Amazon Prime Video has a fairly popular show some people may have heard of:Â The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The show follows a 1950s female stand-up comic making her way through the New York club scene. While it’s among the streaming service’s most popular stand-up comedy shows, it’s not actually stand-up comedy. If that’s what you’re looking for, you’re in luck! Amazon Prime Video does have other stand-up comedy options available that are both true to the genre and a hoot to watch. These are the best stand-up comedy specials on Amazon Prime right now.
Looking for even more laughs? Check out our other streaming guides, including the best stand-up comedy on Netflix, as well as the best comedies on Amazon Prime and the best comedies on Hulu, too.Â
Eddie Izzard: Wunderbar (2021) new
78m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Eddie Izzard
Directed by
Sarah Townsend
Wunderbar was filmed at the tail-end of a world tour that would soon be made near-impossible due to the pandemic. Eddie Izzard’s London show has the usual laughs but also serious musings about aging and the cosmic power of circles. Izzard has a number of stand-up specials on Amazon Prime, so feel free to check them out once you’ve run through Wunderbar.
George Carlin: You Are All Diseased (1999) new
65m
Genre
Comedy, Documentary, TV Movie
Stars
George Carlin
Directed by
Rocco Urbisci
George Carlin is a stand-up comedy legend. In You Are All Diseased, the late comic rants about airport security, germ phobias, businessmen, cigars, and angels. Some of the jokes don’t age well — particularly some of the thoughts on airport security, as this was filmed pre 9/11 — but Carlin’s act still shows why he was one of the best comedians to ever take a stage.
Jimmy O. Yang: Good Deal (2020)
57m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Jimmy O. Yang
Directed by
Marcus Raboy
Jimmy O. Yang is most known for his roles in Silicon Valley and Space Force, but he’s also a veteran of the stand-up comedy circuit. In Yang’s stand-up debut, Good Deal, he introduces himself to audiences, discusses his background and upbringing, as well as the key differences between Chinese supermarkets and American supermarkets. The special tackles some familiar, stereotypical territory, but Yang’s delivery of the material is endearing and emblematic of his rise in the industry.
Brad Williams: Daddy Issues (2016) new
61m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Brad Williams
Directed by
Scott L. Montoya
Brad Williams has no issue addressing the elephant in the room. In Daddy Issues, the comedian born with a form of dwarfism makes jokes about the prejudice he faces on the daily due to his height. One particular story delves into the time he ran in the Special Olympics, and it’s a hilarious tale. While Williams’ jokes are funny, some of what he has to say is also biting, particularly in regards to the adversity that drives him, due in some part to his father. This is Williams’ second stand-up special, following Fun Size.
Problem Child: Leslie Jones (2010) new
60m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Leslie Jones
Directed by
Gary Binkow
Before Leslie Jones was stealing scenes in Saturday Night Live, she was going by “Big Les” and putting out stand-up DVDs (remember those?). In her 2009 debut special Problem Child, Jones shows off the same brash and raunchy style that would shoot her into the stratosphere. The best part of the special is when Jones works the crowd, showing that her ability to engage is her best asset, something she regularly puts on display for her Twitter audience.
Rhys Darby: Mystic Time Bird (2021)
83m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Rhys Darby, Rachel House
Directed by
Barry Castagnola
Rhys Darby has fans for life courtesy of anyone who ever watched Flight of the Conchords. The New Zealand comedian shows off some of that same charm in Mystic Time Bird, which debuted last year. The comic takes stock of physical comedy, making strange observations and even stranger sound effects while discussing mysticism and birds, as the title suggests. The fact that Darby can make so many bird noises and not turn off viewers during this special is a feat in itself.
Ron White: A Little Unprofessional (2012)
80m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Ron White
Ron White hasn’t come out with much new material in recent years, with 2012’s A Little Unprofessional his second-most recent release. The comedy veteran escapes from the Blue Collar Comedy Tour to drop his own one-liners while puffing on a cigar and drinking scotch. He hits on many of the classic blue-collar tropes he funnels into his comedy, for better or worse, such as the state of his marriage (which has changed drastically in the years since) and his body. But there are plenty of laughs to be had for those in it for the long haul; this comedy special is longer than most at 80 minutes.
