Michaela Watkins

Michaela Watkins is a well-recognized American actress and comedian. She was born on December 14, 1971, and embarked on her eminent career in 1998. She first garnered widespread recognition following her successful stint as a featured player on the renowned NBC sketch comedy series, Saturday Night Live during its 34th season between 2008 and 2009. Post Saturday Night Live, Watkins' career trajectory continued to soar as she landed prominent roles on the Hulu series Casual and on sitcoms The Unicorn and Trophy Wife. She had a series of recurring roles on shows such as The New Adventures of Old Christine, Catastrophe, Enlightened, and Search Party, and made noteworthy appearances in films like The Back-up Plan (2010), Wanderlust (2012), Enough Said (2013) and Sword of Trust (2019).

Watkins was born in Syracuse, New York and raised as one of three children in a Jewish family. After a childhood relocation to Boston, she later graduated from Boston University, where she studied theater and acting, which paved the way to her acting career. A keen interest in theater saw Watkins living and working in NYC, Portland and then Los Angeles, where she was active in the theater scene and later became a regular performer at The Groundlings. Watkins has kept her career diverse and dynamic, dabbling in producing and writing, even co-creating the 2014 USA Network comedy series Benched, thereby showcasing her multifaceted talents. Alongside her notable TV and film performances, Watkins has also shone in the world of podcasts, voicing a supporting role in the musical podcast In Strange Woods in 2020.