What The Cast Of Good Burger Looks Like Today
Based on a recurring skit from the Nickelodeon sketch series All That, Good Burger follows the misadventures of Ed and Dexter, two fast food employees who end up in a fierce competition with a rival burger restaurant. Nothing was off limits in this zany '90s comedy — there's an attempt to contaminate burger sauce with shark poison, the protagonists endure a short stint in an asylum, viewers get a final showdown complete with exploding burgers, and Shaquille O'Neal even makes a cameo. Even though Good Burger was released over twenty years ago, the kids who grew up with these characters can still easily quote it.
Ever wonder what happened to the Good Burger cast after the film? Some have built thriving careers in Hollywood, while others have pursued entirely different paths. Let's catch up with the cast of Good Burger and find out what they've been up since their time at the iconic burger joint.
Kel Mitchell is a youth pastor
All That cast member Kel Mitchell starred in Good Burger as Ed, the absent-minded employee who invents a brand new secret sauce and helps save the business. He may not be the brightest employee — and accidentally roller blading in front of Dexter's car did cause him to crash into Mr. Wheat — but together, he and Dexter manage to outsmart Mondo Burger and put Good Burger on top.
Mitchell returned to working on Kenan & Kel and All That, and later, he began doing voice work on shows like Clifford, Pink Panther and Pals, and Wild Grinders. More recently, he played Double G on the Nickelodeon show Game Shakers, and he returned to the reboot of All That to play Ed and Coach Kreeton.
Today, Mitchell is a youth pastor at Spirit Food Christian Center, but he hasn't left acting behind. He is currently a panelist on the Ridiculousness spinoff Deliciousness, which began airing in December 2020, so if you feel like getting nostalgic (and watching some "food fails"), tune in!
Kenan Thompson has his own TV show
Dexter, played by Kenan Thompson, just wanted to go for a joyride — but when he hits Mr. Wheat's car and ends up in debt to his teacher, he needs to get a job to pay him back. He starts working at Mondo Burger, only to get fired because of his conflicts with the manager, Kurt Bozwell. Thankfully, he lands a new job at Good Burger, where he becomes friends with Ed, schemes against Kurt, and manages to save the restaurant from closing.
In the years following Good Burger, Thompson has become a highly successful comedy actor. After returning to Kenan & Kel and All That, he appeared in movies like Fat Albert and Snakes on a Plane. He also landed a supporting role as Roland in the popular comedy series The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. In 2011, he married Christina Evangeline, and the couple now has two daughters.
Thompson joined the cast of Saturday Night Live in 2003, and he is now officially the longest-tenured series cast member. In 2018, his performance on SNL earned him an Emmy for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics. Now, you can catch Thompson on his very own comedy series, Kenan, in which he plays a widowed father raising his two kids.
Sinbad guest stars on comedy shows
In Good Burger, the comedian Sinbad plays Dexter's teacher Mr. Wheat. Dexter's ill-fated joy ride in his mother's car, which ends with a fender bender involving Mr. Wheat, leads to his misadventures working at Good Burger. Dexter's debt to Mr. Wheat forces him to get a job, and he eventually ends up at the title eatery.
After shooting Good Burger, Sinbad went to work publishing his book, titled Sinbad's Guide to Life: Because I Know Everything. In 2010, he made a comeback with his comedy special, Where U Been? In the decades since appearing in Good Burger, he has guest starred in numerous comedy shows, including Moesha, Family Guy, and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. You may have even heard his voice while watching animated shows like Steven Universe or Slacker Cats. More recently, Sinbad had a supporting role on Rel, which followed a famous comedian trying to put the pieces of his life back together after his marriage ends.
Abe Vigoda passed away in 2016
Abe Vigoda was best known for a supporting role in The Godfather before becoming a star as Detective Phil Fish on the hit 1970s comedy Barney Miller. In Good Burger, he portrayed Otis, an older employee at the restaurant who wakes up from a nap only to accidentally catch Kurt Bozwell poisoning the special sauce. He quickly lets Ed and Dexter know what's going on, and the two realize that they have to act quickly — they break out of Demented Hills, commandeer an ice cream truck, and make it back to Good Burger to stop anyone from eating the tainted sauce.
