Cathryn Rose "Casey" Wilson (born October 24, 1980) is an American actress, comedienne and screenwriter. She was a featured cast member on Saturday Night Live from 2008–2009 and is currently set to co-star in the upcoming comedies Happy Endings on ABC and Retired at 35 on TV Land.
Early life and background[]
Wilson was born and raised in Alexandria, Virginia, along with her younger brother Fletcher Todd Wilson, an engineer. She graduated from T. C. Williams High School in 1998 and studied theater at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting.[1] Her father, Paul O. Wilson, is a political consultant who runs campaigns for moderate Republicans.
Her late mother, Kathy Wilson, was chair of the National Women's Political Caucus, and attended her last Republican National Convention in 1980, while pregnant with Casey. Under her leadership, the NWPC endorsed Walter Mondale in the 1984 election, and Kathy eventually became a Democrat.[2] After retiring from politics, Kathy became involved in early childhood education, serving for 11 years as director of the "Abracadabra Child Care and Development Center", a non-sectarian preschool operated by the Baptist Temple Church of Alexandria. Kathy died unexpectedly of a heart attack at age 54 in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware on September 1, 2005.[2]
Career[]
After graduating from New York University, Wilson started her comedy career writing and performing with the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCBT) in New York and later in Los Angeles.[1] At UCBT, she was a member of the Harold improv teams "Sentimental Lady" and "Hey, Uncle Gary!", and continues to perform regularly in shows such as "Worst Laid Plans" and Comedy Death-Ray. Among her best known work at UCBT was the long running two-woman sketch show "Rode Hard and Put Away Wet", written and performed alongside her comedy partner and best friend June Raphael. The successful stage show was also a hit with audiences when it was showcased as an official selection at HBO's 2005 US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado and was hailed as a "Critic's Pick" in Time Out New York magazine and won Wilson & Raphael the ECNY Award for "Best Comedy Duo" in 2005. After the success of "Rode Hard", the duo was hired by New Regency Studios to help co-write the screenplay for the 2009 film Bride Wars,[3] starring Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway.[4] Wilson and Raphael also appeared in the film with supporting roles.
Casey Wilson and June Raphael at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater
As a film actress, Wilson has appeared with small and supporting roles in films such as Julie & Julia, The Brothers Solomon, The Great Buck Howard, and Killers, as well as in the Bob Odenkirk directed short film Derek & Simon: A Bee and a Cigarette, and made her film debut with a small role as an acting student in the final scene of the 2006 Christopher Guest film For Your Consideration. In early 2007, Wilson and June Raphael worked as writers and story editors on the Americanized version of Creature Comforts on CBS. Wilson is a frequent contributor to the popular humor website Funny or Die, where she has written and starred in a number of viral videos. Shortly after joining the cast of Saturday Night Live, she made Variety magazine's "Ten Comics to Watch in 2008" list.
In 2008, Wilson mentioned that she and writing partner June Raphael had been working on a script for a "lady buddy-comedy" called Ass Backwards, which they would also star in. Variety has reported that the film will also feature appearances by Amy Sedaris, Alicia Silverstone, Jon Cryer, Kristen Wiig, Paul Scheer, Melissa Leo, Jason Ritter and David Cross. The film went into production in July 2010 and is currently filming in New York.[5] In addition, Wilson and Raphael have also been hired to work on script rewrites for upcoming comedic films starring Anna Faris and America Ferrera.[6]
In 2010, Wilson joined the rotating cast of the Off-Broadway play "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" (written by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron) at Manhattan's Westside Theatre throughout the month of January.[7] She will also appear in the TV Land sitcom Retired at 35 in January 2011 and is one of the lead actors in ABC's upcoming comedy Happy Endings with Elisha Cuthbert, Zachary Knighton, Adam Pally, Damon Wayans, Jr. and Eliza Coupe.
Wilson and June Raphael are currently writing a new draft of the screenplay for the upcoming Universal Pictures comedy "The Bachelorette Party", described as a female version of The Hangover, set to star Anna Faris and Jennifer Garner. Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland) is attached to direct the 2011 comedy.
Saturday Night Live[]
After being called to audition in December 2007, Wilson was hired in January 2008 to join the cast of Saturday Night Live to replace departing cast member Maya Rudolph, but because of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, did not make her first appearance as a cast member until the show returned from the strike in February 2008; she was the first new addition to the cast in over two years, and was also the first SNL cast member to have been born in the 1980s. Early on, Wilson debuted impressions of Rachael Ray, Katy Perry, and Jennifer Aniston, as well as characters such as Dusty Velvet the paralyzed stripper and Toni Ward, co-host of The Cougar Den.
