LGBTQ+ Creators Rewriting the Rules of Comedy
Photo Credit: Joel Kim Booster / Instagram
by Timothy Rawles Mar 18
14 MIN READ
Good comedy is subjective. Some people like the goofball type, some like the more cerebral kind, but as long as it makes us laugh, that’s all that matters. Not too long ago gay people were the butt of the jokes. Comedians like Eddie Murphy and Andrew “Dice” Clay made no apologies about their punch downs during their stand ups. It’s gotten better, but there are a few modern jokesters who cross the line such as Louis C.K. and Dave Chapelle. It could be argued that even these funny people make some people laugh, but it could also be said they would still be funny without hate.
It’s a good thing that there are queer comedians today who can make people laugh without using low hanging fruit. They write jokes and scripts that are funny and thought-provoking without the homophobia. Below are some LGBTQ+ comedy rule breakers get laughs by being relatable rather than bigoted.
Hannah Gadsby
Good stories can’t be told without a little humor, and Hannah Gadsby has perfected the art of storytelling. Her “Nanette” Netflix special is Pulitzer-worthy and if you haven’t seen it, you’re missing out on one of the most intelligent stand-up acts ever made. Her journey in life has been a hard one, but they infuse some deeply profound philosophies within their act which are both ironic and hilarious. As a genderqueer artist, Gadsby is also giving voice and insight to a community often vaguely defined.
“My whole life I’ve been thinking about my gender,” Gadsby told Diva . “I’m an idiosyncratic individual. So what’s happened to me – sudden onset fame six years ago, and intense public scrutiny, and all of a sudden I’m a leader, when actually I’m just a shmuck who accidentally hit a nerve – I’ve got a lot to consider. My gender is all wrapped up in that. Basically, I’m a skin sack full of chaos!”
Bowen Yang
Gay men tropes are always going to be a part of comedy. Hopefully queer artists are the ones writing them, and although Bowen Yang is guilty of playing the nelly queen from time to time on Saturday Night Live, he’s also allowed to. Yang is sort of the gay version of the Everyman. From his hope-less romantic role in “Fire Island” to his conflicted character Chris in the remake of “The Wedding Banquet,” Yang has made a career for himself that at one time might have seemed impossible. He has talked about his experience in conversion therapy, a treatment that hopes to “cure” homosexuality.
He says that he went there to appease his parents, and wondering what it would be like. In an interview with “Sunday Today With Willie Geist” he said the experience was very “painful and detrimental.” But, “There was a lot of healing after it. Identity is a really fickle thing, like, it’s not something you arrive at until much later in life. I don’t think I really got a grasp on who I was until, like, two years ago.”
Joel Kim Booster
Writer, actor, stand-up comedian, Joel Kim Booster never lets a funny observation go to waste. He writes about it and then puts it in his act whether it’s a screenplay or a stand-up bit. He gained quite a bit of fame for writing “Fire Island,” a gay romantic comedy that was inspired by Jane Austen's “Pride and Prejudice.” The movie hits upon a lot of things such as classism, promiscuity and self-acceptance; topics that are prominent within the LGBTQ community.
Booster is steadily becoming more and more famous, his voice was used in the hit film “KPop Demon Hunters” and he’s cast member of the 2026 “Scrubs” reboot, playing Dr. Kevin Park. He is a rising star.
“The goal was never fame,” Booster told Vice . “I always wanted to just be a working comedian, but now that I’m a working comedian, I don’t really know what the next step is because saying ‘I want to be famous’ is so gross.”
Wanda Sykes
Whether she’s in a romantic comedy as a supporting actor or solo on the stage, Wanda Sykes’ brand of comedy pulls no punches. She doesn’t sugar coat the details which makes her punchlines funny not just because they’re true but because the thrust of her delivery is so boisterous.
Sykes came out later in life. It was at a same-sex marriage rally in Las Vegas in 2008, she was 44. She married Alex Niedbalski that same year and they have twins which Sykes often refers to anecdotally in her act. Like when she told People about her 16-year-old meaning to drive.
"Alex has been in the car with them — I'm not doing that," she said . "I want to hire somebody. That's what I'm doing. I'm hiring somebody who has a brake on their side, you know, on the passenger side."
Margaret Cho
Margaret Cho has been a gay icon for decades; she identifies as bisexual. Cho’s always been an advocate for gay rights and never misses a chance to make examples of that in her act. In the ‘90s, she was so successful Hollywood came knocking, offering her a sitcom which explored Asian American family life.
But Cho’s show never made it to a second season, the network didn’t know how to handle her blue comedy stand up and how that would reflect on the show which aired during family hour. All of that and then execs started focusing on her weight. It was a very insensitive time in Hollywood history.
