Actor, comedian, and writer Joel Kim Booster has found his stride, thriving in a career where humor is his greatest weapon. With a blend of authenticity and sharp wit, he’s making audiences laugh while reflecting on the complexities of identity, confidence, and the power of comedy.
Back in college, Joel Kim Booster wrote a one-act play titled Layover, a story about a man stranded in Chicago following his ex-girlfriend’s tragic death. The play explored grief and self-discovery, laced with emotional depth. Reflecting on that time, Booster recalls an audience member moved to tears by the performance, a moment that showed him the profound impact of storytelling.
Now, Booster’s lens has shifted. While he appreciates the power of serious narratives, he believes laughter carries an even greater weight. “The real power is in making people laugh,” he explains. A genuine laugh can cut through tension, soften criticism, and connect people.
In the Apple TV+ comedy series Loot, Booster stars as Nicholas, the witty assistant to Maya Rudolph’s Molly Novak. The show balances workplace antics with social commentary, satirizing extreme wealth. Booster jokes that the role—described as a “snarky gay assistant from the Midwest”—was so tailored to him that failing to land it would have prompted him to reconsider his career.
While Nicholas shares some biographical threads with Booster, including being adopted by white parents, the actor notes their differences. Booster himself is warm and gracious, far from his character’s icy demeanor.
Booster has long drawn material from his own life, blending sharp self-awareness with biting humor. From his 2017 Comedy Central special, where he declared, “I knew I was gay before I knew I was Asian,” to his thoughtful observations on identity, his stand-up showcases a version of himself he describes as “30 percent of what’s inside me.”
In this season of Loot, the writers mirror Booster’s adoption experience in Nicholas’s story, handling it with a natural, understated approach. “It feels like representation without making it a spectacle,” Booster says.
Currently, Booster is working on new stand-up material that marks a reinvention. Earlier in his career, he played on the audience’s expectations, delivering lines like “As a hot person…” as a subversive punchline. While effective, he began to question whether audiences were truly laughing with him. His new material explores confidence, vulnerability, and what it means to have something meaningful to say.
With time, humility has reshaped his perspective. “When I was younger, you couldn’t have told me I wasn’t a genius,” he admits. Now, even while attending the Emmys, he finds himself marveling, “What am I doing here?”
Joel Kim Booster’s journey—from college playwright to celebrated actor and comedian—has been marked by his ability to turn life’s complexities into humor. Whether on-screen in Loot or on stage with his evolving stand-up, Booster’s commitment to making people laugh is undeniable. At 36, he’s proving that comedy is not just entertainment—it’s a powerful way to connect, challenge, and inspire.
