Joel Kim Booster
Uses manic, gossipy confidence to deflect the burden of representation.
3 specials · 2017–2022
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Joel Kim Booster prowls the stage with the manic confidence of someone who holds the lease to the venue. He shushes cheers to get to his next punchline and treats a massive theater like a cramped diner booth. He pulls the audience into his orbit through pointed crowd work, casually interrogating a guy in the front row about his bedroom cleanup habits. He keeps the tone loose enough that the interaction feels like a party trick rather than an attack.
Specials
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A filthy, narcissistic audio debut about evangelical adoption and hookup culture.
Comedy Central Records · Album
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Comedy Central Stand-Up Presents
Vain, deadpan confessions on homeschooling and bad breakups.
Comedy Central · 30 min
On stage
With the film Fire Island and a steady run of television roles, he has built an audience that lets him skip the introductory material. He actively rejects the trap that often waits for comics outside the straight white default. Mainstream crowds might expect a marginalized comic to act as a patient teacher. He prefers to be a menace.
His act ducks any spokesperson duties by leaning into the absurd. He builds long arguments about the differences between cats and dogs or the logistics of taking drugs on a cruise ship. When he does mine his own identity, he approaches it sideways. He will launch into a physical imitation of how straight men walk, or repeat a mundane phrase until it devolves into noise. He slips these wilder premises into what sounds like ordinary complaining.
He grew up as a gay Korean kid adopted by a white evangelical family in Illinois. He spent his early open-mic years constantly explaining his background to confused rooms. Now, he assumes everyone already did the reading and just gets to work.
Turning points
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2017–2018
Debut Album Release of Model Minority
Released his debut standup album through Comedy Central Records, tackling his evangelical upbringing, gay culture, and Asian American stereotypes.
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Writing and Starring in Fire Island
Booster wrote, executive produced, and starred in Fire Island, a landmark queer Asian American romantic comedy that earned two Primetime Emmy Award nominations.
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Release of Psychosexual Special on Netflix
Debuted his first hour-long standup special Joel Kim Booster: Psychosexual, which received a Critics Choice Award nomination.
At a glance
- Born
- , Jeju Island, South Korea
- On stage
- since 2016
- Style
- observational, satire
- Breakout
- Fire Island
- Influences
- Mindy Kaling, Aziz Ansari
- Topics
- Elsewhere
- Wikipedia
Fans also like
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Margaret ChoA trailblazing pioneer for queer Asian American comedy who co-starred alongside Booster in his breakout film Fire Island.
Podcasts
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Bad Dates · host
A comedy podcast where guests recount their most iconic, hilarious, and disastrous dating fiascos.
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Urgent Care with Joel Kim Booster + Mitra Jouhari · co-host
A comedic advice podcast launched under Earwolf hosted by Booster and Mitra Jouhari.
Also on screen
- The Week Of
- Viper Club
- Sunnyside
- 2019–2020
- Shrill
- 2019–2023
- Big Mouth
A clip to start with
Knowing You’re Gay Before Knowing You’re Asian - Joel Kim Booster