Variety’s 2024 Comedy Impact Report: Ayo Edebiri, Julio Torres and Ramy Youssef Among Honorees

Sterling K. Brown – Actor
Cord Jefferson – Writer, director and producer
Tracee Ellis Ross – Actor
Jeffrey Wright – Actor

For Jefferson, Oscar-winning screenwriter of “American Fiction” as well as its director and producer, bravery is required to make any art — including comedy, where “you need to trust your instincts.” Making the satire, Jefferson drew upon the bravery of his creative and producing teams, as well as on strong performances from a cast led by Wright, Brown and Ross. Some of his performers came from dramatic backgrounds but “saw the way that this movie was going to be funny in the subtleties,” he says, finding the humanity within all of these people. Jefferson didn’t find much courage in potential backers (“The common refrain was, ‘I wish that I worked at a place where we could make this movie’”), but if anything comes from the success of “American Fiction,” Jefferson hopes there will be more willingness to find “the next person who is courageous with their own voice and writes a personal, unique piece of work.”

“Abbott Elementary” creator, exec producer and actor

Brunson won the lead actress in a comedy series Emmy for her performance in “Abbott Elementary,” the workplace sitcom she created, adding that trophy to her previous comedy writing award for the show, now in its fourth season on ABC. The series follows the teachers in an underfunded Philadelphia public school who are trying to make a difference. With her bright smile and social awkwardness, Brunson makes everyone relate to teacher Janine Teagues. Outside of serving as “Abbott’s” star, exec producer and writer, Brunson is next set to lend her voice to an upcoming animated adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ “The Cat in the Hat,” set for release in 2026.

“Babes” actor; “Survival of the Thickest” creator, exec producer and actor

Buteau’s charm has leveled her up from Hollywood sidekick to self-described “main bitch,” and now she’s nothing short of busy. But within her flurry of recent projects — the feature film “Babes,” Season 2 of “Survival of the Thickest” and a new Netflix special — the hat this multihyphenate is most excited about wearing is “size 18-20, light-skinned, goofy-ass bitch getting shit greenlit.” Buteau hopes the future of comedy allows “people to shine and be in a good place,” alongside “less self-deprecating and more inclusive, honest, growth.”

CAA, comedy touring and podcast agent

Edbrooke began promoting music shows on the Sunset Strip when he was just 17 and shifted abruptly to booking comedy when he was 25. “I was given a list of the clients and numbers of comedy club owners, as well as a price sheet for how much everyone needed,” he recalls. “From that point, I hit the phones.” His roster of clients, which includes Andrew Schulz, Tim Dillon, Lavell Crawford, Natasha Leggero and “SNL” stars Molly Kearney and Marcello Hernandez, have sold over 700,000 tickets in 2023, grossing more than $42 million. He also handles podcasters such as Dr. Andrew Huberman, Father Mike and Sam Harris.

“The Bear” and “Bottoms” actor

Edebiri has in the past year delivered a plethora of memorable performances, from queer comedy hit “Bottoms” to culinary dramedy “The Bear” (which earned her a Golden Globe and Emmy) to voicing the emotion Envy in “Inside Out 2.” Having starred in several titles that are not only critically acclaimed but have pushed the genre forward, Edebiri says one hope for the future of comedy is “more trust” on the developmental side of the biz. “It might not be for everybody. It doesn’t have to be for everybody,” Edebiri says. “We’re living in really political times, and comedy has always been political and always will be. But you definitely feel, very acutely, people’s fear. I just hope that on a structural level executives can stand up to that fear and support idiosyncratic creators.” 

“Just for Us” writer, exec producer and performer

Who could have imagined that a Jewish kid crashing a neo-Nazi meeting in Queens would be the gift that keeps on giving? Stand-up comic Edelman, for one. Although he’s been performing his show “Just for Us” based on that encounter since 2018, its move to Broadway last year earned him a Tony Award for “exemplary debut” and an HBO comedy special that made him an overnight sensation. “I’m genuinely obsessed with comedy. It’s such a great way to communicate,” says Edelman, who has two other tours under his belt (“Millennial” and “Everything Handed to You”). “I can think of a lot of jokes that have communicated really complicated ideas to me in really simple ways.”

