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Kristen Wiig

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Kristen Wiig
Wiig presenting Welcome to Me at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival on September 5, 2014
Born
Kristen Carroll Wiig

(1973-08-22) August 22, 1973 (age 51)
Canandaigua, New York, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Arizona
Occupations
  • Actress
  • comedian
  • writer
  • producer
Years active2003–present
Spouse
Hayes Hargrove
​
​
(m. 2005; div. 2009)​
Comedy career
MediumTelevision, film
GenresSatire/political satire/news satire, improvisational comedy, sketch comedy
Subject(s)American politics, American culture, current events, pop culture, mass media/news media
Notable works and rolesSaturday Night Live
Bridesmaids
Websitekristenwiig.com

Kristen Carroll Wiig (/ˈwɪɡ/; born August 22, 1973)[1] is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. She is known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live (2005–12), and such films as Knocked Up (2007), Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007), Paul and Bridesmaids (both 2011), Girl Most Likely (2013), The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013), the animated Despicable Me film series, The Skeleton Twins (2014), The Martian (2015), Ghostbusters (2016), and Sausage Party (2016).

Wiig was born in Canandaigua, New York, and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and Rochester, New York. Wiig attended the University of Arizona, at which she majored in Fine Art. She later relocated to Los Angeles, where she broke into comedy as a member of the improvisational comedy troupe The Groundlings and made her television debut in 2003. Wiig joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 2005 and the following year she co-starred in the Christmas comedy film Unaccompanied Minors.[2] After appearing in a series of supporting roles in comedy films such as Adventureland, Whip It, and Paul, she starred in and co-wrote the screenplay for Bridesmaids, which was both critically and commercially successful.

Wiig received seven consecutive Emmy Awards nominations and has been nominated for an Annie Award for Voice Acting in a Feature Production for her work on Despicable Me 2. In 2012, Bridesmaids earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress – Musical or Comedy, as well as nominations for the Academy Award and BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay and a SAG Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Cast.[3] She was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie for her role as Cynthia Morehouse in the miniseries The Spoils of Babylon.

Early life

Wiig was born in Canandaigua, New York,[4] the daughter of Jon Wiig, who ran a lake marina in Western New York, and Laurie (Johnston), an artist.[5][6] Her father has Norwegian and Irish ancestry and her mother is of English and Scottish descent.[7] The name "Wiig" comes from the area of Sogn og Fjordane in Norway.[8]

Wiig moved with her family to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, at the age of three, and attended Nitrauer Elementary School and Manheim Township Middle School until eighth grade.[9] She then moved to Rochester, New York, with her family at the age of 13,[9] where she attended the prestigious Allendale Columbia School for ninth and tenth grades[10] and graduated from Brighton High School.

She left for her first try at college, seeking fun, and eventually, soul-searching. Not finding what she wanted, she returned to Rochester, attended community college, and did a three-month outdoor-living program.[11] She had no performing ambitions at this time.[11] Wiig attended the University of Arizona, majoring in Art.[12] When she took an acting class in college to fulfill a course requirement, the teacher suggested she continue to act.[12] She expected to start out a job at a plastic surgery clinic drawing pictures of people's postsurgery bodies, but decided to move to Los Angeles and act.[13]

Career

Early career

Kristen dropped out of school at 19 and relocated to Los Angeles to act while working odd jobs to support herself.[12][11] She performed with Empty Stage Comedy Theatre[14] and with The Groundlings.[15] She felt improv was a better fit than acting, and being a part of the comedy group improved her skills.[16] In 2003, she appeared in the Spike TV show The Joe Schmo Show, a spoof of reality television, in which she played "Dr. Pat", a quack marriage counselor.

While at The Groundlings, Wiig's manager encouraged her to submit an audition tape to Saturday Night Live.

Television

Wiig debuted on SNL shortly into season 31, on November 12, 2005.[2] She survived an SNL budget cut,[17] becoming a full member of the repertory cast at the beginning of season 32 in 2006 and until 2012.

Wiig was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series[18] for her work on Saturday Night Live (2009,[19] 2010, 2011, 2012).[20] In December 2009, she headlined in the Christmas special SNL Presents: A Very Gilly Christmas, which featured new sketches with her character Gilly and highlights of older SNL clips. Wiig was featured in Entertainment Weekly's list of 15 Great Performances for her various impersonations on Saturday Night Live[21] (December 2008) and in EW's list of the 25 Funniest Women in Hollywood (April 2009).[22] As of 2011, she voiced Lola Bunny in the series The Looney Tunes Show.