Vigoda, who portrayed Fish on his own short-lived spinoff series as well as Barney Miller, also continued to voice the Sal Tessio character from The Godfather for video games. By the early 2000s, Vigoda had scaled back on his acting commitments, and for several years, he did not appear in any new films or TV shows. His final role was in the 2014 romantic drama Sweet Destiny. Sadly, in 2016, Vigoda passed away while visiting his daughter's home. He was 94 years old.
Shar Jackson became a reality TV star
Shar Jackson plays Monique, a fellow Good Burger employee who ends up dating Dexter. But despite her feelings for Dexter, she's not happy with the way that he cheats Ed out of his money for inventing the special sauce.
Fans of the popular family comedy Moesha probably recognized Jackson, who played Niecy Jackson on that series. After filming Good Burger, Jackson returned to working on Moesha, where she continued playing Niecy until 2001. She also became well known for playing Felicia in the romantic drama Love & Basketball. In addition, Jackson became a regular on reality TV. She appeared on the series According to Him + Her, which explored topics like marriage, dating, and friendship from male and female perspectives. In 2007, Jackson beat out all the competition on Celebrity Rap Superstar, and she later joined the cast of Ex-Wives Club, where she revealed the details of her split with Kevin Federline.
What's next for Jackson? Keep an eye out for her in the upcoming drama A Polished Soul.
Dan Schneider parted ways with Nickelodeon
Dan Schneider, who played Mr. Bailey in the original Good Burger sketches on All That, returned to his role for the movie. Mr. Bailey is the owner and manager of the Good Burger, so he's officially Ed and Dexter's boss. Naturally, he often finds himself getting annoyed with Ed's endless antics.
Although Schneider did occasionally act on Nickelodeon shows, he mainly worked behind the scenes as a producer. He served as a screenwriter and co-producer on Good Burger, and after that was an executive producer on All That and Kenan & Kel. Schneider worked with Nickelodeon for decades, producing some of the network's most popular shows, like Drake & Josh, The Amanda Show, Henry Danger and iCarly. However, Nickelodeon officially cut ties with Schneider in 2018. While the network did not explain the reasoning behind their decision to part ways with the producer, alleged complaints from staff members about mistreatment on Schneider's sets may have been a factor.
Jan Schweiterman stopped acting
In Good Burger, Jan Schweiterman played the villainous Kurt Bozwell. Kurt is the owner of Mondo Burger and has serious ambitions for his business: he wants it to become the top restaurant in the world, and he'll stop at nothing to achieve this. He does everything in his power to steal Ed's secret sauce recipe, and when that doesn't work, he tries to contaminate the sauce instead. In the end, justice is served and Kurt is arrested.
After working on Good Burger, Schweiterman guest starred on a few episodes of the drama Felicity and appeared in the movies American Intellectual and Fallen Arches. It seems that Schweiterman retired from acting in 2007 after his role in the movie Along the Way, and since he hasn't appeared in a film or TV show for over a decade, it's unlikely that he will return to the industry. Perhaps one day he'll decide that it's finally time to get back in front of the camera, but chances are he's found a different career path and does not intend to go back to Hollywood.
Ron Lester appeared in Freaks and Geeks
Spatch, the head fry cook at Good Burger, was played by Ron Lester. In Good Burger, Lester's character provides some much-needed comic relief for his co-workers, and after appearing in this movie, Lester continued working as a comedic actor. He played Billy Bob in the 1999 sports comedy Varsity Blues, in which a backup quarterback has to step up and lead his football team to victory. Next up was a role in Freaks and Geeks with fellow Good Burger alum Linda Cardellini, as well as a role as Michael in the comedy series Popular.
