Most of us know him as “Fluffy,” but attaining his star power in comedy, has now earned him the right to be called Mr. Gabriel Iglesias, thank you very much. The Hollywood Reporter named him to “The 40(ish) Most Powerful People in Comedy” alongside comedy kings and queens who currently reign in the Hollywood business of comedy.
Iglesias recently signed a development deal with Netflix for multiple projects that include a multi-cam series and two comedy specials. In the multi-cam series titled, Mr. Iglesias, Iglesias portrays a good-natured public high school teacher who works at his alma mater. He teaches gifted, albeit misfit kids; his main objective is to not only save them from being “counseled out” by a bully bureaucrat assistant principal, but also to help them unlock their full potential… perhaps shades of the 1975 sitcom, Welcome Back, Kotter, which starred Gabe Kaplan, John Travolta, and Ron Palillo.
Netflix has ordered ten half-hour episodes for the show’s first season. Netflix will produce with Iglesias serving as executive producer along with Kevin Hench (Last Man Standing, Cristela).
“When I was a kid, I wanted to be either be a stand-up comedian or a teacher,” Iglesias said. “Thanks to Netflix for supporting both my career aspirations.
As for the first of two stand-up comedy specials, they will be taped during Iglesias’ current world tour, with the second taped at a future date.
Recently, Iglesias shared with Billboard that he spent most of 2017 repairing relationships and reflecting, after his battle with alcoholism and depression, as he hit his next tour.
People think as comics, we’re always in a good mood, but we’re messed up people,” he said.
“I was burned out dude, twenty years of the same thing with no breaks. I’ve never even taken a vacation,” Iglesias says of his decision to cancel dates on the 2017 tour, which he has since made up. “I wasn’t being creative anymore. It was becoming work. And I wasn’t spending enough time at home and that was taking its toll as well,” he told Billboard.
Through the ups and downs, Iglesias is one of the world’s most successful stand-up comedians, performing to sold-out crowds across the globe. He has the distinction of being one of the few to headline and sell-out Madison Square Garden in New York and the Staples Center in Los Angeles. His sixteenth one-hour comedy special, I’m sorry For What I said When I was Hungry, premiered on Netflix worldwide in 2016.
Veteran actor-comedian, Danny Mora, said that the first time he saw Gabriel Iglesias perform, the audience was in tears… and not just laughter tears, but tears of connecting to his heart and soul. “The audience was crying as if he was Michael Jackson. There was something within him that audiences love him for… something that connects to his spirit as a human being. He is definitely a people magnet.”
Iglesias was born in San Diego, CA and raised by his single mother in Riverside, Corona, Santa Ana, Baldwin Park, and Compton, before settling in Long Beach, CA. His is a rags-to-riches storybook tale, but with a whole lot of baggage, he’s had to drag and unload during his journey to success.
Standing ovation, Gabriel Iglesias!
He is repped by CAA and Arsonhouse Entertainment.
Follow him on social media: Twitter @fluffyguy
Facebook / Gabriellglesias
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