Samantha Bee

2003–2014: at The Daily Show Bee became a correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on July 10, 2003. Bee was the sole female correspondent on The Daily Show from her debut in 2003 until Kristen Schaal joined the show in March 2008. She was The Daily Shows first non-American citizen correspondent. On that program, Bee demonstrated an ability to coax people into caricaturing themselves—particularly in segments like "Kill Drill", on hunters and fossil fuel executives claiming to be environmentalists; "They So Horny?", on the dearth of Asian men in American pornography; "Tropical Repression", on Ed Heeney, a Florida politician running his campaign based on opposition to gay rights; "The Undecided", an over-the-top look at the undecided voters leading up to the 2004 US presidential elections; the "Samantha Bee's So You Want To Bee A..." report series, which humorously caricatured the way in which one can easily obtain a certain job, like becoming a 527 group; and a segment entitled "NILFs" ("News I'd Like to F#@k"), discussing the sexiness of news anchors: "CNN has the wholesome girl-next-door NILFs, the kind you can bring home to meet your mother. MSNBC has the dirty-over-30 NILFs. Fox has the filthy NILFs who will report anything. They're the Hustler of NILFs."

Bee had her first starring role in a feature film in 2004 with the Canadian independent film Ham & Cheese, co-written by her husband Jason Jones and starring Canadian comics Scott Thompson and Dave Foley. The film marked Bee's first starring role. She won a Canadian Comedy Award for "Pretty Funny Female Performance" for her role. Jones became a freelance correspondent for the show while Bee reduced her workload during her pregnancy. Jon Stewart responded on his show, inviting Bee out for a discussion, and unlike in the clip that aired on Factor, Bee was visibly eight months pregnant. Bee joked it was obvious that the footage O'Reilly showed was a year old (it originally aired in 2004) because she had different highlights in her hair, before stating that her water had just broken.

On January 20, 2008, Bee finished as the highest scoring celebrity in the CBC game show Test the Nation. She had a minor role in Episode 15, "Spy Something or Get Out", of Little Mosque on the Prairie. Bee also appeared in the 12th episode of Season 20 of Law & Order ("Blackmail", episode 445), which aired on January 15, 2010. She played a minor role in an episode of the HBO series Bored to Death. She appeared as herself on the "Madame President" episode of The Electric Company. Bee also did a guest voice role of a talk show hostess named Pam in the Season 2 finale of Bob's Burgers, in addition to providing the voice of Lyla Lolliberry for two episodes in Season 4 of Phineas and Ferb. She appeared on Sesame Street during Season 42 as Mother Goose. In 2009, Bee appeared in the original cast of Love, Loss, and What I Wore. That same year, she had a small role in the comedy Whatever Works, written and directed by Woody Allen.

Bee authored a book titled I Know I Am, But What Are You?, which was published in 2010. She became the longest-serving regular Daily Show correspondent after passing Stephen Colbert's record in 2011. The same year, Bee collaborated with her longtime friend Allana Harkin on the parenting blog "Eating Over the Sink" for the online magazine Babble. In 2012, she appeared in Ken Finkleman's series Good God as Shandy Sommers, a devoutly Christian cable news host. She has also played roles in the series Bounty Hunters and Game On. In 2014, Bee was a panellist on Canada Reads, the CBC's annual national book debate. She defended Rawi Hage's novel Cockroach. On October 7, 2014, in the absence of Jon Stewart, she co-hosted The Daily Show with Jones. Bee departed The Daily Show on April 30, 2015. Her new show, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, debuted on February 8, 2016. With the program's debut, Bee became the first woman to host a late-night satire show. and in November 2016, the show was renewed for a second season throughout 2017.

Bee is an executive producer of the TBS comedy series The Detour (2016–2019), which she created with her husband, Jason Jones. One year into Bee's run on Full Frontal, Time named Bee one of the 100 most influential people in the world. On April 29, 2017, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee hosted "Not the White House Correspondents' Dinner" which aired on TBS the same evening. In July 2017, Bee's "Nasty Woman Shirt" campaign raised over $1 million for Planned Parenthood. In January 2018, TBS renewed Full Frontal for a third and fourth season, set to air through 2020. Bee's deal with Turner runs through 2022.

In 2018, Bee faced backlash on social media and from the White House for calling Ivanka Trump a "feckless cunt", while criticizing her stance as a mother regarding the immigration policy of Donald Trump. The comments were made in the context of highlighting the administration's actions on immigration and the separation of undocumented children from their parents. Critics on Twitter started a hashtag calling for a boycott of TBS network until Bee's show is canceled. The day after the segment aired, Bee apologized and "deeply [regretted]" the comment. Comedians Kathy Griffin, Michelle Wolf, Sarah Silverman, and Jon Stewart defended Bee, with Stewart suggesting much of the outrage over the joke was strategic rather than genuine. The show featured fewer national advertisements the following week. Bee began the episode with an apology to any women she had offended and lamenting that one bad word had overshadowed the policy of detaining undocumented immigrant children which she had been criticizing.

In 2018, Bee formed a production company called Swimsuit Competition, focused on creating original content for television, aiming to work with underrepresented talent and those whose work has been underestimated in the past. The company signed a first-look deal with TBS. Full Frontal producer Kristen Everman was named head of development.

She appeared as Jillian on the revived The Kids in the Hall, released in May 2022.

On July 25, 2022, Bee's representatives announced that TBS had not renewed Full Frontal for a seventh season.

2022– : further career In 2023, Bee was named as the host of the 11th Canadian Screen Awards broadcast on April 16. In 2024, Bee starred in the off-Broadway one-woman show How to Survive Menopause. The show was later adapted as an Audible Original.

