Comedy Now: Netflix Is Spearheading Its Own British Invasion

Welcome to Comedy Now, a weekly column cataloging what comedy fans should know about what’s available in the streaming world. Whether it’s a brand new special, an old classic, or the oddball show that defies categorization, we’ll list as many as we can for your enjoyment right here. Who knows? We may even throw in a few non-streamable bits on occasion, like tour announcements from our favorite comics. You can check out the previous column here.

What’s Now

James Acaster invades the U.S. with four Netflix specials at once

New York Times comedy critic Jason Zinoman recently tweeted that Netflix was offering a “global platform” to British comics who frequent the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. We’ve seen this already with Katherine Ryan and Jack Whitehall, and now it’s true of James Acaster, who invaded the U.S. this week with his four-part (yes, four-part) stand-up special, Repertoire. We spoke to Acaster earlier this week about the four separate hours, which include the three initial parts (Recognise, Represent, and Reset) and a fourth (Recap) he half-jokingly, half-seriously devised after watching Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

Silicon Valley‘s Jimmy O. Yang publishes a book and goes on tour

Jimmy O. Yang is best known as Silicon Valley‘s Jian Yang, the irritable tenant of Erlich Bachman’s (T.J. Miller) tech incubator who now practically runs the place. Now the Chinese-American actor and stand-up comedian has a new book, How to American: An Immigrant’s Guide to Disappointing Your Parents, about which he spoke to us earlier this week. The fifth season of Silicon Valley premiered this week and Yang’s book is now available for sale in stores everywhere. He toured the country for much of March to promote it, and early next month, he’s going on the road again to perform stand-up.

What’s New(s)

John Mulaney will take over Netflix and Saturday Night Live this spring

We should probably figure out who we have to petition to change the season of spring to “Mulaney.” That’s because John Mulaney is practically taking over with Kid Gorgeous at Radio City, the first of a new “multi-special pact” he signed with Netflix, on May 1st. A few weeks before that, the former Saturday Night Live writer and Bill Hader whisperer will return to his old stomping grounds to host the weekly variety series on April 14th. The gig will put him in rarified air, joining Conan O’Brien and Larry David as former writers (who weren’t also cast members) who have returned to host.

The President Show finds its Kellyanne Conway in Kathy Griffin

Comedy Central’s popular The President Show has tapped Kathy Griffin to play Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway in the upcoming special, Make America Great-A-Thon: A President Show Special. Star and creator Anthony Atamanuik’s biting and psychologically rich impression of President Trump stands far above the rest in the current landscape, and judging by the program’s taste in supporting actors (and characters), there’s a good chance Griffin will be quite good. The new special is set to air on Tuesday, April 3rd at 11 pm ET/PT on Comedy Central.

The Dana Carvey Show alums Dana Carvey and Stephen Colbert relive their glory days

Not only is all of The Dana Carvey Show‘s tortuously short run available to stream on Hulu, but the documentary about its demise, Too Funny to Fail is also housed there. It’s a very good documentary, but there’s nothing quite like watching Carvey himself and former cast member Stephen Colbert reminisce about some of the sillier things they did this week on The Late Show. “I have to thank you for hiring me for that show,” Colbert told Carvey during the interview. “I can draw a direct line from you hiring me for that show to being right here.” They also aired clips from a few sketches from the show that never aired.

What’s Later

Louie Anderson says Hey Mom while digging into his Big Underwear

April is going to be a big month for Louie Anderson, the Emmy Award-winning comedy actor who plays the mother of Zach Galifianakis’s title character in Baskets. In addition to publishing a new book, Hey Mom, he will also release a brand new stand-up special with Comedy Dynamics on April 3rd titled Big Underwear. “This is my 40th year as a stand-up comic,” Anderson said in a press release, “and I hope I created really big shoes to fill because I know I have really Big Underwear to fill.” The new special will premiere on Amazon, Comcast, DIRECTV, AT&T, DISH, iTunes, Charter, Google Play, and other platforms.

Michelle Buteau lands her own podcast with Late Night Whenever

Popularly known as the “Third Dope Queen,” 2 Dope Queens featured comedian Michelle Buteau is about to make her mark on the podcast and late night talk show worlds with her new WNYC Studios produced show, Late Night Whenever. Starting Tuesday, April 3rd, new episodes of the late night-style podcast will debut every week, featuring Buteau’s comedy monologues and interviews with celebrity guests, the musical interludes of sidekick Rob Lewis, and much more. “Is it weird that I’m more excited about this podcast then I was planning my wedding?,” she joked about the venture in a press release.

Fary Is the New Black

While Netflix’s British invasion very well may be a thing, this hasn’t stopped the streaming behemoth from importing comedians from non-English speaking parts of the world into the U.S. French comic Gad Elmaleh, who recently released an English-language special titled American Dream, remains one of the more prominent examples, but he’s not the only one. On Tuesday, April 3rd, his hours will be joined by Fary Is the New Black, a new comedy special from the young French comic Fary. The special was shot in 360 degrees, not unlike Jerrod Carmichael’s 8 on HBO.

Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen’s Hilarity for Charity gets a streaming date

For the past six years, Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen’s “Hilarity for Charity” organization has hosted a comedy showcase to raise money for Alzheimer’s research. These shows were never broadcast, but that’s all about to change as this year’s event, which took place on Saturday, March 24th in Los Angeles, will stream by Netflix on Friday, April 6th. The lineup includes Tiffany Haddish, Sarah Silverman, Michelle Wolf, John Mulaney, Nick Kroll, Kumail Nanjiani, Michael Che, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jeff Goldblum, James Corden, The Muppets, Post Malone, and Craig Robinson & The Nasty Delicious.