Maya Rudolph

Early life

Rudolph was born in Gainesville, Florida, on July 27, 1972. Her mother, Minnie Riperton, was a singer, and her father, Richard Rudolph, is a composer. Her mother was African-American and her father is Jewish. Her paternal grandfather was Sidney Rudolph, a philanthropist who once owned all of the Wendy's and Rudy's restaurants in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Her great-grandfather was born in Vilnius, Lithuania, changed his surname from "Rudashevsky" to "Rudolph", and was one of the founding members of Congregation Beth Shalom, a Conservative Jewish synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Rudolph's godmother was R&B singer Teena Marie (1956–2010). On an episode of PBS's Finding Your Roots, Rudolph discovered that her maternal great-great-great-grandfather was James Grigsby, who was born into slavery in Lincoln County, Kentucky. Grigsby was denied financial compensation and freedom granted by the last will and testament of his owner, John Warren Grigsby, and challenged the owner's grandson in court in the 1830s.

Rudolph's parents moved to Los Angeles, California, when their children were very young, and Rudolph grew up primarily in the Westwood neighborhood. Near the end of the song "Lovin' You", Riperton repeats "Maya", as can be heard in her performance on The Midnight Special. Riperton died of breast cancer on July 12, 1979, at the age of 31, two weeks before Maya's seventh birthday. She attended the University of California, Santa Cruz, living in Porter College. In 1995, she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in photography.

Career

Television and film

''Saturday Night Live''

Rudolph was in the improv troupe the Groundlings, where she met future Saturday Night Live cast member Will Forte. She joined the cast of Saturday Night Live as a featured player for the final three episodes of the 1999–2000 season and stayed until 2007. Her impersonations while on the show included Oprah Winfrey, Christina Aguilera, and Donatella Versace. She has made several cameo appearances over the years. Since the 45th-season premiere, she has occasionally portrayed Vice President Kamala Harris, a performance acknowledged by Harris. After Harris became the presumptive 2024 Democratic presidential candidate, Rudolph agreed to portray Harris on SNL through the 2024 election; pre-production on season 3 of her show Loot was postponed to accommodate her role. For her portrayal of Harris, she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series.

Other Roles

Rudolph appeared in many other television shows, including the CBS medical drama series City of Angels and Chicago Hope. She had small parts in Gattaca (1997), As Good as It Gets (1997), Chuck & Buck (2000), Duets (2000), Duplex (2003), and 50 First Dates (2004); she was also a music supervisor for Duets. Her first prominent film role came in 2006 with A Prairie Home Companion. That same year, she co-starred with Luke Wilson in the Mike Judge sci-fi comedy Idiocracy, although the film was only given a limited release. She also guest-starred as Rapunzel in the 2007 DreamWorks animated film Shrek the Third. She guest-starred as Julia in The Simpsons episode "The Homer of Seville". Rudolph guest-starred as character Athena Scooberman in NBC's Kath & Kim, and starred in the 2009 film Away We Go with The Office star John Krasinski.

In 2010, she appeared in Grown Ups starring Adam Sandler, where she played the wife of Chris Rock's character, and returned for the 2013 sequel, Grown Ups 2. In 2011, she appeared in Bridesmaids with Saturday Night Live colleague Kristen Wiig, and in 2013 she played a supporting role in The Way, Way Back as the girlfriend of Sam Rockwell's character. From 2011 to 2012, she co-starred in the NBC sitcom Up All Night, with Christina Applegate and Will Arnett. In 2013, she voiced Burn in the DreamWorks Animation film Turbo. Rudolph's self-titled variety show television pilot aired on May 19, 2014, but the show did not go beyond that. Also in 2014, she voiced Precious in the animated film The Nut Job, as well as in the 2017 sequel The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature, and voiced Aunt Cass in the Disney animated film Big Hero 6. She also starred in Paul Thomas Anderson's 2014 crime comedy-drama Inherent Vice, and the 2015 comedy Sisters, where she reunited with former SNL colleagues Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.

It was later announced that she would star in an NBC variety series Maya & Marty with Martin Short, which debuted on May 31, 2016. Her next series, Forever, premiered on September 14, 2018, on Amazon Video. As a voice actress, she voiced Matilda in The Angry Birds Movie (2016) and The Angry Birds Movie 2 (2019), voiced Smiler in the animated The Emoji Movie (2017), and had various roles in the Netflix animated series Big Mouth, premiering in 2017.

