Gay comedy writer Guy Branum has had a long and fruitful career that continues to grow, He has taken home trophies from the Emmy and Golden Globe awards over the years, and his television credits include Hacks, The Mindy Project, The Other Two and A League of Their Own.
Guy created and hosted truTV’s Talk Show the Game Show and is often a guest on podcasts. He played Henry in the 2022 film Bros and also co-produced the project. Recently, he acted in the Apple+ series Platonic and released a comedy album Effable in 2015.
Branum’s book, My Life as a Goddess: A Memoir Through (Un)Popular Culture, debuted in 2018 to positive reviews.
His latest show, Be Fruitful has Branum lecturing crowds with a slide show presentation about religion, politics, identity and fruit. He spoke backstage at The Den Theatre before his performance on May 6.
Windy City Times: What are your pronouns, and do you identify as a bear?
Guy Branum: Yes, and I generally accept all pronouns because I would never want anyone to not call me “she” or “bitch.”
WCT: How has the tour been so far?
GB: It’s been lovely. I did this show a bit in Los Angeles, where I was figuring it out because it’s not just straight stand-up. There is some personal stuff and I wanted a chance to take it around to see how different audiences react to it. I’m a little sad that it will be cut short because of a new project, but I’m hoping that after the job in October to keep going with the show.
WCT: You arrived last night?
GB: Yes. I went out to see Doug Benson perform at Zanies. Chicago is always a good time. I went to law school in Minneapolis, so most of my time in Chicago has either been stand-up dates or coming here for quiz bowl tournaments when I was in my twenties. I have gone to Berlin Nightclub in the past here.
WCT: It closed in 2023.
GB: See? This is what happens: All of my memories are gone!
I like the size aspect of the gay guys of Chicago. Yesterday I was leaving a lunch place and there was a table of 12 women and one gay man who was holding court there. He was easily over 180 pounds and looked like he could take a punch. In LA, that’s hard to come by.
WCT: I’m flying out to LA for the second Critics Choice LGBTQ+ Celebration in a few weeks.
GB: Let me say you guys gave the Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series award to Hannah Einbinder after everybody’s been nominating her but not giving her a win. I appreciate that!
WCT: Well, we are honoring a friend of yours, Wanda Sykes on June 6.
GB: Some of the greatest opportunities I have had in my career have been because of Wanda and her production partner Page Hurwitz at Push It Productions. They take promoting queer voices seriously and they were producers on my talk show.
WCT: Do you think the movie Bros was ahead of its time?
GB: Oh, I think people didn’t know what to do with it, including Universal Studios. This was a really funny comedy and it should be appreciated on those terms.
At the end of the day, it was a really sweet, romantic comedy and I’m so proud of it. Nicholas Stoller and Billy Eichner are proud of it, too.
WCT: What was your takeaway overall from Bros?
GB: The best thing about it was just getting to be on set with that cast. Ts Madison is an icon and there’s a woman named Allison Reese who has a very small part in the movie, but [the part was] important because Billy had done such a good job of trying to find all of the amazing queer talent out there. Allison does an amazing impression of Kamala Harris and her career blew up when she was a candidate.
I will never forget the screening at the Toronto International Film Festival in a room full of 800 people laughing at that movie together.
It was one of the best nights of my life and I will always cherish it.
WCT: Have you ever pitched a television sitcom with you as the central character before?
GB: I have internalized the way the industry has said I am not for being on camera. I’ve always pushed against that, so with stand-up, I create space that’s supportive.
I did push hard to pitch things with me in a central role and the industry hasn’t been great. It’s hard as you get older to deal with a changing industry and it is just an ongoing game of making space.
I’m proud of what I have been able to accomplish and the disappointments are just fuel to keep pushing.
WCT: I can see it happening, so that’s why I ask you the question.
GB: That’s very sweet. I think queer people have always understood how we can fit into these spaces, but straight executives sometimes don’t get it.
I did have a sitcom for myself, but it didn’t go to pilot. It was a disappointment but I was happy I got the chance to write it. I have multiple development projects out there and I can rest.
WCT: Would you like to write a sequel to your book?
GB: Yes, I think I will write another book. My book agent hit me up a year ago and asked me about it. It was a good process and I’m very proud of my book.
One of the nice things about having a successful career is that I have different levels of control over things like when making a movie or a TV show, but there are a lot of other voices there.
It’s really cool to have a stand-up act or a book to have complete control over the project and not too many cooks in the kitchen.
WCT: With Pride coming up, what does Pride month mean to you?
GB: I love and treasure Pride. It is like a magical holiday just for us. I live in West Hollywood and I miss the years when the cast of Vanderpump Rules had actual plot lines during our Pride.
Generally, I will meet up with friends for brunch and then go watch the parade. I frequently work a lot in June. That’s what’s exciting about San Diego Pride is that it’s later in the year and I can pick up additional work.
WCT: With Be Fruitful, how do you navigate politics?
GB: I try to say the same things that we are all thinking and feeling. Moving through a world that feels ridiculous makes it hard not to point out the ridiculous. I have to reach around the ridiculousness of Trump, but I have always been complimented on my reach around…
WCT: That sounds challenging.
GB: It’s also hard with traveling, too. Roz Hernandez is a great trans stand-up comic who’s getting ready to go on tour. Just the realization that it would be better for her to drive than to fly because of possible issues with her identification keeps this issue in proper focus.
There was just a Supreme Court case about schools having to warn parents that there might be a book that mentions that two men get married in the school library. They’re attacking everything right now and not picking their battles, which is scary.
It’s getting real very fast and we have to maintain solidarity while respecting all portions of the LGBTQ+ community. All of us are possible targets.
WCT: The Netflix special Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration, which you were a part of, made many good points about this. What was that experience like?
GB: One of the best things about it was that it was a gay event where men were not the story. It was about icons like Lily Tomlin and Sandy Bernhard.
So I went out onstage and I looked down to see Caroline Rhea in the front row of The Greek Theatre. I was wondering why, in a sea of people, the character from Sabrina the Teenage Witch is the only person I can see here?
It was a magical night with so many people full of different perspectives. Todd Glass had never done an all gay show before that night. Marsha Warfield has been a comic for half a century, but has only been openly queer for since 2017. She has whole new jokes now because she can talk about every aspect of who she is.
Wanda Sykes’ producing partner, Page, directed a documentary about the night called Outstanding: A Comedy Revolution. In it they talk about the history of queer comedy to put perspective on it.
WCT: I saw that, and it made a nice interview companion piece to the Stand Out special.
GB: The experience was so much fun. … I think that there are people who want gay politics to be cleaner and more respectable. It’s never going to be that. We are always going to be people who turn what we do into a good time.
Pride has always been a protest that was sometimes fun. They were singing and dancing while throwing bricks. Pretending to be anything other than that is a disservice to us. People may call us frivolous, and we can be, but we should be allowed to exist on those terms and have civil rights at the same time.
Visit guybranum.com for more on the Be Fruitful Tour when it resumes.