Ramy Youssef constantly asks if jokes are harmful or helpful. He keeps telling them anyway

[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnLOS ANGELES (AP) — Fresh off his awards season high after attending the Oscars with his fellow “Poor Things” stars — and presenting — Ramy Youssef is heading back into more familiar territory. The actor and comedian, known for the critically acclaimed Hulu series “Ramy,” will premiere his latest stand-up special Saturday on HBO and Max.In keeping with much of his previous work, “Ramy Youssef: More Feelings” doesn’t shy away from fraught topics, including religion, the upcoming presidential election and the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. Although Youssef says he is “constantly interrogating” whether tackling these subjects through comedy is a good use of his time, he thinks there is enough reason to keep doing it — for now. The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
AP: This special felt very timely. I wondered how soon after Oct. 7 and the war in Gaza began that you started working on it.
YOUSSEF: I think actually what’s really interesting about the special is that it appears more topical than it is. There’s definitely jokes in there that were written in the last few months, and there’s some of them that were even written a few days before. But I think that the bedrock of a lot of the stories that you would think I was writing in terms of a response to what was happening, I had been actually workshopping for years. I think that there’s a lot of focus on Oct. 7, rightfully so, because it was obviously a horrific day. And Oct. 6 was horrific, you know?
I think that’s kind of the point I’m making in terms of like this not being topical material. I think there …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]