Michael Donovan Mitchell (born October 6, 1982) is an American actor, comedian, and writer best known as a member of The Birthday Boys sketch comedy group. He is also known for his roles as Randy Monahan on the Netflix series Love, and Cowan in the Amazon Prime Video film The Tomorrow War. He currently co-hosts the podcast Doughboys (with comedian and writer Nick Wiger), which reviews and discusses chain restaurants.
Early life Mitchell was raised in Quincy, Massachusetts. He briefly attended Thayer Academy before graduating from North Quincy High School. He attended Ithaca College, graduating in May 2005.
Career Mitchell started as an improv and sketch comedian at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater (UCB) in Los Angeles.
He went on to write and star in The Birthday Boys for IFC which aired for two seasons. During this time he also appeared on NBC's Parks and Recreation and IFC's Comedy Bang! Bang! In 2014, he played a fictionalized version of himself in the short film The Badger's Promise, the directorial debuts of friends Harris Wittels and Armen Weitzman.
Mitchell was the head writer of Hidden America with Jonah Ray on the Seeso streaming service, and had the recurring role of Randy Monahan on the Netflix comedy series Love. He also played Cowan in the 2021 movie The Tomorrow War.
The Birthday Boys In 2007, at UCB, Mitchell joined the sketch comedy group The Birthday Boys with Jefferson Dutton, Dave Ferguson, Mike Hanford, Tim Kalpakis, Matt Kowalick, and Chris VanArtsdalen. With the exception of Kowalick, all members of The Birthday Boys graduated from Ithaca College.
Mitchell and The Birthday Boys performed regularly at UCB and the group uploaded original sketches to their YouTube page.
The Birthday Boys gained notoriety within the LA comedy scene, appearing on Comedy Bang! Bang! and called Adam McKay's "favorite sketch group." The group met Bob Odenkirk through a show that Odenkirk's wife, Naomi Yomtov, created at UCB. They began collaborating with Odenkirk and were picked up for a sketch show, The Birthday Boys, at IFC, with Odenkirk and Ben Stiller as executive producers.
Mitchell featured frequently in The Birthday Boys sketches. His notable characters include Woosh, Pretty Dad, and September Santa. The series ran for two seasons before being canceled in 2014.
Mitchell still performs sketch comedy with The Birthday Boys and other projects.
Doughboys Mitchell created the comedy podcast Doughboys with comedy writer Nick Wiger in 2015. Doughboys was named "The One Food Podcast to Start With" by pop culture site Vulture. The co-hosts review chain restaurants with a weekly guest, including Nicole Byer, Haley Joel Osment, Sarah Silverman, and all of the Birthday Boys, among others. His co-host, Nick Wiger invites listeners to submit roasts of Mitchell to be read at the beginning of each episode, which often involve pop culture references and puns based on food or physique.
As of early 2018, the podcast is no longer associated with Feral Audio and is now a member of the HeadGum network. Mitchell and Wiger use Patreon to bring exclusive paid Doughboys content to their subscribers beyond the weekly episodes. As of June 2019, the Doughboys Patreon is the 9th most popular podcast Patreon and the 25th most popular Patreon in general.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 2015 Freaks of Nature Slushy Douche 2016 Other People Donnie 2020 Desperados Sweaty Beard 2021 The Tomorrow War Cowan 2023 Heightened Mitch 2024 Fear of Flying Mark Micro Budget Mike 2025 Maddie's Secret Bloody Patient The Napa Boys Mitch Mitchellson 2026 Sender Steve She Keeps Me Young Rocky
Television Year Title Role Notes 2011–14Parks and Recreation Bjorn Lerpiss 6 episodes2012MyMusicGuess3 episodes 2012–16Comedy Bang! Bang! Mitch / Lonny / Stagehand / Lugger 12 episodes 2013The Mindy Project Brad Episode: "Music Festival" 2013The League Police Officer Episode: "Heavy Petting" 2013–14The Birthday Boys Various Main 2015W/ Bob and David Virgin / Co-worker 2 episodes 2016The UCB Show With The Birthday Boys; Episode: "Eat That Pussy" 2016Bajillion Dollar Propertie$ Mitch Episode: "Make Partner Part 1" 2016Filthy Preppy Teen$ Security Dave 2 episodes 2016Tween Fest Rocco 4 episodes 2016The Simpsons Boston Football Fan (voice) Episode: "The Town" 2016–17Hidden America with Jonah Ray Chazz Duffy 4 episodes 2016–18Love Randy Monahan 22 episodes 2017 Michael Bolton's Big, Sexy Valentine's Day Special Jack Sparrow Chorus TV special 2017 Drive Share Episode: "Thanksgiving" 2017Brooklyn Nine-Nine Kyle Murphy Episode: "The Favor" 2018Alone Together Jake Episode: "Pilot" 2018The Late Late Show with James Corden Dennis Episode: "David Duchovny/Henry Winkler/Billy Corgan" 2018Little Big Awesome Various voices 4 episodes 2019 Craig Fixada America Benjamin Franklin Unknown episodes 2020 Brews Brothers Jack 5 episodes 2021 Kevin Can F**k Himself Bert Episode: "Fixed" 2022 Resident Alien Creepy Boss Episode: "Girls' Night" Dicktown (voice) Episode: "The Mystery of the Marauding Mascot" 2022–23 Killing It Dean Trovia 3 episodes 2023–2025 Twisted Metal Stu Recurring role 2026 Kevin Various voice roles 5 episodes The Comeback Zeke 6 episodes Bad Thoughts Teddy Episode: "Bad Decisions"
Music videos Year Title Artist 2018 "Today Is The Day" EELS 2020 "Are We Alright Again" EELS 2022"Matilda" (dir. Jefferson Dutton)PUP
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