“Dark Pale” writer, director, exec producer and performer

Gaffigan presented a new category at the Golden Globes in January: best stand-up comedian on television. He soon had everyone asking two questions: Why isn’t he hosting this show? And how is he not nominated in this category? The funnyman spent the year on his “Barely Alive Tour,” produced his album “The Prisoner” and an upcoming Hulu special, “The Skinny.” He also launched his 10th special, “Dark Pale,” Amazon’s first original special, which he thinks “won over a lot of folks who had written me off as an edgeless clean comedian.” He also appeared in Seinfeld’s film “Unfrosted.” But he will always return to the stage. “I love acting and writing but stand-up I can control. The stand-up boom is exceeding my wildest expectations. I’m so grateful that I get to do what I love.”

Brandon Scott Jones – Actor   
Devan Chandler Long – Actor  
Rebecca Wisocky – Actor   
Román Zaragoza – Actor  

This quartet portrays some of the titular otherworldly spirits in the supernatural sitcom and arguably took over the show’s third season with memorable storylines that touched on mental health, race, suicide and colonialism. The CBS show, recently renewed for a fourth season, follows two married New Yorkers, played by Rose McIver and Utkarsh Ambudkar, who convert a country house inhabited by ghosts from different eras of American history into a bed and breakfast. Rebecca Wisocky shares that “The Holes Are Bad” episode was particularly rewarding for her. “Our show often balances deeper themes with its screwball comedy. But tackling suicide on a true half hour comedy felt especially risky. I’m proud of the performance and how beautifully it was written by Sophia Lear.” Roman Zaragoza adds that though the season was impacted by the WGA strike, “I feel like we had some of our strongest episodes of the series.” Long, who plays the Norwegian Viking ghost Thor, hopes that comedy continues to get “more dangerous and gritty,” noting that “adversity always brings the laughs.”

Levity Live, manager

The comedy aficionado sees his work discovering and elevating comedic talent as a blessing. “Making an impact is really fulfilling,” says Ginivisian. “As my artists impact culture, community and industry, I have the privilege of helping them achieve their goals and dreams. I get to be a storyteller myself — telling stories with talented people’s careers.” Clients include Fortune Feimster, Big Jay Oakerson, Jay Pharoah, Ari Shaffir and Preacher Lawson, along with rising stars such as Ginger Billy. Ginivisian himself produced eight specials for his clients in the last year, noting, “I can’t wait for the world to see them all.”

“Someday You’ll Die” writer and performer; “The Roast of Tom Brady” performer

Glaser has been making people laugh for 20 years-plus, but one 9-minute set while roasting Tom Brady was such a big career boost that she believes it will never happen again. “It was a really fun moment in my career that I don’t think is going to be something that I ever experience again,” she says. “It was so immense, and it’s something that most people in this business don’t even get to experience.” It was also the perfect “commercial” for her latest stand-up show, “Someday You’ll Die,” which was HBO’s best premiere for a comedy special in two years. “People are aware of me now. It was a blast to be Taylor Swift for a couple days.” 

“Barbie” actor; “Fall Guy” actor and producer

For an actor who started out in searing dramatic roles like “The Believer” and “Half Nelson,” it’s somewhat surprising to see the actor embrace his silly side — though, technically, his real start was “The New Mickey Mouse Club,” so maybe we should have known. The actor stole “Barbie” from an ensemble of scene-stealers, then lit up the Oscars performing his “I’m Just Ken” number. A self-effacing turn in “The Fall Guy” was a laugh riot, as was his promotion leading up to the film’s release. That included a hosting turn on “Saturday Night Live” where, among other characters, he played a gentleman with a striking resemblance to the cartoon character Beavis.

Stephanie Beatriz – Actor
Erika Henningsen – Actor
Vivienne Medrano – Creator and exec producer
Blake Roman – Actor
Amir Talai – Actor

Medrano’s dark musical comedy “Hazbin Hotel” has gone from an independently produced YouTube pilot to Amazon Prime Video’s biggest-ever global animated series in just a few years. Medrano attributes the success of the A24 show — an inclusive, R-rated comedy that explores good, evil, sex work, addiction, found family and redemption through the inhabitants of heaven and hell — in part to its “fluid, cartoony, expressive” art and self-aware humor that doesn’t belittle as it fluxes between whimsy, sarcasm and wit. “Queer people and women have often been used as a punching bag in comedy,” Medrano notes, but she believes the show “is coming from the perspective of what we think is funny, and that’s very different from what we’ve seen.” For voice star Henningsen, “adults are drawn to shows like ‘Hazbin’ because it plays to their more cerebral, humorous brain,” and its colorful “cacophony of demonic assholes,” who she and Medrano promise will have some “very genuine, sweet moments” in Season 2.

