As festival puts all its 2021 programming online for free

Dave Chappelle is to be named Comedy Person of the Year by Montreal’s Just For Laughs festival.

The comedian is being honoured after 12 months in which he released his poignant 8:16, inspired by the murder of George Floyd, launched a new podcast The Midnight Miracle, and made a documentary about running gigs in the pandemic in his Ohio home town.

Meeanwhile, Kristen Wiig  and Annie Mumolo  are being named comedy writers of the year  for their  movie  Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar;  Ted Lasso will be named comedy series of the year as it launches its second season on Apple TV+ onf July 23;  and Bowen Yang, currently a featured player on NBC’s  Saturday Night Live, is being honoured with the breakout comedy star of the year award.

For the first time this year, the Just For Laughs  Awards Show will air online for free - with footage available at the official hahaha.com website from Wednesday, July 28. 

 Just For Laughs president Bruce Hills said: ‘We’re honouring comedy storytellers who entertained and inspired us through this challenging past year. We’re thrilled that for the first time, we are able to invite audiences to join us online. It’s going to be a really great celebration.’

Indeed, all performances at the festival as well as the industry-focussed ComedyPro events, will also be streamed for free. And in another first, the festival will feature comedy gigs in  New York City and Los Angeles as well as its Montreal home.

Sabrina Jalee will host the LA gig with Maz Jobrani, Gina Yashere, Alonzo Bodden, Jeremy Hotz, Liza Treyger and Rachel Feinstein; while  Dulcé Sloan  will host the New York gig with Todd Barry, Michael Kosta, Marina Franklin, and more.

Other programming includes a series of interviews entitled Comedy Gold Minds with Kevin Hart, the New Faces showcase and regular strands The Nasty Show and The Alternative Show, hosted by Andy Kindler and featuring Patton Oswalt, Maria Bamford, Brian Posehn, Laurie Kilmartin 

There will be an ‘in conversation’ event with party-loving comic Bert Kreischer, as he receives Variety magazine’s ‘creative impact in comedy’ award. The only other comedian to have received such an accolade is Chris Rock.

The Hollywood magazine has also named its 10 Comics To Watch: Mo Amer,  Quinta Brunson,  Ayo Edebiri, Hannah Einbinder, Josh Johnson, Chelcie Lyn, Natalie Palamides, Matt Rogers, Benito Skinner  and Kountry Wayne – aka Wayne Colley.

Executive editor Steven Gaydos said : ’In the past year and a half, the world has learned that not only is laughter the best medicine, it may also be as essential as oxygen. Variety's 10 Comics to Watch all provide what we've learned is essential to life on earth: original perspectives that bring light and lift our spirits.’

The festival runs from July 26 to 31. Additional programming announcements and the full 2021 schedule will be released next month.

Published: 29 Jun 2021