Wanda Sykes’ next stand-up comedy special will be released on Netflix on May 19th. Titled “Legacy,” Sykes will be the streamer for three hours.
According to the Netflix logline, “Sykes, a multiple Emmy Award winner and nominee for his trademark wit and fearless acumen, delivers an hour of bold, smart, and laugh-out-loud comedy that cements his status as a comedy icon.”
“Legacy” was directed by Julie Dash (“Daughters of the Dust”) and was filmed at Sykes’ alma mater, Hampton University in Virginia. The special is produced by Paige Hurwitz and Sykes through their Push It Productions banner, which has backed stand-up specials from comics like Michelle Buteau and Fortune Feimster, as well as the Netflix sitcom “The Upshaws,” which Sykes co-created with Regina Y. Hicks. Sykes played opposite Mike Epps and Kim Fields in that series. The show, which follows a working-class family in Indiana as they pursue the American dream, ended in January after five seasons on the streamer.
Sykes is one of the most recognizable names in comedy. Her last two specials, 2023’s “I’m an Entertainer” and 2019’s “Not Normal,” both premiered on Netflix. Her 2016 special “What Happened…Miss Sykes?” aired on Epix, and before that she had specials on HBO and Comedy Central.
She hosted “The Wanda Sykes Show” and helmed the early 2000s sitcoms “Wanda at Large” and “Wanda Does It.” She played memorable roles in numerous film and television projects, including “The Other Two,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and “Black-ish.” She won an Emmy Award as a writer for “The Chris Rock Show.”