Lester also appeared in the 2001 parody film Not Another Teen Movie, which referenced Varsity Blues along with plenty of another high school comedies. Later, he went on to write, produce, direct, and star in the film Racing Legacy, which follows a teenage boy who wants to live out his father's dream of becoming a NASCAR driver. Tragically, this was Lester's final role: he passed away in 2015 after suffering from liver and kidney failure.
Josh Server was a regular on Nickelodeon
Josh Server played Ed and Dexter's coworker Fizz, who worked at the Good Burger drive-thru. Naturally, Fizz has to deal with all kinds of requests and complaints from customers, and while Good Burger is no typical fast food restaurant, anyone who has had to work at a drive-thru will find Fizz relatable.
Server continued working on Nickelodeon productions long after appearing in Good Burger. He was already a cast member on All That, and he stuck with the show until its sixth and final season. In addition, he guest starred on other Nickelodeon shows, including Kenan & Kel, Drake & Josh, and Sam & Cat. Server has also appeared in films like Lunch Break and horror flicks such as Await the Dawn and The Haunting of Grady Farm. More recently, Server had a role in the short film Cookie, which tells the story of a woman who tries to achieve her dream of becoming an actress after losing her voice.
Linda Cardellini won an Emmy
Linda Cardellini made a brief appearance in Good Burger as Heather, a patient living in the Demented Hills asylum who tries to flirt with Ed. Today, she's well known for playing Velma Dinkley in the 2002 movie Scooby Doo and its sequel, Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. But since the late 1990s, Cardellini has had a string of roles in popular movies and TV series. In 1999, she began playing Lindsay Weir on the short-lived series Freaks and Geeks, and a couple years later, she joined the cast of ER as Samantha Taggart.
Cardellini also had a supporting role as Cassie in the Academy Award-winning film Brokeback Mountain, and she won her first Emmy in 2013 for portraying Sylvia Rosen in Mad Men. The actress joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2015 as Laura Barton, the wife of Avenger Clint "Hawkeye" Barton, a character she reprised in Avengers: Endgame. More recently, Cardellini co-starred alongside Christina Applegate in the hit comedy series Dead to Me. The cast and crew scooped up an Emmy for Best Comedy Series in 2019, and a third and final season is on its way.
Shaquille O'Neal retired from playing basketball
Shaquille O'Neal became famous for playing basketball, but he began dabbling in acting in the 1990s, appearing in movies like Blue Chips and Kazaam. In Good Burger, he popped up for a brief cameo appearance — Ed and Dexter deliver him a burger after a big game, and much to their relief, O'Neal agrees that it is a pretty good burger.
O'Neal continued playing basketball through the late 1990s and early 2000s — throughout this time in his career, he played for several teams, including the L.A. Lakers, Miami Heat, and Boston Celtics. In 2011, he announced that he was retiring, and in 2016, he was officially inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
O'Neal still acts occasionally, and you may have spotted him in movies like Scary Movie 4 or heard his voice in The Lego Movie. He has also done guest spots on shows like Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Simpsons. Right now, he's producing two new series, Shaq's Garage and Shaq's Talk, neither of which have an expected premiere date.
Carmen Electra is working on a Baywatch documentary
Carmen Electra played Roxane, an attractive Mondo Burger employee who tries to carry out Kurt's bidding at Good Burger. In an attempt to get his hands on Ed's special sauce recipe, Kurt sends her over to Good Burger to flirt with Ed, hoping that he'll be tricked into giving her the sauce recipe. But his plan fails when Roxane is injured by her own klutziness, which results in her quitting her job.
From 1997 through 1998, Electra played Lani McKenzie in Baywatch, and after her time on the series was over, she began acting in comedy movies. You might remember her from the string of early 2000s parody films like Scary Movie, Epic Movie, or Disaster Movie. While she doesn't act as often as she used to, she still occasionally appears in movies and TV shows — her most recent role was a guest spot in the series Alone Together. Right now, she's working on the documentaries Baywatch and Finding Sandler.