( CNN ) -- Seriously , is there anything Seth MacFarlane does n't do ? Writer , actor , director , singer , producer , voice of beloved animated characters and awards show host . The world is about to see if leading man is yet another title MacFarlane can add to his already extensive Hollywood resume . MacFarlane 's film `` A Million Ways to Die in the West '' opens this weekend , and it is first time he 's heading up a cast as a real live actor . The film spoofs old-fashioned Westerns . MacFarlane plays Albert Stark , a sheep farmer who is far from enthused about living in the West . Of course , it 's not his first movie . MacFarlane wrote and directed the 2012 film `` Ted '' as well as voiced the foul-mouthed , stuffed bear around which the plot revolves . But this is the first time MacFarlane himself has stepped into the spotlight , which begs an obvious question . `` Does ' A Million Ways to Die in the West ' certify Mr. MacFarlane as a bona fide movie star , '' asks The New York Times ' Stephen Holden . `` It 's too soon to tell . He demonstrates enough confidence to emerge relatively unscathed from the movie , which he produced , directed and wrote ( with Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild ) , but he is far from imperial . At the same time , you wonder if someone else ( maybe Jim Carrey ) could have given Albert a stronger personality . '' MacFarlane 's career began at a fairly young age . He told Bill Maher during a CNN interview that he began drawing as a toddler . `` I would watch 'Woody Woodpecker ' and Fred Flintstone and whatnot , and I would -- my parents saved sketches that I did that are crude but oddly recognizable , '' MacFarlane said . It was while he was a student at the Rhode Island School of Design that he began developing what would ultimately become the hit Fox animated series `` Family Guy . '' He went on to develop more animated shows : `` American Dad ! '' and `` The Cleveland Show . '' MacFarlane told Rolling Stone in 2012 that he believed `` Family Guy '' was often unfairly dismissed as `` frat boy humor , '' though he admitted that there is plenty of that . `` But we try to include an equal amount of intelligent humor , '' he told the magazine . `` If it makes you laugh , what 's wrong with that ? There 's room for both highbrow and lowbrow . '' The success of his critically acclaimed 2011 jazz album , `` Music Is Better Than Words '' ( it was nominated for two Grammys ) has led to a deal for a reported forthcoming Christmas album . And he is one of the producers of the rebooted `` Cosmos : A Space Time Odyssey '' television series . That 's not to say that everything MacFarlane has touched has been golden . His live-action Fox comedy `` Dads '' starring another Seth ( Green ) and Giovanni Ribisi was panned by critics from the onset and was recently canceled . And his stint as the host of the 2013 Academy Awards telecast left viewers divided . His `` Million Ways to Die in the West '' co-star Charlize Theron praised his versatility . `` He 's fantastic , '' she said . `` He wears every single hat which was about 150 that he wore in this move really well like just a seasoned pro . I mean there was nothing about him that said to me he was a first-time actor or a -- I think we were all very impressed by just how effortlessly he did all of it . '' As for MacFarlane , he said he had a very simple reason for stepping in front of the camera . `` I like a challenge , '' he said . `` I like taking a risk , something I have n't done before . ''
Seth MacFarlane has a long , diverse resume . He's written for shows like Family Guy and American Dad as well as movies such as The Simpsons Movie ( which he also directed ), the first two X-Men films, and even wrote an episode of Futur@@ MacFarlane said he enjoyed the challenge .