Andrew Santino: Home Field Advantage (2017)
71m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Andrew Santino
Directed by
Brandon Dermer
You’ve probably seen Andrew Santino before. He’s popped up as a producer of a fictional television show in This Is Us and currently stars as the manager in FX’s Dave. Santino is also a stand-up comedian, with his coup de grace Home Field Advantage released in 2017. The special, which debuted on Showtime, is very much a product of Santino’s love for Chicago, where the special was filmed, as he gets into all things Windy City. He also jokes about his signature red hair and expresses his problematic takes on gender, although he mostly avoids politics. His cynical character from I’m Dying Up Here shines through in his special.
Maria Bamford: Weakness Is the Brand (2020)
75m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Maria Bamford
Directed by
Robert Cohen
Maria Bamford’s comedy is genius, and there’s no better proof than her 2020 special Weakness is the Brand. One of her overpowering strengths as a comic is her ability to make the most brilliantly constructed jokes come off as neurotic improvisation, and that’s never more fully on display than it is here. From hearing about the bizarre role-playing she enjoys with her husband, to stories about negotiating with her alma mater, to her deceptively adorable reminder that while it is not okay to visit harm upon certain politicians it’s perfectly legal to lead them “into a bramble,” Weakness Is the Brand is a delightful and hilarious watch.
Chris Porter: A Man From Kansas (2019)
58m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Chris Porter
Directed by
Brian Volk-Weiss
Chris Porter is angry. He’s a simple man with simple tastes, living in a world increasingly crowded with aioli instead of mayo, gourmet cheese instead of the preferred “40% plastic” American brands, and cows “with hopes and dreams.” In his 2019 A Man From Kansas special, Porter’s acerbic commentary takes aim at flat-earthers, men who don’t know how to use tools, and the spreading of hipsters. His simple but sharp take on what’s wrong with the world is as funny as it is convincing.
Josh Blue: Broccoli (2020)
66m
Stars
Josh Blue
Directed by
Brandon Naughton
Citing a ranting man in Reno who loudly accused the comic of having no hobbies, Josh Blue describes himself as a crazy person magnet in his 2020 special Broccoli. Wearing a black T-shirt bearing the title vegetable of the special and coming off like a time-lost hippy, Josh Blue revels in making his audience uncomfortable as much as he keeps them howling. From lamenting the choice to move downwind from a dog chow factory to the comic’s self-deprecating humor about his cerebral palsy, Blue will keep you laughing as well as wondering about the awkward benefits of using your lips to point rather than your fingers.
Digital Trends streaming roundup
Jayde Adams: Serious Black Jumper (2020)
62m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Jayde Adams
Directed by
Peter Orton
In her 2020 Amazon Original special, Serious Black Jumper, Jayde Adams wants to educate you. She gives you a crash course in the history of feminism, “yoof-‘splaining” for the over-50 crowd, and ably demonstrates how all you have to do to force the world to take you seriously is wear a black turtleneck. The sharply witty and brilliant British comic delivers a hilarious hour of social commentary mixed with good, plain fun.
Sinbad: Where U Been? (2010)
90m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Sinbad, Gemi Taylor, Alex Al
Directed by
Chuck Vinson
Before 2010, the popular comic Sinbad hadn’t been in his own stand-up special since 1998’s Nothin’ But the Funk. He makes his return to the stage with Where U Been? The comic deals with the eponymous question before the curtains even part, getting the audience laughing with references to rumors of his death as well as his public issues with the IRS over his own version of Prince and the Revolution’s 1984 hit Let’s Go Crazy. What follows is a triumphant reminder of why the comic had audiences rolling in their seats in the ’90s.
Jim Gaffigan: Quality Time (2019)
75m
Genre
Comedy
Stars
Jim Gaffigan
Directed by
Jeannie Gaffigan
In the opening moments of Jim Gaffigan’s 2019 Quality Time special, the comic pats his stomach and says “This is what I look like. It’s mostly my fault.” And that sets the tone for the comic’s charming and childlike self-deprecating humor. Still obsessed with food, Gaffigan kicks things up to a new level with Quality Time. He goes to the rarely explored areas of cannibal humor, as well as discussing what it’s like to try reindeer meat right after Christmas. As usual, we get not only Gaffigan’s stand-up but his hilarious whiny-voice internal critic responding to his jokes.
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