Her final performance as a cast member on Saturday Night Live was season 37, episode 22, which aired on May 19, 2012.[23] The show was hosted by Mick Jagger. The closing celebration of her time on the show included SNL alumni Amy Poehler, Chris Kattan, Chris Parnell, Will Forte, and Rachel Dratch, as well as Steve Martin and Jon Hamm. She returned to host the program on May 11, 2013.[24] On February 19, 2014, Wiig appeared on the second episode of fellow SNL alumnus Jimmy Fallon's run on The Tonight Show from 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. In what appeared to be an unscripted spoof, she played the role of ideal boy band One Direction member Harry Styles.[25] She returned as a special guest to appear in the monologue and several sketches of SNL again alongside host Bill Hader on October 14, 2014. Wiig's SNL comedic style has been widely praised, but also criticized for leaving "little room for her female contemporaries to shine."[26]

At the 2015 Grammy Awards, Wiig joined with child-dancer Maddie Ziegler to give a concert dance performance alongside songwriter/recording artist, Sia, who sang her 2014 single "Chandelier".[27] She joined with Levi Miller, Laura Marano, and Charice Pempengco to perform a dance move with The Chainsmokers song "Closer" in The Chainsmokers Live in Manila 2016 in the Philippines on August 19, 2016.

Film

Wiig made her film debut in the 2006 Christmas movie Unaccompanied Minors. The following year, she appeared in Judd Apatow's comedy Knocked Up as a passive-aggressive assistant and performed in Jake Kasdan's Walk Hard, another Apatow-produced film. In 2008, she had small roles in several films, including Forgetting Sarah Marshall and David Koepp's Ghost Town. In 2009, Wiig had supporting roles in Greg Mottola's Adventureland, Mike Judge's Extract, and Whip It, Drew Barrymore's directorial debut. In 2010, she appeared in the films MacGruber, the animated comedies Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2, How to Train Your Dragon, How to Train Your Dragon 2, and Andrew Jarecki's All Good Things. Wiig had her first lead role as Ruth Buggs in Greg Mottola's comedy Paul in 2011.

Later in 2011, she starred in the film Bridesmaids, which she co-wrote with fellow Groundlings performer Annie Mumolo. Universal Pictures, released the film on May 13, 2011.[28] The film became both a critical and box office success, receiving two nominations for Best Picture-Musical or Comedy and Wiig was nominated for Best Actress-Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy at the 69th Golden Globe Awards. The film also received two Academy Award nominations, including Best Original Screenplay, for which Wiig and Mumolo were nominated. The second nomination was for Best Supporting Actress for co-star Melissa McCarthy. The film grossed over $280 million worldwide.[29]

In 2014, Wiig starred with Saturday Night Live alumnus Bill Hader in The Skeleton Twins. In 2015, she starred in Nasty Baby, as Polly, a family practitioner who is more interested in having a baby than having a man. The film was directed by Chilean filmmaker Sebastián Silva.[30] Wiig also starred in Welcome to Me, a comedy-drama directed by Shira Piven which premiered at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.

In 2014, news outlets reported that Wiig and Mumolo were writing a new comedy, which will see Wiig making her debut as a director.[31] The name of the film and release date are yet to be confirmed.[32] In 2016, Wiig played one of the leading roles in the reboot Ghostbusters alongside Melissa McCarthy, Leslie Jones, and Kate McKinnon.[33] She will be starring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Zoë Kravitz, Jai Courtney and Will Poulter in the action thriller Now That's What I Call, and Hugh Jackman and Zooey Deschanel in The Greatest Showman on Earth.

In the Autumn of 2016, she appeared in video as an onstage "stand-in" during the Nostalgia For the Present concert tour of Australian singer Sia Furler for her song, "One Million Bullets."[34]

