Mike Judge

Michael Craig Judge (born October 17, 1962) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, and director. He is best known for creating the animated television series Beavis and Butt-Head (1993–1997, 2011, 2022–present). He also co-created the television series King of the Hill (1997–2010, 2025-present), The Goode Family (2009), Silicon Valley (2014–2019), Common Side Effects (2025- ), and Mike Judge Presents: Tales from the Tour Bus (2017–2018). He wrote and directed the films Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996), Office Space (1999), Idiocracy (2006), and Extract (2009), and co-wrote the screenplay to Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe (2022).

Judge was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He graduated from the University of California, San Diego, where he studied physics. After losing interest in a career in science, Judge focused on animation and short films. His animated short Frog Baseball was developed into the successful MTV series Beavis and Butt-Head and the spin-off series Daria (with which Judge had no involvement).

In 1995, Judge and former Simpsons writer Greg Daniels developed King of the Hill, which debuted on Fox in 1997 and quickly became popular with critics and audiences. It ran for 13 seasons and became one of the longest-running American animated series. During the show run, Judge took time off to write and direct Office Space, Idiocracy and Extract. As King of the Hill ended, Judge created his third show, ABC's The Goode Family, which received mixed reviews and was cancelled after 13 episodes. After a four-year hiatus, he created his fourth show, the live-action Silicon Valley for HBO, which has received critical acclaim. In 2017, Judge's fourth animated series, the music-themed Tales from the Tour Bus, premiered on Cinemax to acclaim.

Judge has won a Primetime Emmy Award, two Annie Awards for King of the Hill, two Critics' Choice Television Awards, and two Satellite Awards for Silicon Valley.