William Emerson "Will" Arnett (pronounced /É'rˈnÉ›t/; born May 4, 1970) is a Canadian actor and comedian known for his many roles, including George Oscar Bluth II ("G.O.B.") in the Fox series Arrested Development, Devon Banks in the NBC series 30 Rock, Brent Wilts in the IFC series The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret, Chris Brinkley on Up All Night and Nathan Miller in the CBS series The Millers. He has appeared in films such as Monster-in-Law, Semi-Pro, Blades of Glory, RV, Hot Rod, Let's Go to Prison, The Brothers Solomon and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Arnett is also a voice actor for commercials, animated films, television cartoons and video games.
Early life
Arnett was born in Toronto, the son of Edith Alexandra (née Palk) and Emerson James Arnett, who was a corporate lawyer and brewer, among other occupations. Arnett briefly attended Lakefield College School in Lakefield, Ontario, but was asked not to return after a semester for being a troublemaker. The Subway Academy II allowed him to take theatre classes at the Tarragon Theatre. He eventually graduated from Leaside High School and attended Concordia University, Montreal for one semester, but dropped out. As a teenager, he was encouraged by his mother to pursue an acting career, auditioned for commercials in Toronto and enjoyed acting. In 1990, he moved to New York City to study acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, he appeared in plays in New York and his first acting role was in Felicity Huffman's independent film Erie, which was filmed on the Erie Canal.
Career
In February 1996, Arnett began acting in films and television shows, his first one was with Kevin Pollak and his wife, Lucy Webb, for CBS, that was not picked up, such as The Underworld that has "The head of an organized crime family [who] hounds an ex-con who only wants to go straight." Arnett appeared in the film Southie, which was written by his friend Dave McLaughlin. In 1999, he was cast in another pilot for The Mike O'Malley Show on NBC as the protagonist's friend Jimmy. The show was picked up, but was canceled after only two episodes. Arnett has referred to 2000, the year after that show was cancelled, as "the darkest year of [his] life" and he admits that he "didn't get a lot of work" and "drank those years away", he considers in summer 2000 that to have been a turning point in his life as a friend helped pull him out of his battle with alcoholism and he began to get his career back on track. In 2001, Arnett was cast in the CBS television pilot, Loomis as a slacker brother of a local news reporter (Cheri Oteri), but was not picked up. In 2002, Arnett was cast in a fourth television pilot which was for the CBS sitcom Still Standing and was picked up and ran for several seasons, but his character was cut from the series after the pilot. Arnett became so frustrated, after his fourth failed pilot, that he "swore off pilots" altogether, until his agent persuaded him to audition for the pilot for Arrested Development.
In 2003, Arnett found mainstream success in television when he played George Oscar "Gob" Bluth II in the Fox comedy series, Arrested Development and he was nominated for an Emmy in 2006 for his portrayal, before it was listed at No. 33 on TV's Top 50 Catch Phrases with the line, "I've made a huge mistake." The show was cancelled after three seasons due to low ratings, despite its critical acclaim and cult following. He also played Max the Magician in Sesame Street referenced Gob Bluth penchant for using Europe's "The Final Countdown" during his magic shows. Arnett's two favorite episodes of the show were "Pier Pressure" and "Afternoon Delight". His exposure on Arrested Development led to a number of larger roles in feature films. Although he had previously worked largely as a dramatic actor, his roles since Arrested Development have been mostly comedic, often playing smug antagonists. He "never considered himself a comic" and considers himself an "actor first." Before Arrested Development, he played the dramatic role of FBI agent Mike Waldrup on several episodes of The Sopranos. Arnett starred in his first major role in Let's Go to Prison, directed by Bob Odenkirk, the film was made on a small budget of $4 million. It earned more than $4 million at the box office and more than $13 million in rentals. In Blades of Glory, Arnett and his wife, Amy Poehler played brother/sister ice-skating duo with incest. The film was number one at the U.S. box office during its first two weeks, and grossed approximately $118 million domestically during its theatrical run. and $36 million on home video. He made guest appearances on King of the Hill and 30 Rock (where he played Devon Banks, a scheming network executive and a rival of Jack Donaghy played by Alec Baldwin) which earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. Arnett also played supporting roles in the films Spring Breakdown, Hot Rod, The Comebacks, and On Broadway, where he once again worked with his close friend of director Dave McLaughlin, after one of his first film roles in Southie. In The Brothers Solomon, he again teamed with director Bob Odenkirk and starred with Saturday Night Live member, Will Forte. He appeared in a major supporting role in the basketball comedy Semi-Pro, his second film with Ferrell. He plays Lou Redwood, the commentator of the team, who is "a former player, a bit of a womanizer, and a boozer".