Personal life

Wiig was married to actor Hayes Hargrove from 2005 to 2009.[35][36]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2003 Melvin Goes to Dinner Extra
2006 Unaccompanied Minors Carole Malone
2007 Knocked Up Jill
2007 Meet Bill Jane Whitman
2007 The Brothers Solomon Janine
2007 Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story Edith Cox
2008 Semi-Pro Bear Handler
2008 Forgetting Sarah Marshall Yoga Instructor
2008 Pretty Bird Mandy
2008 Ghost Town Surgeon
2009 Adventureland Paulette
2009 Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Pudgy Beaver Mom (voice)
2009 Whip It Maggie Mayhem
2009 Extract Suzie Reynolds
2010 How to Train Your Dragon Ruffnut Thorston (voice)
2010 Date Night Haley Sullivan
2010 MacGruber Vicki St. Elmo
2010 Despicable Me Miss Hattie (voice)
2010 All Good Things Lauren Fleck
2011 Paul Ruth Buggs
2011 Bridesmaids Annie Walker Also writer and producer
2012 Friends with Kids Missy
2012 Revenge for Jolly! Angela
2013 Girl Most Likely Imogene Also executive producer
2013 Despicable Me 2 Agent Lucy Wilde (voice)
2013 Her SexyKitten (voice)
2013 The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Cheryl Melhoff
2013 Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues Chani [37]
2014 Hateship, Loveship Johanna Parry
2014 The Skeleton Twins Maggie
2014 How to Train Your Dragon 2 Ruffnut Thorston (voice)
2014 Welcome to Me Alice Klieg Also producer
2015 The Diary of a Teenage Girl Charlotte
2015 Nasty Baby Polly
2015 The Martian Annie Montrose
2016 Zoolander 2 Alexanya Atoz / Katinka
2016 Ghostbusters Dr. Erin Gilbert
2016 Sausage Party Brenda (voice)
2016 Masterminds Kelly
2017 Despicable Me 3 Agent Lucy Wilde (voice)
2017 Downsizing TBA Filming
2018 How To Train Your Dragon 3 Ruffnut Thorston (voice) Upcoming

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2003 The Joe Schmo Show Dr. Pat 9 episodes
2004 I'm with Her Kristy Episode: "The Heartbreak Kid"
2004 The Drew Carey Show Sandy Episode: "House of the Rising Son-in-Law"
2005–2012 Saturday Night Live Various 135 episodes
2007 30 Rock Candace Van der Shark Episode: "Somebody to Love"
2009 Flight of the Conchords Brahbrah Episode: "Love Is a Weapon of Choice"
2009–2010 Bored to Death Jennifer Gladwell 3 episodes[38]
2010 Ugly Americans Tristan (voice) Episode: "So, You Want to Be a Vampire?"
2010 The Cleveland Show Mrs. Stapleton (voice) Episode: "The Curious Case of Jr. Working at The Stool"
2011–2014 The Looney Tunes Show Lola Bunny (voice) 25 episodes
2011 The Simpsons Calliope Juniper (voice) Episode: "Flaming Moe"
2011 SpongeBob SquarePants Madame Hag Fish (voice) Episode: "The Curse of the Hex"
2012 Portlandia Gathy Episode: "Cat Nap"
2013 The Simpsons Annie Crawford (voice) Episode: "Homerland"
2013 Saturday Night Live Herself (host) Episode: "Kristen Wiig/Vampire Weekend"
2013 Arrested Development Young Lucille Bluth 7 episodes[39]
2013 Drunk History Patty Hearst Episode: "San Francisco"
2014 The Spoils of Babylon Cynthia Morehouse 6 episodes
2015 A Deadly Adoption Sarah Benson Television film
2015 The Spoils Before Dying Delores O’Dell 6 episodes
2015 Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp Courtney 3 episodes
2016 Saturday Night Live Herself (host) Episode: "Kristen Wiig/The xx"
2017 Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later Courtney

Video games

Year Title Role
2014 Scooby Doo and Looney Tunes: Cartoon Universe Lola Bunny (voice)

Awards and nominations

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Kristen Wiig
  • She was named one of PETA's Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrities of 2011.[40]
  • She is part of Time's 2012 list of The 100 Most Influential People in the World.[41]

