Zachary Levi
Encyclopedia
Zachary Levi Pugh better known by his stage name Zachary Levi , is an American television actor, director, and singer known for the roles of Kipp Steadman in Less than Perfect
, Chuck Bartowski
in Chuck
, and Flynn Rider in Tangled.
, to Susy and Darrell Pugh.He is the middle child between two sisters, Sarah and Shekinah. He is of Welsh
ancestry. As a child, his family moved all over the country before making their final move to their new home in Ventura, California
, where Levi attended Buena High School
for four years. He began acting in theatre at the age of six, performing lead roles in regional productions such as Grease, The Outsiders, Oliver,The Wizard of Oz and Big River at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center.
television movie Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie. He played Kipp Steadman on the ABC
sitcom Less Than Perfect
. He also portrayed a potential boyfriend of Charisma Carpenter
's character, Jane, in the ABC Family television movie See Jane Date
. Levi was slated to be a lead in an ABC pilot called Three for the 2004/2005 television season. It was written by Andrew Reich & Ted Cohen, and would have costarred James Van Der Beek
, Jama Williamson
, and Jacob Pitts
, but the show was not picked up. Levi financed Kendall Payne
's album Grown after she was dropped by her label, Capitol Records
.
He landed the starring role in Chuck
, a series that has finished its fourth season. Levi and his Chuck co-star, Yvonne Strahovski
, were both nominated for Best Action Actor and Actress Choice TV Series for the Teen Choice Awards
2010 where they both won and presented.In the summer of 2008, Levi was named one of Entertainment Weekly
s Top Thirty People Under Thirty. He later starred in the film Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
in the lead role as the Chipmunks' cousin Toby Seville. He stars alongside Mandy Moore
in the 2010 Disney-animated feature film Tangled, which is based on the popular fairy tale Rapunzel
. He voices Flynn Rider, a bandit who finds refuge in Rapunzel's tower. Levi provided narration in the 2011 film Under the Boardwalk: The Monopoly Story, a documentary about the game of Monopoly
.
released a preview of a music video to cinemas for her single "Terrified". Levi duets with her on the song (which was re-recorded; the original album version features Jason Reeves
) and appears in the music video singing with McPhee. On May 3, 2010, the song was previewed on Entertainment Weekly
s website and was made available for purchase on iTunes
. The full video premiered on May, 7th, 2010 on the music video website Vevo
.
He is also featured on the soundtrack of the movie Tangled singing a duet with co-star Mandy Moore
called "I See the Light," as well as being featured in the song "I've Got a Dream." In honor of the Oscar nomination for Best Original Song, Levi and Moore performed "I See the Light" at the 83rd Academy Awards
.
He has also been a guest member of Band From TV, a band made up of actors from various American TV shows.
. He dated Caitlin Crosby
from 2008 to January 2010.
Levi is an Evangelical Christian and has been since childhood. In a 2002 interview with Relevant Magazine
, he said, "My job on my set, I believe, is to first just love people and gain that trust with people where they know that I really do love them and care about their well-being, so that when they are running into problems, they will hopefully, at some point, come to me and ask me, 'What is your peace all about? What is your comfort all about? Where do you get your love? Where do you get your talents?' And I can turn to them and say without blinking, 'Jesus Christ.'"
In September 2010, Levi started his own company, The Nerd Machine
.
Levi was selected as a participant in the Celebrity All Star Game at NBA All Star Weekend 2011
at Los Angeles. He played for the team coached by Magic Johnson
.
.
Less Than Perfect
Less Than Perfect is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from October 1, 2002, to June 6, 2006. The show was about a young female office employee and her co-workers...
, Chuck Bartowski
Chuck Bartowski
Charles Irving "Chuck" Bartowski is the main and titular character of the American fiction television show Chuck on NBC. He is portrayed by Zachary Levi.-Character profile:...
in Chuck
Chuck (TV series)
Chuck is an action-comedy/spy-drama television program from the United States created by Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak. The series is about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" named Chuck, played by Zachary Levi, who receives an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the Central...
, and Flynn Rider in Tangled.
