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Google PlayJoshua Neal is more than just a TikTok comedian.
Neal has been busy on the video-sharing app creating viral, highly relatable clips that he writes, stars in, and produces. His hilarious videos are around three minutes long and he often plays multiple people, like in his popular series of multiple men attending group therapy. While most people view the app as a place where Gen Z is making silly dancing clips, it has since evolved into a hub for all sorts of content, including creative formats where people can showcase their natural talents. In Neal’s case, TikTok has become his outlet where he can flex his acting and comedic muscles. His hope is that it helps him kickstart his acting career.
“TikTok gives you this platform where you don’t need to reach out to Hollywood because Hollywood will reach out to you,” Neal tells Complex. “It’s catapulted me to getting my stuff out there. The best thing about it is people being able to see what you’re doing, finally. That’s the real joy in it all. I’m just grateful that people can see the work that I do and they enjoy it.”
All it took was the boredom of the pandemic and losing his job at Equinox to help get him started and now he has 1.1 million followers on Tiktok, 180,000 on Instagram, and 80,000 on Twitter. His videos get a lot of love across all platforms because of his acting skills and how relatable they are. One of his videos portrays a mundane situation that most of us have experienced: walking into a room and forgetting why we went in there in the first place. In this case, it was his phone charger, and it resonated with so many people, that the video currently has 9.4 million views. As talented and creative as he is, though, it’s not always easy to go viral. Neal says sometimes a video not performing well can throw off his mood for the day. That’s the crux a lot of social media creators carry and it’s a pressure that’s not easy to shake. Neal has found a way to keep those nerves at ease and it’s by simply creating content he himself enjoys. “There are some people that go viral every time. I’m not one of those people,” he says. “I got to jump off my roof, do a couple of stunts, put sound effects in there. Now, I just make content I think is good and makes me happy and people can feel that.”
His main purpose is bigger than going viral. While he had dreams of going pro with football and the pandemic took away his job at Equinox, thanks to TikTok, Neal is inching closer to fulfilling his acting dreams. Neil says he views his videos as audition tapes, hoping that someone at a movie studio sees them and reaches out to him so he can bypass the traditional auditioning route.“I feel so fulfilled acting. I love it. It’s a way for me to escape,” Neal says. “I was a weird kid, the odd one out growing up, and acting really just gives me that freedom to just be whoever I want to be. And I love that.”
Neal is also building a community online, whom he refers to as his supporters, who will undoubtedly follow his acting career when he gets there. And he’s not far from it. He recently landed a role in the A24 movie titled Earth Mama but had to back out of the role when he tested positive for COVID-19 on the set. It was a small role, but working with a production company like that could’ve catapulted his career. Still, Neal isn’t giving up. He’s still creating content regularly (Ed Note: One hysterical clip reimagining the studio session for Usher’s “That’s What It’s Made For” is the reason I reached out), performing at comedy shows, and staying ready for the next time an opportunity comes knocking. If TikTok can launch careers for people like Charli D’Amelio and Addison Rae, it sure as hell can and should happen for him.
Complex caught up with the TikTok star and chatted all about answering his calling, the pressure to go viral, and why he thinks social media is changing the game for the movie industry. Check out our full interview with Joshua Neal below.
