Chris Parnell
Biography
Thomas Christopher "Chris" Parnell (born February 5, 1967) is an American comic actor best known as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1998–2006 and currently for his recurring role as Dr. Leo Spaceman on NBC's Emmy Award-winning comedy series 30 Rock. Parnell is currently one of the lead voices on the FX animated comedy Archer. In 2010, Parnell starred alongside his former SNL castmate Horatio Sanz in the Comedy Central series Big Lake. After performing as a company player with The Groundlings for a number of years, Parnell was hired to join the cast of Saturday Night Live as a featured player on September 26, 1998, and was promoted to repertory player the following season. In the summer of 2001, budget cuts and hiring four new cast members required Lorne Michaels to dismiss two cast members; he chose to lay off Parnell and Jerry Minor over Horatio Sanz, Rachel Dratch, and Maya Rudolph. While on SNL, Parnell appeared in numerous sketches, and commercial parodies, and performed memorable impressions of various celebrities. One of his most popular sketches is Lazy Sunday, a rap video he shot with Andy Samberg about buying cupcakes and going to see The Chronicles of Narnia. He has also performed raps about hosts Jennifer Garner, Britney Spears, Kirsten Dunst and Ashton Kutcher. In the summer of 2006, Lorne Michaels announced that four cast members would be fired due to budget cuts, but he did not say who. On September 22, 2006 it was announced that three cast members had been fired: Parnell, Horatio Sanz, and Finesse Mitchell. This effectively made him the only SNL performer to have been fired twice by Lorne Michaels, though Parnell did say in a 2008 interview with The Sound of Young America podcast that he was okay with being let go this time, because he was considering leaving after that season anyway, but added that he probably would have stayed one last season if he was asked back. He had been with SNL for eight seasons; at the time only four people (Darrell Hammond, Tim Meadows, Kevin Nealon, and Al Franken) have been cast members longer. He has since made uncredited cameo appearances on the show, most recently in 2008 parodying newscasters Tom Brokaw, Jim Lehrer, and Bob Schieffer. Parnell and his former SNL castmate Horatio Sanz recently starred together in Big Lake, a 2010 sitcom on Comedy Central from executive producers Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. He also recently appeared as Dr. Drummer/Santa in the SyFy Holiday Special episode from the television show Eureka, which aired on December 7, 2010 (Season 4 Episode 10).
Known For
Barry Pasternack
Hot Rod
TV Emcee
Down with Love
Theo
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Du-ug
Evil Alien Conquerors
Garth Holliday
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
Garth Holliday
Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie
Announcer #2 (voice)
Turbo
Ralph
I'm Reed Fish
therapist (voice)
Yung Punx: A Punk Parable
Terrence
Eavesdrop
Peter
Paper Man
Hammer (voice)
Escape from Planet Earth
Dave Bollinari (voice)
Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers
Brian Collins
Answer This!
Mr. Thistleton (voice)
Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice
Voice Actor (voice)
Electric City
John (voice)
Millennial Hunter
Jay LaRoche
Break Point
Ted Sommers
As We Know It
Mike
Hot Mess Holiday
Alan Dickinson
Austin Found
Self / Various (archive footage)
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Will Ferrell
Cole Fusion / Ninja (voice)
Kung Fu Magoo
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Commercial Parodies
Edward Turlington (archive footage)
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Amy Poehler
Veterinarian
Our Little Secret
Washington (voice)
Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again
Dr. Ronald Silverberg
Ira & Abby
Bank Manager
The Ridiculous 6
Harold Melvin
The Grand
Self
Jeff Dunham: Unhinged in Hollywood
Mr. Fly (voice)
Hotel Transylvania
Phil Swanson
The Ladies Man
Phil
Sisters
Toy Store Sales Clerk
Jingle All the Way
Jerry Steinwald
Labor Pains
The Religetables
Toby
Micro Budget
Coach Vanderpool
Harold
Frank
Kabluey
Dr. Vince Harbert
Michael Bolton's Big, Sexy Valentine's Day Special
Migs (voice)
Elena and the Secret of Avalor
Guy Borne
Looking for Kitty
Bill
The Five-Year Engagement
Mr. Ronald Greitzer
Barely Legal
Mr. Truzack (Wayne)
Life of the Party
Dad (voice)
AJ's Infinite Summer
Peter West
Hollywood & Wine
DJ
Battle of the Sexes
News Anchor
The Dictator
Daniel
The Better Half
Walter
Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween
Mr. Gordon
21 Jump Street
Fly (voice)
Hotel Transylvania 2
Stan / Fish Man (voice)
Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation
Mayor Tracy
Slice
Doomed Gringo #2
The Laundromat
Garth Holliday
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
Charlie Green
The Last Laugh
Kevin Keith Baker
Sunny and Share Love You
Various (archive footage)
The Women of SNL
Self
The Maya Rudolph Show
A Freezerburnt Christmas
Junior
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend
WordGirl: The Rise of Ms. Power
Uncle Stu
Home Sweet Home Alone
Artie Mogull
I Am Woman
Larry
Farm Sluts
Brown
Finding ʻOhana
Jim Conway
Senior Year
Brian Franks
The Dogfather
Migs (voice)
Elena of Avalor: Realm of the Jaquins
Lyle Ayker
In Fidelity
The Dink
Self
SNL50: The Homecoming Concert
Self - SNL Cast Member 1998 - 2006 (archive footage)
Ladies & Gentlemen... 50 Years of SNL Music
Jack Conrad
Mimics
Harry and the Mutant Mid-Century Furniture
Wake
Self
Saturday Night Live in the 2000s: Time and Again
Gerald (voice)
A Loud House Christmas Movie: Naughty or Nice
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
81
Gender
Male
Birthday
1967-02-05
Place of Birth
Memphis, Tennessee, USA
Also Known As
크리스 파넬