Ari Shaffir
A patient storyteller who enjoys making you regret laughing.
6 specials · 2015–2025
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He walks on stage looking like a guy who just woke up from a nap at a party. He is unhurried. He smiles. Then he says something awful. When the audience groans, he doesn’t backtrack. He just stands there, grinning slightly, letting the uncomfortable silence stretch out until the sheer awkwardness forces a laugh. He uses a bad reaction from the crowd as a pacing mechanism.
Specials
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A casual hour of acid trips, bad decisions, and TSA complaints.
Comedy Central · 73 min
On stage
In the podcast comedy boom, he occupies the role of the resident instigator. He runs with the massive Protect Our Parks crew, operating as the comic willing to step over the lines his peers only walk up to. He plays theaters, but he still carries the energy of a late-night spot at The Comedy Store, where the primary goal is to make the other comics in the back of the room wince.
His material relies heavily on a contrarian reflex. If society agrees a habit is destructive, he will spend ten minutes outlining the hidden benefits. Sometimes the shock value feels tedious, like a teenager seeing what he can get away with. But when he narrows his focus, the jokes tighten up. His 2022 hour Jew abandoned broad provocations to spend ninety minutes dissecting his orthodox religious upbringing. His best work happens when he stops trying to offend strangers and attacks the world he actually comes from.
He spent years hosting the storytelling show This Is Not Happening, which trained him how to handle a quiet crowd. He can take a story about a terrible personal decision and stretch the details out for ten minutes without ever losing the room.
Turning points
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2010–2015
Transition of This Is Not Happening to Television
Shaffir created This Is Not Happening as a live monthly show in 2010 before developing it into a web series in 2013 and a full broadcast series for Comedy Central in 2015.
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Departure from Comedy Central Over Netflix Special
Shaffir exited This Is Not Happening as host and producer after selling his double special Double Negative to Netflix rather than keeping it at Comedy Central.
At a glance
Fans also like
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Mark NormandNormand shares strong creative chemistry with Shaffir as a recurring co-panelist on the popular 'Protect Our Parks' series of The Joe Rogan Experience.
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Shane GillisGillis frequently joins Shaffir on the 'Protect Our Parks' installments, sharing an uncensored, irreverent comedic sensibility.
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Joe RoganRogan served as Shaffir's long-time touring partner and primary platform booster across dozens of podcast appearances.
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Tom SeguraSegura toured alongside Shaffir on Joe Rogan's late-2000s comedy road crew and shares a penchant for unapologetically dark material.
Podcasts
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Skeptic Tank · host
Shaffir interviews fellow comedians and guests as experts on a single topic, covering both comedic themes and serious subjects such as mental health and prison.
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Punch Drunk Sports · co-host
A sports-centric comedy podcast hosted alongside Sam Tripoli and Jayson Thibault.
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You Be Trippin' · host
A podcast where Shaffir discusses travel experiences and stories.
Also on screen
- 2013–2017
- This Is Not Happening
A clip to start with
A clip of Ari Shaffir