The Eric Andre Show

Each episode opens on the show's main set: a standard talk-show set-up with a desk, a chair, and some decor. The show's announcer declares "Ladies and gentlemen, it's The Eric Andre Show!" and the opening song begins to play. During this time, André runs onto set and destroys the backdrop, desk, and various furnishings around him. Once the song is completed, stagehands swiftly remove the broken furniture and replace it with identical pieces. The co-host usually walks in at this time, often to weak applause from the audience. André may then perform a monologue, incorporating black comedy and surrealism. While he struggles to perform, his monologue usually turns defensive and aggressive. The show will then typically be a mix of surreal celebrity interviews and short sketches, candid camera footage, and non sequiturs, usually focused on André's absurd behavior in regular settings. At the end, a performer of some type plays over the ending credits. Ending performances are usually parodies of amateur acts common to public-access television, while other times they are real musicians playing their own songs with heavy twists, such as hardcore band Trash Talk playing while wearing volume-sensitive shock collars or a female opera singer performing while rapper Killer Mike serves as her hype man. Killer Mike also appeared in a later episode, performing a rap battle against rapper Action Bronson while the two were on treadmills. Mac DeMarco once played while André initiated a segment styled after Japanese game shows titled "Attack DeMarco!", in which numerous samurai began tormenting DeMarco. In one episode, comedian Rory Scovel had a cooking segment in which he increasingly got upset and destroyed his work station while rapper T-Pain sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" and fired a gun in the air. André has expressed that each season of the show is shot with a unique style in mind, intended to be thematically cohesive while remaining distinct from other seasons. Season 1 stylistically follows the series pilot which was shot without studio backing on a limited budget, using vintage Ikegami cameras and a darkly lit set built in an abandoned bodega. For all subsequent seasons the show were filmed in high-definition and featured more modern late-night comedy talk show elements, including André's appearance in a formal gray suit. For season 3, André grew out and straightened his hair in imitation of the distinctive hairstyle of comedian Katt Williams and decorated the set with tropical plants, intending to give the season an upbeat feeling to audiences. In stark contrast, season 4 took place in a darkly lit setting reminiscent of the first season, where André wore a tuxedo and professed to have avoided bathing or grooming, and lost weight during production, dubbing this season the "dystopian Eraserhead" season. This season also featured a new house band. Countering season 4, André's season 5 set included a revamping of the set with more vibrant decorations and a green screen behind the curtain where guests come out. André himself shaved all of his body hair except for his eyebrows, wore inexpensive cologne, tanned his skin and gained weight throughout. For season 6, André had his hair slicked back and tied into a ponytail. Guest stars appear throughout the show, with a number of them (mainly in the first season) being faked with impersonators or random people, including Jerry Seinfeld, Russell Brand, George Clooney, The Hulk, Beyonce, Arnold Schwarzenegger (portrayed by Bruce Vilanch on a mobility scooter), and Jay-Z. From seasons 2 to 6, more actual celebrities appeared, including musicians (Tyler, the Creator, Pete Wentz, Devendra Banhart, Killer Mike, Wiz Khalifa, T-Pain, George Corpsegrinder Fisher, Demi Lovato, Chance the Rapper, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, Flying Lotus, Open Mike Eagle, Dave Koz, Mac DeMarco, 311), actors (Ryan Phillipe, Krysten Ritter, Dolph Lundgren, Jack Black, Aubrey Peeples, Jack McBrayer, James Van Der Beek, Chris Jericho, Seth Rogen, Macaulay Culkin), or 1980s/1990s television stars (Sinbad, Tatyana Ali, Lorenzo Lamas, Jodie Sweetin), although other guests have appeared, including television personality Lauren Conrad, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, animation veteran John Kricfalusi, and adult film actresses Asa Akira and Mia Khalifa. The season 5 episode "Blannibal Quits" marked the final television appearance of the late actress Naya Rivera, who was pronounced dead from accidental drowning at the age of 33 on July 8, 2020. ==Development==

