Emily Lynne Berthold is best known as the younger sister of Saturday Night Live alum Kate McKinnon, but she’s built her own career in comedy, acting, writing, and voice work in the process. While her sister’s fame has brought some attention her way, Emily has spent over a decade quietly carving out a creative path of her own — one that includes a Comedy Central web series, an Audible original, and several television credits.
Quick Bio of Emily Lynne Berthold
| Detail | Information |
| Full Name | Emily Lynne Berthold |
| Known For | Kate McKinnon‘s younger sister; comedian, actress, writer |
| Birthplace | Sea Cliff, Long Island, New York, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Profession | Comedian, actress, writer, voice-over artist |
| Parents | Laura Campbell and Michael Thomas Berthold |
| Sibling | Kate McKinnon |
| Relationship Status | Private; not publicly confirmed |
| Known For (Credits) | Notary Publix, Heads Will Roll, Our Cartoon President, Friends from College, The Iliza Shlesinger Sketch Show |
| Past Career | Stand-up comedy |
| Current Focus | Comedy videos, acting, voice work, writing |
| Social Media | Active on Instagram and YouTube |
Who Is Emily Lynne Berthold?
Emily Lynne Berthold is an American comedian, actress, and writer who often works under the professional name Emily Lynne. She’s the younger sister of Kate McKinnon, and the two grew up together in Sea Cliff, a hamlet on Long Island’s North Shore.
While Kate’s career took off through Saturday Night Live, Emily built her own, quieter track record — co-writing and starring in a web series with her sister, voicing characters on an Audible original, and landing supporting roles in shows like Friends from College and Our Cartoon President. She’s also spent years doing stand-up comedy before shifting her focus to writing, voice work, and shorter comedy projects.
Beyond her screen and audio credits, Emily keeps a fairly low public profile. She doesn’t do many interviews, and most of what’s known about her personal life comes from what she or Kate have chosen to share rather than extensive media coverage.
Early Life and Family
Emily grew up on Long Island alongside her older sister, Kate McKinnon (born Kate McKinnon Berthold). Their mother, Laura Campbell, has been described as a parent educator, and their father, Michael Thomas Berthold, worked as an architect.
Detailed public information about Emily’s own early life — her exact birth date, schooling before college, and specific childhood milestones — hasn’t been independently confirmed. Some celebrity-profile sites list a birthday of November 18, but this detail traces back to a cluster of similar websites rather than any verified primary source, so it’s best treated as unconfirmed.
Her Father’s Death and Its Impact
Michael Thomas Berthold died in 2002, when Kate McKinnon was 18 — meaning Emily, as the younger sibling, would have also been a teenager at the time. Public reporting on the Berthold family doesn’t specify the cause of his death in detail, and some celebrity-profile sites describe it as a brain cancer diagnosis, though this hasn’t been independently verified through a primary source.
What is well-documented is that losing their father early shaped both sisters, and that they’ve remained close in the years since — a closeness both have referenced in interviews tied to Kate’s career.
Her Bond with Kate McKinnon
Emily and Kate have a well-documented working relationship that goes back years. The two have collaborated on at least two notable projects: the 2015 Comedy Central web series Notary Publix and the 2019–2020 Audible comedy series Heads Will Roll.
Kate has spoken about her sister in interviews over the years, generally describing their relationship warmly. The two also appeared together publicly, including a joint appearance tied to Heads Will Roll promotion. Specific quotes attributed to Kate about Emily circulate across several celebrity-profile sites, but since these don’t trace back to a verifiable primary interview, they’re best treated as paraphrased rather than exact.
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Career: Notary Publix, Heads Will Roll, and More
Emily’s best-known credit is Notary Publix (2015), a six-episode Comedy Central Above Average web series she co-wrote with and co-starred in alongside Kate McKinnon, playing the comedic Fra Diavolo sisters.
In 2019, she voiced JoJo, a loyal but bumbling raven, opposite Kate’s Queen Mortuana in the Audible original comedy series Heads Will Roll.
Her other screen credits include a supporting role in Friends from College (2017) and voice work on the animated series Our Cartoon President (2018–2020). She’s also appeared in The Iliza Shlesinger Sketch Show (2020).
Alongside these credits, Emily spent years performing stand-up comedy and has continued to produce comedy videos and sketches independently, including through her own YouTube channel.
Why She Stepped Away From Stand-Up
Multiple celebrity-profile sites report that Emily stepped back from stand-up comedy around 2023, shifting her focus toward writing, voice work, and shorter-form comedy content instead of live performance. This specific framing and timeline haven’t been independently verified through a primary interview or social media post that’s publicly archived, so it’s worth treating as a secondhand account rather than a directly confirmed detail — though it’s consistent with her more recent, lower-profile approach to stand-up compared to her earlier career.
Her Personal Life
Emily’s romantic life is not something she’s discussed publicly in any verifiable way. A number of celebrity-profile sites claim she’s married to a man named Matt Leary, describing him as an illustrator and co-owner of a Brooklyn production company, with a reported engagement and wedding. However, this claim doesn’t appear in any credible, independently reportable source — it traces back to the same small cluster of celebrity-profile websites, and at least one other profile of Emily describes her as single with no confirmed spouse. Given that inconsistency, her relationship status is best treated as unconfirmed rather than stated as fact, and this piece won’t repeat the marriage claim as established.
What does appear more consistently is that Emily keeps her personal life largely private and focuses her public-facing content on comedy rather than her relationships.
Hobbies, Pets, and Social Media
Away from work, Emily has described herself as a horror movie fan and shares that interest along with comedy content on her Instagram. She’s also posted about caring for pets over the years, including cats.
Her Instagram mixes comedy clips, behind-the-scenes content, and occasional throwback photos with Kate, while her YouTube channel features sketches and comedy videos, though she doesn’t post to it on a regular schedule.
Final Thoughts
Emily Lynne Berthold’s story is often introduced through her connection to Kate McKinnon, but her own body of work — from Notary Publix to Heads Will Roll to television roles on shows like Friends from College and Our Cartoon President — reflects a comedy and writing career she’s built independently over more than a decade. She’s kept much of her personal life private, including her romantic status, which remains unconfirmed despite widely circulated claims online. What’s clear is that she and Kate have remained close collaborators and siblings through a shared love of comedy that dates back to their childhood on Long Island.
FAQs About Emily Lynne Berthold
Is Emily Lynne Berthold Kate McKinnon’s sister?
Yes. Emily is Kate McKinnon’s younger sister, and the two grew up together in Sea Cliff, New York.
What is Emily Lynne Berthold known for?
She’s a comedian, actress, and writer known for Notary Publix, Heads Will Roll, Friends from College, and Our Cartoon President.
Is Emily Lynne Berthold married?
This isn’t confirmed. While some sites claim she’s married to a man named Matt Leary, that claim isn’t independently verified and conflicts with other reporting describing her as single, so it should be treated as unconfirmed.
Did Emily Lynne Berthold do stand-up comedy?
Yes, for several years. Some reports say she stepped back from stand-up around 2023 to focus on writing and other comedy formats, though this hasn’t been independently confirmed through a primary source.
What happened to Emily Lynne Berthold’s father?
Her father, Michael Thomas Berthold, an architect, died in 2002 when Kate McKinnon was 18.
Does Emily Lynne Berthold have social media?
Yes, she’s active on Instagram and runs a YouTube channel featuring comedy sketches and videos.
