Orville Willis Forte IV ( ; born June 17, 1970) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. <!-- only add most notable occupations here per MOS:ROLEBIO --> He was a cast member and writer on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live for eight seasons from 2002 to 2010. His most famous recurring character was a parody of Macgyver named MacGruber; he reprised that role in the film adaptation, MacGruber (2010); and the limited series of the same name in 2021.
Forte also created and starred in the sitcom The Last Man on Earth (2015–2018). For the series, he received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations: two for acting and one for writing. He played various roles in comedy films, before starring in the drama film Nebraska (2013). Forte has also voiced characters in numerous animated productions, including the Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs films, Abraham Lincoln in Clone High and the Lego Movie franchise, and Shaggy Rogers in Scoob! (2020).
Early life
Orville Willis Forte IV was born on June 17, 1970, in Alameda, California, a city in the San Francisco Bay Area. His mother Patricia was an artist and former schoolteacher; He went by "Billy" in his early years until he was teased at school for it also being a girl's name. At that point, he chose to be known as "Will." He was interested in comedy from a young age, growing up idolizing comedians Peter Sellers, David Letterman, and Steve Martin as well as the sketch-comedy television series Saturday Night Live. He had no ambitions for a television or film career, though his mother noticed a "creative streak" in him.
After high school, he attended the University of California, Los Angeles, where he was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and completed a degree in history. Forte wanted to become a financial broker like his father at Smith Barney Shearson, but felt "miserable" there.
Forte left New York and returned to Los Angeles, where he began performing with the Groundlings' Main Company, with Cheryl Hines, Jim Rash, and Maya Rudolph. To his surprise, he was offered a chance to be on the show, but declined, opting instead for the financial stability of his work at That '70s Show. He felt working for SNL could not live up to the idealized version he had dreamed of, but he later realized he would be making a mistake. His only role was often Bush, leaving him no chance for more "absurd" pieces he favored. He was nearly fired from the program following his third season (2004–05), but after two three-week extensions to decide his fate, he was brought back.