Phyllis Smith

Phyllis Smith is proof that the best talents are sometimes hiding in plain sight. A Missouri native who worked in casting before stepping in front of the camera, she made Phyllis Vance on The Office feel utterly real, then voiced Sadness in Pixar's Inside Out and quietly stole the whole film. That voice carries a soft, slightly tearful warmth that no one else could fake. I love that her breakthrough came late and from the industry's behind-the-scenes side. She understands actors because she once chose them. To me she is one of the most underrated character performers working.

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Name (English)

Phyllis Smith

Name (Japanese)

フィリス・スミス

Reading

ふぃりす・すみす

Born

August 15, 1949 (age 77)

Origin

Lemay, Missouri, United States

Occupation

actor / television actor / voice actor / film actor / casting director

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Leo / Ox

University

University of Missouri–St. Louis

Awards & achievements

• Actor Awards

• Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phyllis%20Smith
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%95%E3%82%A3%E3%83%AA%E3%82%B9%E3%83%BB%E3%82%B9%E3%83%9F%E3%82%B9
• Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q508280

Tags

• Missouri
• actor
• television actor
• voice actor

Last updated

November 2, 2026

Only publicly available facts are listed; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. Base data was compiled from Wikidata from June 2026 onward; ages are recalculated daily and deaths are checked against Wikidata on an ongoing basis. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.