# Matt Walsh (comedian)
**Matt Walsh** (born 1964) is an American actor, comedian, improviser, director, and writer, known as a co-founder of the [Upright Citizens Brigade](https://www.edgepedia.org/upright-citizens-brigade) (UCB) comedy troupe and for playing the press secretary Mike McLintock on the HBO political satire *Veep*[1](https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/126452) • [2](https://latw.org/artist-public-profile/matt-walsh). His screen work includes supporting roles in comedies such as *The Hangover*, *Old School*, *Ted*, *Elf*, and *Ghostbusters*, and a stint as a correspondent on *The Daily Show with Jon Stewart*[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh). For *Veep* he received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, in 2016 and 2017[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Matthew Paul Walsh, born in Chicago, Illinois[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/) |
| Signature role | Mike McLintock on *Veep* (HBO, 2012 onward); Emmy nominations in 2016 and 2017[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh) • [5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/matt-walsh/) |
| UCB co-founder | Started the troupe in 1991 with Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, and Ian Roberts in Chicago; the theater moved to New York by the end of the decade[6](https://www.wbez.org/afternoon-shift/2012/04/12/matt-walsh-talks-veep-and-ucb-history-on-afternoon-shift) |
| Improv training | Classes at the Second City in Chicago, the Second City Touring Company, and performances at The Annoyance and iO with Del Close[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh) • [4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/) |
| Film work | Supporting roles in *The Hangover*, *Old School*, *Ted*, *Elf*, and *Ghostbusters*; a frequent presence in Todd Phillips films[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh) • [4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/) |
| Directing | Feature debut *High Road* (2011), which won the Newport Beach Film Festival award for outstanding achievement in filmmaking directing[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/) |
| Ensemble honors | Screen Actors Guild nomination for comedy ensemble each year from 2014 to 2017, and a win in 2018, for *Veep*[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/) |
## Early life and Chicago improv training
Walsh was born in the Chicago area and attended Hinsdale South High School[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh). He earned a degree in psychology from [Northern Illinois University](https://www.edgepedia.org/northern-illinois-university), and shortly before graduating he began taking improv lessons at the Player's Workshop of The Second City[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh) • [4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/). With classmates he co-founded the sketch group Department of Works, then performed and studied at The Annoyance and iO, where he worked with the improv teacher [Del Close](https://www.edgepedia.org/del-close)[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh). He went on to tour with the Second City Touring Company[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh).
In a 2016 interview he described the city's appeal to young performers: rent was affordable enough that a twenty-something could have an apartment, beer money, and still do shows seven nights a week[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh).
## Upright Citizens Brigade
UCB began as a collaboration among four Chicago improvisers: Walsh, [Matt Besser](https://www.edgepedia.org/matt-besser), Amy Poehler, and Ian Roberts. The group's origins date to 1991, it became fully realized in Chicago by the mid-1990s, and by the end of the decade it had relocated to New York City[6](https://www.wbez.org/afternoon-shift/2012/04/12/matt-walsh-talks-veep-and-ucb-history-on-afternoon-shift). Walsh himself arrived in New York in 1996, an actor and comedian looking to make enough money to cover rent[7](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/matt-walsh-on-upright-citizens-brigade-career-new-movie/).
**Building an audience before the internet.** The early group promoted itself by word of mouth. Walsh recalled handing out flyers in Tompkins Square Park and paying $15 a month for a voicemail service in which a person wrote down the group's messages[7](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/matt-walsh-on-upright-citizens-brigade-career-new-movie/). The troupe's first New York theater occupied a defunct strip club on West 22nd Street, and Walsh lived above it, on the top floor of a four-story walkup[8](https://www.salon.com/2015/04/10/we_go_to_really_dark_awful_places_veep_star_matt_walsh_on_improv_political_humor_and_the_early_days_of_the_upright_citizens_brigade/).
The theater grew into an improv training center with four locations in New York and Los Angeles and thousands of students[8](https://www.salon.com/2015/04/10/we_go_to_really_dark_awful_places_veep_star_matt_walsh_on_improv_political_humor_and_the_early_days_of_the_upright_citizens_brigade/). Its stage also carried a sketch series, *Upright Citizens Brigade*, on [Comedy Central](https://www.edgepedia.org/comedy-central) from 1998 to 2000, on which Walsh starred[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/matt-walsh/). Performers who trained or performed at UCB include [Ellie Kemper](https://www.edgepedia.org/ellie-kemper), Ed Helms, Aziz Ansari, Nick Kroll, Ilana Glazer and [Abbi Jacobson](https://www.edgepedia.org/abbi-jacobson) of *Broad City*, and *Saturday Night Live* cast members Bobby Moynihan and Kate McKinnon[8](https://www.salon.com/2015/04/10/we_go_to_really_dark_awful_places_veep_star_matt_walsh_on_improv_political_humor_and_the_early_days_of_the_upright_citizens_brigade/). Walsh has described the theater's community as one that gives scholarships to underserved groups, and he noted that the improv scene changed during his career: when he started in Chicago, one or two teams in five might have a single woman, while scenes he observed at UCB Los Angeles were roughly half women[9](https://www.gq.com/story/matt-walsh-veep-ucb).
## Television and film career
Walsh's television work includes the series *Dog Bites Man*, *Reno 911!*, *Outsourced*, and *Hung*[6](https://www.wbez.org/afternoon-shift/2012/04/12/matt-walsh-talks-veep-and-ucb-history-on-afternoon-shift), and he was a correspondent on *The Daily Show with Jon Stewart* from 2001 to 2002[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh). He created, wrote, directed, and executive produced the improvised series *Players* for Spike TV, which ran for one season[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh). His voice work includes *Bob's Burgers* and *Rick and Morty*[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh).