Early life
Zachary Levi Pugh was born in Lake Charles, LouisianaLake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Located in Calcasieu Parish, a major cultural, industrial, and educational center in the southwest region of the state, and one of the most important in...
, to Susy and Darrell Pugh.He is the middle child between two sisters, Sarah and Shekinah. He is of Welsh
Welsh American
Welsh Americans are citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Wales. In the 2008 U.S. Census community survey, an estimated 1.98 million Americans had Welsh ancestry, 0.6% of the total U.S. population. This compares with a population of 3 million in Wales. However,...
ancestry. As a child, his family moved all over the country before making their final move to their new home in Ventura, California
Ventura, California
Ventura is the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States, incorporated in 1866. The population was 106,433 at the 2010 census, up from 100,916 at the 2000 census. Ventura is accessible via U.S...
, where Levi attended Buena High School
Buena High School (California)
-External links:**...
for four years. He began acting in theatre at the age of six, performing lead roles in regional productions such as Grease, The Outsiders, Oliver,The Wizard of Oz and Big River at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center.
Career
Levi first appeared in the FXFX Networks
FX is the name of a number of related pay television channels owned by News Corporation's Fox Entertainment Group...
television movie Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie. He played Kipp Steadman on the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
sitcom Less Than Perfect
Less Than Perfect
Less Than Perfect is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from October 1, 2002, to June 6, 2006. The show was about a young female office employee and her co-workers...
. He also portrayed a potential boyfriend of Charisma Carpenter
Charisma Carpenter
Charisma Lee Carpenter is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cordelia Chase in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel, for which she was nominated for four Saturn Awards. In her most recent film she starred opposite Sylvester Stallone and Jason...
's character, Jane, in the ABC Family television movie See Jane Date
See Jane Date
See Jane Date is a romantic comedy film released on August 16, 2003 by ABC Family. It is based on the book of the same name, written by Melissa Senate.- Synopsis :...
. Levi was slated to be a lead in an ABC pilot called Three for the 2004/2005 television season. It was written by Andrew Reich & Ted Cohen, and would have costarred James Van Der Beek
James Van Der Beek
James William Van Der Beek, Jr. is an American television, film, and stage actor, known for his portrayal of Dawson Leery in The WB series Dawson's Creek...
, Jama Williamson
Jama Williamson
Jama Williamson is an American actress. She was active in New York City theater throughout the early 2000s, during which she appeared in such shows as Avery Crozier's Eat the Runt, Hunt Holman's Spanish Girl, A. R. Gurney's Sylvia and Simon Mendes da Costa's Losing Louis...
, and Jacob Pitts
Jacob Pitts
Jacob Pitts is an actor. His most notable performance was in the film EuroTrip as Cooper Harris. He appeared in the play Where Do We Live at the Vineyard Theatre in May 2004...
, but the show was not picked up. Levi financed Kendall Payne
Kendall Payne
Kendall Payne is a singer/songwriter of indie rock music who was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Her first album, Jordan's Sister, was released by Capitol Records in 1999 and sold over 100,000 copies...
's album Grown after she was dropped by her label, Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
.
He landed the starring role in Chuck
Chuck (TV series)
Chuck is an action-comedy/spy-drama television program from the United States created by Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak. The series is about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" named Chuck, played by Zachary Levi, who receives an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the Central...
, a series that has finished its fourth season. Levi and his Chuck co-star, Yvonne Strahovski
Yvonne Strahovski
Yvonne Strahovski is an Australian actress. Born in Australia to Polish immigrant parents, Strahovski speaks Polish and English...
, were both nominated for Best Action Actor and Actress Choice TV Series for the Teen Choice Awards
Teen Choice Awards
The Teen Choice Awards, are an annual awards show that air on the Fox cable channel, that honor the year's biggest biggest achievements in music, movies, sports, television, fashion and more, voted by teen viewers aged 14 through 17. Winners receive an authentic full size surfboard designed with...
