Andrew Santino likes to go further.
He opens "White Noise," his third comedy special and his first for Hulu, by asking, "Is... racist?"
It's a question viewers might ask about some of his jokes, as Santino debunks stereotypes with a provocative wink. The title of the special, which premieres September 12, is taken from the show's wildest side and perhaps also a self-deprecating reference to his comedy. "People will feel a little uncomfortable or confused if they're supposed to laugh, or if it's okay to say it. To me, that's the point of comedy," says Santino. "If you trick the audience with love, and they know they understand you, they won't find anything hateful."
Director: Brandon Dermer
Writer: Andrew Santino
Star: Andrew Santino
The Chicago-born comedian has been walking the line between acceptable and outrageous for years with his podcasts "Whiskey Ginger" and "Bad Friends" with Bobby Lee. Although those shows have made Santino one of the most recognizable voices in comedy, he encourages fans to take out their AirPods and laugh with the live audience.
Normally, we have a free pass. This is the first time this has happened to me doing specials: they were afraid of the narrative I was presenting because it was a reflection of their company. I reminded them several times that it was comedy, that I was joking, and that it wasn't real. And that's the point of comedy: you're just making fun of reality. But they weren't interested. So, again, we found a middle ground, but most of the time comedians don't have filters. That's why we love the podcast world and why we've moved away from traditional media a bit. We got fed up with being told, "You're not supposed to say that."
Frankly, it's silly, because that's not how people think or talk in the real world. Nobody cares. People say what's on their minds all the time, and they love it when comedians can say things that people don't talk about much out of fear. That's our job: to bring out the uncomfortable and talk about the topics that make people uncomfortable. That's the best part of the business. We get to live in the podcast world and do stand-up comedy live, unfiltered. So it was a challenge for me, but I did it. I still enjoy the special and hope people enjoy it, despite the difficulties I face.
Many of us want to feel more free, so we do our own thing. Many people make a lot more money doing their own thing than following the traditional studio route. It took us a long time to realize we were being robbed! They took all the money, we worked really hard, and they gave us what they thought we deserved. We realized that if we built our own world, without relying on other people's ideas above what we deserved, we could build our own audience and forge our own future. I still love television and film.
I hope to get back to acting. I don't see it in my future. In the near future, I'm focusing on stand-up comedy, podcasts, and creating my own world in the digital world. You don't see many people on television or in film anymore because there isn't much being done in the comedy circuit, in terms of big, commercial comedy films. Television comedy shows have slipped into the unknown. There aren't many opportunities, unless you're friends with Seth Rogen, and then you can get on one of his 50 TV shows. Outside of that, it's a little different. It's a little harder. A lot of comedians, in particular, were tired of playing that weird "please love me" game in the industry. Instead, they were like, "We'll just go straight to our audience and try to connect with them."
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