Video captures Steve Carell's dance party during Northwestern commencement speech
Northwestern University's commencement turned into an impromptu dance party thanks to commencement speaker Steve Carell.
Halfway through his speech, Carell, who was presented with an honorary degree during the June 15 ceremony, broke into a dance.
"It is time now to follow me in the mid commencement address dance break," Carell said during the speech as the music is amped up. The actor started by grooving to "That's Not My Name" by The Ting Tings before joining School of Communications E. Patrick Johnson in a shimmy on stage. He then ran off the stage and into the crowd of graduates as everyone danced along, tapping their feet and waving their arms.
See Steve Carell's impromptu graduation dance break
Actor Steve Carell was the commencement speaker at Northwestern University's graduation, where he started an impromptu mid-commencement dance break.
"That was as invigorating as it was disturbing," Carell joked after the minute-long break as he caught his breath. "Wow, am I out of shape."
Carell: 'Kindness isn't weakness'
Northwestern University celebrated its 167th annual commencement June 15 at the United Center in Chicago, where family, friends and supporters gathered to celebrate graduates, more than 2,500 of whom were in attendance.
During his commencement address, sprinkled with his signature humor, Carell reminded graduates to be kind and take care of each other and channel their insecurities and fear into something constructive, saying, "Turn your jealousy into admiration and use it to fuel your ambition in a positive way."
"Remember the little things, like being kind and that you're not alone," Carell said. "Kindness isn't a weakness—it is a very potent strength. Take care of one another. Remember to laugh when you have the opportunity and to cry, when necessary."
"As evidenced before, just dance sometimes," Carell added.
"And keep in mind that as badly as you feel about the state of the world, your parents probably feel worse. Use that, take advantage of that," he continued. "Now is the perfect time to exploit your parents' guilt and to emotionally blackmail them. They might even let you live in the basement for an extra six months."
Carell's daughter, Annie, graduated from the School of Communication in 2023. His son, Johnny, is a member of the class of 2026 at the same school, according to Northwestern.
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Chicago Tribune
2 days ago
- Chicago Tribune
Today in Chicago History: Northwestern basketball coach shot and killed by white supremacist
Here's a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on July 3, according to the Tribune's archives. Is an important event missing from this date? Email us. Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago) 1933: An estimated 125,000 people attended 'The Romance of a People' Jewish pageant. It was one of many cultural or religious events Soldier Field hosted during its early years. 1999: Northwestern University men's basketball coach Ricky Byrdsong died after being shot while walking with his two young children in Skokie. The lone gunman, white supremacist Benjamin Smith, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after a short police chase in southern Illinois. Smith was wanted in a spree of apparent hate crimes across Illinois and Indiana. 2015: The Grateful Dead returned to Soldier Field for the first time since Jerry Garcia's death. Subscribe to the free Vintage Chicago Tribune newsletter, join our Chicagoland history Facebook group, stay current with Today in Chicago History and follow us on Instagram for more from Chicago's past.
Geek Tyrant
3 days ago
- Geek Tyrant
Rainn Wilson Says THE OFFICE Was "Chaotic" to Shoot After Steve Carell Left as He Was the "Comic Engine" of the Show — GeekTyrant
The Office is one of the best comedy series of all time. It has such great writing and characters that we all grew to love. But it did face a serious bump in the road when its star, Steve Carell, who played boss Michael Scott, left the series in Season 7. The show went on for two more seasons, with fun in every episode, and a perfect finale, but the two seasons without Carell proved to be much trickier to make than the ones in which he was included. Rainn Wilson, who played Dwight Schrute in the show, explained on the Good Guys podcast: "When Steve left, then it was a little bit chaotic of trying to figure out the tone of the show and who's the lead and, how are we telling these stories without, you know, the comic engine of the show, which is Michael Scott, and without one of the greatest comic actors in American history at the center of our show. That was also a struggle." Carell certainly knows how to make people laugh, and as the center of so many of the show's storylines, I'm sure it was hard to move forward, especially working in several new actors in his place. They made it work though, and they went out on top. All seasons of The Office are available to watch on Peacock.
CNBC
6 days ago
- CNBC
Actor Steve Carell says this personality trait is a 'very potent strength' that helped him succeed—CEOs and researchers agree
Steve Carell wants young people to foster a "simple" soft skill — something "we need more of in the world," he said in a commencement speech at Northwestern University on June 15: being kind and respectful to others. Kindness can go a long way in life, the actor and comedian said. It can open doors to new opportunities, allow you to foster deeper connections with your colleagues and help you weather the fear and uncertainty that can come with starting a new chapter in life, he said. "It's difficult for me to process just how much you've all experienced in your young lives," Carell, 62, told the school's graduating class. "I feel your anxiety and your fears about the world around you and it's heartbreaking to me. Remember the little things, like being kind and that you're not alone." "Take care of one another," he added. "Remember to laugh when you have the opportunity and to cry when necessary." Carell has a longstanding public reputation as one of the nicer actors in Hollywood. "His niceness manifests itself mostly in the fact that he never complains. You could screw up a handful of takes outside in 104-degree smog-choked Panorama City heat, and Steve Carell's final words before collapsing of heat stroke would be a friendly and hopeful, 'Hey, you think you have that shot yet?'" former co-star Mindy Kaling wrote in her 2011 book, "Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? The relationships Carell cultivated with his fellow actors led to job offers and increased responsibility behind the scenes: Will Ferrell and Judd Apatow reportedly both enjoyed working with Carell so much on the movie "Anchorman" that Ferrell offered him a role in "Talladega Nights," and Apatow cast him and made him a co-writer in "The 40-Year-Old Virgin." Outside of Hollywood, some other bosses do specifically look for kindness in their workers. Suzy Welch, a three-time New York Times bestselling author and New York University management professor, says she values employees who can give feedback by combining candor with empathy and kindness. Acts of kindness like volunteering, donating money and helping strangers more often can lead to healthier, more fulfilling lives, some happiness experts say. "These things are very strongly correlated with improving one's own life satisfaction, one's own well-being," Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, director of the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, told CNBC Make It on May 29. Kindness is a "dynamic and a virtuous cycle in the sense that, if you're being virtuous and helping others and being kind to others, that obviously helps the receiving party, but it also helps you," De Neve said. On the other hand, being jealous or envious of others is a direct "enemy of kindness," and can lead to competition, insecurity, reduced empathy for others, Carell warned. "Envy comes from ignorance and lack of belief in your own gifts," he said. "Turn your jealousy into admiration and use it to fuel your ambition in a positive way."
