Chris Distefano is bringing his comedy to Hulu.
His latest hour, which is being executive produced by Jimmy Kimmel, arrives as the streaming service makes an aggressive push into the stand-up arena, elbowing its way into an increasingly frothy market that’s been dominated by Netflix in recent years. It’s Just Unfortunate, as Distefano’s new special is titled, is his third, following previous hours Size 38 Waist and Speshy Weshy at Comedy Central and Netflix, respectively.
The Hulu stand-up initiative, which it’s dubbed “Hularious,” is set to kick off in earnest in November with a special from comedy vet Jim Gaffigan. From there, it will look to distinguish itself from rivals by dropping a new hour at a monthly cadence. “The mantra is very much quality over quantity,” Hulu’s head of scripted content Jordan Helman told THR of the platform’s curated approach. As part of its effort to become that kind of destination for stand-up, the service will also house a collection of licensed specials, both iconic hours and recent releases.
Distefano’s hour is expected to roll out in early 2025, though the streamer has not yet provided an exact date. Others on the roster at Hulu, which has proved willing to shell out as much as seven figures for the right name: Bill Burr, Ilana Glazer, Roy Wood Jr., Atsuko Okatsuka and Jessica Kirson along with yet-to-be-announced heavyweight Sebastian Maniscalco. Internationally, where many of these comics, including Distefano, have followings, the specials will all be available on Disney+.
In 2023, Distefano became the first stand-up comedic to sell out both Radio City Music Hall and the Theater at Madison Square Garden on consecutive nights. He also continues to co-host a pair of hit podcasts, Chrissy Chaos and Hey Babe, and has done his fair share of TV. In fact, Distefano starred on MTV’s Girl Code and Guy Code as well as IFC’s Bender and he cohosted the Netflix gameshow Ultimate Beastmaster. He also made a whole slew of pilots that didn’t get picked up, including one eponymous one for CBS based on his life.
For what it’s worth, this is not Distefano’s first time working with Kimmel and his Kimmelot production company. The pair previously collaborated when the ABC late night host tapped him to host ViceTV’s short-lived Super Maximum Retro Show. Kimmelot also produces ABC’s long-running franchise Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and its more recent game show hit, Generation Gap, as well as Kimmel’s own Jimmy Kimmel Live.
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