W. Kamau Bell returns to the podcast to go deep on his illuminating new four-part documentary series ‘We Need to Talk About Cosby.’ And with his career as both a comedian and filmmaker on the line, he holds nothing back. This sprawling conversation covers everything from Bell’s early admiration for Bill Cosby to the shattering of those illusions when his rape allegations came to light to why he thought his big project might be dead when Cosby was suddenly released from prison last summer. We also talk about why ‘The Cosby Show’ cast members have been so reluctant to speak out against “America’s Dad,” whether Bell is able to separate the art from the artist and still appreciate Cosby as a comedian and so much more. 

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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In this preview of our new episode with W. Kamau Bell dropping next Tuesday, the comedian and director addresses the backlash he’s already started receiving in response to his bombshell four-part documentary ‘We Need to Talk About Cosby’—before it even premieres this Sunday night on Showtime. 

Subscribe to ‘The Last Laugh’ now to hear our full conversation when it’s released next Tuesday, February 1st. 

Follow W. Kamau Bell on Twitter @wkamaubell and Instagram @wkamaubell

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Highlights from this episode and others atThe Daily Beast

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Before The Sex Lives of College Girls, Amrit Kaur had only appeared in a handful of Canadian dramas. Hand-picked by Mindy Kaling to play Bela, a sex-positive, comedy-obsessed version of her younger self, Kaur defied both South Asian stereotypes and immigration laws to deliver one of the funniest performances of the past year. In this episode, we talk about her unlikely audition process, studying stand-up comedy to nail her character’s comic timing, what it was like to meet Kaling for the first time on set, how her conservative Indian parents reacted to the show’s more scandalous moments and more. 

Follow Amrit Kaur on Twitter @AmritKaur and Instagram @amritkaur

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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In his first hour-long stand-up special ‘Trash White,’ comedian Moses Storm describes himself as going “from the dumpster to HBO Max.” But as he explains in this week’s episode, his real story is even darker, which makes his ability to find so much humor in it all the more remarkable. During our conversation, Storm breaks down how comedy became his only way out of extreme poverty and why he pushes back when privileged audience members have tried to tell him it’s offensive to use the word “homeless.” He also reveals how the late Bob Saget ended up appearing in his new special, how Conan O’Brien changed his life overnight and a lot more. 

Follow Moses Storm on Twitter @MosesStorm and Instagram @mosesstorm

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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With a fiery new half-hour special as part of Netflix’s ‘The Standups’ series, Naomi Ekperigin is more ready than ever to achieve that next level of comedy success. And she does it all while remaining far more “thoughtful” about how her jokes affect the audience than many of her anti-woke peers. It’s been a long road, as she explains in this episode, from starting out as a writing assistant on ‘Broad City’ to her current role as a writer and guest star on the final season of ‘Search Party.’ We also talk about her risky decision to burn any potential bridge to ‘Saturday Night Live’ by calling out the show for its lack of Black female cast members and why she felt “less excited” about being on Netflix after the Dave Chappelle controversy exploded. 

Follow Naomi Ekperigin on Twitter @Blacktress and Instagram @blacktresscomedy

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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Before Nicole Byer became the Emmy-nominated face of Netflix’s family-friendly baking competition show ‘Nailed It!’ she was best known as one of the raunchiest comedians on the stand-up scene. It’s the type of juxtaposition that has drawn parallels to Bob Saget, another filthy comic who found fame on the super-saccharine sitcom ‘Full House.’ On this episode, Byer breaks down how she balances these two disparate sides of her comedy persona, sizes up her Emmy competition and reflects on the bizarrely “segregated” SNL audition in which she lost out to her best friend Sasheer Zamata. 

Follow Nicole Byer on Twitter @nicolebyer and Instagram @nicolebyer

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This episode was originally published on August 24, 2021.

Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast.

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On this special annual crossover pod, ‘The Last Laugh’ host Matt Wilstein joins ‘The New Abnormal’ co-host Molly Jong-Fast and producer Jesse Cannon to look back at the year in political comedy, from the problem with Dave Chappelle to big changes at SNL to the pitch black humor of ‘Succession’ and a lot more.

Follow Molly Jong-Fast on Twitter @MollyJongFast 

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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As we get to the end of the year, host Matt Wilstein is joined by The Daily Beast’s Laura Bradley to share their lists of the funniest performances of 2021, including previous podcast guests (Busy Philipps! Nicole Byer!) and more of the biggest names in comedy who made us laugh the hardest this year.

See our full list of the 20 funniest performances of 2021 at The Daily Beast.

Follow Laura Bradley on Twitter @lpbradley 

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‘Succession’ clip via @jga41agher

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As a Palestinian refugee who grew up in Houston, Mo Amer has one of the most unique stories in the stand-up comedy scene. With his latest Netflix special ‘Mohammed in Texas,’ the comedian is proving himself as one of the most talented as well. In this episode, Amer talks about how a summer spent performing in the Ohio cornfield of his friend and mentor Dave Chappelle prepared him to put out his best material yet. He also shares stories about making David Letterman a fan, finding himself seated next to Eric Trump in business class and why he doesn’t believe Chappelle is actually “canceled” after his own controversial Netflix hour. 

Follow Mo Amer on Twitter @realmoamer and Instagram @realmoamer

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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During the three years they overlapped in the cast of ‘Saturday Night Live,’ Rachel Dratch and Ana Gasteyer didn’t have “some big sketch together.” But they always made each other laugh and ever since they left the show have kept looking for new ways to collaborate. Now, they have reunited in a big way to co-write and co-star in ‘A Clüsterfünke Christmas,’ their new parody of those guilty pleasure Hallmark and Lifetime Christmas movies for Comedy Central. In this episode, Dratch and Gasteyer break down how they pulled off their spot-on send-up and reminisce about the highs and lows of their time on SNL—from behind-the-scenes antics to wild after parties to the struggles they faced in the entertainment industry when they each decided to move on. 

Follow Rachel Dratch on Twitter @TheRealDratch and Instagram @raedratch

Follow Ana Gasteyer on Twitter @AnaGasteyer and Instagram @anagasteyer

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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