After spending two seasons as a cast member on SNL, the news broke in early September 2009 (while SNL was on summer hiatus) that Wilson, along with fellow castmate Michaela Watkins, were both let go from the show and would not be returning for the upcoming 2009-2010 season. When asked how she felt about her recent SNL departure in an October 2009 interview, Wilson said: "My mindset is good. I did it for a year and a half. I don’t think it will ultimately define my career. And it wasn't the best fit for me."[8]
Impressions on SNL[]
- Rachael Ray
- Kristy Joe Muller
- Mariam Budia (as one of the "Dakota Fanning Show" writers)
- Scarlett Johansson (as Mary Boleyn from The Other Boleyn Girl)
- Snow White (from Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
- Chelsea Clinton (dress rehearsal cold opening from April, 5 2008)
- Debralee Scott (in a Match Game parody)
- One of the Deal or No Deal models
- Daughter from the "Hot Friends" T-Mobile commercial
- Jackie Glass
- Marion Sandler
- Karen Dotrice (as Jane Banks from Mary Poppins)
- Katy Perry
- Sara Quin (as a Tegan and Sara parody)
- Christina Hendricks (as Joan Holloway from Mad Men)
- Jennifer Aniston
- Carolyn Maloney
- Elizabeth Dole
- Roxie Hart (from Chicago on Broadway)
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Ginnifer Goodwin (as Margene Heffman from Big Love)
- Helga the Horrible
- Alyson Reed (as Ms. Darbus from High School Musical)
Notable characters on SNL[]
- Dusty Velvet, a paralyzed strip club dancer who is only able to perform her "erotic moves" with the assistance of Donnie (played by Ashton Kutcher) the strip club emcee. Before joining SNL, Wilson often performed this act at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre and other "alt-comedy" venues under the name Mandy De'tour.[9] She had also performed the sketch after being cast as an ensemble player on the 2007 FOX late-night sketch comedy pilot The Right Now! Show, as well as eventually showcasing the character as part of her SNL audition.
- Nora Merryll, part of the singing sisterly quartet The Merryll Sisters who are regularly featured on The Lawrence Welk Show. Their otherwise flawless performances are always ruined by 4th sister Dooneese, (played by Kristen Wiig) because of her off-key singing and freakish appearance.
- Sam, one of the characters in the "Penelope (Kristen Wiig) the one-upper" sketches.
- Toni Ward, one of the cougars who co-hosts The Cougar Den.
Personal life[]
Wilson lives in Los Angeles with her boyfriend, comedian Paul Rust. In April 2009, they appeared together in a sketch called "The Pie Sniffer" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, which they also wrote. Wilson played a Southern neighbor woman who baked a pie and wanted to cool it off on Fallon's window, and Rust was "Pie Sniffer Bill", a cartoonish villain who goes from windowsill to windowsill "sniffing out the flavor" of all the town's cooling pies. The sketch was full of double entendres and sexual innuendo. They also currently host the monthly variety show "Audition!" together at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater.
Film and television credits[]
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Sports Central | Correspondent | Comedy Central pilot |
| 2006 | Derek & Simon: A Bee and a Cigarette | Anna | Short film |
| For Your Consideration | Young Actress | ||
| 2007 | The Brothers Solomon | Fertility Clinic Worker | |
| Creature Comforts America | Writer and Story Editor | ||
| The Definition of Sex | Abby | Short film | |
| Human Giant | Various | ||
| Revenge | Sarah | FOX sitcom pilot | |
| The Right Now! Show | Cast Member | FOX sketch show pilot | |
| The Very Funny Show | Cast Member | TBS Online Sketch Series | |
| 2008–2009 | Saturday Night Live | Cast Member | 30 episodes (2 seasons) |
| 2008 | The Great Buck Howard | Charity | |
| Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday | Various | 2 episodes | |
| 2009 | Bride Wars | Stacy | Screenwriter |
| Julie & Julia | Regina | ||
| Late Night with Jimmy Fallon | Neighbor Lady ("Pie Sniffer" sketch) | 1 episode | |
| 2010 | Freak Dance | Rich Lady | |
| Glenn Martin, DDS | Carla | 1 episode | |
| Killers | Kristen | ||
| The Life & Times of Tim | Various Voices | 2 episodes | |
| 2011 | Ass Backwards | Chloe | Screenwriter |
| The Bachelorette Party | Screenwriter | ||
| Happy Endings | Penny | Upcoming ABC sitcom | |
| Retired at 35 | Amy Robbins | Upcoming TV Land sitcom |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Casey Wilson from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater website
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Kathy Wilson Dies; Led Women's Political Caucus
- ↑ Hudson's 'Bride' Revisited from zap2it.com
- ↑ Bride Wars at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ Casey Wilson on the fast laugh track
- ↑ Access Hollywood Rising Star: Casey Wilson
- ↑ Love, Loss, and What I Wore announces new rotating cast members
- ↑ Casey Wilson Talks Up North County Super Show
- ↑ Casey Wilson as Mandy De'tour at Garage Comedy
External links[]
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