Background

Ethnicity: Seth Meyers's paternal grandfather, Lawrence Lashe Meyers, was the son of Lithuanian Jewish parents, while Seth's paternal grandmother, Barbara Marcheck, was from a family of Bohemian (Czech) and Croatian descent. Seth's mother is of English, German and Swedish descent.

Seth Meyers was born on December 28, 1973, in Evanston, Illinois, the United States, to Hilary Claire and Lawrence Meyers Jr. His mother was a French teacher, and his father worked in finance. Due to his father’s jobs, the family did not stay in one place for a long time and continued to move around the country.

Seth spent the early few years of his life in Michigan, and the family later shifted to New Hampshire. The small family had two children: Seth and his little brother, Josh. Josh is also a comedian, and both the brothers started their careers together, with improv groups.

Education

Meyers attended Edgewood Elementary in Okemos and graduated from Manchester High School West in New Hampshire. By the time he was in high school, he had gained significant interest in acting, especially in improv. He and his brother, Josh, often practiced their comedy routines with each other. Seth learned French from his mother. Although he was good in academics, it was not his area of interest. He was mostly active in extra-curricular activities, both in school and in college.

He attended Northwestern University, where he joined several communities, such as the Phi Gamma Delta. At the same time, he continued to perform improv comedy and was determined to build an acting career.

Career

After Meyers graduated from Northwestern University, he moved to Amsterdam with his brother, where they both joined Boom Chicago, an improv comedy troupe. He often cites his time working overseas as helpful, particularly in learning to avoid pop culture references as comedic crutches. He partnered with comedian Jill Benjamin and staged a two-person show named Pick-Ups and Hiccups. The show was a big hit in Amsterdam and was staged five nights a week in several theaters across the city.

He had been a major fan of Saturday Night Live, which was one of the longest-running variety TV shows in the United States. However, he did not know the tricks to break into it. His show with Jill Benjamin took him to various cities across Europe. On one such occasion, he brought the show to Chicago, where it finally got noticed by the producers of Saturday Night Live.

The show was part of the on-going improv festival. Following his performance, he was called for an interview in New York. Seth traveled to New York and was hired for the show. Before his arrival on the show, he had appeared on a single episode of the series Spin City in 2001. The same year, he made his Saturday Night Live debut in one of their sketches. The variety show performs several comedy sketches and is known to give breaks to several struggling actors and comedians.

Seth started appearing on the show, initially playing various characters. After working on the show for four years, he was given the job of a writing supervisor. In 2006, he was finally promoted to the position of co-head writer of the show and shared writing credits with comedians such as Tina Fey and Andrew Steele.

He failed an audition for an anchor on Weekend Update in 2004. However, in the 2006-2007 season, he was finally promoted to the position of co-anchor, along with Amy Poehler. Amy left the show in 2008, and for the next few years, Seth appeared as a solo anchor. He was joined by Cecily Strong as a co-anchor in 2013.

The show Saturday Night Live brought Seth nationwide fame. His comic timing and writing skills were immensely praised. He mimicked celebrities such as Tom Cruise, Prince Charles, Tobey Maguire, John Kerry, Michael Caine, Brian Williams, and Donald Trump Jr. He also assumed several unknown personalities in his sketches.

The segment Weekend Update became particularly popular with the audiences. Poehler and Seth became famous for their phrase Really!?!, which they often uttered after hearing something shocking in the news-reading segment. Several media houses praised them for their sarcastic writing and acting skills.

Seth bid goodbye to Saturday Night Live in 2014 to focus on his other ventures. He appeared on the final episode in February. In 2013, an announcement stated that Seth would be the new host of the popular show Late Night. He replaced Jimmy Fallon on the show. Late Night with Seth Meyers premiered on NBC on February 24, 2014, and his first guest was Amy Poehler. The show has been running successfully to date.

Achievements

• 

  Seth Meyers has won the Writers Guild of America Award for Saturday Night Live multiple times. He has also been nominated for the Primetime Emmy Awards a number of times and has won it in 2011 for his contribution to a Justin Timberlake song on Saturday Night Live. He's also one of TIME's 100 most influential people in the world for 2014.

Works

More photos

• movie

  • Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

    (After a chance encounter, Nick and Norah embark on a jour...)

    2008
  • Spring Breakdown

    (Three geeky, thirty-something women - all lifelong friend...)

    2009
  • Journey to the Center of the Earth

    (Three adventurers plunge deep into a strange new realm be...)

    2008
  • New Year's Eve

    ("New Year's Eve" celebrates love, hope, forgiveness, seco...)

    2011
  • I Don't Know How She Does It

    (Kate Reddy (Sarah Jessica Parker) manages the ultimate ba...)

    2011

• TV show

  • Saturday Night Live

Politics

Seth Meyers a Democrat.

Views

Seth Meyers became a Charity: Water supporter in 2012 and has campaigned once to raise money for clean water.

Quotations: "People appreciate it when you take some time to think about who will be listening to your jokes."

"I think the greatest gift your parents can give you if you want to be a comedian is good taste."

Membership

While he was studying at the university, Seth Meyers joined Phi Gamma Delta.

• 

  Phi Gamma Delta

Personality

Meyers is a huge fan of comic books. He has named Batman, Justice League, Hawkeye, and Locke & Key as some of his favorites. Seth Meyers is a huge fan of baseball and supports the team Boston Red Sox ardently. Being a sports fan, he also supports the Dutch national football team. He is also a massive fan of the fantasy-drama series Game of Thrones.

Interests

• Poker

• Writers

  Joe Hill, The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough, All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

• Artists

  Andy Warhol

• Sport & Clubs

  Hockey, baseball, soccer, Boston Red Sox, Boston Celtics, Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Pirates, Pittsburgh Penguins, Northwestern Wildcats, Dutch National Football Team, West Ham United

• Music & Bands

  Bob Dylan

Connections

Seth Meyers got engaged to attorney Alexi Ashe in 2013, after dating her for five years. The couple got married in September 2013 on Martha’s Vineyard. The couple has two sons, Ashe and Axel. Their second son, Axel, was born in the lobby of their apartment in New York.

Father:

Lawrence Meyers Jr.

Mother:

Hilary Meyers

Hilary Meyers taught French at an elementary school in Bedford, New Hampshire for almost 30 years. Seth was one of her first students, but he wasn’t exactly a straight-A student. He once explained, "I didn’t mind having my mom as a teacher. It was really fun. I just wish I could have been a better French student."

Spouse:

Alexi Ashe

Alexi Ashe is an American human rights attorney by profession. She is a service provider and advocates for survivors of different types of gender violence such as sex trafficking and domestic violence.

Son:

Axel Strahl Meyers

Axel's name is meant to honor Ashe's grandparents, who were liberated from a concentration camp and met in Austria the next day.

Son:

Ashe Olsen Meyers

Acquaintance:

Rihanna (Robyn Fenty)

Friend:

Carice van Houten

Carice van Houten is a close friend of Seth. He was one of the first people she informed after she got the role on Game of Thrones.

Acquaintance:

Jimmy Fallon

Acquaintance:

Miley Cyrus

Acquaintance:

Selena Gomez

References

• Seth Meyers on Instagram