David Lawrence Schwimmer (born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, director, comedian, and producer. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Ross Geller in the sitcom Friends (1994-2004), for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 1995. While still acting in Friends, his first leading film role was in The Pallbearer (1996), followed by roles in Kissing a Fool; Six Days, Seven Nights; Apt Pupil (all 1998); and Picking Up the Pieces (2000). He was then cast in the miniseries Band of Brothers (2001) as Herbert Sobel.
Schwimmer began his acting career performing in school plays at Beverly Hills High School. He appeared in a number of television roles in the early 1990s, including L.A. Law, The Wonder Years, NYPD Blue, and Monty. Schwimmer was cast as Ross Geller in Friends. The program was hugely successful and Schwimmer, along with his co-stars, gained widespread and worldwide recognition among television viewers. He earned an Emmy Award nomination in the "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series" category for the role in 1995, which made him the first cast member of Friends to receive such a nomination. He also played the minor role of Russ in the episode "The One With Russ" (1996). During the show's 10-year run, Schwimmer appeared in numerous movies but perhaps gained most recognition outside of Friends playing Captain Herbert Sobel in the dramatic mini-series Band of Brothers.
After the series finale of Friends in 2004, Schwimmer branched out into film and stage work. He was cast as the title character in the 2005 drama film Duane Hopwood, and voiced Melman the Giraffe in the computer-animated Madagascar film franchise, acted in the dark comedy Big Nothing (2006), and the thriller Nothing but the Truth (2008). Schwimmer made his West End stage debut in the leading role in 2005's Some Girl(s). He made his Broadway debut in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial in 2006. His feature film directorial debut followed in 2007 with the comedy Run Fatboy Run, and the following year he made his Off-Broadway directorial debut in Fault Lines. In 2016, Schwimmer starred as lawyer Robert Kardashian in The People v. O. J. Simpson, for which he received his second Primetime Emmy Award nomination, this time for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie.
Schwimmer has also worked as a director, including 10 episodes of Friends during his time on the series. Along with the rest of the main cast, he participated in the 2021 reunion special Friends: The Reunion. The episodes Schwimmer directed were "The One With The Birth Mother" (2004), "The One With Phoebe's Birthday Dinner" (2002), "The One Where Joey Dates Rachel" (2002), "The One With The Stripper" (2001), "The One With The Red Sweater" (2001), "The One With The Truth About London" (2001), "The One With All The Candy" (2000), "The One With Ross' Library Book" (2000), "The One With Rachel's Assistant" (2000) and "The One On The Last Night" (1999).
Biography[]
Early Life[]
David Schwimmer was born in Astoria, Queens, New York, to Jewish parents, Arthur Schwimmer and Arlene Colman. They lived in Valley Stream, Long Island, til he was 2. He was raised in Los Angeles, California, where he attended Beverly Hills High School.
Having attended Northwestern University's summer "Cherub" program (the National High School Institute) in 1983, he subsequently enrolled at the university as a theater major, joining Delta Tau Delta Fraternity and Arts Alliance in addition to acting and directing. In 1988, along with seven other Northwestern graduates, he co-founded Chicago's Lookingglass Theatre Company.
Career[]
Ross Geller, the role that gained Schwimmer worldwide recognition
Schwimmer began his acting career performing in school plays at Beverly Hills High School. He appeared in a number of television roles in the early 1990s, including L.A. Law, The Wonder Years, NYPD Blue, and Monty.
Schwimmer was cast as paleontologist Ross Geller in the television sitcom Friends. The program was hugely successful and Schwimmer, along with his co-stars, gained widespread and worldwide recognition among television viewers. He earned an Emmy Award nomination in the "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series" category for the role in 1995. This made him the first cast member of Friends to receive such a nomination. He also played the minor role of Russ in the episode "The One With Russ" (1996).
