Watch the Trailer for John Early’s New Comedy Special Now More Than Ever

2022 was quite the year for John Early; between The Afterparty, Would It Kill You to Laugh? (made with his longtime collaborator and best friend Kate Berlant), and voice acting stints on cult animated shows like The Great North and Tuca & Bertie, comedy fans were bound to encounter him one way or another. While all of those appearances were hilarious and rewarding in their own ways, Early’s ready to have the spotlight all to himself. 

He’s embarking on his own with his HBO special Now More Than Ever, which comes to HBO on Saturday, June 17th at 10pm, and will be streaming on Max (yep, just Max) after. Sorry, scratch that—Early’s backed up by his fictional band The Lemon Squares in a mix of stand-up, sketch comedy, and musical numbers filmed at Brooklyn’s Roulette Intermedium. 

The trailer for Now More Than Ever is bursting with bravado and Early’s singularly strange sense of humor. We can expect him to serve up covers of classics by Britney Spears and Neil Young, along with some This Is Spinal Tap-type shenanigans in his send-up of ego-filled rock documentaries. And, of course, leather pants.

Early’s unconventional approach to the comedy special follows a refreshing trend we’ve seen in recent years, with comics working outside the typical stand-up format to create something new and captivating. From Bo Burnham’s Inside to Julio Torres’ My Favorite Shapes, young performers are eschewing tradition and pushing the boundaries of the genre. In Early’s case, there’s definitely some pastiche involved in his parody, but still, it’s a nice change from your conventional guy-behind-a-mic.

Check out the trailer for Now More Than Ever, directed by Emily Allan and Leah Hennessey. The special was written by Early and has the Abso Lutely stamp of approval (meaning that it was executive produced by Early, Dave Kneebone, Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, and Janel Kranking for Abso Lutely Productions).