Ariel Elias is an American comedian. She first gained prominence after a viral video showed her handling a heckler who threw a can of alcoholic seltzer at her onstage. [1] [2] She has appeared on numerous late night television talk shows. Her comedic work has drawn on her experiences growing up Jewish in Kentucky, being married, and being a millennial woman.
Elias grew up in Lexington, Kentucky. Her first name was often mispronounced "Earl" like Jason Lee's character in My Name Is Earl . [3] Her father was descended from Jews who were expelled from Spain during the Inquisition and went to Greece before immigrating to the United States. Her grandfather spoke Ladino. [3] Elias was influenced by Lois Lowry's The Giver, which emphasized that "in order to experience the joys of life, we also have to carry the pain". [4] Elias attended Tulane University. [5]
Elias began performing stand-up comedy while in college in New Orleans. [5] She performed as the warm-up comedian for the set of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel . [6]
In 2020, Jason Zinoman of the New York Times described Elias as "a sly young comic from Kentucky". [7]
In 2022, Elias was performing at a club in New Jersey when a heckler criticized her left-leaning politics. [8] After the heckler's boyfriend [9] threw a can at her, Elias calmly picked up the can and chugged the rest. [1] Elias posted the video on social media, drawing compliments from comedians including Jim Gaffigan, Patton Oswalt [2] and Whitney Cummings. [10] After the incident, Elias was featured on Jimmy Kimmel Live [11] and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. [12]
In 2025, Elias released her comedy special “A Jewish Star” on YouTube. [3] She recorded her special in Vermont. [13]
Elias resides in Queens, New York with her husband and dog. [3]