Zach Galifianakis

Zach Galifianakis has built a screen career around a comic presence that rarely feels polished in the conventional sense. Deadpan, awkward and deliberately off-kilter, his style can work in alternative comedy, online shorts and large studio movies without losing its peculiar edge. Born on October 1, 1969, in the Wilkesboro and North Wilkesboro area of North Carolina, Galifianakis was raised in Wilkes County. After attending Wilkes Central High School and Wilkes Community College, he went on to North Carolina State University, where he studied communications. His early career took shape in stand-up, including performances at New York venues, before television appearances such as Comedy Central Presents in 2001 and the VH1 program Late World with Zach in 2002. His defining film breakthrough came as Alan Garner in Todd Phillips's The Hangover (2009). The role established Galifianakis as a mainstream film actor and earned him the MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance. He returned as Alan in The Hangover Part II (2011) and The Hangover Part III (2013), giving the three Please Rewind movies a consistent comic presence built around his characteristically strange rhythms. Galifianakis has never stayed inside that franchise lane. His other screen work includes HBO's Bored to Death, FX's Baskets and supporting film roles in Up in the Air and Birdman, along with a voice performance in Puss in Boots. His work on Baskets brought him a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2017. He also created and hosted Between Two Ferns, the mock-interview series that ran on Funny or Die from 2008 to 2018 and later led to a Netflix film spinoff. Its confrontational awkwardness was an especially good match for his comic instincts, while its short-form Emmy recognition reflected the reach of a project that began far outside the usual talk-show format. Across film, television and online comedy, Galifianakis has made discomfort not just part of the joke, but the place where his best work begins.