Ike Barinholtz is a comedian, actor, and writer from Chicago, Illinois. He is best known for his tenure on MADtv, his role on The Mindy Project, and his work on History of the World, Part II. Barinholtz grew up in Chicago where he took advantage of living in the epicenter for improv comedy. He took comedy classes at The Second City, ImprovOlympic, and Annoyance Theatre. After studying with some comedy greats, he toured Amsterdam with the improv group, Boom Chicago, alongside Jordan Peele. As if being a part of one legendary improv troupe isn’t impressive enough, he is also a founding member of The Lindbergh Babies, which was directed by Del Close, and featured John Belushi, Bill Murray, Mike Myers, and Chris Farley.
After establishing himself as an anchor in the rising comedy class, he joined the cast of MADtv where he became known for his celebrity impressions. Ike Barinholtz has been featured on a wide variety of different shows where he often plays the idiotic comedic relief. In February 2023, Barinholtz surprised everyone when he won Celebrity Jeopardy!. His charity of choice, Pacific Clinics, received $1 million for his expertise.
10 Snatched
In a movie where the two protagonists are kidnapped, Ike Barinholtz’s agoraphobic character is the unexpected voice of reason. Snatched stars Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn, who play a daughter and mother kidnapped and held for ransom on vacation. Ike Barinholtz plays Amy’s homebody brother who must step out of his comfort zone to rescue his family.
This character is a slight departure from his regular style of being reckless in the pursuit of laughter, but despite the more reserved fearful character, his weird quirks remained. Though not being in this movie as much as his onscreen family, he was a stand-out supporting character and the underdog hero of this movie. His witty one-liners and awkward demeanor made this a memorable performance.
9 The Afterparty
The Afterparty on Apple TV+ is one of his most recent pieces being that the second season was released on July 12. This show is a murder comedy whodunit that starts at a high school reunion where a murder takes place. Throughout the rest of the season, each episode shows a different person’s side of the story, slowly revealing that everybody’s memory of that night is vastly different. The second season follows the same formula with a lot of the same characters but at a wedding.
Barinholtz plays a cheating ex-husband who recalls the night of the murder in the style of an action movie where he’s the family man and the hero. Despite his grandeur, his story quickly unravels. Barinholtz plays this character in a fun way, but the murder mystery tone of the show brings a darkness to his character that is unfamiliar, mischievous, and fun to watch.
8 The Hunt
Ike Barinholtz is known for her comedic and goofy flair, but The Hunt showed some new, but not unexpected range as an actor. Despite Barinholtz's affinity for comedy, he held his own in the horror thriller. The Hunt is about a group of wealthy liberal Americans who gather a dozen regular people, put them in a secluded location, and hunt them for sport. One of the people being hunted decides that they should become the hunters, which the hunters could’ve never suspected.
Barinholtz’s character, Staten Island, has a strong moral code and just wants to survive. He tries to protect his fellow prey, even refusing to put someone on the brink of death out of their misery. He doesn’t make it in the end, but dies with his morals having not fully participated in the hunt. Though this movie didn’t require serious dramatic acting, it showed a more serious side of Barinholtz and shows potential for a dramatic debut.
7 Eastbound & Down
Ike Barinholtz joined Eastbound & Down for a six-episode arc in the third season. He played the role of Ivan Dochenko, the Russian rival of Kenny Powers. Eastbound & Down is a sports comedy about Kenny, a former professional baseball pitcher who returns to his hometown and substitutes for middle school gym class.
Barinholtz is something of a villain to the protagonist. He is a Russian pitcher that is in steep competition with Kenny. Despite the villainous nature of his character, it was done in his signature goofy way making the character memorable. In an interview with Conan O’Brien, Barinholtz revealed that the role has gotten him mistaken for a Wahlberg, fame among TSA workers, and a frightening storybook voice for his daughter. While it wasn’t a huge role, Eastbound & Down gave Barinholtz the opportunity to showcase his character work which is the talent that kickstarted his career on MADtv.
6 Neighbors
Both Neighbors and Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising follow a similar premise: parents living next door to a Greek party house wage a war of chicken against one another to get the other group to leave the neighborhood. In the first movie, Ike Barinholtz plays the parental main character’s friend who is alienated because they are in different stages of life. Throughout the first movie, they are brought together by the fun of the frat house next door and the war between them.
