In another action-packed evening of Roast Battle, the insults flew among some of the top comedians working today. Guest judges included late night host Jimmy Kimmel and actor, comedian, and fellow Canadian Seth Rogen. Saturday marked the quarterfinals of this bracket-style competition.
At the top of the show, the comedians left standing were: K. Trevor Wilson, Jeff Lawrence, Ralphie May, Tony Hinchcliffe, Jimmy Carr, Sarah Tiana, and Sam Morril.
The first war of words featured the Emmy-nominated Mike Lawrence versus Tennessee native Ralphie May. Both May and Lawrence had strong showings the night before, so this was an evenly matched battle. Lawrence opened with a joke about May’s divorce, and how “his wife should wait to get all of the money in three months.” May shot back with an insult, and they were off.
Both comics were funny, on-point, and calculating — and even made one another crack up on stage. But in the end, Lawrence advanced to the final round.
Battle two pitted Sam Morril, “pride of the Upper West Side,” against Sarah Tiana. Morril’s and Tiana’s words were sharp, with Tiana saying, “I love that you laugh at your own jokes. It explains why your eyebrows look like they are always high fiving each other.” Morril retorted with, “I can’t hear you over the sound of your biological clock.”
Overall, Ross called it a “pretty flawless round for both competitors,” and it was. Rogen and Kimmel needed a tie-breaker for this match, it was so close. Tiana pulled forward in the end, making her the only female comedian left in the competition.
The third match-up featured Canadian K. Trevor Wilson and Tony Hinchcliffe. Hinchcliffe came to the stage in a full suit of armor with Gladiator-inspired music blaring. Wilson arrived decked out in a Canadian flag. When deciding who would go first, Hinchcliffe said of Wilson, “He’s an opener, he always will be an opener, he should go first.” Wilson came out swinging saying, “You look like Tim Burton presents a stand-up comedian.”
The gloves were off, and it was another close call for the judges; Ross said it was “the hardest I laughed the entire tournament,” but Wilson took home the win for Canada.
In the final battle of the night, Englishman Jimmy Carr faced off with Earl Skankel from Bel Air, California. Carr looked cool and collected, dressed in a smart blue suit carrying his now famous clipboard. This was in stark contrast to Skankel, who came out shirtless (again), in tight white pants, large sunglasses, and a clipboard he tossed at the crowd in an effort to throw Carr off his game. Ross even commented on the visual difference, calling the match-up “Wrestlemania versus Transylvania.”
The tempo was fast, and both comedians came out slaying. Another sudden death tie-breaker was called by the judges. Rogen noted the level of consistency in the jokes, while Kimmel commented that Carr’s reading from the clipboard was distracting. In a major upset, Skankel bested Carr.
There were jokes of epic proportions, and it was obvious that these comics had their eye on the prize. These battles are not only a test of wits, but showcase a comedian’s ability to think on their feet and be as thick-skinned as possible. Watch the finale of Roast Battle LIVE tonight at 10/9c (or anytime on the CC App) to see who takes it all home!