Lil Rel Howery
Milton Howery Jr. (born December 17, 1979),[1] known professionally as Lil Rel Howery, is an American actor and comedian. Howery is best known for his roles as Robert Carmichael in NBC's television comedy series The Carmichael Show (2015–2017) and as TSA officer Rod Williams in the horror film Get Out (2017). He also starred in the TV series Rel, which he also created and co-produced.
Lil Rel Howery | |
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![]() Howery in 2010 | |
Birth name | Milton Howery Jr. |
Born | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | December 17, 1979
Years active | 2001–present |
Genres | Comedy |
Spouse | Verina Robinson
(m. 2008; div. 2017) |
Children | 2 |
Notable works and roles |
Early life
Milton Howery Jr. grew up on the West Side of Chicago.[1] He attended Providence St. Mel School from fifth grade to ninth grade. He then transferred to Crane High School.[2] At Crane High School, Howery wrote jokes and created a script in a senior talent show, which made him decide to pursue comedy professionally.[2] Playing high school basketball, he reminded people of his older cousin Darrel, and he was nicknamed Lil Rel.[3]
Career
Howery began performing stand-up comedy on Chicago's East Side at the Lion's Den.[4] He made his television debut in January 2007 on the reality television competition Last Comic Standing.[5][6] The same year, he was on P. Diddy Presents: The Bad Boys of Comedy on HBO.[7] In 2009, he was part of America's National Night Out Against Crime in Chicago.[8]
In 2012, Howery and five other comedians starred in FOX's revival of the 1990s sketch program In Living Color.[5][9] The show was canceled in 2013. Howery went on to work as a writer, producer, and one of the regular cast members of the truTV sketch comedy series Friends of the People.[10] In 2015, he began co-starring as Bobby Carmichael on the NBC sitcom The Carmichael Show alongside the show's creator, Jerrod Carmichael.[11]
In early 2016, Netflix added Howery's first exclusive solo stand-up special, Kevin Hart Presents: Lil Rel: RELevent, for streaming in the United States.[12]
Howery won the 2017 "Best Comedic Performance" MTV Movie & TV Award for his performance in Jordan Peele's satirical horror film Get Out.[13][14]
On May 10, 2018, Fox picked up Rel, a sitcom starring Howery in the lead role and Jerrod Carmichael and Mike Scully serving as executive producers. Howery said the show is loosely based on his own life, including being a divorced father.[15] The series premiered September 9, 2018.
Personal life
Howery married Verina Robinson on November 24, 2008.[16][17] They have two children. The couple divorced in 2017.[17][18]
In June 2016, Howery was a passenger in a vehicle that struck another car in University Village, Chicago.[19] The driver in the other car argued with Howery, and eventually called 911. Howery allegedly punched him in the face.[19][20] The driver of the car Howery had been in drove away without him.[19] Police officers arrived and arrested Howery on a charge of misdemeanor battery.[19] He was found not guilty of the charge.[21][22] The driver sued Howery for injuries from the fight.[17]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2017 | Get Out | Rod Williams | |
2018 | Tag | Reggie | |
Uncle Drew | Dax Winslow | ||
Bird Box | Charlie | ||
2019 | Brittany Runs a Marathon | Demetrius | |
Good Boys | Lucas's Dad | ||
The Angry Birds Movie 2 | Alex (voice) | ||
2020 | The Photograph | Kyle | |
Bad Trip | Bud Malone | ||
Clouds | Milton Weaver | ||
Home | Jayden | ||
2021 | Judas and the Black Messiah | Wayne | |
Tom & Jerry | the shoulder devil for Tom (voice) | Post-production | |
Fatherhood | Jordan | Post-production | |
Vacation Friends | TBA | Post-production | |
Free Guy | Buddy | Post-production | |
Deep Water | Nash | Post-production | |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2014 | Friends of the People | Various | Writer, producer, cast |
2015 | Kevin Hart Presents: Lil Rel: RELevent | Himself | Standup Special |
2015–17 | The Carmichael Show | Bobby Carmichael | Starring role |
2017 | Insecure | Quentin | 5 episodes |
Drop the Mic | Himself | Episode: "Nicole Scherzinger vs. Lil Rel Howery / Charlie Puth vs. Backstreet Boys" | |
2018 | Lip Sync Battle | Episode: "Lil Rel Howery vs. Naya Rivera" | |
2018–19 | Rel | Rel | Main role |
2018 | The Comedy Central Roast | Himself | Episode: "Bruce Willis" |
The Bobby Brown Story | Brian Irvine | 2 episodes | |
2019 | Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure | Virtuous St. Goodberry (voice) | Episode: "The Eye of Pincosta" |
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle | Chuckles (voice) | Episode: "If You Can't Beat 'em, Totem! or It's Raining Gems!" | |
South Side | Bishop | 3 episodes | |
Sherman’s Showcase | Himself | Episode: “The Ladies of Showcase” | |
A Black Lady Sketch Show | Fake Manager | Episode: "Born at Night, But Not Last Night" | |
2019-present | Craig of the Creek | Darnell (voice) | 3 episodes |
References
- Vivanco, Leonor (June 15, 2009). "Chicago Laugh Attack". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
- Datcher, Mary L. (October 1, 2015). "Lil Rel: Working His Way Up". The Chicago Defender. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
- "Storytelling like a good uncle is stand-up comic's best weapon". The Plain Dealer. (Cleveland, Ohio). September 11, 2015. p. T20.
- "LilRel Howery bio". IMDb. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- Zwecker, Bill (April 4, 2012). "Local Light". Chicago Sun-Times.
- Howery, Lil Rel "Last Comic Standing". MySpace. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
- Toby, Mekeisha Madden (April 6, 2007). "Mekeisha's pick: New stand-up comics on tonight". The Detroit News. p. 2E.
- Jarocki, Gailann (August 2, 2009). "Help strengthen your community, National Night Out, August, 4th". Chicago Examiner.
- "Meet the New Cast of Fox's New 'In Living Color'". Huffington Post. April 3, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- Bernhardt, Ross (September 4, 2015). "Lil Rel Howery: The Comedy King of Chicago". Paste Magazine. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- "The Carmichael Show: About: Lil Rel Howery". NBC. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
- "Kevin Hart Presents Lil Rel: RELevent". Netflix. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
- Romero, Ariana (May 7, 2017). "Lil Rel Deserved So Much Better For His Big MTV Movie & TV Awards Win". Refinery29.
- "'Stranger Things,' 'Beauty' win big at MTV awards". Agence France-Presse. May 8, 2017.
- Truitt, Brian (July 2, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery has his game face on". USA Today. p. D3.
- Jones, Tashara (September 7, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery's life is now a sitcom". New York Post. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
- Swartz, Tracy (September 6, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery's TV career is about to take off as he deals with real-life Chicago drama". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
- Bocque, Anslem Samuel (March 2, 2018). "From 'Get Out' to Balling With Kyrie Irving, Lil Rel Howery Isn't Done Having the Best Year Ever. Complex. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- Owen, Jordan (June 20, 2016). "Chicago comedian Lil Rel Howery arrested on Near West Side". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
- "Celebrity File". Daily Post (Palo Alto, California). June 21, 2016. p. 26.
- {Moreno, Nereida (June 20, 2016). "Chicago comic-actor Lil Rel Howery charged with battery". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
- Swartz, Tracy (September 8, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery's TV success comes amid real-life drama". Chicago Tribune.