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David Krumholtz

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Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Script error: No such module "infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Template:Main otherScript error: No such module "Check for conflicting parameters".Template:Wikidata image David Krumholtz (born May 15, 1978)[1] is an American actor. Krumholtz is best known for portraying Bernard in The Santa Clause franchise (1994–present), Michael Eckman in 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), Goldstein in the Harold & Kumar film trilogy (2004–2011), Charlie Eppes in the CBS drama series Numb3rs (2005–2010), and Isidor Isaac Rabi in Oppenheimer (2023).

Krumholtz has also had other supporting roles in notable films such as Addams Family Values (1993), The Ice Storm (1997), Slums of Beverly Hills (1998), Ray (2004), Serenity (2005), Superbad (2007), Hail, Caesar! (2016), Sausage Party (2016), Wonder Wheel (2017), and The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018). He also portrayed Harvey Wasserman in the HBO drama series The Deuce (2017–2019) and Monty Levin in the HBO miniseries The Plot Against America (2020).

Krumholtz made his Broadway debut in the 1992 play Conversations with My Father. He returned to Broadway playing Hermann Merz in Tom Stoppard's semi-biographical Holocaust play Leopoldstadt (2022), for which he received a Drama League Award nomination.

Early life

Krumholtz was born in New York City[2] and grew up in the borough of Queens. He is the son of Michael, a postal worker, and Judy Krumholtz, a dental assistant.[3] He grew up in a "very working class, almost poor" Jewish family.[4][5][6] His paternal grandparents had emigrated from Poland,[4] and his mother moved from Hungary to the U.S. in 1956 during the Hungarian Revolution.[7] He attended P.S. 196, Stephen A. Halsey Junior High School 157, and briefly attended Forest Hills High School.[8]

Career

1992–1999

At the age of 13, Krumholtz followed his friends to an open audition for the Broadway play Conversations with My Father (1992). When he tried out, he won the role of Young Charlie, with Judd Hirsch, Tony Shalhoub and Jason Biggs, who was also making his Broadway debut. Soon after his run on Broadway, Krumholtz co-starred in two feature films, Life With Mikey (1993) with Michael J. Fox and Addams Family Values (1993) with Christina Ricci. For his role in Mikey, Krumholtz was nominated for a 1993 Young Artist Award.[9] Although his work in these two films garnered him critical attention, Krumholtz is probably best known by children as the sarcastic head elf Bernard from The Santa Clause (1994) and its first sequel, The Santa Clause 2 (2002). While he did not appear in The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (2006) due to a scheduling conflict and his belief that the character was devalued,[10] he reprised the role two decades later in the Disney+ series The Santa Clauses (2022).

In 1994, Krumholtz co-starred in his first television series, Monty, with Henry Winkler; the show lasted only a few episodes. Krumholtz later starred in several short-lived series over the years. Along the way, he had the opportunity to work with Jason Bateman (Chicago Sons, 1997), Tom Selleck (The Closer, 1998), Jon Cryer (The Trouble with Normal, 2000), and Rob Lowe (The Lyon's Den, 2003). In 2005, he finally found television success with the CBS series Numb3rs.[11] Along with his starring roles on television, Krumholtz made guest appearances on ER as schizophrenic patient Paul Sobriki, as well as on Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, Lucky, Freaks and Geeks, and Undeclared.

File:David Krumholtz at the Serenity Premiere.jpg
Krumholtz at the premiere of Serenity in September 2005

He broke out of the children's movie genre with The Ice Storm (1997), directed by Ang Lee, and Slums of Beverly Hills (1998), starring Alan Arkin and Natasha Lyonne. In 1999, Krumholtz starred as Michael Eckman in the popular teen movie 10 Things I Hate About You with Larisa Oleynik, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Julia Stiles, and Heath Ledger. That same year, he portrayed a completely different teen character – that of Yussel, a young conflicted Jewish man in Liberty Heights (1999).

2001–2011

It was the role of Yussel that brought Krumholtz to the attention of actor and filmmaker Edward Burns, who cast him in the independent film Sidewalks of New York (2001).[4]

Krumholtz's first role as a leading man was in the romantic comedy You Stupid Man (2002), opposite Milla Jovovich. Although never released theatrically in the United States, You Stupid Man, directed by Edward Burns's brother Brian Burns, was released on DVD (2006).

Krumholtz carried another leading role in Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie (2002), which premiered on FX Networks. Big Shot was a true story based on the Arizona State University basketball fixing scandal in 1994. Krumholtz played Benny Silman, a college student and campus bookmaker, who was jailed for his part in shaving points off key Arizona State basketball games. Benny was unlike any character Krumholtz had played before; and he garnered critical praise for his performance, proving that he was not just a sidekick.[12]

File:David Krumholtz 2012.jpg
Krumholtz at the 2012 PaleyFest

In 2005, Krumholtz played Max in My Suicidal Sweetheart (formerly Max and Grace), once again starring opposite actress Natasha Lyonne. Krumholtz also returned to smaller roles in the successful films Ray (2004) and Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004), along with its two sequels. In September 2005, he was seen in Joss Whedon's science fiction film Serenity as "Mr. Universe", a hacker and information broker. In early 2006, Krumholtz's 2003 film Kill the Poor screened in New York City at IFC Center and across the country on Comcast's On Demand cable service.

