Carrey, Jim (1962-…), is an American motion-picture actor. He is known for his slapstick physical comedy and his ability to make a variety of facial expressions. Carrey gained international fame for his energetic portrayals of wacky, eccentric characters in comic films.
James Carrey was born on Jan. 17, 1962, in Newmarket, a suburb of Toronto, Canada. He later became a United States citizen, in 2004. Carrey began his show business career performing stand-up comedy in a Toronto nightclub. At the age of 19, Carrey moved to Los Angeles, supporting himself with small acting and comedy jobs. He made his film debut with a small role in Peggy Sue Got Married (1986). He later played a mentally disturbed character in The Dead Pool (1988) and an alien in Earth Girls Are Easy (1989). From 1990 to 1994, he appeared on the television comedy show “In Living Color.”
Carrey became a superstar with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994). He also starred in two other 1994 hits, The Mask and Dumb and Dumber. In 1995, he co-starred as the Riddler in Batman Forever and starred in an Ace Ventura sequel, Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls.
Carrey’s other films include The Cable Guy (1996); Liar, Liar (1997); The Truman Show (1998); Man on the Moon (1999); How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Me, Myself & Irene (both 2000); Bruce Almighty (2003); Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (both 2004); and I Love You Phillip Morris (2009). Some of his later films are Mr. Popper’s Penguins (2011), The Incredible Burt Wonderstone 2013, Dumb and Dumber To (2014), and Sonic the Hedgehog (2020).
Carey provided the voice for the title character of an elephant in the animated feature film Horton Hears a Who! (2008), based on the children’s book by the American writer and illustrator Dr. Seuss . He provided voices for Ebenezer Scrooge and several other characters in the animated feature A Christmas Carol (2009), based on the book by English novelist Charles Dickens . Carrey also co-wrote the book Memoirs and Misinformation: A Novel (2020; with Dana Vachon). It incorporates details from his life.
