Doug Walker (comedian)
American comedian and YouTuber (born 1981) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Douglas Darien Walker (born November 17, 1981) is an American comedian, film critic, actor and YouTuber. He is best known for creating and starring in the satirical film review web series Nostalgia Critic, wherein the titular character reviews nostalgic media in an angry or profane manner.[3] After an initial run on YouTube, Walker co-created the website That Guy with the Glasses (later merged into Channel Awesome) in 2008, where he and the series gained wider popularity. The site also presented other media critics who created similar content, including Lindsay Ellis and Angry Joe. Walker and his series returned to YouTube in 2012.[4][5]
| Doug Walker | |
|---|---|
Walker at the Grand Rapids Comic-Con in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 2022 | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | Douglas Darien Walker November 17, 1981[1] Naples, Italy |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Northern Illinois University (BA) |
| Occupations |
|
| Spouse |
Robin Poage (m. 2012) |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Genre | Film reviews |
| Subscribers | 1.39 million[2] |
| Views | 1.23 billion[2] |
| Associated acts | |
Last updated: April 7, 2024 | |
Early life and education
Walker is the son of Barney (b. 1946), a naval officer and musician, and Sandra Ruth (née Polkow) Walker (1947–2016), a therapist.[6] Both parents, as well as Walker's older brother Rob (b. 1979), would later appear regularly in his videos. Due to his father's career, Walker was born on a naval base in Naples, Italy, and moved frequently as a child, spending parts of his childhood in Rhode Island, Washington, and Jacksonville, Florida, before moving to the Chicago, Illinois, area in his teen years.
Walker attended and graduated from Northern Illinois University, majoring in mass communication and minoring in visual art, also serving as an editor and cartoonist for the school newspaper.[7]
Nostalgia Critic
Summarize
Perspective
After graduating college, Walker worked as an illustrator and janitor. He started making videos on the then fairly new video sharing site YouTube in his spare time. Although his early Nostalgia Critic videos were popular, Walker claims his rise to internet fame first came from the success of his 5 Second Movies edits. Walker has stated that the Nostalgia Critic character is primarily inspired by Daffy Duck and the Queen of Hearts, as well as by comedians Lewis Black, Stephen Colbert, and Bill Murray.[8]
In 2008, Walker moved his skits from YouTube to independent site That Guy With the Glasses, later renamed Channel Awesome, with videos hosted via Blip.tv.[9] The majority of his skits have since been reuploaded to YouTube, and form a full web series spanning several seasons. Walker now works as a full-time content creator and staff member of Channel Awesome in Chicago, under the leadership of CEO Mike Michaud.[10]
In September 2012, Walker announced that the Nostalgia Critic series would be ending and that he and his brother would create the sketch comedy web series Demo Reel. In January 2013, however, Walker released "The Review Must Go On", a short film announcing that the series would continue. The new incarnation would co-star Malcolm Ray and Rachel Tietz of Demo Reel, playing fictionalized versions of themselves as well as performing in sketches. Tamara Chambers would later join the series following Tietz's departure.[11]
In March 2018, numerous former Channel Awesome contributors and employees accused the company of widespread mismanagement and mistreatment, culminating in the Twitter hashtag #ChangeTheChannel and a Google Doc entitled "Not So Awesome" chronicling the complaints of over 20 contributors.[12][13]
Influences
Walker has cited many influences on his acting and style of comedy, including Mystery Science Theater 3000, Monty Python, The Simpsons, Lewis Black, Tom and Jerry, Mel Brooks, South Park, Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker, Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, Rowan Atkinson, Bill Murray, Animaniacs, Dave Chappelle, Robin Williams, and especially Looney Tunes (particularly Daffy Duck).[14]
Personal life
Walker has been married to clinical social worker and therapist Robin Poage since 2012.[15][16][17]
In his Nostalgia Critic review of The Land Before Time in 2024, he mentioned that he very likely has ADHD and OCD.[18] In his review of Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief in 2019, he mentioned having slight dyslexia.[citation needed]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Kickassia | Nostalgia Critic / Spider Smith / Chester A. Bum / Ask That Guy with the Glasses / Dominic | Also director, editor, executive producer, and writer[19] |
| 2011 | Suburban Knights | Nostalgia Critic / Ask That Guy with the Glasses / Chester A. Bum | Also cinematographer, director, editor, executive producer, and writer[20] |
| 2012 | To Boldly Flee | Nostalgia Critic / General Zodd / Chester A. Bum / Ask That Guy with the Glasses / Soldier / Himself / Additional Voices | Also camera operator, director, editor, and writer |
| 2013 | Sonic | G.U.N. Soldier | Short film |
| 2014 | Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie | Himself | Cameo |
| 2015 | Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie | Dominic / Lori Prince / Nostalgia Critic | |
| 2016 | Room Full of Spoons | Himself | Documentary film[21] |
| 2017 | Jesus, Bro! | Samuel Tobinski / Kendrick Tobinski | [22][23] |
| Disco | Rudy | ||
| 2019 | Another Cinema Snob Movie | Bally Joe | |
| 2022 | Adam Heatherly's Frankenstein! | Professor William Barter | [24] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Smiling Friends | Daniel the Demon Slayer | Episode: "Erm, the Boss Finds Love?"[25][26] |
Web
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–present | Nostalgia Critic | Nostalgia Critic / Chester A. Bum / Devil Boner / ThatGuy / Raoul Puke / Various | Also director, writer, editor, and producer |
| 2008–2016 | Bum Reviews | Chester A. Bum | Also director, writer, editor, and producer |
| 2008–2014 | Ask That Guy with the Glasses | That Guy with the Glasses | Also director, writer, editor, and producer |
| 2012–2013 | Demo Reel | Donnie DuPre/Jimmy Boyd/Doug Walker/Nostalgia Critic | Also director, writer, editor, and producer[27] |
| 2010–present | The Cinema Snob | Nostalgia Critic / Chester A. Bum / Luigi Mario / Christopher Walken's Arm / Ask That Guy with the Glasses | Also writer |
| 2012; 2013 | Joueur du Grenier | Nostalgia Critic | 2 episodes |
| 2014 | Everything Wrong with... | Himself | Episode: How the Grinch Stole Christmas |
| 2015 | James and Mike Mondays | Himself | 4 episodes |
| 2016 | Honest Trailers | Himself | Episode: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of Their Shells (feat. The Nostalgia Critic) |
| 2018–2020 | Cinemassacre | Himself / Nicolas Cage | 6 episodes[28] |
Discography
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Nostalgia Critic's The Wall[a] |
|
Singles
References
Notes
External links
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