TikTok’s answer to ‘Saturday Night Live’ is ready for primetime

Stapleview is relaunching in a big way. The sketch comedy outfit, best known for generating laughs on TikTok, has announced an original programming slate that includes five new shows and three upcoming titles.

The class of Stapleview originals will launch across the brand’s channels on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Each program will be led by one or more up-and-coming comic actors, including some creators who have cut their teeth on their personal social media accounts.

That approach is not unusual for Stapleview, which launched in 2022 as a TikTok-era answer to Saturday Night Live. The brand was founded by Daniel Lantsman and Sam Grey, the latter of whom is a former employee at Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video.

One of Lantsman and Grey’s goals is to forge connections between social media funnypeople and the traditional comedy world, and the original iteration of Stapleview accomplished that mission. Jane Wickline, one of the original Stapleview players, was added as a cast member for the 50th season of Saturday Night Live.

The new Stapleview shows feature a fresh crop of comics who might be ready to be not-ready-for-prime-time players. The slate runs the gamut from a talk show (Beautiful Questions with Kim and Aliyah) to an interview series (Clear the Air, starring Taylor Ortega) to a parody of Martha Stewart and Nancy Meyers (the Casey Thomas Brown

vehicle Bareback Acres, pictured above). Stapleview talent ranges from coast to coast, with New York-based comedians Alex Forrest and Joe Gleason helming the sketch show Home Planet and L.A.’s Joey Dardano starring in the Laugh Factory team-up The Method.

“Ultimately, it comes down to empowering talent that can speak authentically, not only to digital natives but to all fans of comedy. This is the heart of what we are developing and producing,” Lantsman and Grey said in a joint statement. “The magic is combining talent discovery and having a clear understanding of how digital platforms are the new networks for fans of comedy.”

The five aforementioned shows will premiere across Stapleview’s channels between September 27 and November 19. The comedy brand won’t rest for long before ushering in the rest of its slate. Three additional original programs — the workplace comedies Ad World and Escape Room and the philosophical 45 Years Left — are due out in 2025.

Stapleview is off to a strong start on social media, where its channels have hauled in more than 43 million total views to date. The brand’s new slate will push those numbers even higher, and it may introduce viewers to some talented comics who are on the verge of blowing up.