David Cross’ movies and TV shows have proven he is one of the best comedy actors over the last three decades. Cross began his career in entertainment as a stand-up comedian. He got his first gigs when he was 17 and then moved to New York City the day after he graduated from high school to try to pick up bigger opportunities. It was in the early 1990s that Cross finally picked up some attention when he moved to Los Angeles and joined the emerging comedy club scene there.
Thanks to being cast on The Ben Stiller Show, Cross finally broke out. He met Bob Odenkirk, and they created Mr. Show with Bob and Dave, and the rest is history. He started picking up movie roles and then ended up cast as Tobias Funke in Arrested Development, the sitcom that he remains best known for to this day. In the later years of his career, Cross worked on several different projects, stretching his acting to more than sketch comedy, and in 2014, he made his directorial debut for the movie Hits.
10 The Increasingly Poor Decisions Of Todd Margaret (2010-2016)
David Cross Played Todd Margaret
The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret 0
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The Increasingly Poor Decisions Of Todd Margaret is a British-American sitcom starring David Cross as Todd Margaret, a hapless American who blunders his way through a series of misadventures when he is sent to England to promote a new energy drink. The show follows Todd’s escalating series of poor choices and misunderstandings, creating a chaotic mix of humor and satire.
In 2010, David Cross cashed in on the popularity he had on Arrested Development to get his own television show with him as the lead star. In The Increasingly Poor Decisions Of Todd Margaret, Cross stars as Todd Margaret, an office temp worker who gets promoted when his boss (Arrested Development’s Will Arnett) hears him recite some self-help CD jargon and mistakenly thinks he is helping a customer. Todd is put in charge of an energy drink campaign in the UK and has no idea what he is doing.
The series has a 72% Rotten Tomatoes score, with the third season at 80%.
The first two seasons play out like a fish-out-of-water story. Todd is sent to the UK and is not familiar with British culture and customs. He is also a habitual liar and can’t seem to trust his one employee, Dave (Blake Harrison). Director Spike Jonze also stars as one of Todd’s original supervisors in the series. The Increasingly Poor Decisions Of Todd Margaret spirals into a bizarre third season where everything is turned on its head. The series has a 72% Rotten Tomatoes score, with the third season at 80%.
9 The Umbrella Academy (2024)
David Cross Played Sy Grossman
The Umbrella Academy 15
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The Umbrella Academy is based on the comic book of the same name created by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá. The Hargreeves — collectively known as The Umbrella Academy — were born with superpowers, and their adoptive father utilized their abilities. However, as they grew older, the siblings grew apart as they dealt with their trauma. They are brought back together after their father dies and Five returns from the future with grave news: The world will end, and The Umbrella Academy has to stop it before it happens.
Cast Colm Feore , Cazzie David , Genesis Rodriguez , Robert Sheehan , Aidan Gallagher , Elliot Page , Emmy Raver-Lampman , Jordan Claire Robbins , Jake Epstein , Mary J. Blige , David Castaneda , Justin Cornwell , Justin H. Min , Britne Oldford , Adam Godley , Tom Hopper , Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton , Ritu Arya , Cameron Britton , Sheila McCarthy Release Date February 15, 2019 Seasons 4 Showrunner Steve Blackman Expand
David Cross joined the cast of The Umbrella Academy in the final fourth season. The Netflix series is based on the comic books by My Chemical Romance singer Gerard Way and artist Gabriel Bá. The show follows a group of seven people (one of them dead and a ghost) who were born with powers, bought from their parents, and raised by a man named Reginald Hargreeves to eventually save the world. However, they are cursed by the fact that an apocalypse is always happening and resetting their world.
Related The Umbrella Academy’s Complete Timeline (& Alternates) Explained
Time-travel plays a huge part in The Umbrella Academy, resulting in a messy web of different timelines, especially in its fourth and final season.
In the final season, the seven lose their powers and are on a new Earth where their equivalents were never born, and a new group of heroes takes their place (The Sparrow Academy). However, the apocalypse is still oncoming. Cross plays Sy Grossman, a man who asks the Hargreeves siblings to help save his daughter, Jennifer, but it soon turns out he is not who he claims to be. Overall, the series was critically acclaimed, but the final season had the worst reviews at 55% on Rotten Tomatoes.