WME, comedy touring agent

Homola reps an impressive roster of stand-up talent that includes Chris Distefano, Sam Morril, Trevor Wallace, Hannibal Buress and Jimmy Carr (for the U.S. ), booking their tours and helping them navigate deals for comedy specials. Her career-building acumen is exemplified by her first signing, Zack Fox, whom she’s helped branch out into music, brand deals and acting (“Abbott Elementary”). Through it all, she continues to call on the adaptive skills she picked up from her first job, working in a golf pro shop. “Maybe I didn’t know that much about golf, but I’d learn it and figure it out and try to connect with people,” she says.

Carl Clemons-Hopkins – Actor
Paul W. Downs – Co-creator, exec producer and actor
Hannah Einbinder – Actor
Jean Smart – Actor
Megan Stalter – Actor

The first two seasons of the Max comedy, which has nabbed six Primetime Emmys, were so perfect that anticipation for a delayed Season 3 could not have been higher. And yet somehow the cast and crew delivered the best season yet, following Las Vegas comedian Deborah Vance (Smart) on her quest to win a late-night talk show. Everyone got a chance to shine, from Einbinder’s Ava and Clemons-Hopkins’ Marcus stepping out of their boss’ shadow to Stalter and Downs as a mismatched duo of managers (their scenes with guest star Christopher Lloyd showed they can hold their own opposite legends). Downs, who is also a co-creator of the show (with Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky) believes “the secret to our cast chemistry is that we genuinely make each other laugh and enjoy being together.” As for Season 4, all the performer-producer can say is, “Our characters are on a bigger stage than ever before, and the stakes have never been higher.”

“Hijabs Off” writer and performer

Johnson shot into the limelight doing stand-up about her experiences as a New York-raised Muslim Black woman. In her 2023 debut Amazon Prime Video special, “Hijabs Off,” she disarmingly explores her intersectional identity. “I’m not speaking in generalities,” Johnson says. “I’m speaking about me.” Of carving her own space in comedy as someone who never saw herself as “the funny one,” she says: “I’m always looking to infuse new representation in what I put out, one that I didn’t have and always have it skew towards humor. That’s my style — to put a little medicine in the candy — so you laugh but you also kind of learn that we’re all different but the same.”

“Diarra From Detroit” creator, actor and exec producer

Creator and star Kilpatrick shares a first name and a hometown with her character in her BET+ series “Diarra From Detroit,” a comedy-mystery about a freshly divorced teacher who follows a date who’s ghosted her down a rabbit hole into the Motor City underworld. But in real life, she’s a married mother of a 3-year-old whose resume includes roles in HBO’s “Perry Mason” and her own ABC web series “American Koko.” “If Netflix is listening, I’d love, like, a three-picture deal,” says Kilpatrick, who’s developing a “reparations rom-com.” “They’ve given a lot of people a lot of money. They could give me a little less to make some bold comedic work.”

“Ted” creator, writer, performer

MacFarlane has decades of comedic experience but learned at the start to avoid being a micromanager. “Early on, with ‘Family Guy,’ when we were still teaching people what the style was, I had to dig in and do a lot of corrective work I didn’t have to do later on,” he says. “Now, when I set up a show, I seek out people who, ideally, are smarter than me, more creative and more talented.” It served him well through the inaugural season of his new hit sitcom “Ted,” which has been renewed for Season 2. “We managed to achieve something that was pretty unique and pretty fresh and wasn’t just a rehash of what we’d done before. And that, more than anything, had a reason for existing.”

“John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in L.A.” writer, host

Coming up with a unique idea for a talk show can be a colossal, fruitless headache, but Mulaney successfully pulled it off in spades. His live six-part Netflix series, “John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in L.A.,” covered a topic each night illustrating the uniqueness of the city, weaving in experts on topics like earthquakes and helicopters with comedy guests including David Letterman and Sarah Silverman — and it worked. “I no longer want to overthink something that might be exciting to me,” he says. “I’d like to take advantage of how lucky I am to be here and be able to work in this field.”

