Greg Larsen is an actor, television writer, and comedian from Melbourne, Australia. He is best known for his work portraying Ethan Krum in the BBC One drama thriller series The Tourist;[1] cast member and correspondent in the ABC news comedy show Tonightly with Tom Ballard (in which he created the recurring character "Mr. Oily");[2][3] and as writer and cast member of the sketch comedy series At Home Alone Together[4] and We Interrupt This Broadcast on Seven Network.[5]
He is also known for his multiple years of award-winning stand-up comedy performances, notably at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival,[6] which also led to acclaim for his role in the yearly Great Debate event in 2021.[7]
Career
Comedy
Greg began his career performing stand-up and creating YouTube videos with Henry Stone and Sam Campbell as the sketch group Skills in Time.[8]
In 2014 along with Henry Stone, Stuart Daulman, and John Campbell, Larsen was awarded the Golden Gibbo award at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival for the Fancy Boy Variety Show.[9] In 2016 along with Anne Edmonds and Damien Power, Greg was awarded the Director's Choice Award for their show True Australian Patriots.[10][11] In 2021 Greg was again an MICF award recipient with his one-man play This Might Not Be Hell, receiving the Piece of Wood Award.[12] During the 2022 MICF Greg was nominated for the Most Outstanding Show award for the acclaimed We All Have Bloody Thoughts[13][14]
In 2023, Greg received further acclaim for his new comedy special Slurp's Up!![15]
Acting
Greg is best known for his performance portraying Ethan Krum in the BBC One series The Tourist, alongside Jamie Dornan and Danielle Macdonald. He returned to the role in Season 2, which premiered on January 1, 2024.[16] His performance in Season 2 drew praise from reviews including Digital Spy[17] as well as fellow cast members including Conor MacNeill, saying "For me, I really love Greg Larsen [who plays Ethan Krum]. I think he's phenomenal and even just how he uses his hands is hilarious. He's a very clever comedic actor."[18]
He also portrayed wrestler Bob Owens in the NBC comedy series Young Rock,[19] and Dave in Ronny Chieng: International Student (which he co-wrote with Ronny Chieng and Declan Fay)[20]
Controversies
In 2017, Greg was the focus of an Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) investigation based on his on-air conduct in which he called a conservative politician named Kevin Bailey a "cunt" on air during a sketch on the ABC show Tonightly With Tom Ballard. Greg and the ABC were ultimately cleared of any wrongdoing as the investigation found that Greg was playing the character of an "unreasonably angry man" and that the attack would have been considered "comedic" by any reasonable viewer.[21][22]
Filmography
Year | Production | Writer | Actor |
---|---|---|---|
TBC | The 2IC (Short) | Yes | Yes |
2024 | The Tourist - Season 2 | No | Yes |
2023 | We Interrupt This Broadcast | Yes | Yes |
2023 | Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe | Yes | Yes |
2022 | The Tourist - Season 1 | No | Yes |
2022 | Young Rock | No | Yes |
2021 | The Newsreader | No | Yes |
2021 | Hug The Sun | No | Yes |
2021 | Slushy (podcast) | No | Yes |
2020 | Rosehaven | No | Yes |
2020 | At Home Alone Together | Yes | Yes |
2019 | Aunty Donna: Glennridge Secondary College | No | Yes |
2018 | Tonightly With Tom Ballard | Yes | Yes |
2017 | The Edge Of The Bush | No | Yes |
2017 | Get Krack!n | Yes | Yes |
2017 | True Story With Hamish and Andy | No | Yes |
2017 | Ronny Chieng: International Student | Yes | Yes |
2017 | Ask The Doctor | No | Yes |
2016 | Fancy Boy | Yes | Yes |
2016 | The Letdown | No | Yes |
2015 | Looking Back | Yes | Yes |
2015 | How Not To Behave | No | Yes |
2014 | Dirty Laundry Live | No | Yes |
Awards and nominations
References
- ↑ Griffiths, Emily (2022-01-11). "The Tourist star responds to criticism over character - and fans react". Hello Magazine.
- ↑ Ballard, Tom (2020-07-09). "Tom Ballard: the 10 funniest things I have ever seen (on the internet)". The Guardian. Retrieved 2023-12-20./
- ↑ "Australia's newest TV channel ABC Comedy starts tonight!". Mediaweek. 2017-12-04. Retrieved 2023-12-08.
- ↑ Adams, David (2020-07-09). "Mr Oily Made His Shock Return To The ABC And Viewers Are Demanding More Slippery Goodness". Pedestrian TV. Retrieved 2023-12-08./
- ↑ McManus, Bridget (2023-02-23). "'Weird is mainstream': The show bringing sketch comedy back to TV". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ Wells, Peter (January 14, 2021). "Live comedy drought highlights the need for self-sufficiency". Sydney Morning Herald.
- ↑ Wray, Tyson (April 5, 2021). "Shambolic, loose and hilarious: the Comedy Festival's Great Debate". The Age.
- ↑ Jefferson, Dee (2015-05-01). "YouTube changes face of comedy". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Low, Lenny Ann (2014-09-08). "Fancy Boy Variety Show: the secret late-night comedy show that's winning prestigious awards". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Badham, Van (2016-04-15). "Tom Ballard, Zoe Coombs Marr and True Aussie Patriots: why risk politics in comedy?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Writer, Staff. "Zoe Coombs Marr Takes Home MICF Barry Award". themusic.com.au. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Parker, Tom (2021-04-19). "Melbourne International Comedy Festival announces 2021 award winners". Beat Magazine. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Chuma, Tim (9 April 2022). "MICF 2022: Greg Larsen - We All Have Bloody Thoughts Review". Impulse. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Bennett, Steve. "Melbourne Comedy Festival announces its 2022 award nominees : News 2022 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Bennett, Steve. "Greg Larsen: Slurp's Up!!". Chortle. Retrieved 2023-12-20.
- ↑ Audley, Fiona. "New Year's Day treat as Jamie Dornan returns to our screens in The Tourist". The Irish Post.
- ↑ Cook, Rebecca (1 January 2024). "The Tourist season 2 review: Does Jamie Dornan's returning thriller live up to the hype?". Digital Spy.
- ↑ Jewell, Bryony (9 December 2023). "How Jamie Dornan had his castmates in stitches filming dark comedy The Tourist in Ireland". Evoke.
- ↑ Trivedi, Dhruv (15 March 2022). "Is Young Rock's Bob Owens Based on a Real Wrestler? Is He Dead or Alive?". TheCinemaholic.
- ↑ "Ronny Chieng: International Student: Season 1, Episode 4 - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ↑ Meade, Amanda (2018-08-10). "Calling candidate C-word did not breach ABC standards, media watchdog says". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Esposito, Brad (2018-08-10). "A Report Has Found It Was Actually Entirely OK To Call This Political Candidate A "C*nt"". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- 1 2 3 "Melbourne International Comedy Festival". Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
- ↑ Kornits, Dov (2017-08-26). "AWGIEs Wrote This: Winners Announced". FilmInk. Retrieved 2023-05-25.