Ben Stiller Biography

Ben Stiller's minor role on the TV soap opera ‘Guiding Light’ led to him being cast in the ‘Tony’ award-winning 1986 Broadway revival of John Guare's play ‘The House of Blue Leaves.’ Around that time, he produced a satirical mockumentary on actor John Mahoney.

His 10-minute short titled ‘The Hustler of Money,’ a parody of Martin Scorsese’s ‘The Color of Money,’ caught the attention of ‘Saturday Night Live’ which aired it in 1987.

In 1987, he played a small part in Steven Spielberg's ‘Empire of the Sun.’

In 1989, he appeared on ‘Saturday Night Live’ as a featured performer, but left after four episodes. He came up with ‘Elvis Stories,’ a short film which inspired another film titled ‘Going Back to Brooklyn’ for MTV.

In the early-1990s, he landed small roles in ‘Stella,’ ‘Highway to Hell,’ and a cameo in ‘The Nutt House.’

Starting from 1992, ‘Fox Network’ aired the 12-episode ‘Ben Stiller Show’ which failed to make a mark. However, it eventually received critical appreciation and won the ‘Emmy Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program’ award.

In 1995, his parents joined him on-screen in ‘Heavyweights.’ The following year, he starred in Adam Sandler's ‘Happy Gilmore.’

Next, he played lead roles in ‘If Lucy Fell’ and ‘Flirting with Disaster.’

‘The Cable Guy,’ his second directorial effort, starring Jim Carrey garnered mixed reviews.

1998 was the year that catapulted him to superstardom. That year, he starred in films like ‘There’s Something About Mary,’ ‘Zero Effect,’ ‘Your Friends & Neighbors,’ and ‘Permanent Midnight’ which were all received well.

In 1999, Ben Stiller starred in three films: ‘Mystery Men,’ ‘Black and White,’ and ‘The Suburbans.’ The same year, he directed a spoof TV series titled ‘Heat Vision and Jack’ which was canceled as it was not picked up by ‘Fox.’

He starred in three films in 2000: ‘Meet the Parents,’ ‘Keeping the Faith,’ and ‘The Independent.’ Later that year, he developed ‘Mission: Improbable,’ a spoof of ‘Mission: Impossible II’ and other films for MTV.

In 2001, he directed ‘Zoolander’ which was initially developed as a short skit for ‘VH1 Fashion Awards’ five years earlier. It featured multiple celebrity cameos.

Over the next two years, he appeared in ‘Duplex,’ ‘Orange County,’ ‘Nobody Knows Anything!,’ and ‘The King Of Queens.’

From 2003 to 2004, he appeared in six blockbusters: ‘Starsky & Hutch,’ ‘Envy,’ ‘DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story,’ ‘Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy,’ ‘Along Came Polly,’ and ‘Meet the Fockers,’ all of which saw commercial and critical success.

‘Madagascar,’ which released in 2005, was his first attempt at a computer-animated film. The movie grossed more than $532 million at the box office.

In 2006, Ben Stiller played cameo roles in ‘School for Scoundrels’ and ‘Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny’; he was also an executive producer of the latter. In December that year, Stiller played the lead role in ‘Night at the Museum.’

‘Heartbreak Kid,’ starring Malin Akerman, released in 2007. Although it was critically panned, it earned more than $100 million worldwide.

He co-wrote, co-produced, and directed ‘Tropic Thunder’ in 2008.

The following year, ‘Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian,’ a sequel to his 2006 movie, was released.

In 2010, he played a cameo role in ‘I'm Still Here,’ and played the lead role in ‘Greenberg.’

In 2011, Ben Stiller starred alongside Eddie Murphy and Alan Alda in ‘Tower Heist.’

2012 saw the release of the final movie in the ‘Madagascar’ franchise.

In 2014, he reprised his role as ‘Larry Daley’ in ‘Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb,’ the final installment in the ‘Night at the Museum’ movie series.

In 2016, he appeared in three films, namely ‘Zoolander 2,’ ‘Zoolander: Super Model,’ and ‘Don't Think Twice.’

In 2017, he was seen in movies like ‘The Meyerowitz Stories’ and ‘Brad's Status.’

Ben Stiller played ‘Michael Cohen’ on ‘Saturday Night Live’ in six episodes in 2018 and 2019.

He was seen in cameo roles in the movies ‘Hubie Halloween’ (2020) and ‘Locked Down’ (2021).  

Ben Stiller is an avid collector of modern art and has a personal art collection that includes works by famous artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat and Andy Warhol.

Despite his comedic reputation, Ben Stiller is also an accomplished director, having helmed successful films like "Zoolander" and "Tropic Thunder."

In addition to his work in film, Ben Stiller is a talented musician and has played the drums for the punk rock band Capital Punishment.

Ben Stiller is a dedicated philanthropist and has been involved in various charitable causes, including supporting education initiatives and disaster relief efforts.

Ben Stiller is known for his love of adventure sports and has participated in activities like skydiving and mountain climbing.