# Danny Pudi

Daniel Mark Pudi (born March 10, 1979) is an American actor and director. His roles include Abed Nadir on the NBC sitcom Community (2009–2015), for which he received three nominations for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and one nomination for the TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy. Since 2020 he has starred as Brad Bakshi in the Apple TV+ comedy series Mythic Quest. He was the voice of Huey Duck on the 2017 reboot of DuckTales.

## Early life

Daniel Mark Pudi was born in Chicago on March 10, 1979, the son of programmer and analyst Teresa (née Komendant) and Abraham L. Pudi (1955–2018). His parents immigrated to the U.S. and became naturalized citizens: his mother came from the village of Pokośno, Poland, and his father came from the village of Poduru, India, and was from a Telugu Christian family. Pudi grew up speaking Polish with his mother and grandmother.
He grew up on the South Side of Chicago with brother Adam and sister Katherine and attended Notre Dame College Prep in Niles, a northern suburb. In 2013, he gave the commencement address at Notre Dame College Prep.
Pudi studied dance in Chicago and attended Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, graduating with a degree in communication and theatre in 2001. At Marquette, he was the first winner of the Chris Farley Scholarship. Beyond paying for a year of school, the scholarship led to him performing at an improv comedy event featuring Jim Breuer and Dave Chappelle, increasing his interest in studying improv. After Marquette, he performed in summer stock theatre in Wisconsin, studied at The Second City in Chicago, and joined Stir Friday Night!, a sketch comedy ensemble of Asian American performers. Other SFN alumni include Steven Yeun.

## Career

Pudi became a recruiter for an executive search firm before moving to Los Angeles in 2005 to seek television and film roles. His job, whereby he was a remote worker, permitted him to attend auditions, helping him avoid the "struggling actor thing in terms of waiting tables, temping and so on". He performed in several television pilots before joining the cast of Community, which he starred in for six seasons from 2009 to 2015.
He has appeared in multiple television advertisements for such products as Snickers, Verizon, McDonald's, T-Mobile, and Far Cry 4. In 2012, he appeared as a celebrity contestant on GSN's version of The Pyramid with fellow Community cast member Yvette Nicole Brown.
In film, he portrayed Arash in the comedy film Road Trip: Beer Pong, and starred in the comedy horror film Knights of Badassdom, which was one of the highlights of Comic Con 2011, according to HitFix.com. He starred in the Jones Street Station music video for "The Understanding". He has made cameo appearances in many internet videos, including BriTANicK's "A Monologue for Three". Pudi had a cameo appearance in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and the live episode of Hot in Cleveland, as well as a cameo in Star Trek Beyond.
In the autumn of 2014, Pudi appeared in the off-Broadway musical FOUND. He played the lead role in The Tiger Hunter, an independent film directed by Lena Khan in 2016 and funded through a Kickstarter campaign. In 2017, Pudi began voicing Huey Duck in the DuckTales reboot. He also appeared as Teddy on the NBC sitcom Powerless in the same year.
Pudi plays Brad Bakshi in the TV series Mythic Quest, which premiered in February 2020. His first play, entitled Running, was created for the En Garde Arts' series Uncommon Voices and made public in August 2020. The production tackles his attempt to piece together his relationship with his father, which affected his personal identity, cultural background, and his experience with racism throughout his personal life and career. The play was turned into a short film, directed by Arpita Mukherjee, and released in 2022.
He reunited with Community co-star Alison Brie in the 2022 film Somebody I Used to Know, co-written by Brie.
In 2024, Pudi began his role of The Mechanist in Netflix's live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender.

## Personal life

Pudi is married to Bridget Showalter. They met while attending Marquette University in their freshman year. Their twins, a son and a daughter, were born in January 2012. Pudi is also a runner and has completed several marathons.
Pudi bought a house in Pasadena, California, in 2014.

