Hasan Minhaj is spilling some seriously awkward tea about The Daily Show—and it’s the kind of tea that’ll make you do a spit-take. The 39-year-old funnyman recently opened up in an Esquire cover story (you know, as one does when life gives you a giant comedic oopsie) about how his almost hosting gig on the Comedy Central series went down like a lead balloon.
Picture this: Hasan’s all set, hosting contract practically in his hands, rehearsing his best “Wakanda Forever” jokes for the Daily Show audience (okay, maybe not that exactly, but go with it). He’s basically putting his nameplate on the desk when suddenly, BAM!—a plot twist no one saw coming, like when your pizza delivery guy forgets the extra dipping sauce.
Turns out, The New Yorker did some good ol’ fashioned fact-checking on Hasan’s stand-up routines. And guess what? They discovered some of his stories were a teensy bit embellished. But hey, it’s called stand-up, not sit-down-and-tell-the-boring-truth, am I right? Unfortunately for Hasan, the big wigs at Comedy Central weren’t quite on board with his creative license. Cue the sad trombone, because that hosting gig? Yeah, poof—gone, vanished faster than your favorite show after one season.
“That’s showbiz, baby!” Hasan might as well have said while shrugging like a man who just dropped his ice cream cone on the sidewalk. “One minute you’re in talks to host The Daily Show, the next you’re in talks with your therapist about why your career has commitment issues.”
To make things juicier, Jon Stewart—yes, THE Jon Stewart—gave him a ring and was like, “WTF, man? Why are they doing this? And, more importantly, who even benefits from this mess?” To which we can only imagine Hasan responded with, “Good question, Jon. Maybe the fact-checking department needed a win?”
Hasan admits it stung—like, getting-honey-in-your-eye-while-being-chased-by-a-swarm-of-bees kind of stung. “The speed of the internet, man… I wasn’t ready for that,” he reflected. (Honestly, who is? The internet is faster than that one kid in gym class who made everyone else look bad.)
But wait, it gets worse—because what’s worse than losing your dream gig? Having your parents read about it on the internet. Yup, Hasan’s parents were all like, “So, son, about this article we found online…” Talk about a dinner table conversation you’d rather not have.
Hasan, being the eldest (aka the “responsible one” who definitely knows how to clean up messes), felt awful. “I let my parents down,” he said, probably while staring at the floor like a kid who just got caught stealing cookies. And let’s not forget his wife—also none too pleased with this internet-fueled PR nightmare. “Watching them hurt, seeing their disappointment—yeah, that part sucked.” (Let’s be real though, no one wants their mom and dad scrolling through headlines that read, “Comedian Lies for Laughs.” Yikes.)
But don’t worry, Hasan still has a glimmer of hope. He knows his parents have also seen the highs of his career (we’re talking Emmys, people!). He just wishes they didn’t have to see the lows, too. But hey, if comedy is tragedy plus time, then maybe one day this whole thing will be part of Hasan’s next stand-up special—called Oops, I Did It Again.
