 episode, 2010)
2011	Adventure Time	The Royal Tart Toter, Grimby, Martin	(2 episodes, 2011-2015)
	Childrens Hospital	Owen's father	(1 episode, 2011)
	Thundercats	Drifter, aka Hattanzo the Swordmaker	(1 episode, 2011)
	Fringe	Raymond	(1 episode, 2011)
	Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness	Master Junjie	(4 episodes, 2011-2014)
	Raising Hope	Cap Collins	(1 episode, 2011)
2012	Gravity Falls	Bud Gleeful/Additional voices	(6 episodes, 2012-2015)
	Young Justice	Jack Haly	(Episode 24: Performance, 2012)
	Boardwalk Empire	Gaston Means	(6 episodes, 2012)
	Dragons: Riders of Berk	Mildew	(Recurring role, 2012-2013)
2013	Out There	Mr. Shooty	(1 episode, 2013)
	The Newsroom	Former US general Stanislao Stomtonovich	(1 episode, 2013)
2014	Turn: Washington's Spies	Nathaniel Sackett	(4 episodes, 2014-2015)
	Adventure Time	Martin (Finn's father)	(Recurring role, 2014)
	Fargo	Burt Canton	(2 episodes, 2014)
	The Big Bang Theory	Dan (Penny and Bernadette's boss)	(2 episodes, 2014)
	Mike Tyson Mysteries	Thomas J. Watson	(1 episode, 2014)
	Brooklyn Nine-Nine	Lynn Boyle	(4 episodes, 2014-2015)
	Phineas and Ferb	Floyd	("Doof 101" episode; voice only)
2016	Idiotsitter	Kent Russell
	All the Way	J. Edgar Hoover	TV movie

Video games

Video games
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1997	Blade Runner	Early Q
2000	Deus Ex	Mechanic (uncredited)

Charities

Stephen Root supports the following charitable cause: AIDS.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]