Kristen Schaal

Kristen Schall (birthname: Kristen Joy Schaal) is a comic actor whose quirky physical presence, facial expressions, and high-pitched nasal voice have made her a highly sought-after character comic in the movies, and a regular voice-over actor in animated features and TV series.

Both mediums merged for Schaal in 2022 with the arrival of The Bob’s Burgers Movie, in which Schaal vocally re-created the character of Bob’s wife, Louise Belcher, for the big screen from the hit Fox show on which she’s co-starred since 2011.

Schaal hit the New York comedy scene in 2000, and a year later landed her first film role in Kate & Leopold with Hugh Jackman and Meg Ryan. She appeared in Tom DiCillo’s indie hit, Delirious (2006) with Steve Buscemi and Michael Pitt, the Eddie Murphy comedy, Norbit (2007), and Garry Marshall’s ensemble comedy, Valentine’s Day (2010).

Around this time, Schaal began an impressive run as a voice actor in several animated features, including Shrek Forever After (2010), Toy Story 3 (2010), Despicable Me 2 (2013), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (2013), Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017), and Toy Story 4 (2019). 

Unlike many voice specialists, Schaal also acts on camera, often in memorable supporting roles, including The Muppets (2011); Mike Birbiglia’s Sleepwalk with Me (2012); Welcome to the Jungle (2013) with Jean-Claude Van Damme; A Walk in the Woods (2015) with Robert Redford, Nick Nolte, and Emma Thompson; The Boss (2016) with Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Bell, and Kathy Bates; Boundaries (2018) with Vera Farmiga and Christopher Plummer; My Spy (2020) with Dave Bautista; and Bill & Ted Face the Music (2020) with Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter. 

Among dozens of television credits, Schaal’s most prominent include the three-season run of the cult hit, Flight of the Conchords (2007-2009); an eight-year run as one of Jon Stewart’s “correspondents” on The Daily Show (2008-2016); a two-season stint on the NBC’s smash hit, 30 Rock (2012-2013); the lead role in Disney’s Gravity Falls (2012-2016); and Emmy-nominated performance in Netflix’s BoJack Horseman (2014-2020).