In film he has played numerous supporting characters, including roles in *The Hangover*, *Old School*, *Ted*, *Elf*, and *Ghostbusters*[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh), and he appears in many of director [Todd Phillips](https://www.edgepedia.org/todd-phillips)'s films[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/). His screen persona typically supplies a deadpan base of sanity for other performers to play against, in roles such as fuddy-duddies, cops, and fathers[10](https://littlevillagemag.com/interview-with-the-good-matt-walsh/).
## Veep and Mike McLintock
In 2012 Walsh landed the role of Mike McLintock, the long-suffering press secretary to Vice President Selina Meyer, played by [Julia Louis-Dreyfus](https://www.edgepedia.org/julia-louis-dreyfus), on HBO's political satire *Veep*[6](https://www.wbez.org/afternoon-shift/2012/04/12/matt-walsh-talks-veep-and-ucb-history-on-afternoon-shift) • [5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/matt-walsh/). He won the part after four or five auditions; before one of the later rounds he slept in his suit, because the scene called for a character who had been up all night[8](https://www.salon.com/2015/04/10/we_go_to_really_dark_awful_places_veep_star_matt_walsh_on_improv_political_humor_and_the_early_days_of_the_upright_citizens_brigade/).
The production used the cast's improv background. The actors table-read each script, then set it aside and improvised the scenes while writers took notes, and the next draft reflected what the rehearsal had discovered[8](https://www.salon.com/2015/04/10/we_go_to_really_dark_awful_places_veep_star_matt_walsh_on_improv_political_humor_and_the_early_days_of_the_upright_citizens_brigade/). Walsh said he based Mike's habits on Chicago machine politics, a world of maintaining relationships with the powerful in which a fixer can no longer control the story in a 24-hour media cycle[9](https://www.gq.com/story/matt-walsh-veep-ucb).
The performance earned him Primetime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 2016 and 2017[3](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh), and the *Veep* cast won the ensemble comedy award from the [Screen Actors Guild](https://www.edgepedia.org/screen-actors-guild) in 2018 after nominations in each of the four preceding years[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/).
## Directing and other projects
Walsh made his feature directorial debut with the improvised comedy *High Road*, screening at festivals in 2011[6](https://www.wbez.org/afternoon-shift/2012/04/12/matt-walsh-talks-veep-and-ucb-history-on-afternoon-shift) • [11](https://maximumfun.org/news/interview-matt-walsh-high-road/). The film won him the award for outstanding achievement in filmmaking directing at the 2011 Newport Beach Film Festival[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/).
He also created the *Bear Down* podcast with screenwriter Scot Armstrong and actor Joe Nunez, discussing the [Chicago Bears](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-bears) during football season[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/). He is married to the actress Morgan Vukovic[4](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/).
## A commonly confused namesake
Walsh shares his name with a conservative political commentator associated with [The Daily Wire](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-daily-wire), and the two are frequently mixed up. A student newspaper, The Simpsonian, retracted a 2024 review after describing the comedian as the commentator, noting in its correction that the actor had founded Upright Citizens Brigade, received two Emmy nominations for *Veep*, and appeared in *Elf*, *The Hangover*, and *Life of the Party*[12](https://thesimpsonian.com/35614/opinion/retraction-after-midnight-review-and-update/). Interviews with the comedian sometimes carry the same clarification in their headlines[10](https://littlevillagemag.com/interview-with-the-good-matt-walsh/).
## References
1. [Matt Walsh (comedian), AlegsaOnline biography](https://en.alegsaonline.com/art/126452)
2. [Matt Walsh, LA Theatre Works artist profile](https://latw.org/artist-public-profile/matt-walsh)
3. [Matt Walsh, The Second City alumni profile](https://www.secondcity.com/people/matt-walsh)
4. [Matt Walsh Biography, Celebrity Facts and Awards, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/matt-walsh/bio/3000054734/)
5. [Matt Walsh, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/matt-walsh/)
6. [Matt Walsh talks 'Veep' and UCB history on 'Afternoon Shift', WBEZ Chicago](https://www.wbez.org/afternoon-shift/2012/04/12/matt-walsh-talks-veep-and-ucb-history-on-afternoon-shift)
7. [Matt Walsh On Upright Citizens Brigade, Career & New Movie, CBS New York](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/matt-walsh-on-upright-citizens-brigade-career-new-movie/)
8. ["We go to really dark, awful places": "Veep" star Matt Walsh on improv, political humor and the early days of the Upright Citizens Brigade, Salon](https://www.salon.com/2015/04/10/we_go_to_really_dark_awful_places_veep_star_matt_walsh_on_improv_political_humor_and_the_early_days_of_the_upright_citizens_brigade/)
9. [The Hilarious Life and Times of Matt Walsh, 'Veep' Star and UCB Founder, GQ](https://www.gq.com/story/matt-walsh-veep-ucb)
10. [Matt Walsh (the good one) talks 'Veep,' Upright Citizens Brigade and Chicago-style improv, Little Village](https://littlevillagemag.com/interview-with-the-good-matt-walsh/)
11. [Director Matt Walsh On His New Improv Movie, High Road, Maximum Fun](https://maximumfun.org/news/interview-matt-walsh-high-road/)
12. [Retraction and update: "After Midnight" review, The Simpsonian](https://thesimpsonian.com/35614/opinion/retraction-after-midnight-review-and-update/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Theater and dance › Stand-up comedy and comedians › American stand-up comedians, contemporary › Stand-up comedians born 1960–1969*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license