Missi Pyle — Movies, TV Shows & Roles

Actor

1972-11-16 · Houston, Texas, U.S. · Female

44 series in the catalog

Andrea Kay "Missi" Pyle (born November 16, 1972) is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in films such as Galaxy Quest (1999), Josie and the Pussycats (2001), Home Alone 4 (2002), Bringing Down the House (2003), Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), The Artist (2011), Gone Girl (2014), Captain Fantastic (2016), and Ma (2019). Pyle has also appeared in television series including The Mentalist (2010), Cleaners (2013–2014), Jennifer Falls (2014), Another Period (2015–2018), Bordertown (2016), The Soul Man (2016), Mom (2017), Impulse (2018–2019), and Dirty John (2020). As a singer, with actress Shawnee Smith, Pyle is half of Smith & Pyle, a country rock duo.
Early life and education
Pyle was born on November 16, 1972, in Houston, Texas, to Linda and Frank Pyle. She was raised in Tennessee. She graduated from the School of Drama at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 1995. She also studied drama at the Oxford School of Drama.
Career
Pyle played a waitress in 1997's As Good as It Gets. Circa 2001, Pyle and Christina Moore performed with Bitches Funny, an all-female Los Angeles-based sketch comedy ensemble.
Pyle has guest starred on many television shows, including Heroes, Mad About You, Boston Legal, Frasier, The Sarah Silverman Program, and 2 Broke Girls. She started her film career with a minor role in As Good as It Gets, starring Helen Hunt and Jack Nicholson. After her breakout role in Galaxy Quest, Pyle had supporting roles in Bringing Down the House (for which she and Queen Latifah were nominated for an MTV Movie Award for Best Fight), Josie and the Pussycats, Home Alone 4, Exposed, Big Fish, Along Came Polly, Soul Plane, Stormbreaker, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She was the female lead in BachelorMan and appears in Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. Pyle had a brief appearance in 50 First Dates and starred in A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song.
Pyle played Jake's elementary school teacher Ms. Pasternak on Two and a Half Men. However, the role was recast in 2009 for undisclosed reasons. Pyle returned to the series in the same role in 2011 and again in the series finale "Of Course He's Dead" in 2015.
In 2008, Pyle starred in the Broadway play Boeing-Boeing opposite Christine Baranski, Mark Rylance, Greg Germann, Paige Davis and Rebecca Gayheart. The play closed in January 2009.
Pyle was scheduled to ring the closing bell for the trading day at the New York Stock Exchange on September 29, 2008, to promote Boeing-Boeing, but backed out minutes before the close of trading so as not to associate herself with ending a calamitous day of financial turmoil which resulted in the Dow Jones Industrial Average losing 778 points, the largest point loss ever in a session during the 2008 financial crisis. She watched from the floor as an NYSE staffer pushed the button and gaveled the end of trading instead.
Pyle was part of a country music group with actress Shawnee Smith called Smith & Pyle. They met while filming an ABC comedy pilot titled Traveling in Packs. The band started after Smith invited Pyle to join her in attending the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. While stuck in traffic, Pyle talked about her dream to be a rock star and Smith agreed to form a band with her. Their first album, "It's OK to Be Happy", was released digitally through iTunes and Amazon.com in July 2008. The debut album was recorded in Joshua Tree, California at Rancho De La Luna and was produced by Chris Goss. The two actresses have also become business partners and formed their own record label called Urban Prairie Records, under which "It's OK to be Happy" was released. According to an interview Smith did with pretty-scary.net in August 2008, a Smith & Pyle television or webisode series might be in the works. Smith also mentioned the idea of a series on Fangoria radio with Dee Snider. Currently there are three videos posted on YouTube that show the making of the record. They also have a 10-minute "making of" video on Vimeo called Smith & Pyle: Desert Sessions.
Personal life
Pyle married Antonio Sacre, in May 2000. Pyle married wildlife naturalist Casey Anderson on September 12, 2008. The wedding was country-western themed and took place in Montana. Wedding guests included bandmate Shawnee Smith and comedian Steve Agee. Anderson's pet grizzly bear, Brutus, served as his best man in the ceremony. Pyle and Anderson appeared in "Grizzly Dogs", the October 22, 2010, episode of Dog Whisperer, in which they sought the help of Cesar Millan to rehabilitate their dog. Pyle confirmed their breakup in 2013. She has a daughter, Zooey. In 2026 she publicly came out as queer while on the Shut Up Evan podcast, stating that she is “cool with whatever gender” and that she is now “looking for a person or persons”.
Albums
It's OK to Be Happy, Smith & Pyle (2008)
Singles
"One Night Stand", Smith & Pyle (2010)
"Rafael", Smith & Pyle (2010)
Missi Pyle at the Internet Broadway Database
Missi Pyle at the Internet Off-Broadway Database (archived)