Josh Meyers (actor)
Joshua Dylan Meyers (/ˈmaɪ.ərz/ MY-ərz; born January 8, 1976) is an American actor and comedian, known for being a cast member of the sketch comedy series Mad TV and playing Randy Pearson in the eighth and final season of That '70s Show. He is the younger brother of former SNL cast member and Late Night host Seth Meyers.
Josh Meyers | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joshua Dylan Meyers January 8, 1976 Bedford, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor, comedian |
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Relatives | Seth Meyers (brother) |
Early life and education
Meyers was born in Bedford, New Hampshire, on January 8, 1976, the younger of two boys born of Hilary Claire Meyers (née Olson), a French teacher, and Laurence Meyers Jr., who worked in finance.[1][2]
He attended Manchester High School West in Manchester, New Hampshire. He went on to graduate from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. Meyers' paternal grandfather was Ashkenazi Jewish,[3][4] and his other ancestry is Czech–Austrian and Croatian (from his paternal grandmother), Swedish, English, and German.[5]
Career
Mad TV
Meyers officially joined the cast of Mad TV in 2002, as a featured performer for the eighth season. He would fill in the spot of the Spishak Spokesperson that David Herman and Pat Kilbane previously owned. Meyers was also known for his celebrity impersonations, including Anna Nicole Smith's son, Daniel, various members of 'N Sync (particularly Justin Timberlake), rapper Eminem, and actor Owen Wilson.
Meyers's appearances on Mad TV on Fox aired directly opposite his brother Seth's appearances on Saturday Night Live on NBC, making Josh Meyers the only MADtv cast member to have a family member (blood-related or otherwise) be a cast member on Saturday Night Live. This was referenced on a season 28 episode of Saturday Night Live in which Seth appears on Weekend Update to talk to his father and tells him to turn off Mad TV and pay attention to him.[6]
Other work
When Topher Grace left That '70s Show at the end of the show's seventh season, Meyers was chosen as a replacement, starring as Randy Pearson during the eighth and final season.[6] In 2006, Meyers made an appearance in the feature film Date Movie, where he plays Napoleon Dynamite and Owen Wilson's character from Wedding Crashers.
Meyers has a supporting role in the 2008 film College Road Trip, and appeared alongside Pee-wee Herman in the 2010 stage show revival of The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Down | ESU cop #5 | |
| 2002 | Snapshots | Hooligan in red light district | |
| 2005 | The Adventures of Big Handsome Guy and His Little Friend | Bar jerk | Short film |
| 2006 | Date Movie | Napoleon Dynamite/Owen Wilson look-alike | |
| 2007 | Wrangling Coach Rankin | Josh | Short film |
| 2008 | College Road Trip | Stuart | |
| 2009 | Brüno | Kookus | |
| 2010 | How to Make Love to a Woman | Andy Conners | |
| 2013 | Straight A's | Jason | |
| Inventing Adam | Adam | ||
| The Sidekick | Jimmy T | Short film | |
| Cafe Attitude | N/A | Short film | |
| 2014 | Going to America | Andy |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002–2004 | Mad TV | Various | 47 episodes |
| 2003 | Half & Half | Big Fat Slim Jim | 2 episodes |
| 2004 | Life as We Know It | Sam Conner | Episode: "Family Hard-ships" |
| 2005–2006 | That '70s Show | Randy Pearson | Main cast (season 8); 21 episodes |
| 2006 | Lovespring International | Cal | Episode: "The Portrait and the Painter" |
| 2011 | The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway | Various voices | Television film |
| 2012 | Are You There, Chelsea? | Dr. Carl Rosen | Episode: "The Gynecologist" |
| Breaking In | Abe Frohman | Episode: "Who's the Boss" | |
| 2013 | Newsreaders | Andrew Clatter | Episode: "Unborn Again" |
| The Mindy Project | Adam | Episode: "Pretty Man" | |
| Behind the Candelabra | Liberace's attorney | Television film | |
| 2014–2017 | Red Oaks | Barry | Main cast |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Floored and Lifted | Matthew | Episode: "Matthew" |
| My Long Distance Relationship | Professor Barnes | Television film | |
| 2010 | Pee-wee Gets an iPad! | Clocky/Conky (voice) | Funny or Die short |
| 2011 | Workshop | Apartment leasing agent | Episode: "Sparkle White Gum" |
| 2012 | Dark Prophet | Agent Noah Parish | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2013 | The Awesomes | Perfect Man (voice) | 7 episodes |
| Thug #3 (voice) | Episode: "Baby's Got Backstory" | ||
| 2014 | Charles, Your Hangover | Rickey, the apprentice | Episode: "The Apprentice" |
| 2016 | Kings of Con | Kent O'Grady | 1 episode |
References
- "Miss Hilary Olson marries Mr. Meyers". Boston Globe. July 5, 1970.
- Prato, Alison (December 14, 2008). "SNL's Seth Meyers: The Power of Fun". New York Post. Archived from the original on December 17, 2008.
...a father who worked in finance and a French teacher mom.
- "Jewz in the Newz". The American Israelite. 2013-07-17. Archived from the original on 2013-11-04. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
- "Watch Late Night: Seth Meyers "Seth's Story: Seth's Jewish Enough" Highlight - NBC.com". NBC. Archived from the original on April 28, 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
- Nate Bloom. "Seth Meyers Gets Engaged". InterfaithFamily. Retrieved 2014-04-25.
- Rowles, Dustin (January 30, 2014). "Who Remembers That Seth Meyers' Little Brother Replaced Eric and Kelso on That '70s Show?". Pajiba. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
