Actor and film producer Paul Rudd became famous for his breakthrough performance in the 1995 film Clueless. Other early films include Hot American Summer, The Winemaking Rules, and Romeo + Juliet by William Shakespeare, while his television work led to a recurring role in Friends as Phoebe’s husband. Since then, Rudd has become a full-fledged comedy film icon, with roles in TV Presenter: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and Exam for Two. He entered the world of Marvel superhero fame with the 2015 Ant-Man and the 2018 sequel.
Early life
Paul Stephen Rudd was born on April 6, 1969, in Passyik, New Jersey, to British parents. Rudd traveled frequently with his family but grew up primarily in Overland Park, Kansas. With a keen interest in theater, he enrolled at the University of Kansas to study drama, and after two years with honors, he received a Spencer Tracy Fellowship to study at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Angeles.
Enrolled at the British Drama Academy, Oxford University for a three-month seminar, Rudd helped stage production of Howard Brenton’s Bloody Poetry at the Globe Theater under the direction of Michael Kahn and then starred in Hamlet, directed by renowned actor Ben Kingsley.
Films, TV shows, and theatrical work
Returning to the United States in the early 1990s after studying drama overseas, Rudd immediately transitioned to a recurring television role as budding director Kirby Philby on the NBC weekly Sisters, alongside Ashley Judd. After appearing in television miniseries, he starred in the short sitcom Sins of Youth (1994) and then made his feature film debut as Tommy Doyle in the final installment of the Halloween series, Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers. He told the New York Post about his first film role: “Even when I did it, I knew it was something that I would always be teased about.”
“Clueless”, “Romeo + Juliet”
Despite Rudd’s televised exposure, most people first remember seeing the actor as Cher’s college-aged half-brother, played by Alicia Silverstone, who eventually becomes the target of her nagging affection, in the hit 1995 comedy Clueless. After appearing in the independent film The Size of Watermelons and alongside Reese Witherspoon in Nightly Parcel, Rudd landed the role of Dave Paris, a pompous admirer of Juliet, in the stylish rendition of Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet by Baz Luhrmann (1996), starring Leonardo Di Caprio and Claire Danes.
“The object of my admiration”
In 1997, Rudd made his Broadway debut as Joe Farkas in the acclaimed play The Last Night of Ballyhoo, written by Alfred Uhri. He took a break from Broadway to star in the comedy Object of My Admiration, playing gay opposite Jennifer Aniston but resumed the role of Farkas after the film’s conclusion. In October 1997, Rudd was nominated for a FANY Award (the acronym FANY originally came from New York theater fans) for his performance.
Rudd continued his theatrical work as the Duke Orsini of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, which was broadcast live on PBS from Lincoln Center. Later that year, he starred opposite Ben Affleck, Courtney Love, and Jane Garofalo as the latter’s abandoned, constantly smoking mistress in the indie romantic comedy 200 Cigarettes.
Winemakers’ Rules
Rudd took on his next high-profile role, playing a WWII pilot in Lasse Hallstrom’s Winemaking Rules (1999), starring Tobey Maguire, Michael Caine, and Charlize Theron. He then co-starred with Andie MacDowell in the short film Reaching Normal (written and directed by Anne Heche), which aired at the Sundance Festival prior to airing on Showtime.
In early 2001, Rudd starred as Nick Carraway, a poignant and aloof storyteller, in the film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s elegant jazz-age classic The Great Gatsby, which also stars Mira Sorvino.
“Television Host: The Legend of Ron Burgundy”
Following his recurring role on the hit TV show Friends, Rudd landed the lead role of reporter Brian Fantana in the comedy TV Presenter: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), starring Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, and Steve Carell. Rudd also worked with Carell again on the 2005 film The 40-Year-Old Virgin. This comedy directed by Jada Apatow turned out to be a box-office hit.
In 2009, Rudd co-starred with Jason Siegel in the comedy Love You Dude. He and Carell got back together for Dinner with the Nerds in 2010, which proved to be a commercial and critical disappointment. That same year, Rudd showed his soft side as one of Witherspoon’s fans in the romantic comedy Who Knows….
“Adult love”
Rudd returned to the small screen in 2012 with a recurring role in Parks and Recreation. In the same year, he starred in another Apatow comedy, Adult Love. Rudd and Mann play a married couple whose relationship is on the verge of breaking down. The following year, Rudd starred in another romantic comedy, Exam for Two, with Tina Fey. The actor also reprised his role as Brian Fantana in 2013’s TV Host 2: Hello Again.
Ant-Man
After starring in the romantic comedy They Came Together (2014) with Amy Poehler, Rudd entered the world of superhero fandom in 2015, and the actor took on the lead role in the Marvel Comics film Ant-Man. Along with fellow stars Michael Douglas and Bobby Cannavale, Rudd plays a man who adopts a suit that allows him to shrink significantly as he grows stronger. He reprised his superhero role for the Ant-Man and the Wasp sequel (2018), as well as the related Marvel films Captain America: Civil War (2016) and Avengers Endgame (2019).
“Get along with yourself”
Between filming his big-budget Marvel films, Rudd also starred in films such as Fundamentals of Goodness (2016) and Ideal Home (2018) as one-half of a gay couple adapting to the unexpected appearance of a child in their life. The following year, he starred for the first time on the small screen in the Netflix film Living With Yourself, playing both the depressed person and his new and improved clone who appears after experimental treatment.