In 2018, she performed in advertisements for Ruby Tuesday and Seventh Generation. Also in 2018, she played Christine, the best friend of Melissa McCarthy's character, in the 2018 comedy film Life of the Party. From 2018 to 2020, Rudolph played a judge in the comedy series The Good Place, and received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations for her role. In 2019 she appeared as the mother in The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part. In 2021 she voiced Linda Mitchell, mother of two, in Sony Pictures' The Mitchells vs. the Machines, and Daniela Paguro in the Pixar film Luca. In July 2022 she appeared as the star of Loot, an Apple TV+ series. In 2022, Rudolph portrayed Malvina Monroe, the main antagonist of Disenchanted, the sequel to the 2007 Disney film Enchanted.

Rudolph has a production company called Animal Pictures with Natasha Lyonne which has produced Russian Doll, Poker Face, Loot, and The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy. As of October 3, 2023, Rudolph reportedly separated amicably from Animal Pictures to produce independently.

In January 2023, it was announced that Rudolph would be the spokesperson for M&M's after owner Mars Incorporated supposedly pulled its "Spokescandies" in light of criticism for its depictions of gender, though a few days later Mars confirmed that their Spokescandies would return in their Super Bowl commercial.

Music

Prior to joining Saturday Night Live, Rudolph was a backing singer from 1995 to 1999 and briefly a keyboardist in the band the Rentals, with whom she toured. She performed "Together in Pooping" and "Little Roundworm" with Triumph the Insult Comic Dog (Robert Smigel) on his album Come Poop With Me. She is in a Prince cover band called Princess with her friend Gretchen Lieberum.

Personal life

Rudolph has been in a committed relationship with filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson since 2001, although they are not married. Nonetheless, they refer to each other as "husband" and "wife" respectively due to the length of their relationship and their children. They live in the San Fernando Valley with their three daughters and one son, and their two dogs.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Music videos

