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Stephen Root
Stephen Root 2024.jpg
Root in 2024
Born (1951-11-17) November 17, 1951 (age 73)
Education University of Florida (BFA)
Occupation Actor
Years active 1980–present
Spouse(s)
  • Laura Joan Hase
    (m. 1984; div. 1997)
  • Romy Rosemont
    (m. 2008)
Children 1
Signature
Stephen Root signature.svg

Stephen Root (born November 17, 1951) is a well-known American actor. He has appeared in many movies and TV shows. You might know his voice from popular animated series.

He played Jimmy James in the TV show NewsRadio. He was also Milton Waddams in the movie Office Space. Stephen Root is famous for voicing Bill Dauterive and Buck Strickland in King of the Hill.

He has been in several films by the Coen brothers. These include O Brother, Where Art Thou? and No Country for Old Men. He also appeared in Get Out and Dodgeball. On TV, he was in Star Trek: The Next Generation and The Man in the High Castle. He also had roles in HBO shows like True Blood and Barry. For Barry, he was nominated for an Primetime Emmy Award.

Early life and education

Stephen Root was born in Sarasota, Florida, on November 17, 1951. His father, Rolland Clair Root, was a project manager. Because of his father's work, Stephen's family moved around a lot. He compared his childhood to that of an Army brat.

He went to Vero Beach High School in Florida. Later, he studied acting at the University of Florida. He left college early to start his acting career on Broadway theater. In 2008, the university recognized him as a distinguished former student. They also gave him his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

Acting career

Stephen Root started acting on stage in 1980. His first Broadway play was Journey's End. He also performed in All My Sons.

He made his first movie appearance in 1988 in Crocodile Dundee II. That same year, he was in the movie Monkey Shines. He also had a small role in the 1990 movie Ghost.

One of his most famous TV roles was as the funny billionaire Jimmy James on NewsRadio. He also played Bob Mayer on The West Wing. Stephen Root has been in many comedy films. He was the quiet Milton Waddams in Office Space. He also played Gordon Pibb in Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story.

The Coen brothers often cast him in their films. He appeared in O Brother, Where Art Thou? and No Country for Old Men. He was also in The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. Director Kevin Smith even wrote a role just for him in Jersey Girl.

Stephen Root worked with director Mike Judge again in Idiocracy. He played NASA flight director Chris Kraft in From the Earth to the Moon. He also had many guest roles on TV. He was a Klingon Captain in Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1991. He appeared in Harts of the West from 1993 to 1994.

Stephen Root by Gage Skidmore
Root at the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con

He guest-starred on Seinfeld as a bank manager. He also had a role in Frasier. He appeared in an episode of CSI. He was a regular on the show Ladies Man.

Stephen Root is also a very busy voice actor. He is well-known as the voice of Bill Dauterive and Buck Strickland on King of the Hill. He has voiced characters in animated movies like Ice Age, Finding Nemo, and Rango. His voice roles on TV include Commander Chode in Tripping the Rift and Homebase in The X's. He has also voiced characters in Chowder and Teen Titans.

He played Eddie, a vampire, in HBO's True Blood. He was Dwight Dixon in Pushing Daisies. In 2009, he was in the movie The Men Who Stare at Goats. In 2010, he appeared in 24 and Justified. He played John Lloyd in The Conspirator in 2011. In 2012, he joined the cast of Boardwalk Empire as Gaston Means. He also plays Lynn Boyle, Charles Boyle's father, on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. From 2018, Root starred in the HBO series Barry. For this role, he received an Emmy nomination.

Personal life

Stephen Root married Laura Joan Hase in 1984. They had a son named Cody. He later married actress Romy Rosemont on December 14, 2008. They have worked together on TV shows like Fringe.

Selected filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1993 Dave Don Durenberger
1999 Office Space Milton Waddams
2000 O Brother, Where Art Thou? Mr. Lund
2002 Ice Age Frank, Start (voice)
2003 Finding Nemo Bubbles (voice)
2004 Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story Gordon Pibb
2006 Idiocracy Judge Hank "The Hangman" BMW
2007 No Country for Old Men Man who hires Wells
2011 Rango Doc, Merrimack, Mr. Snuggles (voice)
2014 Selma Al Lingo
2016 Finding Dory Bubbles (voice)
2017 Get Out Jim Hudson
2018 Ballad of Buster Scruggs, TheThe Ballad of Buster Scruggs Teller Segment: "Near Algodones"
2021 Tragedy of Macbeth, TheThe Tragedy of Macbeth The Porter

Selected television roles

Year Title Role Notes
1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation Captain K'Vada 2 episodes
1995–1999 NewsRadio Jimmy James Main role
1996 Seinfeld Mr. Lager Episode: "The Invitations"
1997–2010 King of the Hill Bill Dauterive, Buck Strickland, Additional voices 259 episodes
2004 Frasier Harbin Episode: "Detour"
2005–2007 West Wing, TheThe West Wing Bob Mayer 9 episodes
2008–2009 True Blood Eddie 4 episodes
2010–2014 Justified Judge Mike Reardon Recurring role
2012–2013 Boardwalk Empire Gaston Means Recurring role
2012–2016 Gravity Falls Bud Gleeful 8 episodes
2014–2015 Brooklyn Nine-Nine Lynn Boyle 4 episodes
2016–2019 Man in the High Castle, TheThe Man in the High Castle Hawthorne Abendsen Recurring role
2018–2023 Barry Monroe Fuches / The Raven Main role
2019–2022 Amphibia Frodrick Toadstool (voice) Recurring role
2020 Perry Mason Maynard Barnes 7 episodes
2021–2023 Succession Ron Petkus 2 episodes
2022 The Book of Boba Fett Lortha Peel Episode: "Chapter 3: The Streets of Mos Espa"

Video games

Year Title Role Notes
2003 Finding Nemo Bubbles

Theme parks

Year Title Role Notes
2007 Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage Bubbles Short film

Theatre

Year Title Role Notes
1980 Journey's End 2nd Lieutenant Trotter Off-Broadway
1987 All My Sons Frank Lubey Broadway

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Stephen Root para niños

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