Will OnlyFans prove a new hub for comedy?
Comedy clubs tend to stay dark or at least low key on Mondays. A recent August showcase at Pasadena’s Ice House Comedy Club was anything but, a live taping of a series called “LMAOF” packing the remodeled Legendary Room with cameras and a crowd focused on material about dating, sex, relationships and just plain being horny.
Matt O’Brien, for example, relays a story from a rideshare driver about taking a porn star to her shoot. Later, O’Brien regrets having taken nude videos, if only because the email scammers blackmailing him don’t have the newest, hottest version of him possible. Nate Craig, a vocal fan of Pilates classes featuring large glass windows, admits, “A couple of years ago I got my identity stolen … thieved … married is what I meant.” Sensing a little crowd work might loosen the mood further, he looks around and quips, “A little insight to these OnlyFans live TV tapings, they seat the audience based on their sexual fetishes, so …”
He thanks the furries, the swingers and more, but it’s clear stand-up is the big draw tonight. With a new CEO and emphasis on entertainment verticals, OnlyFans hopes to become a top streaming-comedy destination.
The London-based company launched OFTV in 2021. The free streaming platform comprises OnlyFans originals and creator-generated submissions.
“OnlyFans exists to provide creators from all genres with a place to monetize their content and develop authentic connections with their fans without unnecessary censorship,” says CEO Keily Blair of the 7-year-old company. She points to recent OFTV spikes in fitness, cooking, music, dating shows and reality series, plus announcements for “House of Sims” Season 2 and the new “Off the Hook.” While OnlyFans’ original adult material subscription core remains separate, the site’s experimental/uninhibited roots make it, says Blair, “a natural home for comedy and comedians.”
Earlier this year, OFTV’s “Creative Fund: Comedy Edition” U.K. competition series — much like its 2021 U.K. music competition and 2022 U.S. fashion competition — sought comedy creators from the platform. Judges Mae Martin, Jamali Maddix and London Hughes eventually awarded winner Mary O’Connell nearly $123,000, what Blair calls “the biggest ever cash prize for a U.K. comedy competition.” O’Connell recently completed her debut run at August’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Stateside last November, OnlyFans announced a Whitney Cummings partnership and launch of a new (albeit traditional) uncensored roast franchise. OFTV released two of five promised “OnlyFans Roast” editions this past spring under the “Whitney Cummings Presents” banner. April 1 saw Bert Kreischer roasted by the likes of Jay Oakerson, Tom Segura, Miranda Cosgrove and Kesha. Cummings directed, her first time in four years. It has remained the most-watched episode of OFTV original content to date, notes Blair.
“There is dissonance between the platforms that comedians are putting comedy on and where the comedy fans actually are,” Cummings says. “Comedy shouldn’t be sandwiched in between really serious political tweets, for example. Context is everything when it comes to comedy, and we’re missing the context here of where comedians belong.”
Of the OFTV platform, she continues, “They weren’t censoring, they were not owned by some big corporate conglomerate that’s going to say, ‘You can’t say this. You can’t say this’ or make you worry about catering to an algorithm. It was a total dream come true.”
Cummings’ OFTV roast in May found the comedy industry multihyphenate the butt of jokes about being childless from Hannah Stocking, Bob the Drag Queen, Annie Lederman, Robin Tran and Dan Levy.
“I love this platform because we are doing uncensored comedy without any network notes, without any drama, there’s no employee walkout,” Cummings said as part of her finale rebuttal. “I want these roasts to show that comedy is not dead. It’s just on new platforms.”
OnlyFans recently confirmed that Cummings filmed her sixth overall career special as an OFTV original Sept. 23 at the Comedy Store (and as a very pregnant mother-to-be). A premiere date has not been announced.
In July, Blair moved from OnlyFans’ chief strategy and operations officer to CEO. Along with Cummings, whom she calls “a bold, entrepreneurial and creative comedian who has always pushed boundaries and challenged perceptions,” Blair hints at additional stand-up content, saying, “We are also working with some household names on their own comedy OFTV specials.”
Nearly 20 episodes in, OFTV’s weekly stand-up series “LMAOF” features up-and-coming stand-ups who, let’s be real, occupy the hot end of the spectrum. Along with L.A. and New York, the traveling showcase highlights talent from Atlanta, Nashville, Austin, Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas and Miami. Episode 1 featured the now-viral sensation and sold-out theater headliner Matt Rife. A debut U.K. episode is in progress.
Like the roasts, “LMAOF” material isn’t vetted. “There weren’t any content restrictions,” O’Brien confirms of the Ice House tapings. “The only instructions were to ‘be funny,’ which was refreshing. Also the merch bag was a fun treat. I’ve been walking my dog in my OnlyFans tank top and hat and I’m creating quite a stir in the suburbs.”
Financially, says Craig, “It was clear that they wanted to take care of the comics and valued the content.” Of the platform, “They provide a point of purchase that artists can control in a way most social media doesn’t. YouTube and Instagram just give you what they give you, and you take it because you have to be on those and they know it. But OnlyFans facilitates a direct exchange with customers, and it feels pretty accommodating. Why wouldn’t content creators of all types find that useful?”
“Ensuring creative content is valued is at the heart of OnlyFans’ business model,” Blair says, “and this is true for comedy.” Monetization through monthly subscriptions, pay per view, merchandise, direct messaging and tips earn creators rates at $4 to OnlyFans’ $1, all while retaining original copyrights. “OnlyFans only succeeds when our creators succeed,” Blair said.
Or as Cummings puts it, “Everything that you were taught in terms of making content for networks, studios, or corporate sponsorship, throw all those rules out the window and just get back to being an artist, get back to just getting down to what you want to say and say how you want to say it. People want to see us take risks, and I think that OnlyFans and OFTV is really the only place anyone will let us take risks.”
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