Joel Kim Booster on Why He’s Uncomfortable Being Called a Trailblazer

Joel Kim Booster is sharing why his focus is not on becoming a trailblazer.

The comedian-actor has established his name in the entertainment industry in recent years, notably with his 2022 Netflix stand-up special Psychosexual, Hulu’s gay romantic comedy Fire Island, which he wrote and starred in, and his role in the TV series Loot.

“It’s difficult because I am not somebody who went into this wanting to be an advocate or a trailblazer or anything — I just wanted to make people laugh,” he recently explained to People magazine. “All the rest of it is a byproduct. You cannot prioritize it. You cannot be mission first, joke second and be successful.”

Booster said it actually makes him “really uncomfortable” when people call him a “trailblazer” as he feels the term should be used for comedians who helped pave the way for others. And particularly those who came before him during times when the LGBTQ+ community wasn’t as widely accepted.

“I started doing comedy at a very convenient time for someone like me,” he added. “It wasn’t easy, but there weren’t the same barriers to entry that I think there were, you know, a decade before I started.” 

Throughout his career, Booster said the people he’s looked up to are Guy Branum, who he described as “the godfather of gay guy comedians,” and Margaret Cho, who he also cast in Fire Island.

“As a queer Asian person coming up, I devoured everything Margaret Cho did,” he said. “She has always been such a firebrand. She didn’t wait around for someone to open the door. She knocked it down herself. That appealed to me.”