Comedy Isn’t Code — It’s Connection.

@evaalexocomedian As a comedian, show-runner, and producer in Montreal, I am genuinely INFURIATED. Using POC A.I COMEDIANS to promote your club is ETHICALLY AND MORALLY WRONG. Please tell me your thoughts cuz I am so tired of keeping quiet. #montreal #mtltiktok #montrealtiktok #standupcomedy #mtl ♬ original sound - evaalexocomedian

It’s been a busy time, and I haven’t been able to write — but I’d feel like I was doing a disservice if I didn’t say something.

Before our Tuesday show at Mackay, a fellow comic showed me one of the videos that’s been circulating. My initial reaction was immediate: that’s not something we would ever do at Comedy on Mackay. Social media suicide. I dismissed it right away as another example of how businesses misuse AI — something I’ve seen happen repeatedly until their ventures eventually folded. I brushed it off because, frankly, it wasn’t my show, not my problem.

Then it was brought to my attention again — this time by another comic — that the video had been created using Sora, OpenAI’s new text-to-video model. For those unfamiliar, Sora generates realistic, cinematic footage directly from written prompts. In other words, you can describe a scene, and Sora will create a moving image of it.

​However, Eva Alexos from The Kickback posted an argument that made me think more deeply. This isn’t about business models or branding — it’s about what makes comedy so profoundly human: the humans themselves.

As a weekly show, our budget runs on passion and the kindness of the people I’m proud to work with. The money we make in ticket sales goes directly to the comedians. We also offer free footage to our featured and special guests so they can use it for social media, festival submissions, or to send to bookers. I remember when I first started in comedy — a lot of people wouldn’t book me unless I had a 10-minute video or at least five years of experience. That’s a big reason why we keep offering this service on a rolling basis — so that newer comedians can have something tangible to show bookers and grow their careers.

My perspective on this is a little different. Several weeks ago, I wrote a blog about heckling and violence in comedy — and got a fair amount of heat for it, both publicly and privately. Still, I felt it was an important conversation to have, because violent heckling can be genuinely scary. I didn’t think my opinion was controversial — I never named a specific show — but the commentary that followed was bonkers: personal attacks, character jabs, and wild assumptions about my show.

Eva, in her post, faced something similar. She didn’t name any specific club, but the Montreal scene is small — people connected the dots. I completely understand that some shows lack the budget or resources for professional footage, but honestly, even taking photos or videos with your phone can create enough FOMO to draw an audience. Sometimes people prefer that homemade look — it conveys authenticity, something audiences crave. I’m grateful that the people I collaborate with on Comedy on Mackay share that same belief.

To play devil’s advocate, AI can be useful. It helps programmers write code, compare prices, draft emails with the right tone, and even edit grammar errors in academic writing. I’ll admit — I’m so bad at math that I use it to help me budget. But it can’t replace performers, musicians, or artists — the things that make us distinctly human. I truly believe comedians are artists, too. Comedy isn’t just about dick jokes or cheap laughs for vulgarity’s sake — it’s about how we use humour to connect, critique, and reflect.

The problem is much deeper than what we’re seeing. It’s not about a single show or a single comedian — it’s about the ethical use of AI, its effects on the entertainment industry, and how incredibly sophisticated it’s become since the creation of ChatGPT. While Sora might not replace three-armed comedians anytime soon, it does force us to look at how absurd — and revealing — our relationship with technology has become.