Michael McKean

About the Michael McKean

Michael John McKeanis an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, composer, singer, and musician. Over his career he has received a Grammy Award as well as nominations for an Academy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.

McKean started his career as Lenny Kosnowski in the ABC sitcom Laverne & Shirley from 1976 to 1983. He was briefly a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live for its 19th and 20th seasons from 1994 to 1995, and played Gibby Fiske in HBO series Dream On (1990-1996). He has acted in films such as Used Cars (1980), Clue (1985), and The Big Picture (1989), the later of which he also co-wrote.

He is also known for having collaborated with Christopher Guest acting in his films such as This Is Spinal Tap (1984), Best in Show (2000), A Mighty Wind (2003), and For Your Consideration (2006). He co-wrote the song “A Mighty Wind” (for the Guest film A Mighty Wind), for which he won a Grammy Award, as well as “A Kiss at the End of the Rainbow” from the same film, which was nominated for the Academy Award. He was Primetime Emmy Award nominated in 2019 for his role as Chuck McGill on the AMC series Better Call Saul. Since 2020, he has voiced Lou Pickles in Nickelodeon’s Rugrats franchise. He has acted in shows such as Curb Your Enthusiasm, Veep, Grace and Frankie, Breeders, and The Diplomat.

On stage, McKean made his Broadway debut as Edna Turnblad in the musical Hairspray (2004). He took on dual roles portraying J. Edgar Hoover and Robert Byrd in the political epic play All the Way (2014). He has acted in the Broadway plays such as the Tracy Letts play Superior Donuts (2009), the Gore Vidal revival The Best Man (2012), and the Lillian Hellman revival The Little Foxes (2017).