Vic Michaelis Is The Next Comedy Superstar – But The Cool Kids Already Know That

Trying to explain why Vic Michaelis is so brilliant is like trying to explain the distilled comedy genius of Bugs Bunny. The nonbinary comedian who serves as the host of the ridiculously popular improvised interview show "Very Important People" on Dropout, Michaelis' brand of humor is as absurd as it is lacking in ego. Michaels plays a fictionalized version of themself as host of "VIP," tasked with conducting a talk show interview with a fellow improv comedian who is covered head to toe in transformative costuming — ranging from sentient hot dog mothers to zombie megachurch owners turned soup moguls. Michaelis is often at their funniest trying to maintain control of their larger-than-life interview subjects.

For the show to work, Michaelis has to let ideas breathe instead of rushing to the next joke, and somehow keep things on the rails without breaking character. A good comedic performer can make an audience laugh without ever making it look like work, and like Bugs Bunny, Michaelis makes it look easy.

If you're already embedded in the world of Dropout, this isn't new. During the final regular season episode of the best comedy series on streaming, "Game Changer," they were voted as the Honorary President. Only a month into 2026, and Michaelis is having their biggest year yet. "It's the strangest feeling in the world to work as an actor doing random stuff for so long and then to have some of the most important projects that have ever come out all come out within a five-day spread of each other," they tell me. In the middle of "VIP" season 3, the home release of the film "D(e)AD," and the start of the Peacock series "Ponies," the time for the world to get on the Vic Michaelis train is now.

The new Peacock series "Ponies," starring Emilia Clarke and Haley Lu Richardson, follows two secretaries working at the American embassy in Moscow in 1977, who become CIA operatives after their husbands die under mysterious circumstances. Vic Michaelis plays Cheryl, a shrew office manager with incredible hair who serves as the queen bee of the embassy wives. Espionage thrillers are a beloved genre, but the landscape is dominated by white men in trench coats with gadgets that don't exist. "Ponies" is here to subvert that, and as a non-binary performer, Michaelis' casting takes that a step further.

"Cheryl is mean to the people around her [because she's] so competent and so driven and is just trapped, so the only thing that she can do is polish herself like a gem and be like, 'Maybe if I shine bright enough, I'm going to work hard enough, somebody is going to pick me out of this. That's the only option that I have. I've risen as high as I can on my own,'" Michaelis explains.

If anyone understands the power of a transformative costume, it's the host of "Very Important People," and Michaelis tells me that the key to locking into a character starts at their fingers. "This is such a funny thing that I never would've thought about myself, but my number one transformer for me is my nails," they say. Whether it's "VIP" or "Ponies," once new fingernails are on, the character finally feels complete.

"There's something that to me I resonate with so hard, where there's putting on this costume, really taking a lot of care to look a certain way or be a certain way with the hopes that you can rise above your station where you're at," they explain. "That's Cheryl."

Vic Michaelis has been acting for quite some time, appearing in Darcy Touhey's "Four Walls," the Hallmark Hannukkah film "Round and Round," and in a recurring role in the second season of the Prime Video series "Upload," in addition to their Dropout and live comedy performances. But a show like "Ponies" has the potential to put them in front of people who wouldn't know the difference between Pig #2 and Fourth Witch. "I've been through military bootcamp with Dropout going, 'You don't read comments,' there's nothing in a comment section that is going to help you positively or negatively, so it's like really just locking in," they explain.

"It's so hard to say because ['Ponies'] could come out, and it could just be exactly the same, but operating on the idea that it's business as usual is the best way to keep going about it. I still have to go to the grocery store. I desperately need to go to the grocery store right now, actually, I'm out of all green things in my fridge."

I mentioned seeing a post online discussing "Ponies," where someone referred to them using the nickname "Vehicular Manslaughter," and it sparked a frenzy of Dropout fans explaining the joke to an unsuspecting TV fan who was just looking for more information on the new series. As it turns out, they had to do the same during production when a Hungarian crew member who was a fan of Dropout introduced themselves. "All of a sudden, I'm in a position to have to explain to this actor that I'm standing with, someone who's like British theater royalty, what Pretzel Pizza is." For those confused, check out "Gastronauts" season 1 episode 6. Thank me later.

