Kate Berlant

Kate Berlant, born Kate Elizabeth Mendez Berlant on July 16, 1987, is an American comedian, actress, and writer known for her surrealist and absurdist style. She was born in Los Angeles, the daughter of performer Helen (nee Mendez) and artist Tony Berlant, and is of Spanish descent on her mother's side and Jewish descent on her father's. She received a Bachelor of Arts and then a Master of Arts in performance studies from New York University.

Berlant first appeared on television in a 2002 episode of Lizzie McGuire and has since had roles in films including Sorry to Bother You (2018), Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), and Don't Worry Darling (2022). She has performed stand-up on The Tonight Show and won the American version of Taskmaster in 2018. With frequent collaborator John Early, she created the Vimeo series 555 and released the one-hour sketch comedy special Would It Kill You to Laugh? on Peacock in June 2022, which was backed by both Peacock and A24 and nominated for Best Comedy Special at the 28th Critics' Choice Awards. Her largely improvised debut stand-up special, Cinnamon in the Wind, was recorded in 2019 at the Upright Citizens Brigade for FX, directed by Bo Burnham, and debuted on Hulu in September 2022.

In November 2020, Berlant and fellow comedian Jacqueline Novak launched Poog, a comedic wellness podcast that amassed a cult following and aired more than 200 episodes before concluding on October 15, 2024; the pair then debuted a new self-titled podcast, Berlant & Novak. The New Yorker praised her comedy for "breaking down the typical relationship between performer, ego, and audience." Berlant lives in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles.