After two seasons, Netflix canceled Chelsea Handler’s “Chelsea” in October, thereby ending the streaming service’s first foray into original talk show programming.
The vacuum didn’t last long, however, as David Letterman’s monthly “My Next Guest” and Joel McHale’s weekly “The Joel McHale Show” premiered in January and February 2018. If that weren’t enough, Netflix also announced they were giving former “The Daily Show” correspondents Hasan Minhaj and Michelle Wolf their own late night-esque programs.
Minhaj’s won’t air until sometime later this year, but “The Break with Michelle Wolf” drops its first weekly episode on Sunday, May 27. Billed as a half-hour variety and sketch series, Wolf introduced “The Break” in a short trailer previewing what the first episode might look like.
“There’s a lot going on in the world right now,” she says. “The point is, we’re all going to die.” And much like her old gigs at “The Daily Show” and “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” Wolf’s “The Break” looks like your typical late night comedy show.
“The Break” starring Michelle Wolf debuts this weekend
Except for the fact that Wolf is a woman, unlike Letterman, McHale and Minhaj. Along with Samantha Bee on TBS, Robin Thede on BET and Sarah Silverman on Hulu, the inclusion of her new series now means that a total of four women will be currently hosting late night talk shows in the United States. Busy Philipps recently announced she will host a show on E! in the future too.
This is great news, and the comedian’s late night experience proves she can handle her own without issue. Yet this isn’t the only reason Wolf’s star has been steadily on the rise for the past few years.
Most recently, she caught the country’s attention thanks to her performance at the 2018 White House Correspondents’ Dinner last month. For not only did Wolf refuse to shy away from roasting the absent President Donald Trump, but she also joked about Sarah Huckabee Sanders while the press secretary sat just a few seats to her left.
Many criticized Wolf for her quips about Sanders, but the comic stood her ground on social media and in subsequent interviews. “I wouldn’t change a single word,” she told NPR. “I’m very happy with what I said, and I’m glad I stuck to my guns.”
The episode may have been a resounding wakeup call for broadcast, cable and streaming audiences largely unfamiliar with Wolf’s work, and that’s a good thing. Before her WHCD performance, her biggest claim to fame was the critically acclaimed comedy special “Michelle Wolf: Nice Lady,” which premiered on HBO in 2017. Now that “The Break” is almost here and practically everyone knows who she is, however, that’s all about to change.
