Alia Shawkat

Alia Martine Shawkat (/ˈæliə ˈʃoʊkɑːt/ AL-ee-ə SHOH-kaht; born April 18, 1989) is an American actress. She is best known for her main role as Maeby Fünke in the Fox/Netflix television series Arrested Development (2003-2006; 2013-present), and as Gertie Michaels in the 2015 horror-comedy film The Final Girls.

Early life

Shawkat was born in Riverside, California, to Dina (née Burke) and actor Tony Shawkat. She grew up in nearby Palm Springs. She has two brothers. The actor Paul Burke was her maternal grandfather. Shawkat's father is ArabIraqi, from Baghdad. Her mother is of half-Norwegian, one-quarter-Irish, and one-quarter-Italian descent.

When she is not acting, she likes to paint; she has participated in gallery shows in Los Angeles, Mexico City and Paris. She also likes to make music and sing in jazz bars.

Career

As Maeby Fünke, Shawkat was a regular cast member of Arrested Development for the entire run of the show from 2003 to 2006. The series received nearly universally positive reviews, with Shawkat's performance occasionally singled out for praise. Pop-culture commentator Brian M. Palmer remarked that she was "one of the brightest lights on a show populated solely by bright lights," and Scott Weinberg of eFilmCritic described her as "one funny young lady." In an interview with The A.V. Club in 2010, Shawkat remarked that many of her "formative moments" as an actress took place on the Arrested Development set: " [Show creator] Mitch Hurwitz was like a father figure to me. In a way, it was great to be around [the cast], because I feel that my understanding of comedy was able to grow really well during that time."