8 Sorry To Bother You (2018)
David Cross Played Cash’s “White Voice”
Sorry to Bother You 1
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Written and directed by Boots Riley, Sorry to Bother You is a Comedy and Surrealist film released in 2018. Starring Danny Glover, Terry Crews, Patton Oswalt, and LaKeith Stanfield. The film follows a young man that gets a new job which he initially struggles with, only to begin excelling with practice. Once he finds out what the company is involved in, things get more complicated.
Director Boots Riley Release Date July 13, 2018 Distributor(s) Universal Pictures , Focus Features Cast Omari Hardwick , Steven Yeun , Tessa Thompson , Michael X. Sommers , Armie Hammer , Jermaine Fowler , Kate Berlant , Forest Whitaker , LaKeith Stanfield , Terry Crews , Danny Glover , Robert Longstreet Runtime 112 Minutes
David Cross has taken on several animated voice roles over his career. However, one of his strangest voice roles came in a live-action movie where he voiced a real character in the film. Sorry to Bother You is a dark comedy science fiction film that stars LaKeith Stanfield as Cassius “Cash” Green, a Black man who gets a job as a telemarketer to help pay the bills. However, he struggles to make hardly any sales thanks to his voice, so one of his co-workers teaches him how to use a “white voice.”
…the film won Best First Feature at the Independent Spirit Awards.
David Cross is the “white voice” that Cash starts to use on the phone at work, and he is suddenly a great success. He gets promoted, but his boss tells him he needs to always use his “white voice.” By the end, everything goes off the rails when it turns out his company is involved in some very strange scientific gene-modifying experiments. Sorry to Bother You has a 93% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and the film won Best First Feature at the Independent Spirit Awards.
7 Men In Black (1997)
David Cross Played Newton, Morgue Attendant
Men In Black 1
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Men In Black is a science fiction film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones as agents of a secret organization overseeing extraterrestrial activity on Earth. The agents are tasked with managing alien immigrants while protecting humanity from intergalactic threats. The film explores their partnership as they confront various challenges while ensuring the public remains unaware of alien presence.
Director Barry Sonnenfeld Release Date July 2, 1997 Cast Tommy Lee Jones , Rip Torn , Linda Fiorentino , Will Smith , Vincent D’Onofrio Runtime 98 minutes
While David Cross had appeared in several films when he moved to Los Angeles, the film role that got him the most notice was as Newton in Men in Black. The movie arrived a couple of years after Mr. Show with Bob and Dave started airing on HBO, which is likely how Cross caught the attention of director Barry Sonnenfield. Of course, Men in Black was a movie about a secret organization that dealt with alien population control on Earth, with Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith in the lead.
Cross returned for the second movie as a video store owner.
Cross’s character of Newton was the morgue attendant who let Kay (Jones) and Jay (Smith) into the morgue. However, when he starts killing flies in front of Edgar (the alien bug villain), he gets slimed to the ceiling. Cross returned for the second movie as a video store owner (Newton survived the sliming), and Jay tries to better his life, to possibly disastrous lengths. The first movie was a monster success, making $589 million on a $90 million budget and creating a franchise.
6 Ghost World (2001)
David Cross Played Gerrold
Ghost World 0
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Ghost World, directed by Terry Zwigoff, follows the lives of two cynical teenage outcasts, Enid and Rebecca, after their high school graduation. Thora Birch and Scarlett Johansson star as the friends navigating the complexities of adulthood while forming an unexpected connection with a lonely, middle-aged man named Seymour, played by Steve Buscemi. The film is based on Daniel Clowes’ graphic novel of the same name.
Director Terry Zwigoff Release Date July 20, 2001 Cast Thora Birch , Scarlett Johansson , Steve Buscemi , Brad Renfro , Illeana Douglas , Bob Balaban Runtime 111 minutes
While it might seem surprising, Ghost World is based on a comic book by Daniel Clowes. The 2001 adaptation by Terry Zwigoff is about two high school best friends, Enid (Thora Birch) and Rebecca (Scarlett Johansson), who try to figure out what is next during the summer after their high school graduation. When they start to spend time with a middle-aged man named Seymour (Steve Buscemi), things start to get bizarre, and the two begin to drift apart as they see different futures.
