What Happened...Ms. Sykes?

Wanda Sykes spends much of this hour trying to figure out how she transformed from a conservative-presenting NSA contractor into a married gay woman raising two white children who speak with French accents. The core of the set relies on this domestic culture clash, particularly when she looks at the framed family photos lining her walls and quips that living with a white family is probably exactly what it feels like to be the Obamas. It is a study in bemused estrangement from one’s own life, anchored by her classic raspy, highly skeptical delivery.

Filmed at the Theatre at Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, the 2016 special marked her first stand-up hour in seven years. During this hiatus, she had co-founded a production company and worked extensively in television, which left her with a lot of catching up to do on stage. She details the specific trials of raising children who do not look like her, such as when her daughter Olivia accidentally refers to her as “Mammy” instead of “Mommy,” a linguistic slip that Sykes notes requires singing a Negro spiritual just to keep her temper in check.

Though the special originally aired on Epix, its distribution path gained a second life in 2018 when Sykes revealed she had rejected Netflix’s initial low offer. She publicly aligned with Mo’Nique’s complaints about the streaming giant’s pay disparities, noting she had been offered less than half of Mo’Nique’s $500,000 baseline.