Rainn Wilson, American actor
Rainn Percival Dietrich Wilson (born January 20, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, podcaster, producer and writer. He is best known for his role as Dwight Schrute on the NBC sitcom The Office, for which he earned three consecutive Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.
A native of Seattle, Wilson began acting at the University of Washington, and later worked in theatre in New York City after graduating in 1986. Wilson made his film debut in Galaxy Quest (1999), followed by supporting parts in Almost Famous (2000), Steven Soderbergh's Full Frontal (2002), and House of 1000 Corpses (2003). He also had a recurring part as Arthur Martin in the HBO series Six Feet Under from 2003 to 2005. From 2018 to 2021, he starred as Trevor on the CBS sitcom Mom.
Wilson was cast as Dwight Schrute in The Office in 2005, a role which he played until the show's conclusion in 2013. Other film credits include lead roles in the comedies The Rocker (2008) and Super (2010), as well as supporting roles in the horror films Cooties (2014) and The Boy (2015). In 2009, he provided his voice for the computer animated science fiction film Monsters vs. Aliens as the villain Gallaxhar and voiced Gargamel in Smurfs: The Lost Village. More recently, he has played a recurring role on Star Trek: Discovery (2017) as well as a supporting role in The Meg (2018). He is also the voice of Lex Luthor in the DC Animated Movie Universe.
Outside of acting, Wilson published an autobiography, The Bassoon King, in 2015, and co-founded the digital media company SoulPancake in 2008.
1966Jan, 20
Rainn Wilson
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Events on 1966
- 10Mar
Buddhist Uprising
Military Prime Minister of South Vietnam Nguyễn Cao Kỳ sacked rival General Nguyễn Chánh Thi, precipitating large-scale civil and military dissension in parts of the nation. - 6Jul
Hastings Banda
Malawi becomes a republic, with Hastings Banda as its first President. - 10Jul
Martin Luther King, Jr.
The Chicago Freedom Movement, led by Martin Luther King, Jr., holds a rally at Soldier Field in Chicago. As many as 60,000 people attend. - 14Oct
Montreal Metro
The city of Montreal begins the operation of its underground Montreal Metro rapid transit system. - 8Nov
Reconstruction Era
Former Massachusetts Attorney General Edward Brooke becomes the first African American elected to the United States Senate since Reconstruction.