After over 20 years Christopher Guest’s mockumentaryBest in Showis still a hilarious romp through the wild world of competitive dog shows. Guest and star Eugene Levy co-wrote the film, having previously worked together on the first of the director’s legendary mockumentaries,Waiting for Guffman.Best in Showfeatures a cavalcade of comedy legends including Catherine O’Hara and Jennifer Coolidge, among others, all of whom had experience not just as actors but as writers.
In anoral history celebrating the film’s 20th anniversary, O’Hara credited this as the reason why the mostly improv film works so well, stating “the people who are best at the improvised acting are actual writers.” The cast worked off of a short narrative outline and extensive bios of their characters, improvising from there.
Best in Showalso left a huge mark on the community it satirized. When Jon Miller, head of NBC Sports, saw the film in 2002, he was inspired tobring a real dog show to prime time. Since then, the National Dog Show has aired each Thanksgiving on NBC to millions of viewers.
Funnily enough, Levy didn’t think the world of dog shows was a good subject when Guest brought the idea to him. Since the film’s debut in 2000, its stars have gone on to continued acclaim in the comedy world and beyond. Here’s where the cast ofBest in Showis today.
Eugene Levy as Gerry Fleck
Best in Showco-writerEugene Levy, playing Gerry Fleck, is probably most famous to older viewers for his role in theAmerican Piefilms. To modern audiences, though, Levy is undoubtedly recognized for his starring role as Jonny Rose in the hit TV comedySchitt’s Creek, which he created with his son and costar, Dan Levy.
AfterSchitt’s Creek, Levy hosted the Apple TV+ travel documentaryThe Reluctant Traveler, which isset for a second seasonin the near future. In the show, Levy visits fascinating and beautiful destinations around the world, exploring their most remarkable places and unique cultures. And even if you’re not seeing him, you can hear Levy in theBig MouthspinoffHuman Resourcesas Sarah’s dad, Paul Crumbhorn.
Catherine O’Hara as Cookie Fleck
No stranger to playing Levy’s wife,Catherine O’Harastars inBest in Showas Cookie Fleck. The actress’s face will, of course, be most familiar for her role asmatriarch Moira Rose inSchitt’s Creek. During that time, she also guest starred on a season seven episode ofModern Familyand played Dr. Georgina Orwell in the Netflix adaptation ofA Series of Unfortunate Events.
Excitingly for Tim Burton fans, O’Hara is also set to reprise her role as Delia Deetz in the highly anticipated sequel,Beetlejuice 2. O’Hara doesn’t just work in live action and has a long and prolific career as a voice actress. All the emo kids might recognize her as Sally from the classicA Nightmare Before Christmas, but she’s since voiced dozens of characters on both the big and small screens.
Most recently, O’Hara played Wade’s mother Brook Ripple in Disney’sElemental.
Jennifer Coolidge as Sherri Ann Cabot
Emmy Award winnerJennifer Coolidge, who plays Sherri Ann Cabot, is another face familiar to fans of theAmerican Piefilms, but she’s alsoinstantly recognizable as the “bend and snap” champ Paulette BonafontéfromLegally Blonde. The actress has a decades-long career in film and television, most recently in Netflix’s horror-comedyWe Have a Ghost.
Related:10 Highly Underrated Jennifer Coolidge Performances
Prestige TV watchers will know Coolidge from her role as heiress Tanya McQuoid in both seasons of the hit comedyThe White Lotus. In 2022, she also starred as scheming real estate agent Karen Calhoun in Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s Netflix thrillerThe Watcher.
Jane Lynch as Christy Cummings
Playing dog trainer Christy Cummings is celebrated comedianJane Lynch, who gained widespread fame in the 2010s for her role as Sue Sylvester in the musical comedyGlee. Lynch is a powerhouse of an actress with decades of live-action and voiceover roles to her name. In Hulu’sOnly Murders in the Building, Lynch guest starred as Sazz Pataki, stunt double to Steve Martin’s Charles-Haden Savage.
In the past few years, Lynch has done mostly voice work, including playing one of Daphne’s moms in thewidely hated Scooby Doo spinoff,Velma.Also in 2023, Lynch played the mysterious Bobbi St. Simone in theVenture Bros. finale film,Radiant Is the Blood of the Baboon Heart.
Parker Posey as Meg Swan
In the same year thatParker Poseyplayed Meg Swan inBest in Show, she also appeared in theoft-malignedScream 3as Jennifer Jolie, the actress playing Gale Weathers inStab3. Most recently, Posey graced the big screen as Elaine Bray in Ari Aster’sBeau Is Afraid.