Since 2023, Bee has hosted the podcast Choice Words with Samantha Bee, produced by Lemonada Media. Guests have included Jon Lovett, Jennifer Welch, Stephen J. Dubner, and Chris Hayes.

Influences Bee has credited Jon Stewart as one of her major influences, and in several interviews she has said that her other comedic influences include Steve Martin, David Letterman, Mary Tyler Moore, Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett, Betty White, and Joan Rivers.

Personal life In 2001, Bee married actor and writer Jason Jones, whom she first met in 1996. In January 2006, she gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Piper, then returned to The Daily Show in March 2006. and gave birth to their second child, a son named Fletcher, later that year. Their third child, a daughter named Ripley, was born in late 2010. During her third pregnancy, Bee joked she and Jones were "just procreating like we're farmers."

Bee holds dual Canadian-American citizenship after being naturalized in 2014.

Filmography

Film Year Title RoleNotes 2004 Ham & Cheese Beth Goodson 2007 Underdog Principal Helen Patterson 2008 Coopers' Camera Nancy Cooper Won the Canadian Comedy Award for Best Performance by a Female in a Film at the 10th Canadian Comedy Awards 2008 The Love Guru Cinnabon Cashier 2009 Whatever Works Chess Mother 2009 Motherhood Alison Hopper 2010 Date Night Woman in Times Square Uncredited 2010 Furry Vengeance Principal Baker 2014 Learning to Drive Debbie 2015 Get Squirrely Raitch (voice) aka A.C.O.R.N.S.: Operation Crackdown 2015 Sisters Liz 2018 Elliot the Littlest Reindeer Hazel (voice) 2023 Judy Blume Forever Herself Documentary

Television Year Title RoleNotes 2000 Real Kids, Real Adventures Neighbour Episode: "Explosion: The Christopher Wise Story" 2001 The Endless Grind 2003–2015 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Herself (correspondent) 332 episodes 2003 Jasper, Texas Kathy Television film 2005 Odd Job Jack Linda Callahan (voice) Episode: "Law and Lawless" 2006 Love Monkey Carol Dulac – Letterman Booker Episode: "The One That Got Away" 2007 Not This But This Various Also co-producer 2007 Little Mosque on the Prairie Nancy Layton Episode: "Spy Something or Get Out" 2007 Rescue Me Real Estate Agent Episode: "Animal" 2007 Two Families Television film 2009–2011 Bored to Death Renee Dalton 3 episodes 2010 Law & Order Vanessa Carville Episode: "Blackmail" 2010 Love Letters Melissa Television film 2010–2012 Sesame Street Mother Goose 2 episodes 2011 Michael: Tuesdays and Thursdays Nancy Slade Episode: "Sweating" 2012 Good God Shandy Sommers 9 episodes 2012–2017 Bob's Burgers Pam, Nurse Liz (voice) 4 episodes 2013 Bounty Hunters Stacy (voice) 13 episodes 2013–2014 Phineas and Ferb Lyla Lolliberry (voice) 2 episodes 2013–2017 Creative Galaxy Mom (voice) 22 episodes 2014 The Michael J. Fox Show Dr. Young Episode: "Surprise" 2014 Deadbeat Darcy 2 episodes 2015 Halal in the Family Wendy Episode: "The Amazing Race" 2015–2016 Game On Geri 25 episodes 2016–2022 Full Frontal with Samantha Bee Herself (host) 218 episodes; also creator, writer, executive producer 2016–2019 The Detour Nate's Mother 2 episodes 2017 The History of Comedy Herself 2 episodes 2020 BoJack Horseman Herself (voice) Episode: "The Horny Unicorn" 2020 Blue's Clues & You! Herself Episode: "Happy Birthday, Blue!" 2021 Robot Chicken Barbara, Sadness (voice) Episode: "May Cause a Whole Lotta Scabs" 2022 The Kids in the Hall Jillian Episode 5 2024 Canada's Drag Race: Canada vs. the World Herself (guest judge) Season 2, Episode 4: "Reading Battles"

As crew member Year TitleNotes 2016–2019 The Detour Co-creator, writer, executive producer 2020 It's Personal with Amy HoggartExecutive producer

Stage Year Title Role Venue 2009 Love, Loss, and What I Wore Westside Theatre

Published works

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result 2005 Canadian Comedy Awards Film – Pretty Funny Performance – Female Ham & Cheese Television – Pretty Funny Female Performance The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 2012 Best Performance by a Female – Television Good God 2013 Canadian Screen Awards Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role or Guest Role in a Comedic Series 2015 Canadian Comedy Awards Canadian Comedy Person of the Year 2016 Women's Media Center History Making Award Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in News and Information Full Frontal with Samantha Bee Individual Achievement in Comedy Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series Critics' Choice Television Award Best Talk Show 2017 Producers Guild of America Awards Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television Dorian Awards TV Current Affairs Show of the Year Wilde Wit of the Year Gracie Awards On-Air Talent – Entertainment or Sports Shorty Awards Best Comedian MTV Movie & TV Awards Best Host Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in News and Information Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Variety Talk Series Dorian Awards TV Current Affairs Show of the Year Wilde Wit of the Year Writers Guild of America Award Comedy/Variety – Talk Series Gracie Awards Special Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Television Academy Honor Canadian Comedy Awards Comedic Artist of the Year Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in Sketch/Variety Shows Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Variety Talk Series Outstanding Variety Special Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series Wilde Wit of the Year Writers Guild of America Award Comedy/Variety – Talk Series GLAAD Media Award Outstanding Variety or Talk Show Episode Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in Sketch/Variety Shows Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Variety Talk Series 2020 Dorian Awards TV Current Affairs Show of the Year Critics' Choice Television Award Best Talk Show Writers Guild of America Award Comedy/Variety – Talk Series Comedy/Variety – Specials