Today Cho gives zero Fs about what Hollywood thinks. Her stand up is irreverent but responsible. When asked what advice she’d give to a young budding comedian who might want to express their outrage with the world doing stand-up, she said :
“That they’ve gotta go do it, and don’t take ‘no’ for an answer. Just do it, just do it, just do it. Keep doing it. Keep going, keep working. We need you.”
Hannah Gadsby
Good stories can’t be told without a little humor, and Hannah Gadsby has perfected the art of storytelling. Her “Nanette” Netflix special is Pulitzer-worthy and if you haven’t seen it, you’re missing out on one of the most intelligent stand-up acts ever made. Her journey in life has been a hard one, but they infuse some deeply profound philosophies within their act which are both ironic and hilarious. As a genderqueer artist, Gadsby is also giving voice and insight to a community often vaguely defined.
“My whole life I’ve been thinking about my gender,” Gadsby told Diva . “I’m an idiosyncratic individual. So what’s happened to me – sudden onset fame six years ago, and intense public scrutiny, and all of a sudden I’m a leader, when actually I’m just a shmuck who accidentally hit a nerve – I’ve got a lot to consider. My gender is all wrapped up in that. Basically, I’m a skin sack full of chaos!”
Bowen Yang
Gay men tropes are always going to be a part of comedy. Hopefully queer artists are the ones writing them, and although Bowen Yang is guilty of playing the nelly queen from time to time on Saturday Night Live, he’s also allowed to. Yang is sort of the gay version of the Everyman. From his hope-less romantic role in “Fire Island” to his conflicted character Chris in the remake of “The Wedding Banquet,” Yang has made a career for himself that at one time might have seemed impossible. He has talked about his experience in conversion therapy, a treatment that hopes to “cure” homosexuality.
He says that he went there to appease his parents, and wondering what it would be like. In an interview with “Sunday Today With Willie Geist” he said the experience was very “painful and detrimental.” But, “There was a lot of healing after it. Identity is a really fickle thing, like, it’s not something you arrive at until much later in life. I don’t think I really got a grasp on who I was until, like, two years ago.”
Joel Kim Booster
Writer, actor, stand-up comedian, Joel Kim Booster never lets a funny observation go to waste. He writes about it and then puts it in his act whether it’s a screenplay or a stand-up bit. He gained quite a bit of fame for writing “Fire Island,” a gay romantic comedy that was inspired by Jane Austen's “Pride and Prejudice.” The movie hits upon a lot of things such as classism, promiscuity and self-acceptance; topics that are prominent within the LGBTQ community.
Booster is steadily becoming more and more famous, his voice was used in the hit film “KPop Demon Hunters” and he’s cast member of the 2026 “Scrubs” reboot, playing Dr. Kevin Park. He is a rising star.
“The goal was never fame,” Booster told Vice . “I always wanted to just be a working comedian, but now that I’m a working comedian, I don’t really know what the next step is because saying ‘I want to be famous’ is so gross.”
Wanda Sykes
Whether she’s in a romantic comedy as a supporting actor or solo on the stage, Wanda Sykes’ brand of comedy pulls no punches. She doesn’t sugar coat the details which makes her punchlines funny not just because they’re true but because the thrust of her delivery is so boisterous.
Sykes came out later in life. It was at a same-sex marriage rally in Las Vegas in 2008, she was 44. She married Alex Niedbalski that same year and they have twins which Sykes often refers to anecdotally in her act. Like when she told People about her 16-year-old meaning to drive.
"Alex has been in the car with them — I'm not doing that," she said . "I want to hire somebody. That's what I'm doing. I'm hiring somebody who has a brake on their side, you know, on the passenger side."
Margaret Cho
Margaret Cho has been a gay icon for decades; she identifies as bisexual. Cho’s always been an advocate for gay rights and never misses a chance to make examples of that in her act. In the ‘90s, she was so successful Hollywood came knocking, offering her a sitcom which explored Asian American family life.
But Cho’s show never made it to a second season, the network didn’t know how to handle her blue comedy stand up and how that would reflect on the show which aired during family hour. All of that and then execs started focusing on her weight. It was a very insensitive time in Hollywood history.
Today Cho gives zero Fs about what Hollywood thinks. Her stand up is irreverent but responsible. When asked what advice she’d give to a young budding comedian who might want to express their outrage with the world doing stand-up, she said :
“That they’ve gotta go do it, and don’t take ‘no’ for an answer. Just do it, just do it, just do it. Keep doing it. Keep going, keep working. We need you.”
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