Kal Penn is a pretty singular figure in pop culture — how many people have starred in a trilogy of iconic stoner comedies and literally worked in the White House? While working for former President Obama during his first term, Penn took a break to film A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas. President Obama actually said to him, “Man, those movies are funny. Go do it. Can you come back?” And he did.
Actors and comedians talk about politics all the time — and in the age of social media, are more involved than ever in calling for their followers to sign petitions, call elected officials, and more. I can’t emphasize enough how much Penn has broken barriers in representation for brown kids all over the country. But Penn left a cushy, lucrative film career to follow a passion that didn’t pay much at all. He’s since written a memoir about his White House and Hollywood experiences, You Can’t Be Serious, and hosted a show on Freeform in 2020 aimed at Gen Z and millennial voters. This is a man who understands policy and cares about how it impacts people, and who’s willing to do the work to explain it to his peers and younger.
That much has been clear as Penn has temporarily commanded The Daily Show host chair while Paramount looks for a replacement for Trevor Noah, who announced he was leaving the late night satirical talk show in 2022. It’s been a year now, and executives will reportedly reach a decision soon. Meanwhile, Penn is over here delivering iconic news segments, including hilariously taking on a Trump-supporting Indian uncle this week.
The set of The Daily Show is hallowed ground for people like me, viewers who came of age watching Jon Stewart behind the desk, guiding us through the Bush administration and the horrendous war in Iraq, helping us process the messed up state of American politics post-9/11. Stewart helped us feel a little less alone and a little more sane at a time when U.S. politics was forming into the dumpster fire that it is today.
I’m still a believer in The Daily Show’s ability to bring people together and process brain-melting world events through laughter, and in Penn’s ability to steer its relevance and impact. I think he should absolutely be the next permanent host (and no, I’m not just saying that because we’re both Indian). No one else can deftly move between politics and pop culture the way that he can.
I’ve had the good fortune to get to know Penn over the past few years, starting from when I first interviewed him for my old job at NowThis in 2018. He’s one of only two people I’ve seen — out of dozens of presidents, heads of state, celebrities, and comedians — walk into a studio and introduce themselves to every crew member on set, and shake their hands. The other is President Obama. The fact that Penn is hilarious and intelligent, but also incredibly kind and warm, was a very welcome bonus.
That warmth helps him connect across demographics. Sitting in The Daily Show audience with 27-year-old Allison Hill, who recently worked for Teen Vogue, we talked about how he makes the news digestible; his delivery is funny but sincere. The guest that day was astronaut Mike Massimino. “Penn’s love of space was so relatable,” Hill says, “and he asked the question we all wanted to ask: how do astronauts poop in space?”
Hill represents an important demo for Comedy Central as well — zillennials, those on the generational cusp who could qualify as either Gen Z or millennials. Gen Z proper are Penn fans, too. Like other movies from the 2000s, Harold & Kumar has been consumed by them through TikTok. The #haroldandkumar tag has some 76 million views, and comments on Penn’s posts consistently ask for a fourth film. Other popular TikToks include his interviews, clips of him from the TV show House, and already, many of his best Daily Show segments.
“His understanding of current events and politics is palpable, and it was nice to enjoy the show with someone who carries the comedy foundations of past hosts I’ve enjoyed,” says Skylar Mitchell, 27, a social media editor for Them. who also attended Wednesday’s show.
On the other side of the country and demographic spectrum, my father in law, Jules Michel from Portland, Oregon, has been telling me to watch this segment all week because of how entertaining it is: Penn interviewing a group of mostly conservative Indians about several politicians of Indian descent, including Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Penn has now guest hosted eight episodes of The Daily Show, including this week. His guests have ranged from President Joe Biden (a casual booking) to Taraji P. Henson to Vanity Fair editor-in-chief Radhika Jones. The Biden interview, from earlier this year, is well worth watching, as Penn talks to him about same-sex marriage and current attacks on queer youth. You want someone who can interview the president and also hold him accountable.
Penn can do it all: comedy, politics, film, TV, hosting, interviewing, field reporting, and more. He’s a queer Indian-American man really into NASCAR (thanks to his longtime partner Josh) at a time when our politics pretends people like that don’t exist.
“I’ve been such a fan of Penn ever since I first saw him in movies when I was 18 years old,” says Juan Velasquez, the editorial business manager for Teen Vogue and Them. “I was instantly smitten because of his goofy demeanor and years later, when he came out, it really felt like a full circle moment for me. It’s hard to put into words how affirming it would be to see a gay man of color on my TV.” At a time when certain governors and presidential candidates are asking students to not even SAY gay, and our LGBTQ+ youth are increasingly under attack, it would be no small feat to see Penn take over this pillar of pop culture.
Comedian Vir Das put it succinctly when he was a guest earlier this week: “The reason that many brown men like myself come to America to try and act is because we saw you be the first Indian brown man to be edgy and cool and funny in American cinema.” Penn’s also a class act: as he told Vir, he stands on the shoulders of people who came before him who didn’t have the same opportunities.
In sum: we have a hilarious talent who is beloved by younger and older folks alike, around the U.S. and the world, who genuinely cares about the future of American democracy — and has actually worked behind the scenes and knows how to help protect it, at the most critical point for it in our lifetimes. He’s got range: he was recently nominated for a Children’s and Family Emmy for his role in Disney+’s The Santa Clauses. He is the grandson of Indian freedom fighters, who pisses off Rudy Giuliani, and has multiple American presidents on speed dial.
This reaction from Allison’s brother, Tim Hill, a 29-year-old project manager who lives in California, also sums it up well: “I’ve seen this man get sent to Guantanamo for building a bong on a plane, and now he’s delivering current trending news in America. He is an inspiration amid this Dark Brandon timeline.”
Dear Comedy Central: give him the job.
