Michaela Suzanne Watkins (born December 14, 1971) is an American actress and comedian. She is best known for starring on the

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...

series '' Casual'' and on the short-lived sitcoms '' The Unicorn'' and ''

Trophy Wife A trophy wife is a wife who is regarded as a status symbol for the husband. The term is often used in a derogatory or disparaging way, implying that the wife in question has little personal merit besides her physical attractiveness, requires sub ...

'', as well as being a cast member on ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves ...

'' from 2008 to 2009. She has also recurred on television series such as ''

The New Adventures of Old Christine ''The New Adventures of Old Christine'' (often shortened to simply ''Old Christine'') is an American sitcom television series starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Christine Campbell, a divorced mother doing her best to keep pace with those around her ...

'', '' ''Catastrophe'''', '' Enlightened'' and '' Search Party'' and appeared in films such as ''

The Back-up Plan ''The Back-up Plan'' (previously known as ''Plan B'') is a 2010 American romantic comedy film directed by Alan Poul, starring Jennifer Lopez and Alex O'Loughlin.Siegel, Tatiana, and Michael Fleming"Jennifer Lopez going with 'Plan B': CBS Films ...

'' (2010), '' Wanderlust'' (2012), ''

Enough Said ''Enough Said'' is a 2013 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Nicole Holofcener. The film stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus, James Gandolfini, Catherine Keener, Toni Collette and Ben Falcone. Louis-Dreyfus plays Eva, a divorced m ...

'' (2013) and '' Sword of Trust'' (2019).

Early life

Watkins was born in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, Yonkers, and Rochester. At the 2020 census, the city' ...

, the daughter of former Latin teacher mother Myrna Watkins and

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

mathematician father Mark Watkins. She has two sisters, Rebecca Kent and Sarah Fitts. Watkins was raised in DeWitt, New York, a suburb of Syracuse, in a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family. After her parents' divorce, Watkins' mother obtained a marketing degree and relocated the family to

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

when Watkins was 15. Watkins attended Moses DeWitt Elementary School and Wellesley High School in

Wellesley, Massachusetts Wellesley () is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Wellesley is part of Greater Boston. The population was 29,550 at the time of the 2020 census. Wellesley College, Babson College, and a campus of Massachusetts Bay Communit ...

. She graduated from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original cam ...

, where she studied theater and acting. Watkins auditioned for a part in a British farce at a community theater when she was 15, and got the part.

Joan Rivers Joan Alexandra Molinsky (June 8, 1933 – September 4, 2014), known professionally as Joan Rivers, was an American comedian, actress, producer, writer and television host. She was noted for her blunt, often controversial comedic persona—heavi ...

was one of her inspirations to go into show business.

Career

Theater

After theater school, Watkins lived and worked in New York City for a year but struggled to build her career. She moved with a friend to

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous ...

. She lived there from 1996–2000 and appeared onstage with

Portland Center Stage Portland Center Stage at The Armory is a theater company based in Portland, Oregon, United States. Theater productions are presented at The Armory in Portland's Pearl District. Portland Center Stage at The Armory was founded in 1988 as the nor ...

and the defunct improv group Toad City Productions. She traveled around the country doing regional theater, then decided to move to Los Angeles. She was active in Los Angeles Theatre for many years, taking on roles with

Circle X Theatre Circle X is a not-for-profit ensemble theatre company located in Hollywood, California. Circle X's productions have been described by critics as "refreshingly original and imaginative" and "consistently stellar".Portland Center Stage Portland Center Stage at The Armory is a theater company based in Portland, Oregon, United States. Theater productions are presented at The Armory in Portland's Pearl District. Portland Center Stage at The Armory was founded in 1988 as the nor ...

: ''Hamlet'' (1999), ''Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead'' (1999), ''Bus Stop'' (2000) * Portland Repertory Theatre: ''Arcadia'' * Artist Repertory Theatre: ''The Misanthrope,'' ''How I Learned To Drive as well as Merchant of Venice'', ''The Winter's Tale'' * triangle productions: ''Angels in America'', ''The Food Chain'' *

Improv

She became a regular performer at

The Groundlings The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniq ...

