Matthew Lyn Lillard (born January 24, 1970) is an American actor, director, and producer. His early film roles include the black comedy Serial Mom (1994) and the crime thriller Hackers (1995). He achieved a career breakthrough for his portrayal of Stu Macher in the slasher film Scream (1996), which bolstered Lillard into the mainstream as a scream king. Afterwards, he starred in prominent roles in SLC Punk! (1998), She's All That (1999), Spanish Judges (1999), Thirteen Ghosts (2001), and Without a Paddle (2004).
Lillard portrayed Norville "Shaggy" Rogers in the live-action movies Scooby-Doo (2002) and Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004), and became the official animated voice of the character following Casey Kasem's retirement from the role in 2009. Starting in the 2010s, he was frequently cast in dramatic roles in films such as The Descendants (2011), Trouble with the Curve (2012), Match (2014), and Twin Peaks: The Return (2017). He also starred in the NBC series Good Girls (2018–2021).
Lillard gained renewed recognition in the 2020s for playing William Afton in the horror film Five Nights at Freddy's (2023) and its 2025 sequel. He has since starred in the fantasy drama film The Life of Chuck (2025), the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) series Daredevil: Born Again (2026), and the upcoming horror miniseries Carrie (2026).
Early life Lillard was born in Lansing, Michigan, on January 24, 1970, the son of Paula and Jeffrey Lillard (b. 1948), and grew up in Tustin, California. He has a younger sister, and attended Foothill High School in North Tustin, California. He later attended Fullerton College and then went to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Pasadena, California, with fellow actor Paul Rudd. He also attended Circle in the Square Theatre School in New York City.
Career After high school, Lillard was co-host of a short-lived TV show titled SK8-TV, and afterwards was hired as an extra in Ghoulies 3: Ghoulies Go to College (1991). In 1994, he was cast in the John Waters black comedy Serial Mom. The following year he was cast in five films, including Hackers, a thriller about a group of high school kids who thwart a multimillion-dollar corporate extortion conspiracy. In 1996, he was cast in his breakthrough role as Stu Macher in the horror film Scream. He was originally meant to reprise his role in 2000's Scream 3 but the plans were changed. He also played Stevo in the independent film SLC Punk! (1998), Jack Fisher in Spanish Judges (1999), Brock Hudson in She's All That (1999), and supporting character Dennis Rafkin in Thirteen Ghosts (2001).
Lillard was cast as Norville "Shaggy" Rogers in the 2002 live-action film Scooby-Doo, a role he later reprised in the 2004 sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. When Casey Kasem, who had voiced the character from the show's debut in 1969, retired in 2009, Lillard was chosen to take over and voice Shaggy in the three subsequent animated series, Mystery Incorporated, Be Cool Scooby-Doo!, and Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?, as well as every animated direct-to-video film since 2010's Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo. He also reprised the voice role of Shaggy in the crossover episode in the television series Supernatural in 2018. Lillard, however, did not voice Shaggy in the animated Scooby-Doo reboot Scoob!, with the character instead being voiced by SNL alum Will Forte. Although Lillard was disappointed with the casting decision, he still wished the film good luck.
In 2004, Lillard starred in the comedy film Without a Paddle. In 2009, he directed the short film Come Home Soon.
In 2011, Lillard guest starred on the Fox series House. Also in 2011, he produced and directed his first feature film, Fat Kid Rules the World, based on the K. L. Going book of the same name. Later that year, he appeared in the comedy-drama film The Descendants. He also starred in the sports drama Trouble with the Curve (2012) and the drama Match (2014).
In 2012, Lillard guest-starred in the Criminal Minds episode "The Apprenticeship". The following year, he played the role of Daniel Frye on the American TV series The Bridge. In 2014, he starred as Peter in the animated film Under Wraps, alongside Brooke Shields and Drake Bell. In 2016, Lillard landed the recurring role of FBI undercover agent Luke Goshen in the Amazon Series, Bosch. In 2017, he starred as William Hastings in the third season of Twin Peaks. The next year, he began co-starring as Dean Boland on the NBC series Good Girls.
In 2023, Lillard starred in the live-action movie adaptation of the Five Nights at Freddy's video game series. He gained renewed recognition for his role as William Afton, a manipulative serial killer. U.S. entertainment publication The Hollywood Reporter stated that he had entered "his Renaissance era" in popular culture, noting that the movie had the third highest ever domestic box office return for a horror film during its opening weekend. Lillard has credited his children as inspiring him both to take on the role and to give a dominating, assertive performance as the franchise's overarching villain. He reprised his role in the 2025 sequel.
In an interview, Lillard elaborated,
In 2024, Lillard appeared in filmmaker Mike Flanagan's film The Life of Chuck. In 2026, Lillard reprised his role as Stuart "Stu" Macher in Scream 7. He also starred in the second season of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) television series Daredevil: Born Again.
Other ventures Lillard was one of the co-founders of Beadle and Grimm's, a company that publishes licensed expanded products, usually of a limited edition, from Wizards of the Coast games including Dungeons and Dragons and Magic: The Gathering.
Lillard co-founded the company Find Familiar Spirits, which develops and sells specialized alcoholic beverages.