Schwimmer has also worked as a director, including the following 10 episodes of Friends during his time on the series:
- "The One With The Birth Mother" (2004)
- "The One With Phoebe's Birthday Dinner" (2002)
- "The One Where Joey Dates Rachel" (2002)
- "The One With The Stripper" (2001)
- "The One With The Red Sweater" (2001)
- "The One With The Truth About London" (2001)
- "The One With All The Candy" (2000)
- "The One With Ross' Library Book" (2000)
- "The One With Rachel's Assistant" (2000)
- "The One On The Last Night" (1999)
During the show's 10-year run, Schwimmer appeared in numerous movies but perhaps gained most recognition outside of Friends playing Captain Herbert Sobel in the dramatic mini-series Band of Brothers. He was the first Friends character to host Saturday Night Live in 1995, with all the other main cast members to follow in his footsteps over the rest of the seasons in the '90s, apart from Matt LeBlanc who never hosted.
After the series finale of Friends in 2004, Schwimmer branched out into film and stage work. He was cast as the title character in the 2005 drama film Duane Hopwood, and voiced Melman the Giraffe in the computer-animated Madagascar film franchise, acted in the dark comedy Big Nothing (2006), and the thriller Nothing but the Truth (2008). Schwimmer made his West End stage debut in the leading role in 2005's Some Girl(s). He made his Broadway debut in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial in 2006. His feature film directorial debut followed in 2007 with the comedy Run Fatboy Run, and the following year he made his Off-Broadway directorial debut in Fault Lines.
In 2005, Schwimmer portrayed the main protagonist in the independent drama Duane Hopwood, and received positive reviews for his role as an alcoholic looking to turn his life around. In 2007, David directed his first film, the British comedy Run, Fat Boy, Run, produced by Robert Jones, where he teamed up with British actor Simon Pegg. A film about a man training for the London Marathon after running away from his pregnant fiancé on their wedding day. The movie starred Hank Azaria who had starred as David In Friends. He had previously starred with Pegg in the movie Big Nothing and briefly in Band of Brothers.
In 2016, Schwimmer portrayed the late Robert Kardashian in the first season of American Crime Story, subtitled The People v. O.J. Simpson, which garnered him an Emmy Award nomination.
In May 2021, he participated in the special episode Friends: The Reunion.
Personal Life[]
Schwimmer dated Natalie Imbruglia and Mili Avital, (broke up in 2001) and Carla Alapont. After they broke up in 2003, he was linked to Emmanuelle Perret among others. He is said to be related to Benji Schwimmer, second season winner of So You Think You Can Dance (America).
In 2007, Schwimmer started dating English photographer Zoe Buckman. In March 2010, Schwimmer and Buckman announced their engagement they were married in a small private ceremony the following June. On May 8, 2011, Schwimmer and his wife welcomed a daughter, Cleo Buckman Schwimmer.
The family splits their time between Los Angeles and Chicago, where as of 2008 they own homes.
Filmography[]
Film[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Flight of the Intruder | Duty Officer | |
| 1992 | Crossing the Bridge | John Anderson | |
| 1993 | Twenty Bucks | Neil Campbell | |
| The Waiter | Evil Waiter | Short film | |
| The Pitch | Vinnie | ||
| 1994 | Wolf | Cop | |
| 1995 | The Party Favor | Unknown | Short film |
| 1996 | The Pallbearer | Tom Thompson | |
| 1998 | Kissing a Fool | Max Abbitt | Also executive producer |
| Six Days Seven Nights | Frank Martin | ||
| Apt Pupil | Edward French | ||
| The Thin Pink Line | Kelly Goodish/J.T. | ||
| 1999 | All the Rage | Chris | |
| 2000 | Love & Sex | Door to door preacher | Uncredited |