2010 where they both won and presented.In the summer of 2008, Levi was named one of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s Top Thirty People Under Thirty. He later starred in the film Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel is a 2009 American comedy film directed by Betty Thomas. The film stars Zachary Levi, David Cross, Jason Lee, and the voices of Justin Long, Jesse McCartney, Matthew Gray Gubler, Christina Applegate, Amy Poehler, and Anna Faris...
in the lead role as the Chipmunks' cousin Toby Seville. He stars alongside Mandy Moore
Mandy Moore
Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore is an American singer-songwriter, actress and fashion designer. Moore became famous as a teenager in the late 1990s, after the release of her teen pop albums So Real, I Wanna Be with You, and Mandy Moore. In 2007, she took an adult pop-folk direction with the release of...
in the 2010 Disney-animated feature film Tangled, which is based on the popular fairy tale Rapunzel
Rapunzel
"Rapunzel" is a German fairy tale in the collection assembled by the Brothers Grimm, and first published in 1812 as part of Children's and Household Tales. The Grimm Brothers' story is an adaptation of the fairy tale Persinette by Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force originally published in 1698...
. He voices Flynn Rider, a bandit who finds refuge in Rapunzel's tower. Levi provided narration in the 2011 film Under the Boardwalk: The Monopoly Story, a documentary about the game of Monopoly
Monopoly (game)
Marvin Gardens, the leading yellow property on the board shown, is actually a misspelling of the original location name, Marven Gardens. The misspelling was said to be introduced by Charles Todd and passed on when his home-made Monopoly board was copied by Charles Darrow and thence to Parker...
.
Music
In April 2010, Katharine McPheeKatharine McPhee
Katharine Hope McPhee is an American pop singer, songwriter, actress, model, and television personality. She gained fame as a contestant on the fifth season of the Fox reality show American Idol in 2006, eventually finishing as the runner-up.Her self-titled debut album was released on RCA Records...
released a preview of a music video to cinemas for her single "Terrified". Levi duets with her on the song (which was re-recorded; the original album version features Jason Reeves
Jason Reeves (songwriter)
Jason Reeves is an ASCAP award-winning, American singer-songwriter and musician. He grew up in Iowa City, Iowa before locating to California in 2005, where he began a long-standing working relationship with producer Mikal Blue and singer Colbie Caillat. He co-wrote many songs with Caillat, most...
) and appears in the music video singing with McPhee. On May 3, 2010, the song was previewed on Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s website and was made available for purchase on iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
. The full video premiered on May, 7th, 2010 on the music video website Vevo
Vevo
Vevo is a music video website. It is a joint venture among Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Abu Dhabi Media with EMI licensing its content to the group without taking an ownership stake. The service was launched officially on December 8, 2009...
.
He is also featured on the soundtrack of the movie Tangled singing a duet with co-star Mandy Moore
Mandy Moore
Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore is an American singer-songwriter, actress and fashion designer. Moore became famous as a teenager in the late 1990s, after the release of her teen pop albums So Real, I Wanna Be with You, and Mandy Moore. In 2007, she took an adult pop-folk direction with the release of...
called "I See the Light," as well as being featured in the song "I've Got a Dream." In honor of the Oscar nomination for Best Original Song, Levi and Moore performed "I See the Light" at the 83rd Academy Awards
83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , honored the best films of 2010 and took place February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, Academy Awards ...
.
He has also been a guest member of Band From TV, a band made up of actors from various American TV shows.
Personal life
Levi is a sports car and motorcycle enthusiast and owns a 2009 Nissan GT-RNissan GT-R
The Nissan GT-R is a sports car produced by Nissan released in Japan on December 6, 2007, the United States on July 4, 2008, and the rest of the world in March 2009.-History:...
. He dated Caitlin Crosby
Caitlin Crosby
Caitlin Crosby is an American singer-songwriter and actress.-Life and career:While in junior high school, Crosby began playing music in church bands. During her teenage years, she was accepted into Beverly Hills High School theater program, where she first began her acting career...
from 2008 to January 2010.
