Mikey Day

Early life and education

Michael William Day was born March 20, 1980, in Orange, California. He attended Panorama Elementary School and later graduated from El Modena High School. There, he was involved in the drama program and the student government. He wrote comedic sketches for monthly assemblies and made "Batman" the theme for his homecoming. Day graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles with a degree in theater in 2002.

Career

Day began his career with the Groundlings, a Los Angeles–based improvisational theater group. With the Groundlings, Day and Michael Naughton wrote and co-starred in David Blaine Street Magic, a parody of magician David Blaine, portrayed by Mitch Silpa. The video, posted to YouTube, was once one of the most-viewed videos on the site.

Day was an original cast member on the improvisational comedy series Wild 'n Out on MTV. He played various characters in the Groundling stage show Groundlings, In The Study, With The Candlestick in early 2009 and directed Groundlings Space Camp. Day wrote for Showtime's The Underground in 2006.

Day starred in NBC's Kath & Kim remake (2009), wrote for and co-produced the Cartoon Network show Incredible Crew (2013), and wrote for Adult Swim's Robot Chicken in 2014. Day hosted a recurring segment parodying TMZ from 2010 to 2013 on The Jay Leno Show and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Day was a featured cast member of NBC variety show Maya & Marty, alongside Maya Rudolph, Martin Short, and Kenan Thompson. He also served as one of the show's co-head writers.

2013–present: ''Saturday Night Live''

Day was hired as a writer for Saturday Night Live in 2013 for its 39th season. He was recommended for the job by Nasim Pedrad, who had worked with him before and was a cast member of SNL at the time, appearing in her fifth and final season on the show. On SNL he wrote many sketches featuring cast member & former Wild 'n Out co-star Taran Killam, with whom he wrote the screenplay to Brother Nature (2016).

He was promoted to featured player for season 42 and was promoted to a repertory player in the beginning of season 44. For his audition, he impersonated Donald Trump Jr. and SNL actor Kyle Mooney. His debut appearance was in season 42's first episode, October 1, 2016, hosted by Margot Robbie. Bobby Moynihan, Streeter Seidell, and Day wrote the sketch "Haunted Elevator" for the October 22, 2016 episode of SNL. Starring Tom Hanks as David S. Pumpkins, Day played one of two dancing skeletons in the sketch. The sketch went viral, and he reprised the role for The David S. Pumpkins Halloween Special (2017).

On the April 13, 2024 episode of Saturday Night Live, Day and guest host Ryan Gosling appeared in a sketch as live-action versions of Beavis and Butt-Head. The sketch went viral and received large media coverage and critical acclaim. The pair reprised the roles on the red carpet at The Fall Guy movie premiere, of which Gosling played the starring role.

;Celebrity impressions on Saturday Night Live

• Steve Bannon (dressed as the Grim Reaper)
• Travis Barker
• David Beckham
• Joe Biden
• Richard Blumenthal
• Butt-Head
• Brendan Carr
• Bruce Castor
• John Cornyn
• Bill Cowher
• Leonardo da Vinci
• Steve Doocy
• Jack Dorsey
• Matt Duffer
• Joseph Dunford
• Rob Dyrdek
• Sean Evans
• Colin Farrell
• Michael Flynn
• Dan Frischman
• Merrick Garland
• Willie Geist
• Jeffrey Goldberg
• Matt Hall
• Prince Harry
• Pee-wee Herman
• Rian Johnson
• Jim Jordan
• Tim Kaine
• Brian Kilmeade
• Steve King
• Greg Lee
• Adam Levine
• Howie Long
• Kevin Love
• Joe Manchin III
• Stephen Miller
• Roy Moore
• Elon Musk
• John Oliver
• Mehmet Oz
• Pitbull
• Jamie Raskin
• David A. Ricks
• Jim Risch
• Franklin D. Roosevelt
• Paul Ryan
• Bruce Schroeder
• Nate Silver
• Phil Simms
• Steve-O
• Donald Trump Jr.
• Sam Worthington (as Jake Sully from the Avatar film series)
• Volodymyr Zelenskyy

;Recurring characters on Saturday Night Live

• Greg Duncan, one half of a couple whose forays into spicing up their sex life leave Greg seriously and comically injured by his shy, yet intimidating wife Shelley Duncan (Leslie Jones)
• Mort Fellner, a supercentenarian who reports on the achievements and experiences of fellow supercentenarians; however, each report culminates in revealing that the achievement is due to the subject dying.
• Nico Slobkin, one half a shallow couple always on the brink of an argument, who runs a relationship-themed Instagram account with his girlfriend Brie Bacardi (Heidi Gardner).
• Matt Schatt, one half of a couple, who is so disproportionately unexceptional compared to his exceptionally attractive partner that others can't help but question how their relationship exists.
• Josh, one of the two unintelligent kids (the other being Lonnie, played by Cecily Strong) in the Science Room sketches.

