Actress-writer-comic Janelle James will host the 2023 Writers Guild Awards show in Los Angeles, which will be held March 5 at the Fairmont Century Plaza. She currently stars in the Writers Guild Award-nominated Abbott Elementary on ABC.
“I am honored to be hosting the WGA Awards this year,” James said in a statement. “I was told that I can say whatever I want. And after making sure that was true and that it would not be televised, that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
“A few years ago, when I first worked with the hilarious and fearless Janelle James, my goal was to get her to host the WGA Awards,” said Hugh Fink, the executive producer of the L.A. version of the awards gala. “To commemorate this amazing event,” he quipped, “all nominees will be receiving a $10,000 cash gift, redeemable at all participating FTX Bitcoin exchanges.”
The guild notes that after launching her stand-up career “at an open mic in a biker bar,” James has gone on to tour with Chris Rock, Amy Schumer, and David Cross. In 2016, she was named one of the 50 Funniest People in Brooklyn, and was featured in Just For Laughs Montreal’s New Faces showcase.
James released her debut comedy album Black and Mild in 2017, and that same yea, got her first TV writing credits on The Rundown with Robin Thede. James would go on to write and have a recurring role on Showtime’s Black Monday and Apple TV+’s Central Park, and in 2020, her podcast You In Danger Gurl was listed as Spotify’s top comedy podcast.