In 2022, it was announced that Lillard, along with writer and director Bill Whirity, had launched a non-fungible token (NFT)-based project called Midnite Movie Club, which lets holders participate in a first-of-its-kind "Decentralized Movie Studio". The first film to come from the company will be a vampire movie called Let Them Die.
Personal life On August 26, 2000, Lillard married Heather Helm, with whom he has a daughter, a son and a child who is nonbinary. They currently reside in Los Angeles.
In October 2005, he participated in a Dungeons & Dragons tournament, against members of the Quest Club Gaming Organization, at the Magic Castle in Hollywood, California. Lillard has also played Dungeons & Dragons with the online series Dice, Camera, Action with Christopher Perkins as the Dungeon Master; as well as with the Critical Role cast at a special one-shot with Sam Riegel as the Dungeon Master.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes 1991 Ghoulies III: Ghoulies Go to College Dexter Stork Credited as Matthew Lynn 1994 Serial Mom Chip Sutphin 1995 Animal Room Doug Van Housen Mad Love Eric Webber Hackers Emmanuel "Cereal Killer" Goldstein Tarantella Matt Reynolds 1996 Scream Stuart "Stu" Macher 1997 Scream 2 Guy at Party Uncredited extra 1998 The Curve Tim Jackson Senseless Tim LaFlour Telling You Adam Ginesberg Without Limits Roscoe Devine SLC Punk! Steven "Stevo" Levy 1999 Spanish Judges Jack Fisher She's All That Brock Hudson Wing Commander Lt. Todd "Maniac" Marshall 2000 Love's Labour's Lost Longaville Dish Dogs Jason 2001 Finder's Fee Fishman Triangle Square Snake Eater Summer Catch Billy Brubaker Thirteen Ghosts Dennis Rafkin 2002 Scooby-Doo Norville "Shaggy" Rogers 2003 Looney Tunes: Back in Action Himself Cameo 2004 The Perfect Score Larry Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Wicker Park Luke Stanford Without a Paddle Jerry Conlaine 2005 Karas: The Prophecy Eko Voice A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. 2006 Bickford Shmeckler's Cool Ideas Spaceman The Groomsmen Desmond "Dez" Howard 2007 In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale Duke Fallow What Love Is Sal One of Our Own Bob Also co-producer Karas: The Revelation Eko Voice 2008 Spooner Herman Spooner Also co-producer Extreme Movie Himself 2009 Messages Deleted Joel Brandt Osh Kosh B'Gosh: Under the Overall Lloyd B'Gosh Short film All's Faire in Love Crocket Endless Bummer Mike Mooney 2010 Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice Scooby-Doo! Camp Scare 2011 Scooby-Doo! Legend of the Phantosaur Norville "Shaggy" Rogers / Shaky Joe From the Head Jimmy The Descendants Brian Speer The Pool Boys Roger Still Screaming: The Ultimate Scary Movie Retrospective Himself Documentary film 2012 Scooby-Doo! Music of the Vampire Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice Home Run Showdown Joey Trouble with the Curve Phillip Sanderson Big Top Scooby-Doo! Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice Deep Dark Canyon Jack Cavanaugh Fat Kid Rules the World Guidance Counselor Also director and producer Dear Dracula Mailman Gus Voice Abominable Christmas Dogcatcher / Al / Passerby 2013 Scooby-Doo! Mask of the Blue Falcon Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Scooby-Doo! Adventures: The Mystery Map Return to Nim's Island Jack Rusoe Scooby-Doo! Stage Fright Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice The Naughty List Tinsel / Neighbor Reindeer / Evergreen National Lampoon Presents Surf Party Mooney 2014 Match Mike Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice Axel: The Biggest Little Hero The Lizard King Scooby-Doo! Frankencreepy Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Under Wraps Peter 2015 Bloodsucking Bastards Phallicyte Executive Uncredited Cameo Scooby-Doo! Moon Monster Madness Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice Scooby-Doo! and Kiss: Rock and Roll Mystery 2016 Lego Scooby-Doo! Haunted Hollywood Scooby-Doo! and WWE: Curse of the Speed Demon Six LA Love Stories Alan Mackey 2017 Scooby-Doo! Shaggy's Showdown Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice Lego Scooby-Doo! Blowout Beach Bash 2018 Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold Scooby-Doo! and the Gourmet Ghost 2019 Scooby-Doo! and the Curse of the 13th Ghost Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island 2020 Happy Halloween, Scooby-Doo! 2021 Scooby-Doo! The Sword and the Scoob He's All That Principal Bosch Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Voice cameo Straight Outta Nowhere: Scooby-Doo! Meets Courage the Cowardly Dog Voice 2022 Scream Stab 8 Flamethrower Ghostface, Party Guest Voice cameos; also "special thanks" Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo! Norville "Shaggy" Rogers / Craggly / Captain Cutler Voice 2023 Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! Norville "Shaggy" Rogers Five Nights at Freddy's Steve Raglan / William Afton 2024 The Life of Chuck Gus Wilfong 2025 Five Nights at Freddy's 2 William Afton / Springtrap 2026 Scream 7 Stuart "Stu" Macher Post-production 2027 Post-production Pre-production
Television