, where she was discovered by ''

''. Watkins said the appeal of sketch work is that she can write her own material.

TV

''Saturday Night Live''

In November 2008, Watkins joined the cast of ''

'' (''SNL''). Watkins said (at that time) that she was the oldest woman they ever hired. Watkins has since been surpassed by Leslie Jones, who was 47 when she joined ''SNL''. Watkins made her first major appearance on the show as

Arianna Huffington Arianna Stassinopoulos Huffington (née Ariadnē-Anna Stasinopoúlou, el, Αριάδνη-Άννα Στασινοπούλου ; born July 15, 1950) is a Greek-American author, syndicated columnist and businesswoman. She is a co-founder of '' Th ...

on the November 22nd Weekend Update. Watkins remained on ''SNL'' as a featured player throughout the rest of the 2008-2009 season, up to the season finale on May 16, 2009. However, while ''SNL'' was on summer hiatus, the news broke in early September 2009 that Watkins, along with fellow castmate

Casey Wilson Cathryn Rose "Casey" Wilson (born October 24, 1980) is an American actress, comedienne, and screenwriter. She starred as Penny Hartz in the ABC comedy series '' Happy Endings'' for which she was twice nominated to the Critics' Choice Television ...

, were both to be let go from the show and would not be returning for the 2009-10 season.

=Recurring characters on ''SNL''

= * Angie Tempura: A geeky,

iced coffee Iced coffee is a coffee beverage served cold. It may be prepared either by brewing coffee normally (i.e. carafe, French press, etc.) and then serving it over ice or in cold milk or by brewing the coffee cold. In hot brewing, sweeteners and fl ...

-drinking computer nerd who snarks on celebrities and movies and is the creator of the snarky website "Bitch Pleeze" (www.bitchpleeze.com, which redirects to the SNL site). Though she insults celebrities, Angie was revealed to have a crush on

Zac Efron Zachary David Alexander Efron (; born October 18, 1987) is an American actor. He began acting professionally in the early 2000s and rose to prominence in the late 2000s for his leading role as Troy Bolton in the ''High School Musical'' trilo ...

Later TV credits

She recurred as Lucy opposite

Hamish Linklater Hamish Linklater (born July 7, 1976) is an American actor and playwright. He is known for playing Matthew Kimble in ''The New Adventures of Old Christine'', Andrew Keanelly in ''The Crazy Ones'', and Clark Debussy in '' Legion''. He is the son of ...

in the sitcom ''

'', as well as appearing in recurring roles in the comedy programs '' Enlightened'', ''

New Girl ''New Girl'' is an American television sitcom created by Elizabeth Meriwether and produced by 20th Television for Fox that originally aired from September 20, 2011, to May 15, 2018. The series revolves around a kooky teacher, Jessica Day ( Zoo ...

'', and ''

Anger Management Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...

''. She has also made guest appearances on shows such as ''

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'' ...

'', '' Childrens Hospital'', '' Kroll Show'', ''

Key & Peele ''Key & Peele'' (abbreviated to ''K&P'') is an American sketch comedy television series created by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele for Comedy Central. Both Key and Peele previously worked on '' Mad TV.'' Each episode of the show consists ...

'', ''

Curb Your Enthusiasm ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' is an American television sitcom produced and broadcast by HBO since October 15, 2000, and created by Larry David, who stars as a semi-fictionalized version of himself. It follows David's life as a semi-retired televi ...

'', and ''

Modern Family ''Modern Family'' is an American family sitcom television series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan for the American Broadcasting Company. It ran for 11 seasons, from September 23, 2009, to April 8, 2020. It follows the lives of th ...

''. Watkins also starred alongside

Malin Åkerman Malin Maria Åkerman (born 12 May 1978) is a Swedish actress. In the early 2000s, she had several small television and film parts in both Canadian and American productions, including '' The Utopian Society'' (2003) and ''Harold & Kumar Go to Wh ...

Bradley Whitford Bradley Whitford (born October 10, 1959) is an American actor and producer. He is best known for his portrayal of White House Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman in the NBC television political drama ''The West Wing'' (1999–2006), for which he ...