Jim Donnelly – Exec VP of comedy development, Universal Television
Jeff Meyerson – Exec VP of scripted content, comedy, NBCUniversal Entertainment
Beth Miyares – Senior VP of comedy development, Universal Television
Megan Macmillan – Senior VP of comedy development, Universal Television

NBCUniversal is killing it in the comedy space this year, whether that’s streaming shows like “Ted,” those airing on NBC such as the reboot of “Night Court” or those produced by Universal and airing on other networks such as the Emmy-winning “Hacks,” which airs on Max. “The industry perception that comedy can’t be global and won’t bring a new audience to a streaming service [is a challenge],” says Donnelly, who is teamed with Miyares and Macmillan on Universal’s comedy development. But NBCUniversal has smashed all perceptions this year. “It’s so much fun to see shows with formats or settings that are true originals. We made a stop-motion animated show with live action components for Peacock this year [“In the Know”], and I’m always on the lookout for ideas that push the boundaries of traditional comedy,” says Meyerson. And the train will keep rolling in 2024 with the premiere of shows like “St. Denis Medical” and “Happy’s Place.”

Brillstein Entertainment Partners, partner

Murray started out on the music side of the biz, booking acts in college then working as an assistant for a music agent at ICM. At Brillstein since 2010, he manages a roster of comedians that includes Jim Gaffigan, Nate Bargatze, Nikki Glaser, Justin Willman, Jim Jefferies, John Crist, Trevor Wallace and Tony Hinchcliffe (host of the “Kill Tony” live podcast). “If you have a great YouTube video or TikTok or a great special on Netflix, Amazon or Hulu, we can connect with your audience directly, and we don’t need the interference of the traditional television and film business to help,” he says.

Tracey Pakosta – VP of comedy series
Robbie Praw – VP of standup and comedy formats

Pakosta and Praw have been key architects of Netflix’s comedy brand. In recent months, Praw has overseen specials by a long list of talent (Pete Davidson, Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, Bert Kreischer, Adam Sandler, Taylor Tomlinson, etc.) and “The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady,” as well as the annual “Netflix is a Joke” live comedy festival in Los Angeles. “We’re focused on having the right variety and making sure people’s favorite comedians are on Netflix,” says Praw. Pakosta has launched new series (Shane Gillis’ “Tires,” “The Vince Staples Show”) and returning hits (“Emily in Paris,” “Cobra Kai”) and developed upcoming titles including “Nobody Wants This,” starring Kristen Bell, and “A Classic Spy,” starring Ted Danson. “One of the most exciting things about Netflix is that the big stand up comedians can transition their talents to utilize their voices on the scripted side,” says Pakosta.

Selena Gomez – Exec producer and actor
Steve Martin – Co-creator, exec producer and actor
Paul Rudd – Actor
Martin Short – Exec producer and actor
Meryl Streep – Actor

The third season of the Hulu whodunit series “Only Murders in the Building” was its most ambitious. The Arconia building detectives Charles, Mabel and Oliver (Martin, Gomez and Short, respectively) had to solve the murder of a despised actor (Rudd) while simultaneously embarking on an elaborate Broadway musical. Mayhem, song and heart attacks would ensue. With music crafted by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul of “The Greatest Showman” fame, audiences weren’t just treated to a compelling mystery but one with a bevy of catchy songs, including Martin’s hilarious rendition of “Which of the Pickwick Triplets Did It?” Streep joined the group this season as the shady Loretta Durkin, an actress desperate to make it on Broadway at any cost and crafted a sweet and heartbreaking character. The series also got a boost from Rudd in perfect form as the selfish Ben Glenroy, using his trademark sarcastic wit to craft a character you love to hate and hate to love.

Paulina Alexis – Actor
Lane Factor – Actor
Sterlin Harjo – Co-creator, exec producer, director, writer
Devery Jacobs – Actor, director, writer
D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai – Actor

This year audiences said goodbye to the FX fan favorite “Reservation Dogs” after three hilarious seasons. “It was kind of bittersweet to let go of the character,” says Factor, who played Cheese on the series. But he, like all the cast, is not only proud of how the show upped the interest in Indigenous talent and humor, but also how it turned them all into strong comedic performers. “What ‘Res Dogs’ has taught me about comedy is that our sense of humor as Native folks translates to other audiences,” says Jacobs. But that universality also allowed the series to tackle and reconcile with the harsh realities of Indigenous representation. “I love that Hal Ashby type of comedy,” series creator Harjo says, referring to the director of “Being There” and “Harold and Maude,” among others. “It makes you cry, and it makes you laugh, and there’s space for that, and we need that. A story is a roller coaster. You have your lows, and you have your highs, and you have your parts where you’re afraid, and you have parts where it’s pure joy.”

