Michael Showalter
Michael Showalter
Michael Showalteris an American comedian, actor, producer, writer, and director. He is a member of the sketch comedy trio Stella. Showalter first came to recognition as a cast member on MTV's The State, which aired from 1993 to 1995. He co-wroteand starred in Wet Hot American Summerand he wrote, directed, and starred in The Baxter, with Michelle Williams, Justin Theroux and Elizabeth Banks. Both of these movies featured many of his co-stars from The State, and so do several of...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionTV Actor
Date of Birth17 June 1970
CityPrinceton, NJ
CountryUnited States of America
I mean, do you really think Paul Krugman is checking his Twitter account every day to read what I write? Of course not. Every other day maybe, but not every day.
I'm not big on fat jokes. That's a little beneath me. I'm not a huge fan of making a joke - and as I say this, I'm sure I do it - completely at someone else's expense.
I never really loved the acting, and I was never really that good at it, ... I never felt like I was better at this than other people. I started finding that my true passion is writing.
In each case, the minute you see them, you know they're wrong, ... The instant they walk on the screen, they give you some information that immediately makes the audience turn to the person sitting next to them and say, 'He's wrong for her. It'll never work out.'
Their unifying characteristic is they're not romantic. They have this inability to recognize the simple romantic needs of their counterpart. They just never know the right thing!
Every character is likeable and jarring at the same time,
Did you ever wonder about the guy left at the altar?
I've always loved going to see Broadway shows. I've seen 'em all: Rent, Chorus Line, Cats, West Side Story, Guys & Dolls, Wicked, you name it!
I've always balked at anything that feels like a clique, even if it's not always in my best interest to do so. I like each individual, fedora-wearing hipster - it's just the greater gestalt that rubs me the wrong way.
I wanted to do something that wasn't vulgar,
You really have no idea whether or not what you're writing is funny. In stand-up and sketch comedy, you know right away and you can make your changes accordingly.
Cats aren't cooperative in the same way that other animals are. You can train a dog to act, but you can't train a cat in the same way.
Baxters overdo it. The Baxter is the guy who's going to take a girl to the best restaurant in town, having no clue if it's appropriate for her. All that matters is, it's the best. Anything recommended as the most romantic place, that's where you'll find the Baxter.
She's sweet and she's nice, she's just not Andie MacDowell. God forbid, you're not Andie MacDowell. You're just a person, ... I'm playing with that whole idea that the characters have these quirks about their personalities that we've been conditioned to believe equal wrongness.