Whereas this Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner might be short on laughs—a mentalist, not a comedian, will be the featured entertainer with President Trump in attendance—CNN aims to pick up the slack with a political comedy special airing the night before.
The cable newser has announced that American Laughs With Matt Friend will air this Friday, April 24, at 11 p.m. ET—not 24 hours before the WHCD begins on C-SPAN.
The special will be filmed in Washington, D.C. and “celebrate the longstanding tradition of combining comedy and politics to bring people together from across the political spectrum during the weekend of the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, an event focused on honoring journalism and the First Amendment and awarding scholarships,” CNN’s press release reads. The hour will feature a monologue by Friend, plus appearances from special guests.
A former intern for Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show, Matt Friend is best known for his impressions of figures like Donald Trump and Howard Stern, including on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and Family Guy. He currently boasts over 2 million followers on Instagram, and 1.8 million on TikTok. The 27-year-old has gone viral appearing on The Howard Stern Show (as Stern), performing impressions on award show red carpets, and meeting David Letterman on the street (again as Stern).
Friend also did a bit from the audience at last year’s WHCD, which proceeded without a featured entertainer after bluntly cancelling on Amber Ruffin (so as to “ensure the focus is not on the politics of division”).
“We are in an increasingly divided country and world. For my show with CNN, I aim to poke fun at everyone and allow room for all to laugh in a Johnny Carson spirit,” Friend said in a statement. “This is going to be a truly fun, unpredictable night of impressions, satire, and surprises, and I can’t wait for people to see it.”
This kid is so unfunny it’s crazy
It’ll probably suck donkey balls!