Lil Rel Howery

Milton Howery Jr. (born December 17, 1979),[1] known professionally as Lil Rel Howery, is an American actor and comedian. Howery is best known for his roles as Robert Carmichael in NBC's television comedy series The Carmichael Show (2015–2017) and as TSA officer Rod Williams in the horror film Get Out (2017). He also starred in the TV series Rel, which he also created and co-produced.

Lil Rel Howery
Howery in 2010
Birth nameMilton Howery Jr.
Born (1979-12-17) December 17, 1979
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Years active2001–present
GenresComedy
Spouse
Verina Robinson
​
(
m. 2008; div. 2017)
Children2
Notable works and roles

Early life

Milton Howery Jr. grew up on the West Side of Chicago.[1] He attended Providence St. Mel School from fifth grade to ninth grade. He then transferred to Crane High School.[2] At Crane High School, Howery wrote jokes and created a script in a senior talent show, which made him decide to pursue comedy professionally.[2] Playing high school basketball, he reminded people of his older cousin Darrel, and he was nicknamed Lil Rel.[3]

Career

Lil Rel Howery began performing stand-up comedy on Chicago's East Side at a club called the Lion's Den.[4] He made his television debut in January 2007 when he appeared on the reality television competition Last Comic Standing.[5][6] That same year, he was on P. Diddy Presents: The Bad Boys of Comedy on HBO.[7] In 2009, he was part of America's National Night Out Against Crime in Chicago.[8]

In 2012, Howery and five other comedians starred in a revival of the popular 1990s comedy sketch program In Living Color on FOX.[5][9] The show was cancelled in 2013. Howery went on to work as a writer, producer, and one of the regular cast members of the truTV sketch comedy series, Friends of the People.[10] In 2015, Howery began co-starring in the role of Bobby Carmichael on the NBC sitcom The Carmichael Show alongside the show's creator, Jerrod Carmichael.[11]

In early 2016, Netflix added Howery's first exclusive solo stand-up special, Kevin Hart Presents: Lil Rel: RELevent, for streaming in the United States.[12]

Howery won the 2017 "Best Comedic Performance" MTV Movie & TV Award for his performance in Jordan Peele's satirical horror film Get Out.[13][14]

On May 10, 2018, Fox picked up Rel, a sitcom starring Howery in the lead role and Jerrod Carmichael and Mike Scully serving as executive producers. Howery said the television show is loosely based on his own life, including being a divorced father.[15] The series premiered September 9, 2018.

Personal life

Howery married Verina Robinson on November 24, 2008,[16][17] and together they have two children; the couple divorced in 2017.[17][18]

In June 2016, Howery was a passenger in a vehicle that struck another car in University Village, Chicago.[19] The driver in the other car argued with Howery, and eventually called 911. Howery allegedly punched him in the face.[19][20] The driver of the car Howery had been in drove away without Howery.[19] Police officers arrived and arrested Howery on a charge of misdemeanor battery.[19] Howery was found not guilty on the charge.[21][22] The driver sued Howery for injuries from the fight.[17]

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
2017 Get Out Rod Williams
2018 Tag Reggie
Uncle Drew Dax
Bird Box Charlie
2019 Brittany Runs a Marathon Demetrius
Good Boys Lucas's Dad
The Angry Birds Movie 2 Alex (voice)
2020 The Photograph Kyle
Bad Trip Bud Malone Post-production
Clouds Post-production
Deep Water Miles Post-production
Free Guy Buddy Post-production
2021 Fatherhood Jordan Post-production
Judas and the Black Messiah Brian Post-production
TBA Home Jayden Post-production

Television
Year Title Role Notes
2014 Friends of the People Various Writer, producer, cast
2015 Kevin Hart Presents: Lil Rel: RELevent Himself Standup Special
2015–17 The Carmichael Show Bobby Carmichael Starring role
2017 Insecure Quentin 5 episodes
Drop the Mic Himself Episode: "Nicole Scherzinger vs. Lil Rel Howery / Charlie Puth vs. Backstreet Boys"
2018 Lip Sync Battle Episode: "Lil Rel Howery vs. Naya Rivera"
2018–19 Rel Rel Main role
2018 The Comedy Central Roast Himself Episode: "Bruce Willis"
The Bobby Brown Story Brian Irvine 2 episodes
2019 Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure Virtuous St. Goodberry (voice) Episode: "The Eye of Pincosta"
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle Chuckles (voice) Episode: “The Legend of The Power Gems: Chapter Three”
Craig of the Creek Darnell (voice) Episode: "Cousin of the Creek"
South Side Bishop 3 episodes
Sherman’s Showcase Himself Episode: “The Ladies of Showcase”
A Black Lady Sketch Show Fake Manager Episode: "Born at Night, But Not Last Night"

References
  1. Vivanco, Leonor (June 15, 2009). "Chicago Laugh Attack". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
  2. Datcher, Mary L. (October 1, 2015). "Lil Rel: Working His Way Up". The Chicago Defender. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
  3. "Storytelling like a good uncle is stand-up comic's best weapon". The Plain Dealer. (Cleveland, Ohio). September 11, 2015. p. T20.
  4. "LilRel Howery bio". IMDb. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
  5. Zwecker, Bill (April 4, 2012). "Local Light". Chicago Sun-Times.
  6. Howery, Lil Rel "Last Comic Standing". MySpace. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  7. Toby, Mekeisha Madden (April 6, 2007). "Mekeisha's pick: New stand-up comics on tonight". The Detroit News. p. 2E.
  8. Jarocki, Gailann (August 2, 2009). "Help strengthen your community, National Night Out, August, 4th". Chicago Examiner.
  9. "Meet the New Cast of Fox's New 'In Living Color'". Huffington Post. April 3, 2012. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
  10. Bernhardt, Ross (September 4, 2015). "Lil Rel Howery: The Comedy King of Chicago". Paste Magazine. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
  11. "The Carmichael Show: About: Lil Rel Howery". NBC. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
  12. "Kevin Hart Presents Lil Rel: RELevent". Netflix. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
  13. Romero, Ariana (May 7, 2017). "Lil Rel Deserved So Much Better For His Big MTV Movie & TV Awards Win". Refinery29.
  14. "'Stranger Things,' 'Beauty' win big at MTV awards". Agence France-Presse. May 8, 2017.
  15. Truitt, Brian (July 2, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery has his game face on". USA Today. p. D3.
  16. Jones, Tashara (September 7, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery's life is now a sitcom". New York Post. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
  17. Swartz, Tracy (September 6, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery's TV career is about to take off as he deals with real-life Chicago drama". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
  18. Bocque, Anslem Samuel (March 2, 2018). "From 'Get Out' to Balling With Kyrie Irving, Lil Rel Howery Isn't Done Having the Best Year Ever. Complex. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
  19. Owen, Jordan (June 20, 2016). "Chicago comedian Lil Rel Howery arrested on Near West Side". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2018-12-30.
  20. "Celebrity File". Daily Post (Palo Alto, California). June 21, 2016. p. 26.
  21. {Moreno, Nereida (June 20, 2016). "Chicago comic-actor Lil Rel Howery charged with battery". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
  22. Swartz, Tracy (September 8, 2018). "Lil Rel Howery's TV success comes amid real-life drama". Chicago Tribune.
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