The actress was a series regular on Netflix’sLost in Spacereboot, where she played Dr. Zoe Smith, aka June Harris. In the true crime dramaThe Staircase, Posey played Durham County prosecutor Freda Black. Additionally, the actress starred in an episode ofTales of The Walking Deadalongside comedian Jillian Bell in the episode “Blair/Gina.”
Michael Hitchcock as Hamilton Swan
Groundlings alumnusMichael Hitchcockplays Meg’s yuppie husband Hamilton Swan.Like many character actorsHitchcock may not be extremely well known by name, but he can be found in dozens of film and television projects over the years. The actor’s credits include episodes ofArrested Development,Party Down,Veep,The Goldbergs, andCurb Your Enthusiasm.
These days, Hitchcock regularly shows up as a guest star in a variety of shows such asA League of Their OwnandThe Resort. Hitchcock’s most recent role was in the Netflix romantic comedyYour Place or Mine.
Fred Willard as Buck Laughlin
Fred Willard’shilarious role as clueless dog show announcerBuck Laughlin was inspired by a real broadcaster. To prepare him for the role, Guest sent Willard tapes from previous Westminster Dog Shows and asked him to emulate host Joe Garagiola. Like Buck Laughlin, Garagiola seemed to put in no effort to learn about the dogs he was watching.
Willard passed in 2020, but his legacy lives on in his decades-long career. He was a regular guest onModern Familyas Phil’s goofy father Frank Dunphy, a role which won him two Primetime Emmy Award nominations. The actor also appeared in a first-season episode of the absurdly delightful sketch-comedy seriesI Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson.
Willard’s final film role was in the documentaryHave a Good Trip: Adventures in Psychedelics, a documentary about celebrities sharing their stories about hallucinogenic drugs that also featured the final film appearances of Carrie Fisher and Anthony Bourdain.
John Michael Higgins as Scott Donlan
Character actorJohn Michael HigginsplayedBest in Show’sScott Donlan, one-half of the campy gay couple competing in the show. Higgins is a comedy icon, even if his name doesn’t seem familiar. With hundreds of credits to his name, Higgins has played parts in modern classics likeCommunityandArrested Development. He also played the role of competition commentator John Smith in thePitch Perfectseries of films.
Higgins is a regular voice actor as well. Fans of theAvatar: The Last Airbenderfranchise will recognize him as Varrick, the scumbag director turned fascist-fighting hero inThe Legend of Korra. The actor’s most recent roles include a distasteful turn as Jerry Frick in Paul Thomas Anderson’sLicorice Pizzaand Principal Toddman in the 2020Saved by the Bellrevival. But of all his credits, Higgins’ name might be most familiar to game show fans: the actor has hosted the popularAmerica Sayssince its premiere in 2018.
Michael McKean as Stefan Vanderhoof
Starring opposite Higgins inBest in ShowisMichael McKeanas Scott’s partner, Stefan Vanderhoof. Another Christopher Guest regular, McKean starred in Rob Reiner’sThis Is Spinal Tapas the band’s lead singer, David St. Hubbins. The actor’s most recent film roles include a small role as “Sleazy DJ” inWeird: The Al Yankovic Storyand retiree neighbor Howard inJerry & Marge Go Large.
McKean might be most familiar to modern audiences, though, for his role as Chuck McGill on the hitBreaking Badspinoff,Better Call Saul. Other recent roles include Witchfinder Sergeant Shadwell inGood Omensand a version of real-life monster J. Marion Sims in the miniseriesDead Ringers.
Christopher Guest as Harlan Pepper
Filling out the list ofBest in Showcontestants is the director himself. The legendary mockumentary maker has made several classic, and some not-so-classic, films over the years featuring himself and his regular cadre of actors.Christopher Guestis also a prolific actor, with perhaps his most famous role being that of the six-fingered man, Count Rugen, in the classic comedyThe Princess Bride.
Guest’s most contemporary film, 2016’sMascots, didn’t fare as well with critics as his previous outings, with many finding it to be a tired retread of the formula he mastered 20 years earlier. Since then, Guest’s only work has been a guest role as Clem Clam in Season 13 ofSpongeBob SquarePants.
Other than a role in theupcomingSpinal Tapsequel, Guest doesn’t have anything on the books. It seems the director is content reflecting on his iconic body of work and the stars that grew out of them, along with living out life with wife Jamie Lee Curtis.
