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Analysis
The late-night landscape is pretty bleak right now, and that’s only compounded by the ongoing writers’ strike. The Eric Andre Show just finished its sixth season on Adult Swim—the first season since 2020—and it continues to bring the kind of late-night show energy we need.
Specifically, menacing celebrities.
The Eric Andre Show is a blur: The episodes are typically under 15 minutes and follow the same formula: Andre destroys the set, then does a meandering monologue, then brings on a guest—not so much to interview, but rather make increasingly freaked out. The interviews are peppered with prank segments, which are a little less exciting this season. (Past seasons stream on Hulu.)
In past seasons, the guests that agreed to appear haven’t all been A-list, which added to the cable-access vibe. The guests’ profile definitely elevated this season: Lil Nas X, Donald Glover, and Natasha Lyonne all appear; Lyonne and Glover seem fairly chill during their segments—the show’s been on long enough that celebs know a little more about the show, but not what will happen to them.
In episode 2, Jaleel White, surveying the antics happening around him, including his fluffy pink chair coming to life, says something that could apply to the show as a whole: “What we doing here, man?”
The Eric Andre Show has produced memes and viewers have found some classic references in season 6. However, one guest this season has apparently messed with the formula: Chet Hanks. Back in March, Andre revealed that Hanks was one of the more chaotic guests on set this season and that he “tried to prank us back.”
Hanks, who has allegations of domestic abuse against him and spread vaccine misinfo during the pandemic, then posted a video to Instagram claiming that he wasn’t initially familiar with the show so he watched episodes and decided to match the “outlandish troll shit” vibe.
“Thinking that he would get it, you know what I mean?” Hanks says in the video.
Later, he calls Andre a “pussy,” to which Andre responded by calling him a liar and asking to see his birth certificate. And no, this was not a beef created to promote the show. But Hanks does wander the set with a gun in his episode.
We can’t let Gutfeld! win.
Audra Schroeder is the Daily Dot’s senior entertainment writer, and she focuses on streaming, comedy, and music. Her work has previously appeared in the Austin Chronicle, the Dallas Observer, NPR, ESPN, Bitch, and the Village Voice. She is based in Austin, Texas.
