For Marcello Hernández, comedy has always been about finding common ground in the most personal of experiences. In his debut Netflix stand-up special, American Boy, the Saturday Night Live favourite draws on his Latino upbringing, his wonderfully close relationship with his mother, and the cultural quirks and childhood memories that have shaped his comedic identity, finding that the more specific his stories become, the more universally relatable they often are.
Speaking with our Peter Gray, Hernández reflected on the importance of introducing audiences to the world that raised him, the creative freedom that comes with moving beyond autobiographical comedy, and the amusing reality of turning his mother’s memories into material she doesn’t always remember quite the same way. And, in a conversation that somehow travelled from Full House‘s Kimmy Gibbler (watch the special, it makes sense) to the shared experience of childhood discipline, the comedian proved his point about comedy’s ability to transcend cultural boundaries by bestowing upon this Australian interviewer the unexpected honour of becoming an honorary Latino.
Congratulations on the show. Watching it made me realise just how long Kimmy’s neck actually was in Full House. Thank you for bringing those memories back!
(Laughs) I love Kimmy. Kimmy was probably my favourite character. One of my literal top two characters in that show. She’s unbelievable.
You’re in this interesting position where your cultural identity is such a natural part of your comedy, but then you’re representing a community that doesn’t always get to see itself reflected on a stage this big. Have you ever felt a tension between wanting to represent your culture authentically and then wanting the freedom to simply be a comedian who just happens to be Latino?
The mantra that I use for comedy is “talk about what you know” – first and foremost. I think this first hour I put out is all about what I know and what I knew when I was growing up. I think it was important for me to get all that stuff out there because I want people to know where I grew up, how I grew up, and hopefully they see a lot of similarities in their life. I’ve seen people from a lot of different cultures tell me that they resonate with having parents like my parents, or aunts like my aunts, and family parties like my family parties. I think that’s a beautiful thing that comedy can do is just connect people.
I think this next hour that I’m working on now is more about life than necessarily my cultural background, which I think is a natural progression of a comedian. People get to know (me) in the first hour, then you’re able to have a little more freedom. For me, it was less so I felt stuck and more I need to tell people. I need to get this off my chest, and then I can keep going.
With people getting to know you, one of the things I really loved about this was how your mother is such an important presence here and the fact that she introduces you. I’m curious, when someone you love becomes such a central character in your storytelling, do you ever worry that the version of her audiences are falling in love with might be different from the person you know, and you have to remind yourself of the difference?
I talk to my mom a lot, so I don’t forget. I can’t forget who she is to me and how she is for me. Her and I are so, so close. Of course, sometimes she would be like, “You know, I don’t remember that exactly the way you are describing it,” and I’m like, “Well, it’s not your story anymore. It’s mine.”
It’s your truth and you’re allowed to say it.
Exactly.
As I was watching it, I very much related to how you were saying, if you were hit as a kid, we’re all connected. Thank you for taking the time out today, and congratulations on the special, it was so great.
Thank you, man. And that’s the beautiful thing, this Australian guy and I have something to talk about because of the special. I think that’s part of the goal, for sure. You are an honorary Latino. I know Cubans that look like you.
I’ll take it!
Marcello Hernández: American Boy is now streaming on Netflix.
