Steve Carell, Ryan Seacrest & 12 Other Surprise Cameos In Knocked Up, Explained

Summary Knocked Up features a star-studded cast with surprise celebrity cameos, including Ryan Seacrest, James Franco, Kristen Wiig, and more.

The film received critical acclaim and inspired a string of Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill-led comedies produced by Judd Apatow.

Knocked Up is currently trending on Netflix's Top 10 list, offering viewers a hilarious and heartwarming look at an unplanned pregnancy.

There is a remarkable number of celebrity cameos adding to the already star-studded cast of Knocked Up. Often regarded as one of the best Judd Apatow films, Knocked Up stars Seth Rogen and Katherine Heigl at the height of their popularity during the 2000s. Knocked Up also stars Jason Segel, Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Jay Baruchel, Martin Starr, and Ken Jeong in his feature film debut. Knocked Up originally hit theaters back on June 1, 2007, and became a summer box office hit, grossing roughly $219 million worldwide.

As Apatow's second feature film after the hugely popular The 40-Year-Old Virgin in 2005, Knocked Up also received critical acclaim, earning an 89% on Rotten Tomatoes and an 85 on Metascore. Knocked Up was one of the original Apatow films that would go on to inspire the classic string of Jonah Hill and Seth Rogen comedies such as Superbad (2007), Pineapple Express (2008), and Funny People (2009), all of which Apatow produced as well. Knocked Up is currently trending on Netflix's Top 10 List and is available to stream on that platform now.

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14 Ryan Seacrest

Appears as himself

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Ryan Seacrest is the first of many surprise celebrity cameos in Knocked Up. Katherine Heigl's character Alison Scott works as a producer for E! News, which is why some parts of the film take place at the E! soundstage, studio office, and awards events. Seacrest, who is very well-known for hosting American Idol since its first season premiered in 2002, appears as himself waiting for Jessica Simpson to do an interview. Seacrest has several funny lines that start off the movie on a funny note while also establishing Alison's job as a television producer.

13 James Franco

Appears as himself

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Around the 22-minute mark in Knocked Up, James Franco also appears as himself doing an interview with Alison, who has been promoted from being a producer to being an interviewer for E! Franco is there to talk about his new film Spider-Man 3 when Alison starts to show the first signs of her unexpected pregnancy with Seth Rogen's Ben Stone character. In the scene, Alison is forced to interrupt the interview so she can run over to the nearest trash can and throw up. Franco has a few lines expressing his displeasure with the situation in the scene, but that about covers his contribution to the film.

12 Kristen Wiig

Plays Jill, an E! corporate employee

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The legendary Saturday Night Live cast member Kristen Wiig has a small role in Knocked Up as a corporate worker at E! in what would be her first appearance in a major motion picture. Wiig quickly established herself as one of the rising stars on SNL after first joining the cast in 2005, which led her to appear in the celebrated Apatow film. Wiig plays Jill, a jealous E! mid-level associate producer or assistant who has several funny lines during Alison's meetings with an E! executive named Jack, played by Alan Tudyk.

11 Bill Hader

Plays Brent, an E! editor

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Hader, who was also one of the rising stars on Saturday Night Live at the time, also has a small role in Knocked Up. He plays the goofy and charming editor at E! who works on a few projects with Alison over the course of the film. Knocked Up was just the second feature film that Hader had appeared in after making his debut in the 20006 comedy You, Me and Dupree starring Owen Wilson, Kate Hudson, and Michael Douglas. Hader would appear in several other Apatow productions such as Superbad and Pineapple Express before becoming a household name in comedy.

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10 B.J. Novak

Plays a Young Doctor

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B.J. Novak rose to prominence as a key cast member, writer, and director of the massively successful 2000s sitcom The Office. His brief cameo as a gynecologist in Knocked Up is perfectly fitting when considering his impact on 2000s comedy at large. During Knocked Up, Ben and Alison try out several different baby doctors before finally settling on one that they find to be the most reliable. Novak's doctor character immediately picks up on the strange union of Ben and Alison, drawing unwanted attention to their complicated and awkward situation.

9 Paul Feig

Plays Fantasy Baseball Guy

Paul Feig may not be the most recognizable cameo in Knocked Up, but as a writer, director, and producer, he is certainly among the most accomplished. Feig was the creator of the celebrated cult television series Freaks and Geeks, which launched the acting careers of Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Linda Cardellini, and James Franco. Freaks and Geeks was the foundation for his and Apatow's other collaborations, which include Bridesmaids. Feig plays one of Paul Rudd's fantasy baseball friends in Knocked Up.