| Picking Up the Pieces | Father Leo Jerome | ||
| 2001 | Hotel | Jonathan Danderfine | |
| Uprising | Yitzhak "Antek" Zuckerman | ||
| 2003 | Great Family | Tony Adams | |
| 2005 | Duane Hopwood | Duane Hopwood | |
| Madagascar | Melman (voice) | ||
| 2006 | Big Nothing | Charlie | |
| 2007 | Run, Fatboy, Run | Man Handing Dennis a Beer During Race | Uncredited |
| 2008 | Nothing but the Truth | Ray Armstrong | |
| Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | Melman (voice) | ||
| 2012 | John Carter | Young Thark Warrior | |
| The Iceman | Josh Rosenthal | ||
| Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted | Melman (voice) | ||
| 2013 | Madly Madagascar | Short film | |
| 2019 | The Laundromat | Matthew Quirk | |
| 2024 | Little Death | Completed |
Television[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | A Deadly Silence | Rob Cuccio | TV movie |
| 1991–1992 | The Wonder Years | Michael | 4 episodes (seasons 4-5) |
| 1992–1993 | L.A. Law | City Attorney Dana Romney | Recurring role (season 7) |
| 1993 | NYPD Blue | Josh '4B' Goldstein | 4 episodes |
| Blossom | Sonny Catalano | 2 episodes | |
| 1994 | Monty | Greg Richardson | Main cast |
| 1994–2004 | Friends | Ross Geller | Main cast (also played Russ in "The One With Russ"; credited as Snaro) |
| 1995 | The Single Guy | Episode: "Neighbors" Uncredited | |
| Saturday Night Live | Himself (host) | Episode: "David Schwimmer/Natalie Merchant" | |
| 1996 | ER | Dr. Karubian (voice) | Episode: "Doctor Carter, I Presume" Uncredited |
| 1997 | Breast Men | Dr. Kevin Saunders | TV movie |
| 1998 | Since You've Been Gone | Robert S. Levitt | |
| 2001 | Uprising | Yitzhak Zuckerman | |
| Band of Brothers | Captain Herbert M. Sobel | Miniseries, main cast (first 3 episodes) | |
| 2003 | MADtv | Himself | Episode: "9.3" |
| 2004 | Curb Your Enthusiasm | 3 episodes | |
| 2007 | 30 Rock | Greenzo/Jared | Episode: "Greenzo" |
| 2009 | Merry Madagascar | Melman (voice) | Television special |
| Entourage | Himself | Episode: "Running on E" | |
| 2011 | Come Fly With Me | Episode 2 | |
| 2012 | Web Therapy | Newell L. Miller | Recurring role (season 2) |
| 2015 | Episodes | Himself | Episode: "Episode Five" |
| 2016 | The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story | Robert Kardashian | Miniseries, main cast |
| Feed the Beast | Tommy Moran | Main cast | |
| 2018–2019 | Will & Grace | Noah Broader | Recurring role (season 10) |
| 2019 | Mysterious Planet | Narrator | Television documentary series |
| 2020–present | Intelligence | Jerry Berstein | Main cast |
| 2021 | Friends: The Reunion | Himself | HBO Max special; also executive producer |
| 2023 | Extrapolations | Harris Goldblatt | Episode: "2047: The Fifth Question" |
| Captain Fall | Joel Moon (voice) | Episode: "Boner Medicine" |
Director/producer[]
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Shoot the Moon | Executive producer |
| 1998 | Since You've Been Gone | Director; television film |
| 1999–2004 | Friends | Director; 10 episodes |
| 2003 | Humanoid | Executive producer |
| 2004 | Americana | Director; television film |
| The Tracy Morgan Show | Director; episode: "Miracle Street" | |
| Nevermind Nirvana | Director/executive producer; pilot | |
| 2004–2005 | Joey | Director; 2 episodes: "Joey and the Perfect Storm" (2004)/"Joey and the Taste Test" (2005) |
| 2005 | New Car Smell | Director; television film |
| 2007 | Run, Fatboy, Run | Director |
| 2008 | Little Britain USA | Director; 6 episodes |
| Fly Like Mercury | Executive producer | |
| 2010 | Trust | Director |
| 2014 | Growing Up Fisher | Director/executive producer; episode: "Pilot" |
| Irreversible | Director/executive producer; television film |
Trivia[]
- David Schwimmer is allergic to cats.
External Links[]
- David Schwimmer at Wikipedia
- David Schwimmer at the Internet Movie Database.