Steve Martin was first seen in the "Who's Afraid of Mother Goose?" episode of the American television anthology series ‘Off to See the Wizard’ in 1967. He was next seen in television shows like ‘The Dating Game’ (1968), ‘The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour’ (1968-1969), and ‘The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour’ (1971-1973). In 1972, Martin made his first movie appearance in the Bob Einstein-directed comedy film ‘Another Nice Mess.’ The film received negative reviews from critics. He next acted in television series like ‘Half the George Kirby Comedy Hour’ (1972-1973), ‘The Smothers Brothers Show’ (1975), and ‘Doc’ (1976). In 1976, Martin joined the cast of the American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show ‘Saturday Night Live’ as a host. He continues to appear on the show and has hosted 21 episodes.
Martin made a return to the big screen with the 1978 musical comedy film ‘Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band’ directed by Michael Schultz. Even though the film opened to negative reviews, it was a commercial success. The following year, he starred as ‘Navin R. Johnson’ in the American comedy film ‘The Jerk’ directed by Carl Reiner. The film opened to wide critical acclaim and was a phenomenal box office success, grossing over $100 million on a budget of $4 million. He went on to star in films like ‘Pennies from Heaven’ (1981), ‘The Man with Two Brains’ (1983), ‘The Lonely Guy’ (1984), Three Amigos’ (1986), ‘Parenthood’ (1989), and ‘My Blue Heaven’ (1990). In the 1991 comedy film ‘Father of the Bride,’ Martin portrayed ‘George Banks.’ The film received mostly positive reviews with critics applauding the performance of Martin. ‘Father of the Bride’ was also a massive commercial success and grossed over $129 million against a budget of $20 million.
In 1995, he reprised his role as ‘George Banks’ in ‘Father of the Bride Part II,’ the sequel to the 1991 film, ‘Father of the Bride.’ The film received mixed response from critics and was a moderate box office success. He starred as ‘Tom Baker’ in the 2003 American family comedy film ‘Cheaper by the Dozen’ directed by Shawn Levy. While the film was panned by critics, it emerged as a major financial box office hit. The film also spawned a sequel in 2005, named ‘Cheaper by the Dozen 2,’ where Martin returned to play the role of ‘Tom Baker.’ In 2006, he starred as ‘Inspector Clouseau’ in the 2006 comedy-mystery film ‘Pink Panther.’ The film opened to mixed reviews and was a financial success. He was next seen in films like ‘Baby Mama’ (2006), ‘The Pink Panther 2’ (2009), ‘The Big Year’ (2011), ‘Love the Coopers’ (2015), and ‘Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk’ (2016).
In 2021, Martin joined the cast of the American mystery-comedy streaming television series ‘Only Murders in the Building.’ The show completed its first season in October 2021.