Early development The show was partly influenced by Space Ghost Coast to Coast, a series that aired on Cartoon Network and later Adult Swim. André had said that prior to shooting the first season, he rewatched several episodes of it to "absorb as much Space Ghost as [he] could". The look of the show, according to co-director Andrew Barchilon was intended to mimic "this iconic feeling that drove back to (early) Letterman and back to Carson." known originally as Duh Air Ache On Dre Shoe. The pilot was co-hosted with Hannibal Buress and was directed by Andrew Barchilon and Kitao Sakurai. It was filmed "over a few days" in an abandoned bodega in Brooklyn in 2009. After filming some man on the street segments, André ran out of money and couldn't afford an editor. Knowing that it would be too difficult to explain how to edit the "slop pile of footage", André took on the task himself, spending a year learning Final Cut. ==Cast==

Both host Eric André and co-host Hannibal Buress play exaggerated caricatures of themselves, with André being consistently eccentric, dysfunctional, violent and psychotic, while Buress serves as a relative straight man to André's antics despite usually acting as bizarrely as he does. André consistently overacts during interviews, acts aggressively towards his crew members, diverts from the script, continuously exposes himself to everyone around him, and overall sets out to make his guests feel as uncomfortable as possible (all of which is intended acting, a tactic used on celebrity guests to show the distinctions between each of their reactions to the environment of the set). Although just as outlandish, Buress is less of an oddity than André, and usually ends up correcting André's mistakes, shaming him on stage. Since there are only two chairs on the set, Buress ends up giving away his seat when a guest appears, awkwardly standing next to them and attempting to unnerve them from the host's behavior. The announcer has been voiced by three actors: Gary Anthony Williams during season 1, Tom Kane during season 2, and Robert Smith from seasons 3 to 6. Other than the introduction, they typically announce only during one-off game segments on the show. In season 5, the show's status quo changes significantly, with Hannibal quitting half-way into the second episode and being replaced with a mutant clone named "Blannibal" made from Hannibal's nose-hair. Blannibal himself also quits in the middle of the season, leaving Eric without a recurring co-host. The house band is also notable for regular participation in the show. The initial house band was on the show from season 1 to season 3, and consisted of Tom Ato as the guitarist, Early McCalister as the saxophonist, Pfelton Sutton as the drummer (who is almost always tackled during the show's opening), Jerry Wheeler as the trombonist, and Adora Dei as the keyboardist. The bassist changed frequently, being portrayed by Karen Elaine in season 1, JV Smith in season 2, and RJ Farrington in season 3. This entire band was replaced at the start of season 4 with a group of elderly men, including Don Peake as the guitarist, Emilio Palame as the keyboardist, Harold Cannon as the singer, Oscar Rospide as the bassist, and Tony Katsaras as the drummer. Semere-Ab Etmet Yohannes has also portrayed Russell Brand in several episodes. John Bueno, Jermaine Fowler, Roy Subida, Pat Regan, Vanessa Burns, Byron Bowers, and Buddy Daniels Friedman have all made recurring appearances as crew members throughout various seasons. In season 5, the band is replaced with an all-Japanese crew with the members being Sumiyo Iwasawa as the maraca and recorder player, Masatoshi Nishimura as a guitarist and vocalist, Jiro Okabe as the bassist, Ryo Okumoto as the keyboardist, Takashi "Chi" Saito as the drummer, and Rayko as the vocalist. ==Episodes==