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

References

1. Marine, Brooke. (September 14, 2018). "Maya Rudolph Reveals Why She Calls Paul Thomas Anderson Her "Husband" Even Though They Are Not Married". Condé Nast.
2. Poehler, Amy. (April 17, 2024). "Maya Rudolph: The 100 Most Influential People of 2024".
3. (2009). "Encyclopedia of African American Actresses in Film and Television". McFarland.
4. (January 12, 2009). "Hollywood Now: Interfaith Celebs Maya Rudolph, Lea Michele & Big Brain Theory Winner".
5. (June 6, 2001). "The Essence of Lucinda". [[Ocala Star-Banner]].
6. (December 23, 1992). "Sidney J. Rudolph, Philanthropist and Restaurant Owner". [[Miami Herald]].
7. Stated by [[Henry Louis Gates]] on the ''[[Finding Your Roots]]'' episode "In Search of Freedom", January 19, 2016, PBS
8. (December 28, 2010). "Top 10 little known facts about Teena Marie". [[CNN Entertainment]].
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10. "Maya Rudolph breaks down over shocking discovery about slave ancestors on 'Finding Your Roots'".
11. Itzkoff, Dave. (September 9, 2011). "Juggling a Comedy Series About Juggling Life's Tasks". The New York Times.
12. (1975). "Minnie Riperton – Lovin' You (Live 1975)". [[The Midnight Special (TV series)]].
13. Morris, Alex. (May 8, 2014). "The New Carol Burnett: Maya Rudolph on Fulfilling Her Variety-Show Dream". Vulture.
14. "Maya Rudolph Biography". [[TV Guide]].
15. McGlynn, Katla. (May 8, 2011). "'SNL': Pregnant Tina Fey & Maya Rudolph Sing Duet About Doin' It". [[HuffPost]].
16. Adams, Char. (December 20, 2015). "Amy Poehler Reunites with Maya Rudolph to Bring 'Bronx Beat' Back to SNL – and They Aren't Fans of Star Wars". People.
17. (September 30, 2019). "Kamala Harris Responds After Maya Rudolph Hilariously Spoofs Her on Saturday Night Live".
18. (July 31, 2024). "Maya Rudolph To Play Kamala Harris On 'Saturday Night Live' Through 2024 Presidential Election". Deadline.
19. Pearson, Ryan. (September 8, 2006). "The mystery of 'Idiocracy'".
20. Collins, Scott. (May 19, 2014). "Maya Rudolph looks to spice up NBC with a variety show". Los Angeles Times.
21. Hill, Logan. (September 26, 2014). "Pynchon's Cameo, and Other Surrealities". [[The New York Times]].
22. (June 13, 2014). "Maya Rudolph Reteams With Tina Fey, Amy Poehler in 'The Nest'". [[Prometheus Global Media]].
23. Littleton, Cynthia. (February 12, 2016). "NBC Greenlights Maya Rudolph-Martin Short Variety Show, Targets May Premiere (EXCLUSIVE)". [[Variety (magazine).
24. Pederson, Erik. (August 2, 2018). "'Forever' Trailer: Maya Rudolph, Fred Armisen, A Ski Trip & A Changed Life In Amazon Comedy".
25. (August 4, 2016). "Maya Rudolph Joins Melissa McCarthy Comedy 'Life of the Party' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
26. Reyes, Mike. (May 7, 2021). "Enchanted 2: Maya Rudolph Breaks Silence On Villainous Disney+ Role".
27. Rose, Lacey. (June 16, 2022). "Maya Rudolph and Natasha Lyonne's Production Company Has "Interests Outside of Female-Forward Comedy"".
28. Grobar, Matt. (October 3, 2023). "Animal Pictures Partners Maya Rudolph & Natasha Lyonne Part Ways; Lyonne To Continue Under Same Banner".
29. Calfas, Jennifer. (January 23, 2023). "M&M's Ditches 'Spokescandies' for Maya Rudolph After Backlash Over New Look". Wall Street Journal.
30. (2010). "The Complete Marquis Who's Who". [[Marquis Who's Who]].
31. (April 27, 2016). "D'Angelo Performs Prince Tribute with Maya Rudolph and Gretchen Lieberum on ''Tonight Show''". People.
32. Stanhope, Kate. (July 19, 2011). "It's a Boy for Maya Rudolph and Paul Thomas Anderson". TV Guide.
33. "Who is Maya Rudolph's Partner? All About Paul Thomas Anderson".
34. D'Zurilla, Christie. (March 21, 2011). "Maya Rudolph expecting baby No. 3 with Paul Thomas Anderson". [[Los Angeles Times]].
35. (October 23, 2005). "Maya Rudolph Expecting Second Child". [[People (magazine).
36. Michaud, Sarah. (December 4, 2009). "Maya Rudolph Welcomes a Girl". [[People (magazine).
37. (July 19, 2011). "Maya Rudolph Welcomes Son Jack". [[People (magazine).
38. Sneider, Jeff. (April 28, 2014). "Disney's 'Big Hero 6' Adds Maya Rudolph to Top-Secret Voice Cast (Exclusive)".
39. (July 13, 2014). "Cast Announcement: Six Reasons We Can't Wait to See Big Hero 6". Oh My Disney.
40. Romano, Nick. (February 25, 2021). "Pixar's Luca teaser trailer gives Jacob Tremblay a sun-soaked Italian summer with sea monsters".
41. (April 26, 2021). "Maya Rudolph, Yvette Nicole Brown & Jayma Mays Joining Disney+'s 'Enchanted' Sequel 'Disenchanted'". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
42. (March 5, 2023). "Seth Rogen Unveils 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Movie Cast".
43. Gleiberman, Owen. (September 10, 2023). "'His Three Daughters' Review: Director Azazel Jacobs Proves He's Major in a Family Saga Starring Carrie Coon, Elizabeth Olsen and Natasha Lyonne".
44. Porter, Rick. (December 3, 2019). "Lorne Michaels' Quibi Murder Mystery Lines Up All-Star Cast".
45. (November 11, 2020). "Eater x hulu present Eater's Guide To The World".
46. Joshua Brooks. (April 24, 2006). "The Rentals : Please Let That Be You".
47. Smith-Spark, Laura. (March 19, 2020). "Gal Gadot enlists celebrity help for coronavirus 'Imagine' video". [[CNN]].
48. (November 18, 2025). "Children's & Family Emmy Nominations Revealed – Full List".
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55. "Nominees / Winners 2022 Emmy Awards".
56. "Nominees / Winners 2023 Emmy Awards".
57. "Nominees / Winners 2024 Emmy Awards".