8 Craig Robinson

Plays Club Doorman

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As one of the most beloved actors in The Office, Craig Robinson also has a small role in Knocked Up as a club bouncer. He and Leslie Mann have a hilarious exchange in which Mann's character Debie becomes furious when Robinson won't allow her and Alison, who is months into pregnancy, into the club. The brief conversation makes for one of the best cameo scenes in the entire film. After making his film debut in Knocked Up, Robinson would have a bigger role in Pineapple Express and plays himself in This is the End.

7 Stormy Daniels

Appears as Lap Dancer

Stormy Daniels appears briefly in Knocked Up during a scene in which Seth Rogen's character Ben and Paul Rudd's character Pete escape from Los Angeles to Las Vegas one night and end up in a strip club. Daniels is credited as Lap Dancer. Daniels previously had a brief role in The 40-Year-Old Virgin as well. Since appearing in Knocked Up, Daniels has also made appearances in the Showtime series SMILF and the Starz series Party Down. Daniels does not have a speaking role in the film.

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6 Jessica Alba

Appears as herself

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Jessica Alba is one of many celebrity actors who appear toward the end of Knocked Up. She is shown talking to Katherine Heigl's character Alison during an awards show interview on a "blue" carpet, as opposed to the traditional red, for a movie awards ceremony. She is one of several celebrities who comment on how pregnant Alison looks while Alison is trying to do her job, microphone in hand. At the time that Knocked Up was filmed, Alba had just recently played Sue Storm / Invisible Woman in Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007).

5 Steve Carell

Appears as himself

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Steve Carell, who was one of the biggest names in comedy on the planet during the 2000s, appears as himself in an interview with Katherine Heigl's character Alison. He is the last of the handful of celebrities who play themselves as an awards show in the film. Alison, who is deep into her pregnancy at this point in the film, essentially begs Steve to do an exclusive interview with her for E!, which Steve politely turns down. Alison won't take no for an answer and scares Steve away in the funny but brief scene. Steve had starred in The 40-Year-Old Virgin after making his hilarious film debut in Bruce Almighty in 2003.

4 Eva Mendes

Appears as herself

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Eva Mendes also appears as herself on the blue carpet towards the end of Knocked Up. She jokes with Alison about how she looks like she is ready to have her baby at any minute. At the time when Knocked Up was filmed, Mendes had recently starred in the popular Will Smith comedy Hitch (2005) as well as the Joaquin Phoenix drama We Own the Night (2007). Mendes would go on to star in the hilarious 2010 comedy The Other Guys and the celebrated drama The Place Beyond the Pines, which is how she met her husband, Ryan Gosling.

3 Andy Dick

Appears as himself

Andy Dick has a very brief appearance as himself on the blue carpet with Alison in Knocked Up. Andy's momentary appearance only takes up a few seconds of Knocked Up as he is seen with Alison commenting on her pregnancy as she tries to interview him. Dick was well-known for his comedic roles during the 1990s and 2000s but has not appeared in anything of note since 2017's Sense 8 and Love, both series on Netflix.

2 Dax Shepard

Appears as himself

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Dax Shepard's cameo is so brief and out of focus that it's hard to spot him in Knocked Up. During the scene in which Alison is trying to interview Steve Carell, Shepard can be seen in the background talking to a group of people. It appears that Shepard was used to add authenticity to the fake movie awards ceremony by having a seemingly normal and unscripted conversation in the background of Alison and Steve Carell's interaction. Shepard is not even given a clean shot in Knocked Up, but he's certainly in the movie for a brief period of time.

1 Adam Scott

Plays Samuel, a Male Nurse

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Adam Scott also became a major part of the 2000s comedy scene thanks to his iconic role in Parks and Recreation. Scott doesn't appear in Knocked Up until the end of the movie when Alison is rushed to the hospital to deliver her baby with Ben. Ben points out the fact that he is a male nurse and Scott's character tries to make some half-baked jokes to try and make Alison feel at ease. Scott's character Samuel was part of the iconic Knocked Up scene in which Alison screams at Jay Baruchel to get out of the room while she's halfway through giving birth. Scott has since become an Emmy-nominated actor for his celebrated Apple series Severance.