Andy Samberg

Andy Samberg (born August 18, 1978, Berkeley, California, U.S.) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician known for his work as a cast member and writer for Saturday Night Live (SNL; 2005–12), his role as Detective Jake Peralta on the TV show Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013–21), and short videos he has made with childhood friends Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer under the moniker the Lonely Island. He has also starred in several films, including Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016), Palm Springs (2020), and Lee (2023).

Early life and education

Samberg was born to Joe Samberg, who worked as a photographer, and Marjorie Samberg, who taught elementary school. From a young age, Andy Samberg hoped to one day land a job on SNL, and, as a middle schooler, he performed skits for his classmates with two of his best friends, Taccone and Schaffer. In 1996 Samberg enrolled at the University of California at Santa Cruz with Schaffer, but after two years he transferred to New York University to take advantage of the school’s film program.

The Lonely Island, Saturday Night Live, and first movies

By 2001 Samberg, Taccone, and Schaffer had graduated from college and moved into an apartment together in Los Angeles. They called the space “the Lonely Island.” The trio began making what they called “digital shorts”—videos of skits that were 20 minutes long or less—and posting them on YouTube under the name of their apartment. Videos titled “White Power” and “Regarding Andy” gained attention on the Internet for their offbeat, subversive humor. In 2005 the Lonely Island landed work writing jokes for the MTV Movie Awards show. Comedian Jimmy Fallon, the host that year, was so impressed with their comedy that he recommended them to SNL executive producer Lorne Michaels. Michaels hired Samberg as a cast member, and Taccone and Schaffer as writers, for SNL. The Lonely Island quickly became known for its comedy raps in which the trio poked fun at themselves for being white men rapping. One of their earliest hits, “Lazy Sunday,” featured Samberg and fellow SNL cast member Chris Parnell rapping in a Beastie Boys-style video about getting cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery in New York City and seeing The Chronicles of Narnia at a movie theater. Silly lines included “Mr. Pibb and Red Vines equals crazy delicious!” In 2007 Samberg, Taccone, and Schaffer received an Emmy for outstanding original music and lyrics for the musical short “Dick in a Box,” which starred Samberg and singer and actor Justin Timberlake. In addition, the trio was nominated for Emmys for “Motherlover” (2009) and “Shy Ronnie” (2010) as well as “I Just Had Sex,” “3-Way (the Golden Rule),” and “Jack Sparrow” (all 2011).

During his time on SNL, Samberg also appeared in several movies, the first of which was the slapstick comedy Hot Rod (2007). He starred as a self-proclaimed stunt person, Taccone took a supporting role, and Schaffer directed. Other movies include I Love You, Man (2009) and Friends with Benefits (2011). In 2012 Samberg assumed a more nuanced role, alongside Rashida Jones, in the relationship comedy Celeste and Jesse Forever, in which the two played a separated couple who have no boundaries. That same year, he starred as the neglected son of an irresponsible father, played by Adam Sandler, in That’s My Boy. Although The Guardian described the comedy as “one of the worst [movies] ever made,” Samberg continued to be cast in Sandler vehicles, such as the Hotel Transylvania animated films (2012, 2015, 2018, 2022) and Grown Ups 2 (2013).

Brooklyn Nine-Nine, concurrent movies, and marriage

After seven seasons on SNL, Samberg’s contract was up for renewal, and he opted not to move forward. He told The Hollywood Reporter in 2024 that the preparation for the show had been so intense that it was “basically like four days a week you’re not sleeping, for seven years. So I just kinda fell apart physically.” Soon after Samberg left the show, Michael Schur, the creator of such hit TV series as The Office, Parks and Recreation, and The Good Place, approached Samberg to head his latest series, Brooklyn Nine-Nine. The actor told GQ in 2020, “I was like, ‘Shit, I have to say yes.’ ” Samberg took on the role of a wise-cracking detective for eight seasons (2013–21) and won a Golden Globe for his performance in 2014. He has said that, as someone who grew up in leftist Berkeley, California, where law enforcement was not particularly venerated, working on the show gave him a new insight into the lives of police officers.

In 2013 Samberg married musician Joanna Newsom, whom he had met through SNL cast member Fred Armisen. The couple later had two daughters (born in 2017 and 2022). Meanwhile, Samberg continued to appear in movies while on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. In 2015 he portrayed an over-the-top tennis player competing in an interminable match in the HBO mockumentary 7 Days in Hell. With Taccone and Schaffer, he wrote Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, which he also starred in and Taccone and Schaffer directed. In 2020 Samberg played a wedding guest who is stuck repeating the same day in the acclaimed dark comedy Palm Springs. It earned a 94 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a website that determines the percentage of positive reviews by professional critics and everyday fans for a given film or TV show.

Lee and other projects after Brooklyn Nine-Nine

After the end of Brooklyn Nine-Nine in 2021, Samberg lent his voice to the animated films Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022) and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), and he appeared in the movie Self Reliance (2023). In 2022 actress Kate Winslet asked him to join the cast of the film she was making about American photographer Lee Miller, called Lee. Samberg portrayed Life magazine war correspondent David Scherman, who reported alongside Miller as she documented the impact of World War II for Vogue. The Los Angeles Times wrote glowingly of his acting: “Samberg is a revelation here, delivering a subtle but incredibly moving performance.” During the 2024 presidential race, Samberg returned to SNL, appearing in cameos as Doug Emhoff, the husband of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (played by Maya Rudolph). On a podcast that year, Samberg said, “It’s been really fun going back [to SNL], but again, also inheriting—re-inheriting—the stress of it and being like, ‘Oh, right, this is intense.’ ”

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