HBO, executive VP of programming, specials, late-night and unscripted series

Rosenstein was a biochemist on track to go to medical school until she “sort of blew up a lab” while reading a Hollywood trade. Medicine’s loss was showbiz’s gain. Today, the three-decade-plus HBO veteran oversees a slate that includes the unscripted shows “Conan O’Brien Must Go,” “Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show” and “We’re Here,” stand-up specials including “Nikki Glaser: Someday You’ll Die,” the comedy series “Fantasmas” starring Julio Torres and the long-running “Real Time With Bill Maher” and “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver.” “When someone calls up and says, ‘You might think this is crazy,’ that is literally my favorite thing to hear,” she says.

“Loot” actor

When people hear Rudolph’s name attached to anything, they know they’re going to be entertained in a very big way. Rudolph is, as they say, a sure thing. Her Apple TV+ series “Loot” is just the latest project to showcase her considerable talent. How she has made the billionaire Molly relatable to the average viewer is nothing if not brilliant. “The way Molly is navigating the world is the journey we want the audience to go on as well,” she says of her character, who is reinventing her life with philanthropy. “You wouldn’t have the show if you didn’t have her heart. That’s the secret.”

“Bottoms” actor and co-writer; “I Used to Be Funny” actor

Sennott is not afraid to make audiences anxious, whether that’s playing an awkward sugar baby in the 2017 comedy “Shiva Baby” or a stand-up comedian struggling with PTSD in Ally Pankiw’s 2023 feature “I Used to Be Funny.” Sennott’s performances range from selfish to sweet, from over-the-top to quietly muted. In 2023 alone she showed off her diverstiy as a performer in the high school comedy “Bottoms” and in HBO’s “The Idol.” She’ll next be seen in Jason Reitman’s “SNL 1975″ (which is the working title), a behind-the-scenes look at the long-running NBC sketch comedy.

“The Daily Show” host

For 28 years, “The Daily Show” has served as a spoonful of sugar in the dietary fiber of cable news. Stewart’s return as its Monday night host has injected the series with renewed energy in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election, probing national (and global) politics with hilarious, incisive, meme-able incredulity. “I’ve worked through a lot of the sea changes in the industry,” Stewart explained at an FYC event in June. “It’s really lovely to come back to a place that you feel like values ideas and thoughts.” Though the Comedy Central series historically calls its election coverage “Indecision,” Stewart makes the choice to watch an easy one.

“Problemista” director, writer, producer and actor; “Fantasmas” creator, director, exec producer, writer and actor

With “Problemista,” Torres made the leap from writer to showrunner to director. He also wrote, directed and starred in “Fantasmas,” executive produced by Emma Stone with appearances from Alexa Demie, Bowen Yang and Paul Dano. “I’m very proud to have gotten to do two projects that fully feel uncompromised,” the “Los Espookys” co-creator says. Torres expanded his skills by working with his mentor, Dave McCary at “Saturday Night Live,” noting, “I got to learn a lot about directing without knowing that I was actually learning.”

Warner Bros. Television, exec VP and head of comedy development

Turner attended “a comedy graduate school of sorts” working as an assistant on the NBC sitcom “Friends” at Warner Bros. Studios. She’s still on the same lot in Burbank but has long since matriculated to the executive ranks, developing hit comedies for multiple platforms, including ABC’s “Abbott Elementary,” NBC’s “Night Court,” Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls” and Apple TV+’s “Shrinking” and “Ted Lasso.” More recently, she set up a pair of Mindy Kaling projects, “Murray Hill” (Hulu) and “Running Point” (Netflix). “A lot of writers want to make their homes at Warner Bros. because we can sell to broadcast, we can sell to all the streamers,”
she says.