Writing The core writing cast of the show consists of André, the show's directorial team Andrew Barchilon and Kitao Sakurai, as well as Derrick Beckles and "Kraft Punk" actor Dan Curry. Series editor Doug Lussenhop joined the writing staff beginning with season two. Additionally, Hannibal Buress was a writer for the first three seasons of the show. The other writers who contributed to more than one season are Eric Moneypenny and Tommy Blacha (seasons 1 and 2), Jesse Elias and Rory Scovel, who also appeared in the show as "Chef Rory Scovel" (seasons 2 and 4), Heather Anne Campbell and Pat Regan, who had been working at the show since the first season (seasons 3 and 4), Zeke Nicholson and Carl Tart (seasons 5 and 6), and Jon Daly (seasons 2 and 6). Other writers of note include Josh Fadem (season 1), the late Kevin Barnett, Erica Oyama (season 2), Ron Funches, Seth Morris, Brent Weinbach (season 3), Colton Dunn, Brett Gelman, Adam Pally, Jake Weisman, Hampton Yount (season 4), Sarah Sherman, Zack Fox, Sandy Honig, Jen Kirkman (season 5), Demi Adejuyigbe, Sam Brown, Kyle Dunnigan, Ify Nwadiwe, Dan Mintz, Jamar Malachi Neighbors, Zack Holmes, James Adomian, Ayo Edebiri, and the late Jak Knight (season 6). Season 1 (2012) , host and namesake of the show in June 2012 Season 1 was filmed over the course of ten days, with the opening sequences all filmed together over two and a half days at the end of the shoot. André, who was also known for his role as Mark Reynolds on the ABC sitcom ''Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 when The Eric Andre Show launched, was warned by ABC network executives not to mention the series on The Eric Andre Show, as they did not want to create an association between the two. According to André, several cast and crew members on Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 were not even aware of the existence of Adult Swim when explaining to them The Eric Andre Show. and in April 2013, it was announced that The Eric Andre Show'' had been renewed for another season, with a few of his former co-stars from the ABC show to make appearances as guests. The Eric Andre New Years Eve Spooktacular (2012) On December 31, 2012, Adult Swim aired a 27-minute Halloween-themed New Years special titled The Eric Andre New Years Eve Spooktacular. André commented in 2016 that filming on a live-to-tape format is "kind of difficult" and "I don't think I'd do that again. [...] I think you can fit in more jokes per square inch in something that's heavily edited". The special featured appearances from Demi Lovato, Sebastian Bach, Kevin Sorbo, Omarosa Manigault Newman, and John Kricfalusi. Season 2 (2013) With season 2, The Eric Andre Show changed to an HD camera setup, a new set design, and a new announcer, whilst André began wearing a suit. (Indeed, the show was reintroduced as "The NEW Eric Andre Show" for the opening of the season premiere, the HD change being revealed through a blurry picture of the new set becoming clearer just before the episode began.) Because of the difficulties with gaining consent under California's regulations, some of the impromptu and hidden camera sketches had to be re-recorded in New York City. André also admitted to using tactics on real celebrities to make them visibly uncomfortable during the taping without informing them, such as putting "old, rotten clams under their seat before they come out, or heat ducts in their seats so they're just sweltering." The studio space is not airconditioned. André said this was because the studio's airconditioning was too loud to run while filming, but that it had the added effect of making the guests feel uncomfortable, in line with the show's theme. Guests for season 2 included Vivica A. Fox, during whose interview André jumped onto—and through—his desk. André explained that the ground "was solid concrete evidently", and that he landed on his tailbone, "in this way that had this domino ripple effect up my spine so my body was asymmetrical for the rest of the year. I was walking around all weird". Season 3 (2014) Co-director Kitao Sakurai described season 3's interview methods as "Vietcong interrogation tactics". "We almost always use the first moment of an interview", said co-director Andrew Barchilon, "And then we skip to the end, when they're exhausted and confused. That's where the gold is". Man on the street segments included dragging a leaking body bag through New York's Chinatown; the production hadn't wanted to spend $300 on a filming permit and were ultimately met by police and other first responders. Guests intended but not booked for season 4 included Jay Leno and Katt Williams. André said in an interview that he put on 20 pounds, shaved all of his body hair (except for his eyebrows), and "sat in many tanning beds" in preparation, describing his look as "this weird uncanny valley version of myself" which contrasts with his fourth season appearance. He confirmed that the season would again feature pranks on the show's guests, stating, "We would very reluctantly or not at all tell the celebrity guests the name of the show so that they’d just come in blind". Filming of season 5 was finished just before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. On September 10, 2020, the release date was announced for season 5, October 25, 2020. On September 30, 2020, a trailer was released for the season. On October 22, 2020, André confirmed in an interview that Hannibal Buress would leave the series during the season for personal reasons, and he would be replaced with Blannibal, who is played by James Hazley. André found Hazley on Craigslist. After Hazley left, no recurring co-host took his place, but often Felipe Esparza and Lakeith Stanfield acted as co-hosts during interviews for the rest of the season. On his exit from the show, Buress said: "It's been a fun ride, but I'm almost 40; it's time to do something else." During filming of one episode's set destruction intro, André ended up suffering a concussion when a shelf John Cena had thrown him into proceeded to fall backwards, causing one of its metal bars to hit him in the back of the head. As a result, André had to go to the hospital, a situation he admitted in the season's behind the scenes special happened often enough that he had a special phrase to use (calling it a "popcorn") whenever he needed medical attention; he also did not place any blame on Cena, admitting he performed his role as requested and it was simply a matter of him and his crew not planning it out properly. Season 6 (2023) Andre initially planned to end the series after season five, but was motivated to come back after he "didn't make any money" on his film Bad Trip after it was sold to Netflix. He also cited the "full creative freedom" provided by Adult Swim. In March 2023, Adult Swim announced that the sixth season would premiere on June 4, 2023. It is directed by Kitao Sakurai and Jeff Tremaine. ==Live tours==

