Being a comedian in 2025 has its challenges. Between the constant online engagement expected of comics and the doom-heavy political climate, making people laugh can be complicated.
That is, unless you’re Leslie Jones. “It ain’t hard if you’re fucking funny,” she told me in a recent phone call. “As a comic, you need to take that kind of stuff on and say: ‘I’m tired of these motherfuckers being depressed, and I’m going to make them laugh about this shit.'”
Jones, 57, has the bona fides to back up her promise. A three-time Emmy Award nominee, Jones is best known for her five seasons on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” Since leaving the show in 2019, she’s demonstrated the broad range of her talent — hosting ABC’s “Supermarket Sweep,” guest anchoring “The Daily Show,” starring opposite Eddie Murphy in Coming 2 America and hosting the podcast “The fckry” with comic Lenny Marcus. In 2023, she released the hilarious, intimate and perfectly named memoir, Leslie F*cking Jones.
“Things are dark, but I want to give people a reason to laugh instead of cry.” Leslie Jones
Ahead of her performance at the Flynn Main Stage in Burlington on Wednesday, March 26, Jones spoke to Seven Days from her home in Los Angeles and began by asking what many a touring artist does before visiting the Green Mountains: Is it cold?
This will be your first show in Vermont ever, right?
Yeah, I don’t think I’ve even been there in general. You said it’s 50 degrees right now?
It’s actually quite warm for a typical March day in Vermont.
50 degrees is warm to y’all? That’s fucking hilarious. OK, Vermont.
When you perform in a new city, do you study up on the area and try to get colloquial with your jokes?
Maybe a little. Lenny [Marcus] always helps me out there. But standup is my base, it’s my job, so I know my sense of humor palette just works — I can make anybody laugh. I might try to throw a little something Vermont-specific in there, but I’m a comedian first. I’ve got my material worked out.
Speaking of Lenny, he’s opening the show. Are you guys going to do a live episode of your podcast, “The fckry?”
We didn’t even think of that! You think the crowd would like that? Hmm. That’s honestly not a bad idea, dude. I’ll ask Lenny. If we do, you can take the credit. [Laughing.]
You did a great job as a correspondent on the red carpet at the “SNL” 50th anniversary special. Was that sort of like having to work at the company holiday party, though?
Firstly, thank you! And no, it was so much fun. Those types of things always feel like Thanksgiving or Christmas or something — you go home for a weekend and see all your cousins and old friends. “SNL” is always kind of intense and busy, but you’re doing something fun, so that sort of takes over.
When you started at “SNL,” you were the oldest cast member ever hired, at 47 years old. That was 10 years ago. I’ve read in some of your interviews recently that you’re starting to get tired of constantly being on the road and traveling for work.
Yeah, I’m getting older, and I really don’t like to travel that much anymore. I’d be down to do a late-night show or maybe a sitcom, something where I’d be working here in LA, from my home. Doing “The Daily Show” was great, but it’s in New York, and I don’t want to live in New York.
You would be such a great late-night host! It’s all a bunch of white dudes following the formula right now. I think we need a “Late Night With Leslie Jones” show in all of our lives.
That’s what I’m talking about! I would definitely do something like that. I don’t know if it would be as political as something like “The Daily Show,” but I know it would be funny as hell.
As someone who makes people laugh for a living, was there anxiety in sharing so many details about your upbringing and personal life in your memoir?
No, I didn’t feel any anxiety because it’s all the truth. I got real, and people need to start doing that and handling the truth. We can stop all this bullshit that we’re doing to each other as soon as we start being honest with ourselves.
That’s what’s wrong with everybody right now: They’re too scared to change and too scared to face their problems. But you have to endure change; change doesn’t give a shit about your feelings. Change is going to happen, and it’s either going to be painful or not painful based on how honest with yourself you are. And right now, our society is choosing the painful way because nobody wants to fucking change.
Is that a message you feel obligated to convey while you’re onstage these days?
I don’t bring a lot of that energy to the stage, but it’s there. I want to keep people laughing and work on the concept of “self” more than political stuff. Things are dark, but I want to give people a reason to laugh instead of cry. At the end of the day, it’s my job to cultivate people’s happiness, not go all in on their sadness.
This interview was edited and condensed for clarity and length.
The original print version of this article was headlined “F-Word to the Wise | Comedian Leslie Jones on the importance of laughing in the face of darkness”
This article appears in Mar 19-25, 2025.
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