The founding fathers had John Adams. Baby Boomers had John Lennon. Gen X has John Travolta. Millennials have Johnny Depp. For Gen Z, our appointed John has always been a little different. He is a stand-up comedian with a baggy suit, who told funny relatable stories that just commented on the absurdity of life. A man who loves his wife, whose whole persona’s linchpin was that he was just a normal guy.
John Mulaney’s comedy was always something that was distinctly unique and personal. His specials are always there for watch parties or references to friends. In the last couple years, the public’s relationship with Gen Z’s John has changed. The shift began with a string of controversies that reshaped his reputation forever.
“I’ve had a weird couple years. You’ve had a weird couple years,” Mulaney began in his newest special, “Baby J,” in which he faced some of those controversies head on:
“I didn’t want to come out all phony, you know? Like, Hey Boston, it’s time to laugh! Raise up your smiles, lower those masks! You know what I mean! We all quarantined, we all went to rehab and we all got divorced, and now our reputation is different.”
Mulaney, a 41 year old from Chicago, rose to fame first as a writer on “Saturday Night Live.” His first special was entitled “Comedy Central Presents: John Mulaney,” (2009) where he demonstrated a capacity for down-to-earth humor. His subsequent Netflix Specials, like “New in Town” (2012), “The Comeback Kid” (2015) and “Kid Gorgeous at Radio City” (2018) propelled his comedy career to international stardom and made “John Mulaney” a household name. Gen Z grew up with his work, and often connected to his situational and self deprecating jokes.
He occasionally mentioned a past addiction to alcohol, like in Season 1 episode 3 of “Live At Gotham” (2006). “I actually just quit drinking a couple months ago…I had a problem because I was blacking out all the time.” The allusion to addiction might have given the public a clue, but many were shocked when word got out that he had entered rehab in December of 2020.
In his newest special, “Baby J,” he speaks about the moment that his friends held an intervention following months-long extreme and debilitating drug abuse, after which they sent him to rehab:
“That night, December 18, 2020, I was invited over to my friend’s apartment for dinner, exciting right? No.When I got there, it was a trick! There was no dinner. It was an intervention for me.”
Mulaney’s network of comedian friends is what saved him in the end. He continued:
“It was a star studded intervention…It was like a ‘we are the world’ of alternative comedians over the age of 40. It was all comedians, but no one said a funny thing the entire night…The funniest people in the world were staring at me, refusing to do jokes. It was maddening.”
His exit from rehab marked a new beginning for the comedian. After a tirade of self-destruction, he was finally on a path to regaining normality. At least, that’s what fans were thinking. Mulaney announced a divorce from his wife, Anna Marie Tendler, shortly after his rehabilitation. What shocked fans so much was that he had always pronounced his love for his wife in his comedy. It was a recurring central talking point. “I married my wife. I love saying ‘my wife.’ It sounds so adult…it’s great, you sound like a person!” he announced during a bit in ‘The Comeback Kid’. Unfortunately, “ex-wife” doesn’t have the same ring to it.
Since his marital status was so integral to his comedy, many of Mulaney’s fans had become somewhat invested in the marriage. Many were wondering, why, after ten years together and six years of marriage, did they suddenly split?
The picture became clearer when a month after the divorce was finalized, it was confirmed that he and Olivia Munn (‘Attack of the Show;’ ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’) were dating. In November of 2021, eight months after Mulaney’s divorce was finalized, he and Olivia Munn welcomed their first child.
Questions have arisen about the timing of this union and whether or not cheating was involved to spur a divorce. In addition, Mulaney had previously mentioned several times that he didn’t want children. In an “Entertainment” article in December 2019, he explained why he doesn’t want kids:
“I love what I do. And I love my wife, and spending so much time with her and we have a really fortunate life…It’s just something I don’t want to change.”
Less than two years later, he and his new girlfriend Olivia Munn had their child. Mulaney briefly mentions his divorce and his new baby in “Baby J,” but interestingly never mentions his new relationship with Munn.
After the birth of his child, Mulaney’s public relations crises settled down for a while. But in May 2022, Mulaney surprised his audience at a show by inviting Dave Chappelle onto the stage to open for him. Chappelle’s reputation within the younger community (most of Mulaney’s clientele) has degraded over the years because of his comedic work that makes fun of the LGBT+ community. Due to a no cell-phone policy, Chappelle’s routine at the show is a mystery, but many of Mulaney’s fans were shocked and angered by Chapelle’s remarks in his set.
Every recent controversy that has orbited Mulaney increases in severity when you understand what he has built his platform on. In his comedy, he has spelled out that he loves his wife a lot, that he is a categorically leftist and uncontroversial figure, that his life is mundane and that he is just like you. He says that he never feels grown up, he is afraid of middle schoolers, he has funny childhood stories, and he has feminine hips (that he is sensitive about). But the unrelenting production of controversy surrounding his life seems to be tearing away at that facade. That is what his new special is all about, but he dodges the most uncomfortable moments by omission, like with his new relationship.
But the damage has seemingly been done. While many of Mulaney’s fans are still supporting him, his image as ‘normal unproblematic guy’ has dissolved. In “Baby J,” he mumbles “Likeability is a jail” after his discussion on his last couple years.
If likeability is a jail, he certainly has broken out of it. And Gen Z is on the hunt for a new John.
