Jes Tom

James Setsuo Tom (formerly Jes Tom, born ) is an American comedian, actor, and writer based in New York City. His work explores themes including sex, gender identity, and Asian American representation.

Early life and education Tom was born and raised in San Francisco, California. Tom’s grandfather is Japanese American activist Edison Uno. He enjoyed acting in high school, and later joined the improvisation team at Smith College.

Career In 2011, Tom started performing at open mics in San Francisco. In 2013, he moved to New York City to pursue a career in comedy.

In 2021, Tom was named a New Face of Comedy at the Just for Laughs comedy festival.

In 2022, Tom's solo show, Less Lonely, had its off-Broadway premiere at the Cherry Lane Theatre.

Tom worked as a story editor for the HBO Max series Our Flag Means Death. and an Instagram live advice show for Netflix, Dear Jes.

Personal life Tom is a fifth-generation Asian American, of Japanese and Chinese descent. In March 2025, Tom publicly announced his name change to James Setsuo Tom on Instagram, referencing that he had been going by James for some time. He subsequently published an article in them titled Why I'm Changing My Name to James, where he explores moving on from his "placeholder name" of "Jes Tom" explaining the change as a "demand that other people see what I see".