The role is small, but it allowed Cross to take part in one of the better comic book movies that has nothing to do with superheroes.
David Cross plays the character of Gerrold, a pushy record collector in the film. The role is small, but it allowed Cross to take part in one of the better comic book movies that has nothing to do with superheroes. Ghost World received critical acclaim, Certified Fresh at 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, and picked up an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Thora Birch and Steve Buscemi both earned Golden Globes nominations as well for their performances.
5 The Post (2017)
David Cross Played Howard Simons
The Post 1
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The Post is a dramatic thriller directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks and tells the story of the unexpected partnership between The Washington Post’s Katharine Graham, the first female publisher of a major American newspaper, and editor Ben Bradlee. The two will work tirelessly and race to catch up with The New York Times to expose a massive cover-up of government secrets spanning three decades.
Director Steven Spielberg Release Date December 22, 2017 Distributor(s) 20th Century Cast Alison Brie , Matthew Rhys , Tracy Letts , Michael Stuhlbarg , Zach Woods , Sarah Paulson , Bradley Whitford , Tom Hanks , Bruce Greenwood , Meryl Streep , David Cross , Carrie Coon , Bob Odenkirk , Jesse Plemons Runtime 116minutes
In 2017, David Cross had a chance to work with Steven Spielberg in the political thriller The Post. The film is about the Washington Post publishing the Pentagon Papers and the fallout from that decision. Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks take on the lead roles in the movie as the publisher and longtime executive editor of the paper. David Cross takes on the role of Howard Simmons, the managing editor of The Washington Post during the Watergate scandal (which happened after these events).
David Cross and Bob Odenkirk had a
Mr. Show
reunion as both men appeared in
The Post.
The film was a minor box office success but it was a critical success, sitting at 88% positive on Rotten Tomatoes. The critics praised the period setting and look of the film, as well as the ensemble cast. However, despite the praise, the film only earned two Oscar nominations, one for Best Picture and one for Best Actress (Streep). The Golden Globes nominated it in six categories, but it lost them all.
4 Mr. Show With Bob And David (1995-1998)
David Cross Played Various Roles
Mr. Show with Bob and David 0
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Mr. Show with Bob and David is a sketch comedy series created by and starring Bob Odenkirk and David Cross. Airing from 1995 to 1998, the show features a variety of satirical sketches that critique various aspects of society and pop culture. It is known for its seamless transitions between sketches and its influence on modern sketch comedy.
The show that made David Cross and Bob Odenkirk into stars is Mr. Show with Bob and Dave. The two comedians created the show after meeting in Los Angeles on the comedy scene, and it debuted in 1995 as an HBO original series. This was a sketch comedy show with Odenkirk and Cross writing and performing in all the sketches. Unlike other sketch comedy shows like Saturday Night Live and Mad TV, this show was mostly surreal sketches that went in the strangest directions.
Related 10 Forgotten HBO Shows That Are Absolutely Worth Rewatching Today
HBO has made some of the greatest TV shows of all time, but they also have several spectacular forgotten gems that deserve to be re-visited.
It was also unique in that it took place in a comedy club-like setting with people sitting at tables with drinks, watching the show live, although it also cut to pre-recorded moments. The sketch comedy lasted for four seasons and 30 episodes. There were also guests, including Jack Black, Brian Posehn, Sarah Silverman, and more. Mr. Show with Bob and Dave was nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards and influenced shows like Kay & Peele, Tim and Eric Awesome Show, and The Whitest Kids U’ Know.
3 Kung Fu Panda (2008)
David Cross Played Crane
Kung Fu Panda 0
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Kung Fu Panda is an animated martial arts comedy directed by Mark Osborne and John Stevenson. Set in ancient China, it follows Po, an overweight and clumsy panda voiced by Jack Black, who dreams of becoming a kung fu master. When an evil snow leopard named Tai Lung threatens the Valley of Peace, Po is unexpectedly chosen as the Dragon Warrior.
