Martin Starr

Biography:

Martin Starr was born in Santa Monica, California, to actress Jean St. James and raised in the Buddhist tradition. In a Wired interview, he revealed that by age 22 he felt discouraged and depressed due to the lack of acting opportunities following the cancellation of Freaks and Geeks. After firing his agent, he considered leaving acting altogether, but a few years later he landed a role in Knocked Up, which revived his career. In May 2024, Starr married Alex Gehring, bassist of the band Ringo Deathstarr.

Starr’s breakout role came in 1999 when he was cast as Bill Haverchuck in NBC’s Freaks and Geeks. Despite critical praise, the show was canceled after just one season, though it went on to achieve cult status. Following that, Starr appeared in guest roles on series like Ed, Providence, Roswell, King of the Hill, and How I Met Your Mother, as well as films including Stealing Harvard and Cheats. He also reunited with Freaks and Geeks collaborators Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen in Undeclared.

In 2007, he co-starred in Apatow’s comedy Knocked Up, which became both a critical and commercial success. That same year he appeared in Superbad and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. The success of Knocked Up led to bigger roles in films like Adventureland and Good Dick, as well as appearances at film festivals such as Sundance. In 2008, he had a minor role in The Incredible Hulk, later reprising the character Roger Harrington in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Far From Home (2019), and No Way Home (2021).

From 2009 to 2010, Starr starred as Roman DeBeers in the Starz comedy Party Down. He later joined Adult Swim’s NTSF:SD:SUV:: (2011–2013) and appeared in projects like A Good Old Fashioned Orgy, Save the Date, Deep Dark Canyon, and guest roles on Community, Parks and Recreation, and New Girl. In 2013, he appeared as himself in This Is the End and starred alongside Kristen Bell in The Lifeguard and Veronica Mars.

In 2014, Starr was cast as Bertram Gilfoyle in HBO’s Silicon Valley, a role he played until 2019. He later reunited with the cast of Party Down for its third season in 2023. In 2022, he joined the cast of Tulsa King, playing Lawrence “Bodhi” Geigerman, a dispensary owner.

He is best recognized for his television roles as Bill Haverchuck (Freaks and Geeks), Roman DeBeers (Party Down), and Bertram Gilfoyle (Silicon Valley), as well as his film performances in Knocked Up, Adventureland, and his recurring role as Roger Harrington in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.