Wyatt John Foster Cenac Jr. (; born April 19, 1976) is an American comedian, actor, producer, and writer. He was a
correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...
and writer for ''
The Daily Show
''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form from ...
'' from 2008 to 2012. He starred in the
TBS series ''
People of Earth'' and in
Barry Jenkins
Barry Jenkins (born November 19, 1979) is an American filmmaker. After making his filmmaking debut with the short film ''My Josephine'' (2003), he directed his first feature film '' Medicine for Melancholy'' (2008) for which he received an Inde ...
's first feature ''
Medicine for Melancholy
''Medicine for Melancholy'' is a 2008 independent romantic drama film written and directed by Barry Jenkins. The film stars Wyatt Cenac, Tracey Heggins, and Elizabeth Acker.
The film had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 7, 200 ...
''. He also hosted and produced the
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
series ''
Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas
''Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas'' was an American documentary television series hosted by Wyatt Cenac. It premiered on April 13, 2018, on HBO. The series is executive produced by Cenac, Ezra Edelman, John Oliver, Tim Greenberg, David Martin, Jam ...
''.
Early life
Cenac was born in New York on April 19, 1976 at
St. Vincent's Hospital in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
and spent his early years in the
Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
. His father, Wyatt Cenac Sr., was a cab driver born in
Saint Mark Parish, Grenada in 1944. When Cenac was five, his father was shot and killed in his cab by a teenage passenger in Harlem. Cenac moved with his mother, a New York native, and Trinidadian stepfather to
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, Texas, in 1981. He spent his summers with his maternal grandmother in
Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Crown Heights is bounded by Washington Avenue to the west, Atlantic Avenue to the north, Ralph Avenue to the east, and Empire Boulevard/East New Yo ...
in an apartment on President Street.
While in elementary school, he became friends with comic book writer
Brian K. Vaughan
Brian K. Vaughan (born July 17, 1976) is an American comic book and television writer, best known for the comic book series '' Y: The Last Man'', '' Ex Machina'', '' Runaways'', ''Pride of Baghdad'', ''Saga'', and '' Paper Girls''.
Vaughan was a ...
, who also introduced him to comic books. He graduated from the
Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas and the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...
before moving to Los Angeles. As of October 2014, Cenac lives in
Fort Greene
Fort Greene is a neighborhood in the northwestern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Flushing Avenue and the Brooklyn Navy Yard to the north, Flatbush Avenue Extension and Downtown Brooklyn to the wes ...
,
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
, and previously lived in
Prospect Heights during
Hurricane Sandy
Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...
in 2012.
Cenac is the nephew of the Hon. Mr. Justice Dunbar Cenac, Registry of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court. His father was the cousin of former deputy prime minister of Grenada
Bernard Coard
Winston Bernard Coard (born 10 August 1945) is a Grenadian politician who was Deputy Prime Minister in the People's Revolutionary Government of the New Jewel Movement. Coard launched a coup within the revolutionary government and took power f ...
, who was imprisoned for 25 years following the American
invasion of Grenada in October 1983. Cenac's paternal 3x-great-grandfather Cherebin Cenac was an officer from
Agen
The communes of France, commune of Agen (, ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Lot-et-Garonne Departments of France, department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux.
...
, France, on a French battleship during the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
who settled in
Soufrière, Saint Lucia
Soufrière is a town on the West Coast of Saint Lucia, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The town and the surrounding district has a population of 7,935. It was colonized by the French and was the original capital of the island.
History
French colon ...
. Cherebin's youngest child, Francis (1830–1892), later emigrated to Grenada.
Career
Having previously worked for three years as a writer on ''
King of the Hill
''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It aired its original non-syndicated run from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, and centers on the Hills, an Am ...
'', Cenac garnered public attention in The Doomed Planet comedy sketch in which he did an impression of then-senator
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
, discussing possible campaign posters.
In June 2008, Cenac was hired as a correspondent and writer on ''
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
''. After making several comedic appearances along with other correspondents, Cenac filed his first field report on July 21, 2008; titled "Baruch Obama," the report discussed Jewish voters' opinions of Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama. He continued to integrate satirical Black-oriented material in his ''Daily Show'' segments, including "Rapper or Republican" until his final ''
Daily Show
''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form fro ...
'' appearance on December 13, 2012. In a July 2015 appearance on ''
WTF with Marc Maron
''WTF with Marc Maron'' is a weekly podcast and radio show hosted by stand-up comedian Marc Maron. The show was launched in September 2009. The show is produced by Maron's former Air America co-worker Brendan McDonald.
Background
The show's ti ...
'', Cenac revealed that his departure from ''The Daily Show'' stemmed in part from a heated argument he had with
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, political commentator, and television host. He hosted ''The Daily Show'', a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015 and now hosts ''Th ...
over a June 2011 ''Daily Show'' bit about Republican Presidential candidate
Herman Cain
Herman Cain (December 13, 1945July 30, 2020) was an American businessman and Tea Party movement activist within the Republican Party. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Cain grew up in Georgia and graduated from Morehouse College with a bachelor's d ...
. Despite this, Cenac appeared on Stewart's final episode of ''Daily Show''; both agreed that they're "good", a reference to the Maron podcast.
