Maya Rudolph

Maya Rudolph (born July 27, 1972) is an American actress and comedian. Born in Gainesville, Florida and raised in Los Angeles, she is the daughter of singer Minnie Riperton and composer Richard Rudolph. From 2000 to 2007, Rudolph was a cast member on the sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live (SNL). During her time as part of SNL, she also played a supporting role in the romantic comedy film 50 First Dates (2004). After leaving the series, Rudolph appeared in more films, including Grown Ups and its sequel (2010, 2013), Bridesmaids (2011), Inherent Vice (2014), and Sisters (2015). As a voice actress, her credits include the animated films Shrek the Third (2007), Big Hero 6 (2014), The Angry Birds Movie (2016), The Emoji Movie (2017), and Luca (2021). In television, Rudolph starred in the sitcom Up All Night (2011–2012). Since 2017, she has voiced various characters in the animated sitcom Big Mouth, including Connie the Hormone Monstress, which won her two Primetime Emmy Awards. For her portrayal of politician Kamala Harris on SNL, Rudolph won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series. She received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations for playing a judge in the comedy series The Good Place. In 2022, she began executive producing and starring in the comedy series Loot. Early life Rudolph was born on July 27, 1972, in Gainesville, Florida, to singer Minnie Riperton and composer Richard Rudolph. Her mother was African-American and her father is Jewish. Her paternal grandfather was Sidney Rudolph, a philanthropist who once owned all of the Wendy's and Rudy's restaurants in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Her great-grandfather was born in Vilnius, Lithuania, changed his surname from "Rudashevsky" to "Rudolph", and was one of the founding members of Congregation Beth Shalom, a Conservative Jewish synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Rudolph's godmother was R&B singer Teena Marie. On an episode of PBS's Finding Your Roots, Rudolph discovered that her maternal great-great-great grandfather was James Grigsby, who was born enslaved in Lincoln County, Kentucky.