Levi is an Evangelical Christian and has been since childhood. In a 2002 interview with Relevant Magazine
Relevant Magazine
RELEVANT Magazine is a bimonthly magazine providing content on “God, life, and progressive culture”. It is published by RELEVANT Media Group and a circulation of 56,667. Its companion web presence, RELEVANTmagazine.com, launched in 2002 with the email newsletter, 850 Words of RELEVANT...
, he said, "My job on my set, I believe, is to first just love people and gain that trust with people where they know that I really do love them and care about their well-being, so that when they are running into problems, they will hopefully, at some point, come to me and ask me, 'What is your peace all about? What is your comfort all about? Where do you get your love? Where do you get your talents?' And I can turn to them and say without blinking, 'Jesus Christ.'"
In September 2010, Levi started his own company, The Nerd Machine
The Nerd Machine
The Nerd Machine, commonly referred to as TNM, is an American based company and website founded by Zachary Levi in November 2010. Levi along with Chuck prop master David Coleman and Courtney Coleman launched the online community website to spread the ‘nerd’ culture. It is possible to from the site...
.
Levi was selected as a participant in the Celebrity All Star Game at NBA All Star Weekend 2011
2011 NBA All-Star Game
The 2011 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game that was played on February 20, 2011 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, home of the Los Angeles Clippers and the Los Angeles Lakers. This game was the 60th edition of the National Basketball Association All-Star Game and was...
at Los Angeles. He played for the team coached by Magic Johnson
Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player who played point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . After winning championships in high school and college, Johnson was selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers...
.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Big Shot: Confessions of a Campus Bookie | Adam | |
| 2002–2006 | Less than Perfect Less Than Perfect Less Than Perfect is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from October 1, 2002, to June 6, 2006. The show was about a young female office employee and her co-workers... |
Kipp Steadman | TV, 81 episodes |
| 2003 | See Jane Date See Jane Date See Jane Date is a romantic comedy film released on August 16, 2003 by ABC Family. It is based on the book of the same name, written by Melissa Senate.- Synopsis :... |
Grant Asher | Television film |
| 2003 | The Division The Division The Division is an American Lifetime Television original series about a team of women police officers in the San Francisco Police Department. The series premiered on January 7, 2001 and ended on June 28, 2004 after 88 episodes.-Synopsis:... |
Todd | TV, 2 episodes: "The Box" and "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here" |
| 2004 | Curb Your Enthusiasm Curb Your Enthusiasm Curb Your Enthusiasm is an American comedy television series produced and broadcast by HBO, which premiered on October 15, 2000. As of 2011, it has completed 80 episodes over eight seasons. The series was created by Seinfeld co-creator Larry David, who stars as a fictionalized version of himself... |
Bellman | TV, 1 episode: "Opening Night" |
| 2005 | Reel Guerrillas | Evon Schwarz | |
| 2006 | Big Momma's House 2 Big Momma's House 2 Big Momma's House 2 is a 2006 American crime comedy film directed by John Whitesell and written by Don Rhymer. The film is a sequel to Big Momma's House and stars Martin Lawrence reprising his role as FBI agent Malcolm Turner. The film was released theatrically on 27 January 2006, and was... |
Kevin | |
| 2007 | Spiral | Berkeley | |
| 2007 | Ctrl Z | Ben Pillar | Short film |
| 2007–2012 | Chuck Chuck (TV series) Chuck is an action-comedy/spy-drama television program from the United States created by Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak. The series is about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" named Chuck, played by Zachary Levi, who receives an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the Central... |
Chuck Bartowski Chuck Bartowski Charles Irving "Chuck" Bartowski is the main and titular character of the American fiction television show Chuck on NBC. He is portrayed by Zachary Levi.-Character profile:... |
