Biography

One of the few Saturday Night Live cast members to make a successful transition to film, Mike Myers gained worldwide fame with his impersonations of a heavy metal-loving couch potato in Wayne's World and an oversexed British secret agent in the Austin Powers series.

A native of Scarborough, Canada, where he was born on May 25, 1963, Myers seemed destined to link up with Saturday Night Live; when he made his TV debut in a commercial at the age of eight, the actress playing his mother was none other than a pre-SNL Gilda Radner. Myers went on to appear in a number of Canadian television shows, and after graduating high school, he almost immediately joined Second City, Toronto's famed improv group. By the age of 20, Myers was the star of his own TV series, Mullarkey and Myers, and also did time as the veejay of an all-night Canadian music video show. While he worked on various programs, the comedian continued to hone the characterizations that would later make him famous on SNL. The Wayne's World character of Wayne Campbell, for example, was one that Myers had been doing since high school, when he used the impersonation to impress girls at parties.

In 1989, Myers fulfilled a longtime dream by becoming a member of Saturday Night Live. During his time on the show, which lasted until 1994, he won an Emmy for his writing, and he starred alongside fellow-SNL cast member Dana Carvey in the successful 1992 film Wayne's World. Unfortunately for Myers, the film's 1993 sequel, Wayne's World 2, proved to be a disappointment, as did his other film that year, So I Married an Axe Murderer. However, he struck gold four years later, writing and starring in the sleeper hit Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. The film's success all but guaranteed a sequel, but before writing and starring in it, Myers explored previously uncharted dramatic territory in 54 (1998). His portrayal of the titular club's drug-addled owner, Steve Rubell, met with wide acclaim; unfortunately, it was about the only aspect of the film that did. The following year, Myers switched back to comedy with the much-anticipated Austin Powers sequel, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. The recipient of a marketing campaign whose volume was bested only by that of Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace, the film was even more popular than the original (which made more money on home video than in its initial theatrical release), although not as well received by critics. That same year, Myers returned to more northerly climes and his lifelong love of hockey when he appeared in Mystery, Alaska, which was helmed by Austin Powers director Jay Roach.

In 2001, Myers made an audible return to movie screens as an unsightly ogre with the kid-friendly fairy tale spoof Shrek. Realizing that his voice-over work didn't quite work after having recorded all of his dialogue, Myers dusted off the patented Scottish accent he had utilized with humorous effect in both SNL and So I Married an Axe Murderer and breathed new life into the tale of an unlikely hero enlisted to restore order to the land of fairy tales and rescue the princess. A hit with children and adults alike, Shrek scored big in the 2001 summer movie season, easily holding its own against such heavies as Pearl Harbor and The Mummy Returns.

The folowing year Meyers would once again return to the screen as everyone's favorite snaggletoothed superspy in Austin Powers in Goldmember. Returning as series stalwarts Dr. Evil and Fat Basard as well, the third film in the series also found Meyers stepping into the shoes of the newest master criminal, the titular Goldmember. As a double jointed Danish criminal mastermind with an unsightly skin disorder and a plan for world domination, Meyers once again scored a hit at the box office, raking in an impressive opening weekend gross and holding it's own against a slew of notable summer releases. ~ Rebecca Flint, All Movie Guide

Filmography

Shrek 2 (2004) (voice) .... Shrek
Cat in the Hat, The (2003) .... The Cat
... aka Dr. Seuss's The Cat in the Hat (2003) (USA: complete title)
View from the Top, A (2003) .... John Whitney
MTV Video Music Awards 2002 (2002) (TV) .... Presenter
... aka VMAs 2002 (2002) (TV) (USA: short title)
Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002) .... Austin Powers/Dr. Evil/Goldmember/Fat Bastard
There's Only One Paul McCartney (2002) (TV) .... Himself
Shrek: Swamp Karaoke Dance Party (2001) (V) (voice) (singing voice) .... Shrek/Blind Mouse
Concert for New York City (2001) (TV) .... Himself
America: A Tribute to Heroes (2001) (TV) .... Himself
Creating a Fairy Tale World: The Making of 'Shrek' (2001) (TV) .... Himself
Shrek (2001) (voice) .... Shrek/Blind Mouse/Narrator
73rd Annual Academy Awards, The (2001) (TV) (uncredited) .... Himself
Beatles Revolution, The (2000) (TV) .... Himself
2000 MTV Movie Awards (2000) (TV) .... Himself
AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars (1999) (TV) .... Himself
Comedy Central's Canned Ham: The Dr. Evil Story (1999) (V) .... Austin Danger Powers/Dr. Evil
... aka Dr. Evil Story, The (1999) (V) (USA: informal English title)
... aka Spyography: The Dr. Evil Story (1999) (V) (USA: TV title)
Saturday Night Live: 25th Anniversary (1999) (TV) .... Himself
Saturday Night Live Christmas (1999) (V) .... Various
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Dana Carvey (1999) (TV) .... Wayne Campbell/Various
Madonna: The Video Collection 93:99 (1999) (V) .... Austin Powers (segment "Beautiful Stranger")
Mystery, Alaska (1999) .... Donnie Shulzhoffer
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) .... Austin Powers/Dr. Evil/Fat Bastard
... aka Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) (USA: video title)
Nobody Knows Anything (1998)
Saturday Night Live: Game Show Parodies (1998) (V) .... Sean, the host of 'Geek, Dweeb or Spazz'
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Chris Farley (1998) (TV) .... Superfan, Pat Arnold/Japanese Gameshow host/Chippendales judge/Jazz Dancing Ensemble dancer/Various
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Mike Myers (1998) (V) .... Himself/Various
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Phil Hartman (1998) (TV) .... Himself
Thin Pink Line, The (1998) .... Tim Broderick
Pete's Meteor (1998)
54 (1998) .... Steve Rubell
... aka Fifty-Four (1998)
Bacharach: One Amazing Night (1998) (TV) .... Himself
1997 MTV Movie Awards (1997) (TV) .... Himself/Host
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) .... Austin "Danger" Powers/Dr. Evil
Ice & Asphalt: The World of Hockey (1995) (V) .... Himself
Wayne's World 2 (1993) .... Wayne Campbell
So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993) .... Charlie Mackenzie/Stuart Mackenzie
64th Annual Academy Awards, The (1992) (TV) (uncredited) .... Himself
Wayne's World (1992) .... Wayne Campbell
"Saturday Night Live" (1975) TV Series .... Himself (1989-1995)
... aka "NBC's Saturday Night" (1975) (USA)
... aka "SNL 25" (2000) (USA: new title)
... aka "SNL" (1975)
... aka "Saturday Night Live 80" (1980) (USA: new title)
... aka "Saturday Night" (1975)
Elvis Stories (1989) .... Cockney Man
John and Yoko: A Love Story (1985) (TV) (uncredited) .... Delivery Boy
"Wide Awake Club" (1984) TV Series