Ilana Glazer

Ilana Glazer (born April 12, 1987) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, producer, director, and activist. They co-created and co-starred, with Abbi Jacobson, in the Comedy Central series Broad City, which is based on the web series of the same name. They were twice nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for the series. Glazer also starred in the 2017 film Rough Night and released their debut stand-up comedy special, The Planet Is Burning, in January 2020. In 2022, they won the Tony Award for Best Musical for serving as a producer for the Broadway show A Strange Loop.

Early life
Glazer, born in New York City, New York, is the child of Sandi and Larry Glazer, who both work in insurance and finance. They grew up in a Reform Jewish family in St. James, New York, on Long Island and is of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Their brother, Eliot Glazer, is a producer, writer and actor with whom they have worked on shows like The Boys Presents: Diabolical and Broad City where he plays their brother.

Glazer graduated from New York University in 2009, majoring in psychology.

Early work
Glazer began taking classes at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in 2006, and performed around New York City doing improv and stand-up for the next several years.

Development
In 2009, along with co-creator Abbi Jacobson, Glazer began shooting Broad City, a web series starring the two as fictionalized versions of themselves. The series was nominated for an ECNY Award for 'Best Web Series' and was positively received, garnering attention from major media outlets such as Entertainment Weekly, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal. The series caught the attention of Amy Poehler, who subsequently met with Glazer and Jacobson to help them shop a pilot script based on the series. Poehler also agreed to star in the web series finale.



In 2011, cable network FX, working with Poehler as the producer, purchased a script commitment for the series from Glazer and Jacobson. However, the network did not approve the script and decided not to proceed with development. Glazer and Jacobson then approached Comedy Central, who agreed to purchase the script from FX and order a pilot.

From 2012 to 2014, Glazer co-created the web series Chronic Gamer Girl with Alex Charak.

Reception and renewal
Broad City made its broadcast television premiere in January 2014 and was received with positive reviews and strong ratings, becoming Comedy Central's highest-rated first season since 2012 among the younger demographics, including adults 18–34, with an average of 1.2 million viewers.

The show has received critical acclaim from fans and critics alike. Review aggregation website Metacritic noted season 1 received "generally favorable reviews," giving it a score of 75 out of 100, based on reviews from 14 critics.

In February 2014, Comedy Central renewed the show for a second season. Season 2 received positive reviews, with Metacritic giving it a score of 89 out of 100, based on reviews from eight critics.

In January 2015, the series was renewed for a third season, which premiered on February 17, 2016. In January 2016, the series was renewed for a fourth and a final fifth season, which premiered on January 24, 2019.

Film
Glazer starred in the 2013 independent feature film How to Follow Strangers. The film won top prize at the Lower East Side Film Festival. They appear in the 2015 film The Night Before. Glazer starred alongside Scarlett Johansson and Kate McKinnon in the 2017 comedy Rough Night. Glazer co-wrote, produced, and starred in the horror film False Positive, released on Hulu on June 25, 2021. In 2024, they starred in the movie Babes.

Other
Glazer's debut stand-up special The Planet Is Burning premiered on Amazon Prime in January 2020. It was directed by Ryan Cunningham and Glazer served as an executive producer.

In 2022, Glazer was in the main cast of the Apple TV+ mystery comedy series The Afterparty.

Activism
Glazer founded the campaign platform Generator Collective in 2016 with Glennis Meagher. The platform promotes female election candidates and general participation in democracy and political discussion.

Personal life
Glazer was once roommates with comedian Rachel Bloom after college in Brooklyn. In February 2017, Glazer married their longtime boyfriend, computational biologist David Rooklin, in a private ceremony. Glazer is queer and has credited their work on Broad City with helping them understand their sexuality. Glazer is also nonbinary, an identity they realized while they were pregnant: "For the first time, my femininity didn't feel like drag or a joke or a role, but a powerful, open space. And my masculinity was also something I didn't need to make a joke out of. It was something that I thought was cool and hot and a part of me. That was an interesting aspect of being a queer, birthing person."

On March 17, 2021, Glazer announced on social media and in a magazine photo shoot that they and Rooklin were expecting a child together. Their child, a daughter, was born in July 2021.