Rothaniel Jerrod Carmichael (born June 22, 1987) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. Carmichael created and starred in the semi-biographical NBC sitcom The Carmichael Show. At the age of 20, Carmichael moved to Los Angeles to pursue his dream of being a stand-up comic, before he had ever tried stand-up. His first time doing stand-up was an open-mic night at The Comedy Store in West Hollywood. Working his way up through the clubs, Carmichael appeared in the "New Faces" showcase at the 2011 Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal. Carmichael's breakout role was in the 2014 film Neighbors. He was also on the TV show The Goodwin Games. He has released three stand-up HBO comedy specials. The first, Jerrod Carmichael: Love at the Store, was released in 2014. It was directed by Spike Lee and filmed at The Comedy Store, where Carmichael had first performed stand-up. The second, Jerrod Carmichael: 8, was released on March 11, 2017. It was filmed in the New York Masonic Hall's Grand Lodge Room and directed by comedian Bo Burnham. The latest, Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel, also directed by Burnham, won him his first Primetime Emmy Award, and was notable for featuring the moment he came out as gay to the public. His eponymous NBC sitcom, on which he starred in and produced, has been well-received and is notable for its envelope-pushing approach to topical subjects like Black Lives Matter, LGBT issues, gun rights, politics, and the reality of being African American in the United States. The show is semi-autobiographical. Carmichael made an appearance on Tyler, the Creator's fifth album Igor in 2019, narrating the album using short phrases to find logic in the title character Igor's state of mind. In the same year, he was hired by Quentin Tarantino to co-write a film adaptation based on the Django/Zorro crossover comic book series. He created, directed, produced, and starred in the HBO documentaries Home Videos and Sermon on the Mount which are autobiographical. He starred in the comedy thriller film On the Count of Three in 2021, which was also his feature directorial debut. In 2022, Carmichael hosted Saturday Night Live for the first time, and hosted the 80th Golden Globe Awards. In 2023 Carmichael starred in Academy Award-winning film Poor Things, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos. In 2024, Carmichael will star in the Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show, a documentary series revolving around his life.

Filmography

• 2026The Napa Boys — Executive Producer
• 2025Eddington — Thanks
• 2025Jerrod Carmichael: Don't Be Gay — Self, Writer, Executive Producer
• Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show — Self, Executive Producer, Creator
• 2023Poor Things — Harry Astley
• 2022Jerrod Carmichael: Rothaniel — Self, Executive Producer, Writer
• 2022Kate Berlant: Cinnamon in the Wind — Executive Producer
• 2022On the Count of Three — Val, Producer, Director
• 2021drew michael: red blue green — Executive Producer
• 2019Dan Soder: Son of a Gary — Executive Producer
• 2019Home Videos — Creator, Writer, Director, Executive Producer
• 2019Lil Rel Howery: Live in Crenshaw — Executive Producer, Director
• Ramy — Executive Producer
• 2019Sermon on the Mount — Self, Creator, Director, Executive Producer
• 2018Drew Michael — Director, Executive Producer
• Rel — Executive Producer
• 2018mid90s — Security Guard (uncredited)
• 2017Ferdinand — Paco (voice)
• 2017Jerrod Carmichael: 8 — Self, Executive Producer, Writer
• 2017Moonlight — Ross
• 2017The Disaster Artist — Actor Friend
• 2017Transformers: The Last Knight — Jimmy
• 2016Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising — Garf
• 2016Sausage Party — Thanks
• 2016The Meddler — Freddy / Fredo
• The Carmichael Show — Jerrod Carmichael, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator
• 2014Jerrod Carmichael: Love at the Store — Self, Writer, Executive Producer
• 2014Neighbors — Garf
• 2014Seth Rogen's Hilarity for Charity
• Lucas Bros. Moving Co. — Jerrod
• The Goodwin Games — Elijah
• Loiter Squad — Writers' Assistant
• Golden Globe Awards — Self - Host, Writer
• I'm Glad My Mom Died — Executive Producer

Appearances as themselves (18)

• 2025In Whose Name? — Self
• Stand-Up: The Laughing Therapy — Self (archive footage)
• The Jennifer Hudson Show — Self
• 2018Flower Boy: A Conversation — Self
• 2018Illegal Civilization 3 — Self
• The Shop — Self
• 2018Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1 — Self
• Chelsea — Self
• Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter — Self
• Last Week Tonight with John Oliver — Self
• Late Night with Seth Meyers — Self, Self - Guest
• Off Camera with Sam Jones — Self
• RuPaul's Drag Race — Self - Guest Judge
• Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen — Self - Guest
• Jimmy Kimmel Live! — Self, Self - Guest
• The View — Self - Guest
• The Daily Show — Self
• Saturday Night Live — Self - Host