From 2005 to 2010, Krumholtz starred on the CBS television show Numb3rs,[13] portraying Charlie Eppes, a genius who used mathematics to help his FBI agent brother Don (Rob Morrow) solve crimes. The cast of Numbers also included Judd Hirsch and Peter MacNicol, who appeared with Krumholtz in Addams Family Values as a camp counselor. Critic Matt Roush (TV Guide) called Krumholtz's work on Numbers "probably his best TV work to date".Template:Citation needed Numbers was cancelled by CBS on May 18, 2010.[14] He starred in the 2010 TV film/series pilot Tax Man on Fox but was not picked up to series. He starred in The Playboy Club on NBC in 2011, but the show was cancelled after three episodes.

2012–present

In 2012, Krumholtz was cast opposite Michael Urie in CBS' comedy TV series Partners[15] but the show was cancelled after six episodes.[16] In 2015, he played the title role wearing heavy prosthetics as an elderly Jewish woman in the IFC comedy series Gigi Does It which he wrote and co-created with Ricky Mabe and Zach Golden.

In recent years, he has had minor roles in the Coen brothers films Hail Caesar! (2016) and The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018), while also appearing in films such as This Is the End (2013), The Judge (2014), Sausage Party (2016), and Wonder Wheel (2017). He had a prominent recurring role as adult filmmaker Harvey Wasserman in the first two seasons of the HBO drama series The Deuce, before being promoted to a series regular for the third season. In 2020, he appeared as a series regular playing Monty Levin in the HBO miniseries The Plot Against America.

In fall 2022, Krumholtz returned to the stage to play the role of Hermann Merz in the original Broadway cast of Tom Stoppard’s Leopoldstadt at The Longacre Theater in New York City. Variety described his performance as "vulnerable and powerful".[17] He earned a nomination for the Drama League Award for Outstanding Performance. The following year Krumholtz portrayed physicist Isidor Isaac Rabi in Christopher Nolan's biographical drama Oppenheimer (2023).

Personal life

On May 22, 2010, Krumholtz married actress Vanessa Britting (born Vanessa Almeda Goonan), at the Plaza Hotel in New York City; they had been engaged since July 2008.[18] They have a daughter and a son, both born in the 2010s.[19] In 2017, they moved from Los Angeles to Wyckoff, New Jersey.[20][21]

In July 2011, Krumholtz was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. He began a radioactive iodine treatment five months later.[22] At the end of January 2012, he was pronounced cancer-free.[23]

On October 4, 2024, Krumholtz was interviewed by The New York Times regarding cannabis reliance; Krumholtz had lost over 100 pounds and was hospitalized several times. He was diagnosed with cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome and has since stopped using marijuana.[24]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1993 Life with Mikey Template:Sortname
Addams Family Values Template:Sortname
1994 The Santa Clause Template:Sortname
1997 The Ice Storm Template:Sortname
1998 Slums of Beverly Hills Template:Sortname
1999 10 Things I Hate About You Template:Sortname
Liberty Heights Yussel
2000 How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog Template:Sortname
2001 The Mexican Beck
Sidewalks of New York Template:Sortname
Two Can Play That Game Jason
According to Spencer Ezra
2002 You Stupid Man Owen
The Santa Clause 2 Template:Sortname
Cheats Template:Sortname
2003 Scorched Max
Kill the Poor Template:Sortname
2004 Looking for Kitty Template:Sortname
Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle Goldstein
Ray Template:Sortname
2005 Guess Who Template:Sortname Uncredited
My Suicidal Sweetheart Max
Serenity Mr. Universe
2006 American Storage Kurt Short film
The Nail Daniel
Bobby Agent Phil
Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny Frat boy #2 Deleted scene
2007 Live! Rex
Superbad Template:Sortname
Battle for Terra Terrian Commander (voice)
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story Schwartzberg
2008 Demption Template:Sortname Short film
Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay Goldstein
2009 I Love You, Man Sydney's buddy #3 Uncredited
2011 Mr. Popper's Penguins Kent
A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas Goldstein
2013 Tuna Getty
The Big Ask Andrew
This Is the End Himself
2014 The Judge Template:Sortname
2015 I Saw the Light[25] Template:Sortname
2016 Hail, Caesar! Communist screenwriter #4
Sausage Party Template:Sortname (voice)
Casual Encounters Template:Sortname
Ghost Team Stan
2017 Wonder Wheel Jake
2018 A Futile and Stupid Gesture Time-Life Publisher
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs Frenchman in Saloon Segment: "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs"
2019 Frances Ferguson Group Therapy Leader
Crown Vic Template:Sortname
2020 Asking for It Template:Sortname
2023 Oppenheimer Template:Sortname
Lousy Carter Template:Sortname
2025 Forelock Randy
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere Template:Sortname
2026 Influenced Gary
Kill Me Lou
Supergirl Zor-El Post-production
Untitled John Tuggle film Julius "Whitey" Horai Post-production