The Eric Andre Show Live was a touring production of The Eric Andre Show in live venues that were booked during the airing of the first season of the show in 2012. The tour was extended through September 21, 2012, with four additional east coast venues added to the schedule. A follow-up tour was scheduled for November 2013. ==Home media==

The first five seasons, with the exception of the New Year’s special, have been released on iTunes, Google Play, PlayStation Video (before shutting down on August 31, 2021), Microsoft Movies & TV, Channel 4's streaming website channel4.com (in the UK) and Amazon Video. The first five seasons, as well as the New Year's special, are also available on Hulu, although it may not be available in several countries. The show, alongside several sister Adult Swim programs, is also available through the network's online streaming app, including a 24-hour livestream of the show that can be accessed without a cable subscription; all the episodes are also available to stream on demand through the app with an authorized cable subscription login. ==Reception==

At the conclusion of the first season, Christopher R. Weingarten of SPIN described the show as "possibly the weirdest (and most engrossing) ten minutes on contemporary television." Adding that the show combines "the home-brewed humanity of Fernwood 2 Night, the surrealist Möbius strips of Tim & Eric, the Dada puckishness of Tom Green and the kinetic pranksterism of Jackass, [Eric Andre is] ultimately an Andy Kaufman for the Four Loko generation". The show's style has been frequently compared to the avant-garde comedy of Andy Kaufman and the public access absurdity of The Tom Green Show, with Vulture noting that the series functions as a "deconstruction" of the genre, stripping away the safety and predictability of the typical promotional interview. The dynamic between Eric and Hannibal was also frequently highlighted as a high point in the series. Analysis Some analysts have identified strong nihilistic and post-ironic themes in the show. Sociologist Alex Prong of The University of Western Ontario explains that "Eric Andre’s embrace of postmodern irony serves him and his audience well, revealing the absurdity of American politics through satire and mimicry...Eric Andre may practice nihilism in that absurdism makes great comedy, but it is a hopeful nihilism, still with an eye for the future." According to former editor Andrew DeYoung, The Eric Andre Show and similar shows on Adult Swim are meant to "reflect the frenetic distribution of information on the internet – that’s why a lot of their shows are so chaotic and absurd." Awards The show was nominated for a 2024 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series and won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series - Eric Andre. • Marry-Go-Round Magazine listed the show in the "Top TV Shows of the 2010s ==See also==