In the sequel, Ike’s character, Jimmy, is settling down too. His character development between the two movies is significant, seeing him going from burning man to fatherhood all while trying to take down college parties is exciting. His role is a little more mature in the second movie as he is getting ready to be a father, but his wild side still makes appearances as they go on the offense against sorority girls.
5 The Oath
Written, directed, and starred in by Ike Barinholtz, The Oath, showcases all his talents at once. Barinholtz plays Chris, a tense news junkie who decides with his wife, Kai, played by Tiffany Haddish that they aren’t going to sign an oath of loyalty to the United States in exchange for a tax break.
Despite their finite decision, the deadline to sign up the day before Thanksgiving, which means it will be an unavoidable conversational topic at Thanksgiving dinner. As if the inevitable political discourse on a holiday isn’t stressful enough, two government agents show up on Black Friday, and they are not looking for shopping deals.
This movie shows Barinholtz in a more grounded role, as his character Chris is so vastly relatable. He is just trying to keep peace and get through a holiday without causing a rift in his family, but still at times can’t help himself but to comment on his family’s more conservative views. In addition to his genuine acting performance, the script is well-written, original, and satirical. This in addition to it being his directorial debut makes this movie a win for Barinholtz.
4 Blockers
Blockers captures the zany antics audiences have grown to love Ike Barinholtz for. In this movie, he plays Hunter Lockwood, the absentee divorced father of one of three girls who make a pact to lose their virginity on prom night. With the help of Lisa and Mitchell, parents of the other two girls in the pact, they are determined to stop these plans at all costs.
Their quest is chaotic and disruptive but laugh-out-loud funny. His character acts without thinking and gets himself into shenanigans like car explosions and the business end of a chugging contest. He taps into a character he plays often in this goofy role, and he shines.
3 MADtv
Ike Barinholtz got his big break on MADtv, and it’s still one of his most iconic credits. In 2002, Barinholtz joined the cast as a featured performer, but by his second season, he became a repertory performer in the comedy show. He shined in his celebrity impressions, and he had a lot of them. Some of the celebrities he impersonated included Alex Trebek, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ashton Kutcher, Felicity Huffman, Howie Long, Kevin Federline, Mark Wahlberg, Matt Damon, Pat Sajak, and many more. He worked a lot with Josh Meyers and they became quite the duo.
Some of his most remembered MADtv characters include Principal Lankenstein from the Coach Hines sketches, his Abercrombie model character, and Duncan Kruskal in The Silver Fox. In his time on MADtv he created a name for himself with his excellent and hilarious work. He also created connections with other comedians that he would go on to work with on other projects, most notably David Stassen.
2 History of the World, Part II
History of the World, Part IIis a sketch comedy series that loosely retells historical events and legends. It is a very distant sequel to the Mel Brooks film from 1981. Ike Barinholtz wrote, produced, and starred in this limited series alongside a dream team of creatives. Mel Brooks, Wanda Sykes, Nick Kroll, Ike Barinholtz, and David Stassen wrote and produced the show, and all of them but Stassen are main characters playing a variety of characters throughout history.
Some of the characters Barinholtz plays include Ulysses S. Grant, Alexander Graham Bell, Leon Trotsky, and Theodore Roosevelt. This project feels like a passion project of Barinholtz’ and shines differently from a lot of his other work. Watching him in this, it is apparent that he loves what he’s doing and that he’s having a great time writing and goofing off with his friends.
1 The Mindy Project
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
There are only two episodes of The Mindy Project that Ike Barinholtz didn’t have a hand in. He was an actor in the comedic show, but he also worked as a writer and producer. Barinholtz’s character on the show, Morgan Tookers, is a nurse with a criminal background in auto theft. He is an eclectic presence at the OB/GYN practice and often does things that would warrant termination and at times restraining orders, but Morgan Tookers is a darn good nurse and has an irresistible puppy quality that makes even the weirdest transgressions forgivable.
Barinholtz’s performance in the show took the comedy from hilarious to unforgettable. Whether it was pretending to be a bathroom attendant or taking in dozens of stray dogs, he was committed to the insanity of his character. By committing so deeply, he also brought humanity to a character that would’ve been easy to play just as a caricature of goofiness. Barinholtz also lent his comedic genius to the rest of the show by writing for all six seasons. Paired with Mindy Kaling’s dry humor, his silly outrageous comedic styling made The Mindy Project the iconic comedy is today.
Comments
Post a Comment