References

  1. ^ "Monitor". Entertainment Weekly. No. issue 1220/1221. August 17, 2012. p. 28. {{cite news}}: |issue= has extra text (help)
  2. ^ a b They're live on SNL, a December 2005 USA Today article[clarification needed]
  3. ^ Awards for Kristen Wiig at IMDb
  4. ^ Official website
  5. ^ "Kristen Wiig: 'My next movie – it's going to be a Porky's prequel' " November 18, 2011, The Guardian
  6. ^ Margaret (Johnston) Harris Obituary at MPNow.com, August 6, 2010
  7. ^ Always the bridesmaid – Film & Cinema, Entertainment. The Independent. (Ireland) Retrieved on August 7, 2011.
  8. ^ "Komi-Kristen" (in Norwegian), Film Magasinet
  9. ^ a b Botch, Don (July 17, 2016). "Kristen Wiig among the stars of 'Ghostbusters' reboot". Reading Eagle. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  10. ^ 'Radar interviews SNL's Kristen Wiig'. Retrieved on February 10, 2015.
  11. ^ a b c "Kristin Wiig/Alec Baldwin Interview Transcript". WNYC, "Here's the Thing.". Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  12. ^ a b c Dominus, Susan (April 28, 2011). "Can Kristen Wiig Turn on the Charm?". The New York Times. New York City. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  13. ^ "Kristen Wiig". Biography.com. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  14. ^ "How Real Is Reality Programming? SPIKE TV'S 'The Joe Schmo Show' Puts New Twist on Reality Show Genre, Where Only One Contestant Is Real" (Press release). SpikeTV. August 12, 2003. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  15. ^ Itzkoff, Dave (August 22, 2013). "Extended Interview with Kristen Wiig". NYTimes. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
  16. ^ "50 interesting facts about Kristen Wiig: is a naturally shy person, her favorite people to make laugh are babies". BOOMSbeat.
  17. ^ Sklar, Rachel (October 24, 2006). "That '70s Show". Village Voice.
  18. ^ "Kristen Wiig". Television Academy.
  19. ^ Bierly, Mandi. (July 15, 2009) Emmy Awards: the 2009 nominees | EW.com. Popwatch.ew.com. Retrieved on August 7, 2011.
  20. ^ Ryan, Joal (July 8, 2010). "Emmys 2010 Comedy Acting: Matthew Morrison Leads Glee Choir". ca.eonline.com. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  21. ^ "15 Great Performances In 2008" Entertainment Weekly, Photo 19 of 20,
  22. ^ "The 25 Funniest Actresses in Hollywood". Entertainment Weekly Photo 6 of 26
  23. ^ "Kristen Wiig gets an emotional send-off from 'SNL'". USATODAY.COM. May 20, 2012.
  24. ^ Luippold, Ross (April 26, 2013). "Kristen Wiig To Host 'SNL' May 11 With Vampire Weekend". The Huffington Post. Retrieved April 26, 2013.
  25. ^ "It's Tuesday night live! Kristen Wiig does hilarious Harry Styles impression on fellow SNL alumnus' Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show". Daily Mail. London.
  26. ^ "Steal My Sunshine: Kristen Wiig's Complicated Comedy Legacy". Decider. February 10, 2015.
  27. ^ Swift, Andy (February 8, 2015). "Sia Enlists Kristen Wiig for 'Chandelier' Performance at 2015 Grammy Awards". tvline.com. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  28. ^ Jeremy Kay (July 21, 2009). "Mandate Pictures heads for the highway with female road movie". Screen Daily. Retrieved July 25, 2009.
  29. ^ Bridesmaids at Box Office Mojo
  30. ^ Zach Hollwedel (September 5, 2014). "First Look: Kristen Wiig In Sebastian Silva's 'Nasty Baby - The Playlist". The Playlist.
  31. ^ "'Bridesmaids' Team Kristen Wiig And Annie Mumolo Set Comedy At TriStar". Deadline. Retrieved October 30, 2015.
  32. ^ "Kristen Wiig to direct first film, written with 'Bridesmaids' partner". LA Times. June 11, 2014. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  33. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (October 20, 2014). "Female Ghostbusters Revealed". Dread Central. Retrieved October 21, 2014..
  34. ^ Stevenson, Jane. "Crowd eats up pop star Sia's minimalistic show". Torontosun.com. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  35. ^ Ryzik, Melena (January 4, 2009). "She's Really Shy, but That's a Secret". The New York Times. Retrieved April 3, 2010.
  36. ^ "Kristen Wiig Rules Out Second Marriage". The San Francisco Chronicle. San Francisco Chronicle. June 13, 2011. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  37. ^ Zakarin, Jordan. "Kristen Wiig Joins 'Anchorman' Sequel". The Hollywood Reporter.
  38. ^ The Alanon Case – Yahoo! TV
  39. ^ Chen, Joyce (February 19, 2013). "Arrested Development Season 4 Will Feature Guest Stars Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig – Us Weekly". Usmagazine.com. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  40. ^ Russell Brand and Kristen Wiig Named Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrities of 2011 | PETA.org. Features.peta.org. Retrieved on August 7, 2011.
  41. ^ Time Magazine Retrieved on May 7, 2012
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