Doug Edley – Partner and agent, comedy touring
Heidi Feigin – Partner and agent, comedy touring

Edley and Feigin have been working alongside each other at UTA for 11 years, booking top comic talent on a touring circuit that has been rapidly expanding thanks to the global reach of streaming platforms like Netflix.“We have plenty of people going to non-English-speaking countries, from Italy to Spain, places that you never saw before,” says Edley. His clients include Ali Wong, Paul Reiser, Vir Das, Phil Rosenthal, Frankie Quinones and Tom Papa, while Feigin has a roster featuring Bert Kreischer, Sebastian Maniscalco, Taylor Tomlinson and Nick Offerman. They also help secure TV specials for clients such as Reiser’s first in 30 years, produced by Comedy Dynamics. “Comics are a different breed,” says Feigin. “They do everything, and no one tells them they can’t do it.”

Sarah Kameela Impey – Actor
Nida Manzoor – Creator, exec producer, writer and director
Juliette Motamed – Actor
Faith Omole – Actor
Lucie Shorthouse – Actor
Anjana Vasan – Actor

Originally a 14-minute pilot released in 2018, “We Are Lady Parts” now has two seasons and multiple awards on the books as a bona fide hit British sitcom about an all-women Muslim punk rock band. The second season’s turn to dramedy has drawn praise for for breaking a monolithic perception of Muslim women. Manzoor felt inspired to create the comedy when, as a writer in the industry, she was being asked to pen only serious representations of Muslim women. “Comedy humanizes people,” she says, “So it’s been really heartwarming to see the show bring different audiences close.” Actor and band member Shorthouse says of the show’s charm: “It’s beautiful because you see women who look like us not being counterparts or having a crisis of faith. They are living in their joy, being funny together, having that main character energy.”

Matt Berry – Actor
Natasia Demetriou – Actor
Harvey Guillén – Actor
Mark Proksch – Actor
Kayvan Novak – Actor

“Shadows” follows the daily lives, mockumentary-style, of a group of ancient vampires living in Staten Island — Nandor (Novak), Laszlo (Berry), Nadja (Demetriou) and Colin Robinson (Proksch), and Nandor’s familiar, Guillermo (Guillen), who longs to become a vampire. The series, based on the 2014 Taika Waititi film, has built up a devoted fan base since its premiere in 2019, as well as critical kudos. But despite a viewership drop in its penultimate Season 5, it maintained a cult-like devotion from its audience, and with its blend of “The Office” meets horror, remains an important touchstone in comedy series. Says Berry of the improvisatory nature of the show: “During the scenes I’m involved with, I would say 60% … is improvised. Unless there is something crucial to the plot, most of us will improvise from the outset. They usually like one take scripted, and the rest can be loose and spicy, which is where I’m most comfortable.” How do the writers keep the characters somewhat grounded? “I’m not sure. I guess it’s a matter of the writers figuring out which parts of our own personalities identify with being dim-witted but overly confident predators, who have no idea how the modern world works,” says exec producer Paul Simms.

“Joy Ride” actor

“I felt as a kid, me being so awkward and Asian was such a deadly social combo,” Wu recalls. That feeling dissipated when filming 2023’s “Joy Ride” — a project where they were valued and, like their own comedy, was personal, unpretentious, a pinch dark and “in control of the jokes.” Now Wu is looking to grow even more, expanding their creative identity with projects like Apple TV+s “Murderbot” and FX’s “Dying for Sex,” a semi-autobiographical pilot with 20th Century, and a stand-up hour they’re looking to sell. “The last few years was me figuring out who I am as an artist,” Wu says. “I’m excited to have people know me as more than a comedic actor.”

“More Feelings” writer, exec producer and performer; “Poor Things” actor; “The Bear” director

From his second HBO special “More Feelings” to directing an episode of “The Bear” to starring in Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Poor Things,” Youssef says his past year has been “creatively satisfying.” The star and creator of “Ramy” adds that hosting “SNL” this spring was “a lifelong dream” come true, noting how meaningful it was to speak on Palestine in his opening monologue. Global events, religion and politics — all of which come up in his latest special — are absolutely par for a comedian’s course in Youssef’s eyes. “I think with comedy, a lot of it is looking at systems, whether they’re your own really specific personal ones or larger global ones,” he says. “I’m really happy with how the special came to be because so much of it was stuff I had been working on for years and then a lot of it was stuff that found its way into the set within the three weeks prior, and that made it feel like something to me that’s living and breathing, and still has a bit of a timelessness. That’s something I’m really happy with.”