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1993 Law & Order Template:Sortname Episode: "Sweeps"
1994 Monty Template:Sortname 5 episodes
1995 Pig Sty Timmy Episode: "Tess Makes the Man"
1997 Chicago Sons Template:Sortname 13 episodes
Justice League of America Template:Sortname Pilot
Union Square Russell 2 episodes
1998 The Closer Template:Sortname 10 episodes
2000–2002 ER Template:Sortname 3 episodes
2000 The Trouble with Normal Template:Sortname 13 episodes
Freaks and Geeks Template:Sortname Episode: "Noshing and Moshing"
2001–2002 Undeclared Greg 2 episodes
2002 Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie Template:Sortname Television film
2003 Lucky Tony Episode: "Savant"
The Lyon's Den Template:Sortname 8 episodes
2005–2010 Numb3rs Template:Sortname 118 episodes
2007 Wainy Days Ortez Episode: "Tough Guy"
2010 Tax Man Spencer Pilot
2010, 2024 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Dr. Vincent Prochik / Dr. Ray Goldberg 2 episodes
2011 The Playboy Club Template:Sortname 7 episodes
2012 Raising Hope Carl 2 episodes
Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 Template:Sortname Episode: "Shitagi Nashi..."
The Newsroom Dr. Jacob "Jack" Habib 3 episodes
Partners Template:Sortname 13 episodes
Childrens Hospital Dookie Episode: "Wisedocs"
2013–2014 The League Template:Sortname 2 episodes
2014 Newsreaders Template:Sortname Episode: "Motorboating Dads; the Negative $100,000 Question"
Key & Peele Terrorist #3 Episode: "Terrorist Meeting"
Men at Work Myron 5 episodes
2014–2016 The Good Wife Template:Sortname 7 episodes
2015 Forever 1984 Abe Episode: "Punk is Dead"
Gigi Does It Gigi 8 episodes; also co-creator and executive producer
Comedy Bang! Bang! Himself Episode: "David Krumholtz Wears a Blue Zip-Up Jacket and Grey Sneakers"
Master of None Nathan Episode: "Plan B"
2015–2016 Mom Template:Sortname 5 episodes
2015–2017 All Hail King Julien Timo / Additional voices 23 episodes
2016 The Interestings Template:Sortname Pilot
2017–2019 The Deuce Template:Sortname 20 episodes
2017 Difficult People Ray Episode: "Criminal Minds"
2018 Living Biblically Template:Sortname 13 episodes
Star vs. the Forces of Evil Template:Sortname (voice) Episode: "Marco Jr."
Billions Template:Sortname Episode: "Redemption"
2019 At Home with Amy Sedaris Template:Sortname Episode: "Game Night"
2020 Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens Template:Sortname Episode: "Launch Party"
The Plot Against America Template:Sortname 6 episodes
The Twilight Zone Mayor John Conway Episode: "A Small Town"
2021 WWE Monday Night Raw Fake Drew McIntyre Episode: "Jan 18th, 2021"
Blue's Clues & You! Template:Sortname Episode: "Blue's Big Neighborhood Adventure"
2021–2022 Wolfboy and the Everything Factory (voice) 2 episodes
2022 Super Pumped Template:Sortname 2 episodes
Angelyne Max Allen's Lawyer Episode: "The Tease"
The Santa Clauses Bernard Episode: "Chapter Five: Across the Yule-Verse"
2023 White House Plumbers Template:Sortname 2 episodes
2024 Sausage Party: Foodtopia Template:Sortname (voice) 5 episodes
Batman: Caped Crusader Template:Sortname (voice) Episode: "The Stress of Her Regard"
2025 The Studio Template:Sortname 3 episodes
Poker Face Template:Sortname Episode: "Sloppy Joseph"
Long Story Short Template:Sortname (voice) Episode: "The Intervention"
2026 The Rookie Template:Sortname Episode: "The Red Place"

Theatre

Year Title Role Notes
1992–1993 Conversations with My Father Template:Sortname Royale Theatre
March 22, 1992 – March 14, 1993
2011 Copenhagen Template:Sortname[26] LA Theatre Works
2013 The Columnist Template:Sortname[27] LA Theatre Works
2022 Leopoldstadt Template:Sortname Longacre Theatre

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
1994 Young Artist Awards Best Youth Actor Leading Role in a Motion Picture Comedy Life with Mikey Template:Nominated
1999 Teen Choice Awards Funniest Movie Scene 10 Things I Hate About You Template:Nominated
2006 Hollywood Film Awards Ensemble of the Year Template:Small Bobby Template:Won
2007 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Template:Small Template:Nominated
2024 Gold Derby Awards Ensemble Cast Template:Small Oppenheimer Template:Won

References

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