In 2003, Sudeikis joined Saturday Night Live as a staff writer on the recommendation of fellow performers. Two years later, he crossed the floor to become a featured player. By 2006, he was a repertory cast member. He stayed at Studio 8H until 2013, creating memorable characters like the track-suited dancer in "What Up With That?" and landing deadpan impressions of figures like Mitt Romney and Joe Biden.
Unlike many sketch performers who flounder when migrating to feature films, Sudeikis leveraged his middle-tier star status into genuine box-office returns. In 2011, Horrible Bosses pulled in $209.6 million worldwide against a modest $35 million budget. Two years later, Rawson Marshall Thurber's We're the Millers cleared $269.9 million globally. Studios viewed Sudeikis as the ideal leading man for an era that wanted grounded, cynical charm without overt vanity.