Disney

Day and his writing partner Streeter Seidell have completed one project and have two projects in development for Disney. The first of these, Home Sweet Home Alone, the sixth film in the Home Alone franchise, was released on Disney+ on November 12, 2021. A live-action Inspector Gadget film is in pre-production. Walt Disney Pictures is also planning to produce a remake of SpaceCamp.

Personal life

Day dated Selma Blair, whom he met on the set of Kath & Kim, from 2008 to 2010.

Day married his long-term partner, actress Paula Christensen, in 2024. Their son was born in August 2012.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

References

1. (September 17, 2018). "'SNL' Promotes Mikey Day, Melissa Villaseñor and Alex Moffat to Full Castmembers". [[Laredo Morning Times]].
2. (September 10, 2016). "SNL Scribe Mikey Day Joins Cast".
3. "Michael William Day, Born 03/20/1980 in California {{!}} CaliforniaBirthIndex.org".
4. Larsen, Peter. (July 31, 2009). "Comic actor Mikey Day wants to make you laugh". [[Orange County Register]].
5. DeLillo, Joe. (April 1, 2014). "Writer gives 'SNL' some Orange flavor". Orange County Register.
6. Fox, Jesse David. (September 9, 2016). "Writer Mikey Day to Join ''Saturday Night Live'' Cast". [[New York (magazine)#Vulture.
7. Lynch, Rene. (June 22, 2008). "Like magic, Groundlings turn viral". [[Los Angeles Times]].
8. Baysinger, Tim. (October 1, 2016). "Meet the New 'SNL' Castmembers: Who are Mikey Day, Alex Moffat and Melissa Villasenor?". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
9. (June 1, 2016). "NBC tries for a little (more) variety with 'Maya & Marty'". [[Los Angeles Times]].
10. Evans, Bradford. (August 23, 2013). "'Wild N Out's Mikey Day Hired to Write for 'SNL'".
11. (2020). "A Very Punchable Face". Penguin Random House LLC.
12. Maglio, Tony. (September 9, 2016). "'SNL' Adds 'Wild 'N Out' Alum Mikey Day to Cast".
13. O'Keefe, Meghan. (September 9, 2016). "'Saturday Night Live' Reportedly Adds 2 New Castmembers: Chris Redd & Mikey Day".
14. Ryan, Mike. (May 16, 2017). "Inside The Delightfully Weird Mind Of Mikey Day".
15. Evans, Greg. (October 2, 2016). "'SNL' Surprise: Newcomers Mikey Day, Alex Moffat & Melissa Villaseñor Actually Make Good, Strong Impressions".
16. (October 23, 2017). "An Oral History of 'David Pumpkins'".
17. Love, Matthew. (June 1, 2017). "The Rapid Rise of Mikey Day on ''Saturday Night Live''".
18. Larsen, Peter. (October 24, 2017). "How a Disney attraction inspired a viral 'Saturday Night Live' sketch, and other strange facts about that weird Tom Hanks-starring David S. Pumpkins bit". Orange County Register.
19. (April 15, 2024). "'Beavis and Butt-Head' is One of the Best 'SNL' Sketches Ever". The Daily Beast.
20. "Ryan Gosling and Mikey Day Reprise Beavis and Butt-Head at 'The Fall Guy' Premiere After Viral SNL Skit".
21. Robinson, Joanna. (February 5, 2017). "S.N.L.: Watch Alec Baldwin's Trump and a Ghoulish Steve Bannon Go to War".
22. (April 16, 2024). "Heidi Gardner Explains Butt-Head Crack-Up on Last Saturday's 'SNL'".
23. (April 15, 2024). "Heidi Gardner Couldn't Prepare for What She Saw".
24. (April 19, 2024). "'SNL' Star Kenan Thompson on How He Kept a Straight Face During 'Beavis and Butt-Head' Sketch After Losing It in Rehearsal: 'I Started to Panic'".
