While the themes in her comedy specials are most clearly understood in retrospect and only emerge over time, Iliza Shlesinger finds that her preoccupation in new hour Iliza Shlesinger: A Different Animal has to do with “empowering women,” something she’s found herself focusing on consistently in recent years.
“It’s always about revealing why we do the things that we do — I think of myself as an unaccredited sociologist,” Shlesinger said during a virtual panel for Deadline’s Contenders Television: Documentary, Unscripted & Variety.
The intention with her act, she shared, is also to stand up for her generation, in particular — “for the things that we are, be it a mom, a woman, a millennial. Sort of giving voice to a perspective and to a people, kind of always coming from an underdog position.”
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Marking Shlesinger’s first special for Prime Video and her seventh overall, A Different Animal finds the comic discussing everything from shower sex to ugly wives, the ideal man, and the truth about the ONE thing no woman wants. The hour, taped at the Eccles Theater in Salt Lake City, also sees Shlesinger meditating in some depth on her experience being a parent, though she feels she needs to marinate on that for a while longer before coming back with bits that are “irrefutable.”
“Irrefutable” is a quality Shlesinger seems to aim for with all of her work — a level of polish that only comes through extensive work on a set and a willingness to continually experiment.
Said the comic: “You always want to leave room for improvisation, but I believe in a bit of a through line. I believe in — maybe it’s old school — but having callbacks. I believe in really exploring the art and the artistry that is really good stand-up. So for me, every time I do it, I guess I learn to talk a little bit slower. I embody the characters more. I think my ideas, as I’ve evolved, have become clearer, more concise, hopefully irrefutable. And I think it’s always about wanting to be heard and saying the things that I need to say in a digestible way.”
On the heels of six specials for Netflix, Shlesinger exec produced her latest alongside manager Kara Baker, David Martin and Jackie Stolfi, with Amazon MGM Studios and Avalon producing.
Check back Monday for the panel video.
