Shawkat was born in Riverside, California, to Dina Shawkat (née Burke) daughter of actor Paul Burke, and Tony Shawkat, a strip club owner. She grew up in Palm Springs. She has two brothers. Her father is Arab Iraqi, from Baghdad. Her mother is of Norwegian, Irish, and Italian descent.\n', '

When not acting, she likes to paint; she has participated in gallery shows in Los Angeles, Mexico City and Paris. She also likes to make music and sing in jazz bars. Ever since the filming of Whip It, she has been best friends with fellow actress Ellen Page. She is bisexual.\n', '

As Maeby Fünke, Shawkat was a regular cast member of Arrested Development for the entire run of the show from 2003 to 2018. The series received nearly universally positive reviews, with Shawkat\'s performance occasionally singled out for praise. Pop-culture commentator Brian M. Palmer remarked that she was "one of the brightest lights on a show populated solely by bright lights," and Scott Weinberg of eFilmCritic described her as "one funny young lady." In an interview with The A.V. Club in 2010, Shawkat remarked that many of her "formative moments" as an actress took place on the Arrested Development set: " [Show creator] Mitch Hurwitz was like a father figure to me. In a way, it was great to be around [the cast], because I feel that my understanding of comedy was able to grow really well during that time."\n', '

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