In October 2009, he worked with rapper
Slim Thug
Stayve Jerome Thomas (born September 8, 1980), better known by his stage name Slim Thug, is an American rapper. He initially gained mainstream attention for his contribution to the hit single by rapper Mike Jones, "Still Tippin'". In July 2005, h ...
on the music video "Still a Boss", a parody of how the recession is affecting the rap community. Cenac costarred in ''
Medicine for Melancholy
''Medicine for Melancholy'' is a 2008 independent romantic drama film written and directed by Barry Jenkins. The film stars Wyatt Cenac, Tracey Heggins, and Elizabeth Acker.
The film had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 7, 200 ...
'', an independent drama by
Barry Jenkins
Barry Jenkins (born November 19, 1979) is an American filmmaker. After making his filmmaking debut with the short film ''My Josephine'' (2003), he directed his first feature film '' Medicine for Melancholy'' (2008) for which he received an Inde ...
released in 2008 that includes issues of African American identity and gentrification in San Francisco.
Cenac plays the voice of Lenny and Michael Johnson in the
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
animated series ''
Fanboy & Chum Chum
''Fanboy & Chum Chum'' is an American computer-animated television series created by Eric Robles for Nickelodeon. It is based on ''Fanboy'', an animated short created by Robles for Nickelodeon Animation Studio and Frederator Studios, which was b ...
''.
Cenac guest-starred on the
MC Frontalot
Damian Hess (born December 3, 1973), better known by his stage name MC Frontalot, is an American rapper and web designer.
Hess began releasing music as MC Frontalot in 1999. His first successes came through Song Fight!, an online songwriting and ...
album ''
Solved''. Cenac's first hour-long comedy special, ''Comedy Person,'' premiered May 14, 2011, on
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...
.
In October 2014,
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
released Cenac's second comedy special, ''Wyatt Cenac: Brooklyn''. This album was nominated at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards for Best Comedy Album. In 2014, he guest-starred in an episode of the
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
series ''
BoJack Horseman
''BoJack Horseman'' is an American adult animation, adult animated Black comedy, black Comedy drama, comedy-drama streaming television series created by Raphael Bob-Waksberg. It stars the voices of Will Arnett, Amy Sedaris, Alison Brie, Paul F ...
''. The following year, he appeared in a filmed segment with fellow comedians
Rachel Feinstein and
Alex Karpovsky
Alexander Karpovsky (born September 23, 1975)Rick PorterAlex Karpovsky - Apple TV ''Apple TV'' is an American director, actor, screenwriter, producer and film editor. He is best known for playing Ray Ploshansky on the HBO comedy-drama series ''Gi ...
on ''
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver''.
Cenac has also co-hosted four episodes of
The Bugle
''The Bugle'' is a satirical news podcast, created by John Oliver and Andy Zaltzman in 2007. It is currently hosted by Zaltzman and a rotating cast of co-hosts including Alice Fraser, Nish Kumar, Anuvab Pal, Hari Kondabolu, Tom Ballard, and ...
podcast with
Andy Zaltzman
Andrew Zaltzman (born 6 October 1974) is a British comedian and author who largely deals in political and sport-related material.
He has worked with John Oliver, with their work together including '' Political Animal'', '' The Department'', ...
since 2016.
Cenac released his third stand up album "Furry Dumb Fighter" in 2016 both digitally and on vinyl. It was recorded in Madison, WI. Cenac reports that the album title is meant to sound like "freedom fighter."
Cenac's film roles include parts in ''
Sleepwalk with Me
''Sleepwalk with Me'' is a 2012 American independent comedy film co-written by, directed by, and starring Mike Birbiglia. It also stars Lauren Ambrose, James Rebhorn, Carol Kane, and Cristin Milioti. Before making the film, Birbiglia had already t ...
'' and ''
Hits'', as well as a lead role in 2016's ''
Jacqueline Argentine
''Jacqueline Argentine'', sometimes stylized as ''Jacqueline (Argentine)'', is a 2016 comedy-drama film directed by Bernardo Britto, supported by the Sundance Institute's Feature Film Program. It premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. The f ...
'' and 2017's festival hit, ''
Fits and Starts
''Fits and Starts'' is an art work by Brooklyn, New York City artist Marc Swanson,
the 2005 vandalism of which at DePauw University created controversy.
The sculpture
''Fits and Starts'' was a life-size sculpture of a deer in mid-leap that was ...
'', a film nominated for multiple awards, including the feature film grand jury prize at the prestigious
South by Southwest
South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in m ...
film festival. Cenac released a web-series titled "aka Wyatt Cenac" about his life as a crime-fighting vigilante in a gentrifying Brooklyn. Cenac's HBO docuseries, "Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas", premiered in April 2018. In August 2021, he signed a deal with
Cartoon Network Studios
Cartoon Network Studios is an American animation studio owned by the Warner Bros. Television Studios division of Warner Bros., a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. The studio is the production arm of Cartoon Network, and started operating on ...
and
Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation Inc. is an American animation studio which is part of the Warner Bros. Television Studios division of Warner Bros., a flagship of Warner Bros. Discovery. As the successor to Warner Bros. Cartoons, which was active from 1 ...
.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cenac, Wyatt
1976 births
African-American male comedians
American male comedians
American people of Grenadian descent
American comedy writers
American male film actors
American stand-up comedians
American male television actors
American television writers
American male television writers
American male voice actors
Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas alumni
Living people
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni
Male actors from Dallas
Male actors from New York City
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Comedians from New York City
Upright Citizens Brigade Theater performers
20th-century American comedians
21st-century American comedians
Screenwriters from New York (state)
Screenwriters from Texas
People from Fort Greene, Brooklyn
People from Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
20th-century African-American people
21st-century African-American people