Watching Sami Zayn do comedy is like Michael Jordan playing baseball in the 1990s… at least according to Sami Zayn, the “Underdog From the Undergroud” who told the joke not once, not twice, but roughly four times in the 20 minute stand up routine that opened up his first-ever comedy show live at the Avalon in Hollywood, California, as part of the Netflix is a Joke Festival.

Announced as part of the wider festival as “Sami Zayn & Friends” with no clear description to tell fans what to expect at the event, even the Intercontinental Champion openly stated that he wasn't entirely sure how the show would go, and as the event went over for well over an hour, that ethos was on full display, with general timezones nothing more than a guest list and some time codes on the format sheet to keep the show on track.

Did it work? Mostly, yes, and based on the reactions of everyone who made it onto the Avalon stage, it looked like they wouldn't have it any other way.

Sami Zayn delivered on the jokes and friends at the Avalon.

Opening the show up with a 20-minute segment that felt somewhere between a monologue and a standup routine, Sami Zayn explained to fans how he came around to doing a comedy show at the biggest festival of the year, revealing how Mick Foley, his childhood friends, and even his wife helped him to get an act together centered around his fish-out-of-water appearance as part of the event, even if it weirdly worked out as a bit of corporate synergy considering RAW is heading to Netflix in 2025.

With the crowd having fully bought into the DIY concept of the show, Zayn then decided to share a story from his past, but instead of something fun from his time in Reseda at PWG, a local story involving Mount Rushmore, Kenny Omega, or any of the other performers he connected with who now work for AEW, he instead chose to talk about his – not El Generico's – trip to Portugal in 2009, where he wrestled a young up-and-comer by the name Ultra Psycho. Now, as it turns out, this story was shockingly factual, as Generico did wrestle the local grappler for WSW, and while the match might have been one of the worst he wrestled ever, it taught him the valuable lesson to just keep going and try to make the most of a situation even if it wasn't going well.

This mantra effectively served as the theme of the show, with Zayn welcoming his first guest, Tony Hinchcliffe of the Kill Tony podcast, who swiftly made his presence known by making a joke about Vince McMahon's reported improprieties that got a massive pop from the crowd. The duo discussed the connection between comedy and wrestling, their childhood similarities, a wrestling show at LA's The Comedy Store headlined by AEW's Darby Allin – plus the Lucha Brothers – and ultimately vowed to talk more again in the future before Hinchcliffe had to abruptly leave for another appearance at the festival.

Back on his own, Zayn then met his first real challenge of the set in the form of a heckler, who wouldn't allow him to sing a Beatles song until he got on the stage, revealing himself to be none other than Johnny Knoxville, back for more after their WrestleMania 38 match in Dallas. As the duo exchanged insults, the feud was broken up by none other than “The Man” Becky Lynch, who got the pop of the night with a surprise appearance that included a dramatic monologuing of her own and references to her book before the Jacka** founder was escorted off the stage by security.

Joined by noted wrestling fan and GCW legend Ron Funchess, who also made a very funny Vince McMahon joke that went over huge despite his fellow performers cringing at the bit, the trio discussed their own connections to the world of entertainment, with the Inside Out 2 actor noting that Zayn's opening performance would have been ridiculed at The Comedy Store due to the horrible comedic fundamentals of his stand-up set.

Now, for those out of the know, Funchess is an absolute pro, a comedian tour de force who can hit punchlines, make observations, and ultimately win a crowd over with his effervescence like few others. Paired up with a pair of long-time wrestlers but relatively new comedians, Funchess kept the shown rolling in a Late Night-style quasi-interview, discussing everything from his deep-seated traumas to his fascination with wrestling and even a shocking call-out of Paul Walter Hauser, whom he accused of stealing his shtick and also his part in the new Naked Gun movie.

Rounding out the show, Zayn invited up three guests from the audience to compete in a segment of the show called “So You Think You Can Promo,” which featured SmackDown backstage interviewer Cathy Kelley asking each participant to cut a 45-second promo based on her prompt. Now, for anyone who knows anything about Improv comedy, this is a very tough ask, as you not only have to deliver to an audience of strangers in front of two current WWE Champions but do so in character with no time to prepare. Still, the three participants gave it their best shot and were awarded with a signed copy of Lynch's book as a reward.

And that was that… or was it? That's right, as the show was seemingly ending, Knocksville returned to the stage and offered Zayn a bouquet of flowers, with the duo hugging it out to celebrate a show well done. As the crowd celebrated a happy ending to the event, Wee Man marched down to the ring and nailed Zayn with a low blow and then a Bodyslam, leading his guests to leave the stage in shame.

Lifting his head up as the crowd cheered him on, Zayn asked one last question to the crowd – was it good? – and was cheered off the stage with a smile on his face.

Is it normal for a wrestler to do a comedy show in the middle of their title reign? No. Is it normal for a comedian to do their first-ever stand-up set in front of a sold-out crowd of die-hard fans? No again, but frankly, normal isn't Zayn's style; for a first-ever, thrown-together-on-the-fly comedy special at the biggest comedy festival of the year, it's hard not to be impressed with what Zayn put together with the smile on his face seemingly confirming that he was having the time of his life in what could be a burgeoning second career for the 39-year-old Michael Jordan of wrestling.