TV, 80 episodes Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actor – Action 2010 Teen Choice Awards 2010 Teen Choice Awards were held on August 8, introducing a lot of new categories now separated into "Movie", "TV", "Music", "Summer", "Fashion" and "Other". The show aired on August 9, 2010 on Fox, co-hosted by Katy Perry, who also performed, and Cory Monteith, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, and... Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor–Television Series Musical or Comedy Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Actor on Television Saturn Award for Best Actor on Television The following are a list of Saturn Award nominees & winners for Best Actor on Television:*1996: Kyle Chandler - Early Edition**Avery Brooks - Star Trek: Deep Space Nine**Eric Close - Dark Skies**David Duchovny - The X-Files... Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actor – Action 2011 Teen Choice Awards The 2011 Teen Choice Awards hosted by Kaley Cuoco aired live on August 7, 2011 at 8/7c on Fox. This was the first time that the ceremonies were aired live since the 2007 show... Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Breakout Star – Male Teen Choice Awards The Teen Choice Awards, are an annual awards show that air on the Fox cable channel, that honor the year's biggest biggest achievements in music, movies, sports, television, fashion and more, voted by teen viewers aged 14 through 17. Winners receive an authentic full size surfboard designed with... |
| 2008 | Wieners | Ben | |
| 2008 | The Tiffany Problem | Zac | |
| 2008 | An American Carol An American Carol An American Carol is a 2008 American comedy film directed by David Zucker and starring Kevin Farley. In some other countries the film is known as Big Fat Important Movie... |
Lab Tech #1 | |
| 2008 | Shades of Ray Shades of Ray Shades of Ray is a 2008 independent film written and directed by Jaffar Mahmood. The film stars Zachary Levi as a half-white, half-Pakistani man wrestling with his mixed identity while waiting for his white girlfriend to respond to his marriage proposal... |
Ray Rehman | |
| 2009 | Stuntmen | Troy Ratowski | |
| 2009 | Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel is a 2009 American comedy film directed by Betty Thomas. The film stars Zachary Levi, David Cross, Jason Lee, and the voices of Justin Long, Jesse McCartney, Matthew Gray Gubler, Christina Applegate, Amy Poehler, and Anna Faris... |
Toby Seville | |
| 2010 | Byron Phillips: Found | Byron Phillips | |
| 2010 | Tangled | Eugene Fitzherbert/Flynn Rider | Voice Nominated—Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Animated Voice Teen Choice Awards The Teen Choice Awards, are an annual awards show that air on the Fox cable channel, that honor the year's biggest biggest achievements in music, movies, sports, television, fashion and more, voted by teen viewers aged 14 through 17. Winners receive an authentic full size surfboard designed with... |
| 2010 | Under the Boardwalk: The MONOPOLY Story | Narrator | Voice |
| 2011 | The Guild The Guild The Guild is an American comedy web series created and written by Felicia Day, who also stars as Cyd Sherman . It premiered on YouTube on July 27, 2007. Subsequent webisodes premiered on Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace, Zune Marketplace, and MSN Video. The webisodes were later made available on... |
Himself | Episode: "Social Traumas" |
Discography
- "Terrified" (2010) — Performed by Katharine McPheeKatharine McPheeKatharine Hope McPhee is an American pop singer, songwriter, actress, model, and television personality. She gained fame as a contestant on the fifth season of the Fox reality show American Idol in 2006, eventually finishing as the runner-up.Her self-titled debut album was released on RCA Records...
featuring Zachary Levi. - "I See the Light" (2010) — Performed by Zachary Levi and Mandy MooreMandy MooreAmanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore is an American singer-songwriter, actress and fashion designer. Moore became famous as a teenager in the late 1990s, after the release of her teen pop albums So Real, I Wanna Be with You, and Mandy Moore. In 2007, she took an adult pop-folk direction with the release of...
for the film Tangled.
Live performances
On February 27, 2011, Levi performed "I See the Light" with Mandy Moore at the 83rd Academy Awards83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , honored the best films of 2010 and took place February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, Academy Awards ...
.
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Halo: Reach Halo: Reach Halo: Reach is a first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox 360 console. Reach was released in North America, Australia, and Europe on September 14, 2010. The game takes place in the year 2552, where humanity is locked in a war with the... |
Trooper 4 | |
| 2010 | Fallout: New Vegas Fallout: New Vegas Fallout: New Vegas is a first person action role-playing video game in the Fallout series developed by Obsidian Entertainment, and published by Bethesda Softworks. The game is based in a post-apocalyptic environment in and around Las Vegas, Nevada... |
Arcade Gannon |