Andrew Cooper / Netflix
Since leaving her gig as a writer at Saturday Night Live in 2020, Sam Jay has become an increasingly prolific force in the comedy world. From her debut hour-long Netflix special 3 in the Morning, to her unique take on the late-night variety show Pause for HBO, to co-creating the sitcom Bust Down for Peacock, the Atlanta-born, Boston-raised comic has already shown audiences that she contains multitudes. And all of that was before her breakout performance in the new Netflix movie You People.
In her return to The Last Laugh podcast, Jay talks about how she landed her key role as a rom-com bestie and responds to some of the backlash the film has received from critics of writer/director Kenya Barris. She also opens up about her decision to leave SNL, reveals the fate of Pause, and addresses those who felt “hurt” by her jokes comparing trans women to X-Men.
Four years ago, Jay was a relatively unknown writer at SNL struggling to get her sketches on the air as movie stars like Eddie Murphy and Jonah Hill came through to host. She fondly recalls the “surreal” experience of collaborating with Murphy, who brought his Velvet Jones character to her “Black Jeopardy” sketch, but still remembers failing to get anything on the air the last time Hill hosted in 2018. Now, Jay is right there with them on screen, landing some of the funniest jokes in their new Netflix movie You People.