Director Mark Osborne , John Stevenson Release Date June 4, 2008 Cast Jack Black , Dustin Hoffman , Angelina Jolie , Ian McShane , Jackie Chan , Seth Rogen Runtime 95 minutes
Kung Fu Panda put together a great voice cast for the Furious Five, the warriors who worked alongside Jack Black’s Po the Panda. The cast includes Angelina Jolie as Tigress, Seth Rogen as Mantis, Lucy Liu as Viper, Jackie Chan as Monkey, and David Cross as Crane. Cross has voiced Crane for several editions of the series, including the first three movies of the series, the short films Secrets of the Furious Five and Secrets of the Scroll, and the TV special Kung Fu Panda Holiday.
The first movie in the franchise was a massive success that spawned a franchise. It was nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Feature, losing to Wall-E. However, franchise has still grown in huge ways, including movies and TV shows with a worldwide box office gross of over $2 billion. Cross did not appear in the fourth movie in the Kung Fu Panda series, as none of the Furious Five other than Mantis had a voice role in the film.
2 Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004)
David Cross Played Rob Eakin
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind 5
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Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet star in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind as Joel Barish and Clementine Kruczynski, a couple who rediscover their love after erasing each other from their memories. The 2004 drama is written by Charlie Kaufman, directed by Michel Gondry, and includes Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood, Kirsten Dunst, and Tom Wilkinson in its cast.
Director Michel Gondry Release Date March 19, 2004 Distributor(s) Focus Features , Universal Pictures Cast Kate Winslet , Jim Carrey , Elijah Wood , Kirsten Dunst , Mark Ruffalo Runtime 108 minutes
David Cross has appeared in several comedy movies over his career, but in 2004, he appeared in a drama that is far from funny. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of the best movies of the early 2000s, a science fiction romantic drama directed by Michel Gondry. The film stars Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet as Joel and Clementine, two people who fall in and out of love. In this world, people can pay to have their memories wiped, which is what Clementine chooses to do.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
was critically acclaimed, with a Certified Fresh 92% on Rotten Tomatoes.
However, when Joel agrees to do the same thing, the movie shows their life together as it slowly falls apart in his mind. David Cross stars as Rob Eakin, a friend of Joel’s who reveals to him what Clementine did, although he was paid to keep quiet. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was critically acclaimed, with a Certified Fresh 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. It won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, and Winslet picked up a nomination for Best Actress.
1 Arrested Development (2003-2019)
David Cross Played Dr. Tobias Fünke
Arrested Development 4
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Arrested Development is a comedy TV series that chronicles the descent from the wealth of the fictional Bluth Family. Michael Bluth, the most “well-adjusted” of the group, decides to break away from the family and let them fall into ruin after his father is imprisoned for real estate fraud. Despite his attempts, Michael tries to protect his family – from themselves – as he tries to settle his family’s affairs and clear them of wrongdoing while caring for his teenaged son.
Cast Jeffrey Tambor , Ron Howard , Michael Cera , Alia Shawkat , David Cross , Jason Bateman , Portia de Rossi , Tony Hale , Will Arnett , Jessica Walter Release Date March 15, 2019 Seasons 5 Showrunner Mitchell Hurwitz
The TV show that made David Cross a huge star was Arrested Development. This sitcom centered on the Bluth family after the patriarch (Jeffrey Tambor) ends up going to jail for his “creative accounting” practices. The show then followed his son Michael (Jason Bateman) as he tried to keep the family business afloat while everyone tried to spend the remaining money or mess everything up. The series had an incredible cast, including Will Arnett, Michael Cera, Tony Hale, and Jessica Walter.
David Cross starred in the series as Tobias Fünke, the husband of Lindsay (Portia de Rossi), who once served as a psychiatrist and then a therapist but later decided that his real destiny was to be an actor, although he never found any success. The series was canceled after three seasons and 53 episodes but returned later on Netflix for two more seasons. It won six Emmy Awards with 25 nominations, and David Cross earned a Satellite Award nomination in 2004.