| Phyllis Smith | |
| Birth Date: | 15 August 1949[1] |
| Birth Place: | St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | University of Missouri–St. Louis |
| Years Active: | 1980–present |
Phyllis Smith (born August 15, 1949) is an American actress and casting associate. She is best known for playing Phyllis Vance in the television series The Office and her critically acclaimed voice role as Sadness in Pixar's animated franchise Inside Out. She also starred as Betty Broderick-Allen on the critically acclaimed Netflix series The OA.
Smith was born on August 15, 1949, in St. Louis, Missouri. She graduated from Cleveland High School.[2]
Smith graduated from the University of Missouri–St. Louis in 1972 with a degree in elementary education.[3] In the 1970s and 1980s, she was a dancer, a cheerleader for the St. Louis Cardinals football team, and a burlesque performer.[4] She said that there was "no stripping, but I did wear feathers."[5] She was forced to quit dancing after suffering a knee injury. She later worked in Hollywood, California as an actress and in casting.
Smith was working as a casting associate under the direction of Allison Jones on the television series The Office, when she was offered the role of Phyllis Lapin, a character created specifically for her, a soft-spoken saleswoman who tended to disagree with pompous office manager Michael Scott. She received Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2006 and 2007 for her performance in The Office in the category "Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series". In June 2008, she appeared with the cast of The Office on Celebrity Family Feud. In 2011, she played a supporting role in the film Bad Teacher. In 2015, she voiced the character Sadness in the Pixar film Inside Out, receiving high critical praise for her performance. Later, she appeared as a regular in the Netflix series The OA.[6] In February 2023, Smith reunited with The Office co-star and friend Leslie David Baker in an advertisement for Honey Nut Cheerios. She reprised her role as Sadness in Inside Out 2 in 2024.[7]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With | Marsha | ||
| 2011 | Bad Teacher | Lynn | ||
| Nancy | ||||
| Flight Attendant | ||||
| 2015 | Sadness (voice) | Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Voice Acting in a Feature Production | ||
| Riley's First Date? | Short film | |||
| 2021 | Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar | Delores | ||
| 2024 | Inside Out 2 | Sadness (voice) |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Arrested Development | Carla | Episode: "The Immaculate Election" | |
| 20052013 | The Office | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (20072008) Nominated Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series (20092013) | ||
| 2006 | The Office: The Accountants | Episode: "Phyllis" | ||
| 2008 | Episode: "The Explanation" | |||
| 2013 | Trophy Wife | Mrs. Patty Steinberg | 3 episodes | |
| 2014 | The Middle | Mrs. Huff | Episode: "The Sinkhole" | |
| 20162019 | The OA | Betty Broderick-Allen | 12 episodes | |
| 2024 | Dream Productions | Sadness (voice) | 4 episodes |
| Year | Title | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994–1997 | Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman | Casting associate | 88 episodes |
| 1999 | Roswell | 1 episode | |
| 2000–2002 | Spin City | 45 episodes | |
| 2005 | Curb Your Enthusiasm | 10 episodes | |
| The Office | Assistant Casting Director | 6 episodes |