One of the most interesting parts of this huge start to 2026 is the release of Claudia Lonow and fellow Dropout star Isabella Roland's "D(e)AD," a wholly independently produced and distributed comedy film that proves indie cinema is still alive and kicking. Vic Michaelis stars as Violet, the older sister of Roland's lead, Tillie. While the period-piece "Ponies" was funded in part by Universal Television for Peacock, "D(e)AD" was a DIY-or-die crowdfunded feature made with a significantly smaller production team. But for Michaelis, the approach to the work stays the same. "I think if you're agreeing to do something and to be somewhere, especially from an actor's perspective, your job is to do your best to turn out the performance that you believe in and that the creative team believes in," they tell me. "So I think from the day-to-day, it's exactly the same amount of work." 

However, they admit that there's something fun about the all-hands-on-deck approach to making something like "D(e)AD," and greatly enjoy the feeling of having helped build something. "Especially with 'D(e)AD,' getting to do that with one of my best friends in the entire world and her whole family was such a gift and an honor."

It's a delightful bit of whiplash watching Michaelis perform across three different levels of production value and style between their newest projects, and it is a testament to their talent as a performer. The evergreen key to successful comedy is to commit to the bit at hand, and Michaelis is always 'Yes, and'ing whatever project they're cast in to the fullest extent. It's what makes them such a consistent and dependable player, and will undoubtedly be the key to their continued success.

"Very Important People" is an evolution of an old CollegeHumor show called "Hello My Name Is," in which Pat Cassels interviews comedian/director Josh Ruben of "Heart Eyes" and "Werewolves Within" (just to name a few) fame in a different costume each episode. The show was very formative to me in the 2010s, which means "Very Important People" is undoubtedly so for others right now. "It's so hard to take any credit for anything because my sense of humor has been so shaped by the people that came before me," Michaelis says. "In the same way that if I have a hand in shaping somebody else's sensibilities, it's really like 40 hands that are pushing mine [...] comedy, especially in the improv sphere, only works best when you recognize that you are a part of a bigger community that has helped shape you."

Michaelis' distinct sense of humor has charmed countless people, but they're still shocked that people embrace it. "My sense of humor has always been deeply absurd and very committed [...] I think I've always found it so funny to say something that I thought was going to be funny and it not really landing and then just going, 'Okay, well, my only option if I want this to land is to commit so hard to it, ground it, and make it really real, and then maybe people will find it funny.'"

It's an approach to humor that got them in trouble as a child, but the rules are different in adulthood. "The fact that there are people who think that's funny, too, is very affirming. I love being able to connect with people in that way and be like, 'Oh yeah, I'm not alone. You're not alone. We're doing this together.'"

For those discovering Vic Michaelis because of "Ponies," while they are incredibly proud of the "One Year Later" episode of "Game Changer," they recognize that it might not be the best entry point for a Dropout newcomer. It was a delight to learn that their suggestion is the same one I would give: "Very Important People" season 1, episode 6, featuring an interview with Zac Oyama as "water truther" Tommy Shriggly, a renowned advocate of mental health awareness who turned his life around after being dishonorably discharged for murdering his military platoon. It is a perfect encapsulation of the absolute madness that takes place on "Very Important People," and the fact that Michaelis can hold it together sitting across from Oyama wearing a prosthetic neck thicker than most bulldogs and gesturing with hands that would make Dooneese on "Saturday Night Live" blush is awe-inspiring.

But Michaelis does have a message for the Dropout fans who may be tuning into "Ponies" to support Vehicular Manslaughter. "My apartment has the 'Game Changer' logo," Michaelis confesses, their face in their hands. "It was the first thing I saw. It's right behind the dinner table, and I went, 'Oh, no,' people are going to go, 'Vic did this. This is an Easter egg. Vic was in Hungary for six months for "Game Changer.'" I think that is probably going to make my life and my DMs a little bit of a nightmare for a little bit, but I would say that is maybe the entry point — look out for those Easter eggs."

"Ponies" is now available to stream on Peacock, "Very Important People" is available only on Dropout, and "D(e)AD" is currently available for rent or purchase on Video on Demand services.