Netflix Taps Chris Rock, Matt Rife and, Yes, Tom Brady for Its Second Comedy Fest

Netflix is eager to laugh again — and flex its dominance in the stand-up arena.

The streamer has formally announced a second installment of its Netflix is a Joke Fest, which will be held May 2 to 12, with more than 300 shows across 35-plus Los Angeles venues. The multi-day event quickly became the biggest comedy festival in North America when it debuted in 2022, selling 260,000 tickets across 295 shows — and it’s poised to be bigger in 2024. Produced by Netflix in association with Live Nation, the lineup, to date, includes some of the hottest names in comedy, including Chris Rock, Ali Wong, John Mulaney, Chelsea Handler, Bert Kreisher, Jon Stewart, David Letterman, Tom Segura and Matt Rife.

“This is a special time for comedy, both for Netflix and the genre at large,” said Robbie Praw, Netflix’s vp, stand-up and comedy formats, adding in a statement: “We have the privilege of working with comedians who are selling out arenas, winning awards and building fandoms in the millions. In the 10 years that we’ve been doing stand-up we’ve seen the art form reach levels we didn’t think possible. This festival aims to capture this moment by bringing together the world’s best comedians for an unforgettable 11 days.”

The Hollywood Bowl will feature the biggest acts, for which Netflix has done specials, including Trevor Noah, Kevin Hart, Bill Burr and Jerry Seinfeld as well as Mulaney and Rife. The venue will also host a ladies night with a lineup featuring incoming CBS late night host Taylor Tomlinson along with Sarah Silverman, Nikki Glaser and Michelle Buteau as well as an evening titled Seth Rogen Smokes the Bowl, featuring music and comedy in support of Seth and his life Lauren Rogen’s Alzheimer’s charity Hilarity For Charity.

Over at The Forum, Netflix will host (and record) what it’s billing G.R.O.A.T., as in The Greatest Roast of All Time, which will center on NFL legend Tom Brady. Much like he did for the old Comedy Central roasts, Jeff Ross will serve as the night’s “Roastmaster General,” and Brady’s “famous friends and frenemies” will gather to light him up as well. Elsewhere in town, Rock will host star-studded table reads of his favorite films at the Hollywood Palladium and The Greek Theater will feature evenings with the teams from Big Mouth and I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson.

The announcement comes as Netflix continues to experiment in the stand-up space. And though it no longer shells out eight figures with abandon, Netflix has a roster of specials that is considerably bigger and more impressive than any of its rivals. Earlier this year, the service aired its first live streaming event with Chris Rock: Selective Outage, which delivered both in viewers and subsequent awards nominations. Other recent Netflix specials to hit Netflix’s Top 10 have featured Mark Normand, Shane Gillis, Mike Birbiglia, Leanne Morgan and Rife. All five are set to appear at the festival in May.