25. (April 19, 2024). "Go Behind the Scenes of 'SNL's Hilarious 'Beavis and Butt-Head' Sketch".
26. Anderton, Ethan. (October 9, 2016). "LOL: 'Saturday Night Live' Gives A Sneak Peek At 'Stranger Things' Season 2".
27. Izadi, Elahe. (November 20, 2016). "Fake Donald Trump returns to SNL, and the real one is not happy". [[The Washington Post]].
28. Chavez, Nicole. (December 4, 2017). "'SNL' takes on Flynn's guilty plea in 'A Christmas Carol' sketch". [[CNN]].
29. Evans, Greg. (May 6, 2017). "'SNL': Kate McKinnon & Alex Moffat Unveil Heavy-Breathing 'Morning Joe' Routine".
30. Robinson, Joannna. (January 21, 2018). "''S.N.L.'' Debuts Wicked Prince William and Harry Impressions".
31. Turchiano, Danielle. (November 11, 2017). "'Saturday Night Live': Jason Sudeikis Cameos as Joe Biden in Message from the DNC".
32. Andrews, Travis M.. (January 20, 2019). "Alec Baldwin's Trump tries to make a deal in the SNL cold open. Spoiler alert: He chooses hamberders.". [[The Washington Post]].
33. Caplan, David. (May 7, 2017). "'Saturday Night Live' sketch asks 'Where in the world is Kellyanne Conway?'". [[ABC News (United States).
34. (May 8, 2018). "Cavs Twitter account takes jab at SNL skit in halftime post".
35. Sollosi, Mary. (November 12, 2017). "''Saturday Night Live'' goes after Roy Moore in cold open".
36. Murrian, Samuel R.. (November 12, 2017). "''Saturday Night Live'' Recap: Tiffany Haddish Makes History, Roy Moore Dresses Like Woody, and Jeff Sessions Talks to a Possum".
37. (January 20, 2018). "'Saturday Night Live' spoofs Amazon's HQ2 search as contenders shoot themselves in the foot".
38. (November 11, 2016). "Saturday Night Live – Season 42".
39. Robinson, Joanna. (May 13, 2017). "''S.N.L.'': Watch Alec Baldwin's Donald Trump Humiliate Paul Ryan".
40. Schwartz, Ian. (November 1, 2020). "'SNL' Features Jim Carrey's Biden Reading Scary Story, Makes Fun Of Nate Silver Election Predictions".
41. Berkowitz, Joe. (December 4, 2017). ""SNL" Is Totally Here For The Revenge Of Women".
42. Wright, Megh. (2019-02-11). "SNL's Heidi Gardner and Mikey Day Are the Worst Instagram Couple Ever".
43. Evans, Greg. (2 October 2016). "'SNL' Surprise: Newcomers Mikey Day, Alex Moffat & Melissa Villaseñor Actually Make Good, Strong Impressions".
44. Hoglund, Andy. (26 January 2020). "Saturday Night Live recap: A 'very chill' Adam Driver goes to hell and back (and, yes, Kylo Ren appears)".
45. Perkins, Dennis. (26 January 2020). "Third time's the winner, as Saturday Night Live finally takes advantage of Adam Driver".
46. Hipes, Patrick. (August 12, 2021). "'Home Alone' Revival Gets Fall Release Date On Disney+".
47. Kit, Borys. (October 4, 2019). "New 'Inspector Gadget' Live-Action Movie in the Works From Disney (Exclusive)". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
48. Goldberg, Matt. (January 10, 2020). "'SNL' Writers Mikey Day and Streeter Seidell to Write 'Space Camp' Remake for Disney+".
49. (September 13, 2012). "Exclusive: Selma Blair, Boyfriend Jason Bleick Split".
50. (August 18, 2018). "Mikey Day on Instagram".
51. "Instagram post of wedding photo".
52. N'Duka, Amanda. (July 22, 2019). "Adam Sandler Sets Next Netflix Comedy With All-Star Cast Including Kevin James, Julie Bowen, Maya Rudolph & Many More".