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TROUBLEMAKER

Dane Cook

YouTube · 2026 · 78 min

Dane Cook aims to break up happy couples in Las Vegas.

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Dane Cook's first special since Above It All (2022). Released , on YouTube.

Dane Cook walks out with an explicit goal: to split up as many couples in the room as possible. He announces up front that people stay together mostly out of sheer laziness, then spends the set trying to nudge hesitant partners over the edge.

Originally broadcast on Showtime in 2014 before resurfacing on YouTube in 2026, the 78-minute taping took place at The Venetian in Las Vegas. Cook self-funded and directed the performance himself, marking his first televised hour in four years after retreating from the stadium tours and family financial drama that dominated his peak years. In his early forties, he stepped back from the breathless arena mania of his commercial height to try on a colder, more cynical delivery.

The material concentrates on digital courtship, texting habits, and the phoniness of curated online personas. When an audience member tries to shout out from deep in the theater, Cook does not bother spinning it into a playful riff; he cuts the heckler off as a mushmouth who just ruined his date’s evening.

Cook still stalks the stage and stretches vowels for punctuation, but the driving force is fatigue with romance. Critical response was muted, finding him caught midway between his earlier frat-pack swagger and the grittier club comic he was working to become.

Notable bits & set list

7 bits

  1. Everyone is a little racist when hungry.

    Observes how extreme hunger triggers casual prejudice that broadens into anti-religious feelings when starving.

  2. Women hating the word 'moist'.

    Riffs on how universally despised the word is among women.

  3. Men steering women in public.

    Explains that when men place an arm around their partners at farmers markets or outdoor malls, they are literally steering them because they walk aimlessly.

  4. Modern texting arguments and bizarre emojis.

    Advises men never to fight via text and dissects women's use of strange emojis, including the hazmat suit and poop with eyes.

  5. Stalking an ex online.

    Notes that instead of driving past an ex-partner's house, modern people now 'drive by' their Facebook page to spy on their curated life.

  6. Snooping through a partner's phone and computer.

    Mischievously advocates checking a partner's unlocked laptop or demanding their phone because that is where their true self is hidden.

  7. Male versus female breakup depression.

    Acts out the contrast between women eating ice cream with consoling friends and a man moping alone in a dark room under a single light bulb.

How it plays

Tone
Raunchy, candid, cynical, and observational.
On stage
Assertive, charismatic, and cheeky; acts as an unapologetic 'troublemaker' exploring modern taboos, styling himself as an observational 'verbologist' focused on language and relationship dynamics.
Pace
Moderated physical energy (described as brought down from an 11 to about a 6), yet still highly animated with broad physical movements across the stage and act-outs.
About
modern relationships and dating, technology, texting, and emojis, gender differences and relationship secrets, online culture and 'the haternet', breakups and depression

What the critics said

Met with mixed-to-positive appraisals; reviewers noted a more mature, relatable perspective on relationships and praised Cook's presence, while pointing out a rough opening stretch, jarring camera focus issues, and Cook's persistent polarizing comedic qualities.

In the room: Raucous and engaged room dynamic with responsive audience reactions and interactive moments where Cook shut down hecklers and maintained control.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: imdb.com, paramountpressexpress.com, pro.imdb.com, yidio.com, thecomicscomic.com, vulture.com, thepopbreak.com, ew.com, en.wikipedia.org, collider.com.

Backstory

Followed a difficult period marked by the death of both of Cook's parents to cancer within nine months, family legal betrayal, and public joke-theft controversies; Cook was encouraged by mentor Jerry Lewis to direct and produce the project independently.

Details

Released
Taped
2013, Venetian Theater, Venetian Hotel, Las Vegas
Runtime
78 min
Where
YouTube
Director
Dane Cook
Topics
Before
Above It All (2022)
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