Bert Kreischer was a club comic for over a dozen years straight, a gig he remembers could garner audiences of anywhere from about a couple hundred to a couple thousand people a night.

Now, the celebrated comedian, podcast host, actor and writer recently wrapped up an arena tour that brought in 19,000 people a night.

“So I’ve watched these numbers explode and just grow and grow and grow,” Kreischer said. “And I think you get a lot of return customers. I feel like you never lose that original 1,000 you get that first weekend. And then I think … with the amount of Netflix specials and podcasting and social media—it’s just casting a wider and wider net and bringing more people to comedy.”

Data shows that Kreischer is not the only comedian experiencing greater popularity in recent years, as the entertainment medium consistently grows. Pollstar reported in August that the combined gross for the top 25 highest-grossing comedy acts this year was $582.7 million, an 11% increase from 2023. The number of tickets sold also jumped up by 11%.

Gross and ticket sales for the top 25 have ultimately grown by 50% and 37%, respectively, compared with 2022, according to Pollstar.

The plethora of comedy regulars on the Las Vegas Strip—including Kreischer, who is headlining Resorts World Theatre on September 27-28—seem to offer just a glimpse into a boom of comedy.

“It’s a genre that has skyrocketed over the last five years,” said Chris Hammond, vice president of talent at AEG Presents, who noted that comedy was one of the first forms of entertainment to bounce back following the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Like Kreischer, Hammond attributed much of comedy’s newfound success to the advent of streaming, and comedy specials on sites like Netflix, Peacock or Amazon Prime. Between that and the immense popularity of podcasts frequented or hosted by comics, he said, whole new audiences are being exposed to the world of comedy.

As a result, demand for comedy shows has “gone through the roof,” Hammond said.

“They’ve all come together in this perfect storm to where comedy is certainly a force to be reckoned with—more so than it’s ever been,” said Hammond, who is responsible for booking acts at places like Resorts World, Wynn and Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.

No other town is as well suited for the art of comedy than Las Vegas, Hammond said, and comedy shows just add to the diversity of entertainment options available in the aptly named Entertainment Capital of the World.

“I think when people come here to Vegas, obviously they want to let loose and have fun,” he said. “We all know that. And sometimes there’s no better way to do that (than to) sit through a comedy show.”

Kreischer and his peers have been coming to Las Vegas to perform for decades, but it’s really exploded in popularity just over the past few years, he said.

The comedy lineup at Resorts World, which besides Kreischer has recently included shows by Colin Jost, Kill Tony and more, is a microcosm of the overall growth of comedy up and down the Strip.

And, though opportunities increasingly abound for comics, Kreischer said Las Vegas will always be a hub for the industry.

“Every (expletive) single one of us will be in Vegas four times a year,” he said. “We love Vegas. Vegas is the place everyone looks forward to.”

The industry has taken a “wild turn” he couldn’t have anticipated, said Kresicher, who cited the effect of podcasts that have created a quasi-relationship between comics and their fans, making the latter feel like they truly know their favorite comedians.

When asked what he thinks the future holds for comedy, Kreischer said he sees “great adventures” ahead for young comics.

“I can see guys doing things that no one ever imagined,” he said. “Because for a moment in time, I was that guy (that) never imagined I’d ever do an arena tour. That’s the thing I root for.”

Kreischer, who is famously pals with Tom Segura, Bobby Lee and other notable comedians, said everyone in the industry supports one another, so much so that they ultimately share the same fanbases.

“We just promote each other, talk good about each other,” Kreischer said. “And I think that goes a long way.”

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