## Filmography

Key :
| † | Denotes works that have not yet been released |

### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2007 | Cop Show | Saffa | Short films |
| 2009 | Road Trip: Beer Pong | Arash | |
| 2009 | Nilam Auntie: An International Treasure | Melvin | Short film |
| 2010 | Blowout Sale | Glen | Short film; also writer |
| 2011 | Fully Loaded | Danny | |
| 2011 | Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil | Little Boy Blue | Voice |
| 2011 | Where the Magic Happens | Unknown role | Short film; also writer |
| 2012 | Leader of the Pack | Doug | Short film |
| 2012 | The Guilt Trip | Sanjay | Uncredited |
| 2012 | Flatland 2: Sphereland | Puncto | Voice |
| 2013 | The Pretty One | Dr. Rao | |
| 2013 | Vijay and I | Rad | |
| 2013 | The Knights of Badassdom | Lando | |
| 2014 | Untucked | — | Documentary short; also director, producer and writer |
| 2014 | Captain America: The Winter Soldier | Com Tech #1 | Cameo |
| 2015 | Larry Gaye: Renegade Male Flight Attendant | Nathan Vignes | |
| 2016 | The Tiger Hunter | Sami Malik | |
| 2016 | Taken to the Cleaner | Billy | Short film |
| 2016 | Star Trek Beyond | Fi'Ja | Cameo |
| 2016 | After the Sun Fell | Adam | |
| 2017 | Smurfs: The Lost Village | Brainy Smurf | Voice |
| 2018 | Lost Wallet | — | Short film; also director |
| 2018 | Good Girls Get High | Mr. D | |
| 2019 | Babysplitters | Jeff Penaras | |
| 2020 | The Argument | Brett | |
| 2020 | Coffee Shop Names | Deepak | Short film |
| 2021 | Flora & Ulysses | Miller | |
| 2022 | Corner Office | Rakesh | |
| 2022 | American Dreamer | Craig | |
| 2023 | Somebody I Used to Know | Benny | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | ER | Mahir Kardatay | Episode: "Lost in America" |
| 2006 | Gilmore Girls | Raj | 4 episodes |
| 2006 | The West Wing | Santos Aide | Episode: "Two Weeks Out" |
| 2007–2008 | Greek | Sanjay | 4 episodes |
| 2008 | The Bill Engvall Show | Josh | Episode: "A Reptile Dysfunction" |
| 2009–2015 | Community | Abed Nadir | Main cast: 110 episodes TV Guide Award for Favorite Ensemble (2012) Nominated–TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy (2011) Nominated–Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (2011–2013) |
| 2011 | Cougar Town | Abed Nadir | Uncredited cameo Episode: "Something Good Coming" |
| 2011 | Robot Chicken | Various voices | Episode: "The Core, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover" |
| 2011 | Chuck | Vali Chandrasekaren | Episode: "Chuck Versus the Hack Off" |
| 2012 | The Book Club | Danny | 6 episodes; also producer |
| 2013 | Hot in Cleveland | Tommy | Episode: "It's Alive" |
| 2013 | Royal Pains | Garrett | Episode: "Pregnant Paws" |
| 2014 | Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja | Levander Hart | Voice, episode: "Unstank My Hart" |
| 2014 | 30 for 30 Shorts | — | Documentary short; also director, producer and writer |
| 2015 | Newsreaders | Ivan Folange | Episode: "How the Sausage Is Made; Lottery Winners Lose" |
| 2015 | TripTank | Luger, Matt, Football Player #2, Navigator | Voice, 4 episodes |
| 2016 | Dr. Ken | Topher | Episode: "Dave's Valentine" |
| 2016 | Pickle and Peanut | Bike Jumper | Voice, episode: "Bike Jumper" |
| 2016 | Great Minds with Dan Harmon | Buddha | Episode: "The Buddha" |
| 2016 | Angie Tribeca | Garth Tweedner | Episode: "You've Got Blackmail" |
| 2016 | Better Things | Danny | Episode: "Woman Is the Something of the Something" |
| 2017 | Powerless | Teddy | 12 episodes |
| 2017 | The Guest Book | Tim | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | Do You Want to See a Dead Body? | Himself | Episode: "A Body and an Ex-Con" |
| 2017–2021 | DuckTales | Huey Duck | Voice, main role |
| 2018 | Impulse | Beanie | Episode: "They Know Not What They Do" |
| 2018–2020 | Harvey Street Kids | Tiny, Super Todd, Vlad Villainski, Cheesy TV Announcer, Little Lad, Joel | Voice, 28 episodes |
| 2018 | Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters | Calvin Reichart | Episode: "A Better World" |
| 2018 | Alone Together | Chris | Episode: "Big Bear" |
| 2020–present | Mythic Quest | Brad Bakshi | 26 episodes; also director |
| 2020–2022 | Mira, Royal Detective | Sanjeev Joshi | Voice, recurring role |
| 2021 | Calls | Dr. Burman | Voice, episode: "Leap Year Girl" |
| 2021 | Summer Camp Island | Cookiesmell | Voice, episode: "Shave a Little Off the Wheel" |
| 2022 | DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders | Numo | Voice, episode: "And You Are?" |
| 2022 | Home Economics | Brian | Episode: "Santa Suit Rental, $25 Per Day" |
| 2022–present | Transformers: EarthSpark | Bumblebee, Dramatic Voice #2, Smart Trainer 5007, Crowd | Voice, main role |
| 2022 | Kiff | Nick Namé | Voice, episode: "Nicknames" |
| 2023 | Clone High | Dr. Neelankavil | Voice, recurring role |
| 2023 | Strange Planet | Various characters | 9 episodes |
| 2024 | Avatar: The Last Airbender | The Mechanist | Recurring role |
| 2024 | Krapopolis | Orphan | Voice, episode: "Ice Week" |
| 2024 | Pupstruction | Dusty Whiskers | Voice, episode: "Coast Guard Pup"/"The Big Baby Build" |
| 2025-present | Going Dutch | Abraham Shah | Main role |
| 2025 | Chibiverse | Huey Duck | Voice, episode: "The Perfect Gift" |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role |
| 2017 | Hearthstone | Professor George Herbert Doyle IV |