David Herman makes small grievances funny by taking them seriously. His Michael Bolton in Office Space is a persuasive case for a supporting actor who gives a slight joke more conviction than it ought to need.
Fi1m perspective
In Office Space (1999), David Herman plays Michael Bolton as a man whose annoyance deserves to be heard, however slight the joke about his name. We laughed because Herman gives that annoyance the conviction of a complaint nobody has properly answered. He lets us understand the grievance without requiring us to think it important, which is a useful skill in a workplace comedy. The writing has only so much to offer the joke; Herman supplies enough frustration to keep it going.
He was an original cast member of MADtv (1995), working in sketch characters and celebrity impersonations, before voice work on King of the Hill (1997) brought him into contact with Mike Judge. Judge wrote the part of Bolton for him, and the casting makes sense: Herman can be louder than the central character without making the surrounding workplace seem less recognisable. Their collaboration continued with Idiocracy (2006), in which Herman played the Secretary of State. But it is the ordinary employee, nursing an ordinary irritation, who gives us the clearest reason to value him.
Ron Livingston keeps Peter's dissatisfaction quiet, leaving room for Herman and Ajay Naidu, as Samir, to register the louder complaints around him. The effect is to make the office's unhappiness feel shared, rather than something peculiar to the leading man. This is where Herman works best for us: among other actors, giving their predicament another recognisable response rather than trying to take over the scene. The film's plot loses force in the final third, but these workplace relationships remain worth the evening.
From the late 1990s, animation became his principal work, including Futurama and Bob's Burgers. In Futurama (1999), he voices Scruffy, Roberto and other characters. Occasional live-action appearances continued, but supporting parts and voice roles account for much of his career. For the clearest view of what we value in him, start with Office Space and pay attention to the men beside Peter.
Biography
David Herman is an American actor, comedian and voice actor. Born in New York City on 20 February 1967, he was raised in Washington Heights, Manhattan. He graduated from the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in 1985 and attended the acting programme at the State University of New York at Purchase.
Herman was an original cast member of the sketch comedy series MADtv from 1995 to 1997. He played Michael Bolton in the 1999 film Office Space. He has provided voices for hundreds of episodes of animated series including King of the Hill, Futurama, American Dad! and Bob's Burgers, and has appeared in films such as Dude, Where's My Car? (2000) and Idiocracy (2006).