, and

Marcia Gay Harden Marcia Gay Harden (born August 14, 1959) is an American actress. She is the recipient of accolades including an Academy Award and a Tony Award, in addition to nominations for a Critics' Choice Movie Award and three Primetime Emmy Awards. Born ...

in the short-lived, but well-received ABC sitcom ''

''. The series aired for one season from September 2013 to May 2014. In 2015, it was announced that Watkins would star in the

series produced by

Jason Reitman Jason R. Reitman (; born October 19, 1977) is a Canadian-American actor and filmmaker, best known for directing the films '' Thank You for Smoking'' (2005), '' Juno'' (2007), '' Up in the Air'' (2009), '' Young Adult'' (2011), and '' Ghostbuste ...

called '' Casual'', which would be executive produced by

Liz Tigelaar Rachel Elizabeth Tigelaar (born October 4, 1975) is an American television writer, producer, and author. She has worked on the series '' Brothers & Sisters'', ''American Dreams'', ''Once and Again'', '' Once Upon a Time'', ''Revenge'', '' Bate ...

. In 2018, she recurred on season two of the

Amazon Prime Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service from Amazon which is available in various countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services include same, one- ...

series ''Catastrophe'', playing the sister of lead character Rob Norris ( Rob Delaney). From 2019 to 2021, she has co-starred on the CBS sitcom '' The Unicorn''.

Producing, writing

Watkins co-created (with writing partner and fellow Groundling, Damon Jones) the short-lived 2014

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madi ...

comedy series '' Benched.'' The series starred

Eliza Coupe Eliza Kate Coupe (born April 6, 1981) is an American actress, comedian and model, known for playing Jane Kerkovich-Williams in the ABC comedy series '' Happy Endings'', Denise "Jo" Mahoney in the final two seasons of the medical comedy-drama '' ...

and

Jay Harrington James H. Harrington III, professionally known as Jay Harrington, (born November 15, 1971) is an American actor. He is known for his role as the title character in the ABC sitcom ''Better Off Ted'' in 2009-2010 and since 2017 as Sgt. David "Deacon ...

and premiered on October 28, 2014. Watkins and Jones were also executive producers on the show.

Film

Watkins has appeared in supporting roles in films such as ''

'', '' In a World...'', ''

Afternoon Delight "Afternoon Delight" is a hit song recorded by Starland Vocal Band, known for its close harmony and sexually suggestive wordplay. It was written by Bill Danoff, one of the members of the band. "Afternoon Delight" charted well in New Zealand, pea ...

'', ''

The Back-Up Plan ''The Back-up Plan'' (previously known as ''Plan B'') is a 2010 American romantic comedy film directed by Alan Poul, starring Jennifer Lopez and Alex O'Loughlin.Siegel, Tatiana, and Michael Fleming"Jennifer Lopez going with 'Plan B': CBS Films ...

'', '' Wanderlust'', ''

They Came Together ''They Came Together'' is a 2014 American satirical romantic comedy film directed by David Wain and written by Wain and Michael Showalter. It is a parody of romantic comedies infused with Showalter and Wain's absurd approach. The film had its w ...

'' and '' Lazy Eye''.

Podcasts

In 2020, Watkins appeared in the supporting role of Irene O'Connor in the musical podcast '' In Strange Woods''.

Personal life

Watkins is married to Fred Kramer, who is a founding partner of Reason Ventures and General Manager of Critical Mass Studios, Inc. Kramer used to be Executive Director of the Jewish World Watch organization, a Los Angeles-based anti-genocide non-profit, focused on the situations in Sudan and Congo.

Filmography

Film

Television

Podcasts

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Watkins, Michaela 1971 births Living people 21st-century American actresses 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Massachusetts American film actresses American television actresses American voice actresses American television writers Television producers from New York (state) American women television producers American women comedians Boston University College of Fine Arts alumni Jewish American actresses Jewish American female comedians Actresses from Syracuse, New York People from Wellesley, Massachusetts American women television writers Showrunners American impressionists (entertainers) American sketch comedians Comedians from New York (state) Comedians from Massachusetts Wellesley High School alumni Screenwriters from Massachusetts Screenwriters from New York (state) 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American Jews