Jerrod Carmichael

Jerrod Carmichael is a gay comedian, writer, actor, and director who came out publicly in his Emmy Award–winning HBO stand-up special "Rothaniel" (2022) — one of the most significant and discussed coming-out moments in recent comedy history. Directed by Bo Burnham and staged as an intimate, almost uncomfortably candid confession, "Rothaniel" saw Carmichael sit before a small audience and work through, in real time, the experience of having kept his gay identity secret from his family, his audience, and himself. The special was praised as a formally innovative and emotionally devastating work of performance art that blurred the line between confession and craft. Carmichael spoke about the ways that secrecy had shaped every relationship in his life and the relief and terror of releasing it. He hosted the Golden Globes in 2023 with characteristically unsparing candor about the industry and himself. He appeared in Yorgos Lanthimos's "Poor Things" (2023) and has continued to develop projects as a writer-director. His coming-out has been widely recognized as a turning point in how queer identity and comedy intersect.