Arnett was signed on for a supporting role in Ye Olde Times, along with Jack Black, but it has fallen through. He has signed on to new projects in which he will play starring roles, including Jeff the Demon for New Line Cinema, in which he will play a demon who is summoned by a pair of high school losers. He signed on to the lead role in The Ambassador for DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures, in which he played "a former U.S. vice president's privileged son, who is assigned an ambassadorship in Europe, where he quickly becomes the quintessential ugly American." Arnett has signed on for the lead in Space Invader for Fox Atomic, which will center on a love triangle set on a space station. Arnett is also attached to lead roles in Dad Can't Lose, Get 'Em Wet, and Most Likely to Succeed. He had been attached to play the lead role of David Miller in the film We're the Millers, but had to pass due to "scheduling reasons"; the part went to Jason Sudeikis. On November 17, 2009, it was announced that Arnett would try to win over real-life wife Amy Poehler in a guest spot on Parks and Recreation. Arnett played Chris, an MRI technologist and possible love interest for Poehler's Leslie Knope. Justin Theroux appeared in the same episode as yet another suitor. Arnett signed on for one episode, and the episode entitled "The Set Up" aired January 14, 2010. In 2010, Arnett and former Arrested Development co-star Jason Bateman created DumbDumb Productions, a production company focusing on digital content. Their first video was "Prom Date," the first in a series of "Dirty shorts" for Orbit (gum). He also starred in Running Wilde which was cancelled in January 2011, due to poor ratings as well as The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret with David Cross. On March 23, 2011, Arnett appeared in the final episode in The Office season 7. Arnett co-starred in the NBC television comedy series Up All Night, about a couple who struggle to balance their home lives (especially with their newborn child) and their work ones. He is currently the spokesman of a series of Hulu advertisements and his role in television spots deliberately recalls Devon Banks as a power hungry manipulator. On March 8, Mansome, Arnett’s first executive-producer credit with partner Jason Bateman, was announced as a Spotlight selection for the Tribeca Film Festival. The documentary, directed by Morgan Spurlock, is a comedic look at male identity as it is defined through men's grooming habits featuring celebrity and expert commentary. He co-starred in the 2014 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Currently, Arnett stars in the CBS sitcom The Millers. The show has been cancelled, and it remains to be seen whether CBS will air the remaining episodes of the second season. Arnett will also guest star in the other CBS sitcom Mom will Anna Faris.
Voice work
Arnett's distinctive gravelly voice has earned him voice-over work for CBS television promos, film trailers and numerous advertisements, including Lamisil medication. Perhaps most recognizable is Arnett's voice saying, "It's not more than you need, just more than you're used to" in ads for GMC trucks. He has also lent his voice to a number of television shows, such as Ghostwriter in the 2005 Nickelodeon's hit series Danny Phantom, Duncan Schiesst for the Comedy Central animated program Freak Show, which was created by and also stars the voice of his Arrested Development co-star, David Cross. Arnett was the announcer for the faux trailer "Don't" in the 2007 movie Grindhouse. He also voiced the character "Vlad" from the CGI film Horton Hears a Who!, The Missing Link in DreamWorks' film Monsters vs. Aliens, Horst the German sous-chef, in the Disney Pixar film Ratatouille, and Mr. Perkins in Despicable Me. He planned to be the voice of the K.I.T.T. in Universal's Knight Rider, a sequel to the popular 1980s television series. The production featured a Ford Mustang as K.I.T.T. Since Arnett had a previous long standing relationship with competitor automaker General Motors as the voice for GMC Trucks commercials, GM asked Arnett to pull out of the project. Arnett opted to withdraw from the project and he was replaced by Val Kilmer. Arnett makes a commercial cameo for the video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. In 2009, he voiced the titular character in Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard, a video game developed by Vicious Cycle Games and starred as an out of work former video game protagonist hoping to make a comeback, versus a greedy game executive played by Neil Patrick Harris. In the Fox animated comedy series Sit Down, Shut Up, he voiced Ennis Hofftard, a bodybuilder who teaches English and always attempts to chase women. The show premiered on April 19, 2009 but was eventually cancelled after several months due to poor ratings. It aired its last episode on free-to-air television on November 21, 2009. He also voiced Batman in the film The Lego Movie, making him the first Canadian-born actor to portray Batman in a film and voices the eponymous character in the 2014 Netflix original series BoJack Horseman.
Personal life
Arnett has two older sisters and a younger brother. His father was a corporate lawyer and served as the president and CEO of Molson Breweries from 1997 to 2000. His father, a graduate of Harvard University, previously worked as a director for the company. Arnett lists Steve Martin and Chevy Chase as his two biggest comic influences. Arnett grew up watching sports in Canada, and is an avid follower of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Blue Jays.
In 1994, Arnett married actress Penelope Ann Miller. They divorced the following year. He subsequently dated actress Missy Yager, with whom he lived for four years. They starred together on The Mike O'Malley Show, but broke up around the time the show began. Arnett began dating comic actress Amy Poehler in 2000, and moved to New York City in 2001 when she became a featured player on NBC's Saturday Night Live. Arnett and Poehler married on August 29, 2003. Together, they appeared in four episodes of Arrested Development in 2004 and 2005, an episode of Poehler's show, Parks and Recreation, in 2010, and the films Blades of Glory, Horton Hears a Who!, On Broadway, Spring Breakdown and Monsters vs. Aliens. Arnett and Poehler have two sons, Archibald William Emerson Arnett (born October 25, 2008) and Abel James Arnett (born August 6, 2010). The couple separated in September 2012. Arnett filed for divorce on April 8, 2014.
Filmography
Will Arnett filmography
Film
Television
Video games
Awards
Honors
New York magazine named Arnett and wife Poehler "New Yorkers of the Year" for 2005 during their New York Magazine Culture Awards. In April 2007, during a panel hosted by The Paley Center for Media, talk show host Conan O'Brien and his writing staff named Will Arnett as one of their three all-time favorite guests, sharing the honor with Norm Macdonald and Harland Williams. Also in April 2007, Entertainment Weekly named Will Arnett a "Future King of Comedy." In May 2007, Arnett ranked No. 9 on Best Week Ever's "Top 15 Sexiest Nerd Boys" poll. In July 2007, Premiere magazine named Arnett one of "The 20 Hottest New Faces in Comedy."
References
External links
- Will Arnett on Twitter
- Will Arnett at the Internet Movie Database
