Comedian Nikki Glaser has ended her eight-year run with United Talent Agency and signed with rival agency WME in all areas, according to Deadline. The move, first reported by Page Six, has reportedly caught much of Hollywood off guard, with insiders describing it as sudden and unexpected.
A showbiz source told Page Six that Glaser fired UTA "without warning" on Monday, August 11, and that even members of her own team did not know the change was coming. Matt Belloni of Puck echoed that account on X, writing that Glaser "abruptly fired her agents at UTA and signed with WME" with "no explanation given to her longtime team." A representative for Glaser did not comment on the agency switch, Page Six reported, and as of Yahoo's report the 42-year-old comedian had not made a public statement about the decision.
Glaser signed with UTA in 2018, and the agency is widely credited with elevating her profile over the past several years. One insider told Page Six that UTA "turned her from a respected comedian into a mainstream cultural force," while another called the split "crazy considering what UTA built for her the last five years." A third source, seemingly baffled by the timing, simply said, "Nobody can figure it out." Some sources, however, told Page Six that Glaser has cultivated a close relationship with WME executives over the years, suggesting the move may have been less impulsive than it appeared from the outside.
WME confirmed it has signed Glaser across all areas of representation, including motion pictures, scripted and unscripted television, literary projects, digital content, podcasting, branded partnerships, lifestyle deals, music, consumer business and live touring, according to Deadline. She joins a comedy roster at WME that includes Kevin Hart, Amy Schumer, Chris Rock, Bill Burr, Pete Davidson, Adam Sandler, Wanda Sykes, Theo Von, Jimmy Kimmel, Conan O'Brien, Aziz Ansari, Eddie Murphy, Tina Fey and Brett Goldstein, among others. Glaser will continue to be represented by manager Alex Murray at Brillstein and attorney Lev Ginsburg, both outlets noted. UTA, for its part, still represents comedians Nate Bargatze, Sebastian Maniscalco, Matt Rife and Jim Gaffigan.
A Breakout Stretch That Made Her One Of UTA's Biggest Wins
The agency shakeup comes at the height of Glaser's career. She has been performing stand-up since the early 2000s, but her trajectory shifted dramatically in 2024 with her performance at the Roast of Tom Brady, which drew widespread acclaim. Shortly after, her HBO special Someday You'll Die set the record for the largest streaming comedy special premiere in HBO Max history, according to Deadline, and went on to earn Emmy, Grammy, Golden Globe and Critics Choice recognition, along with a Writers Guild Award win.
Building on that momentum, Glaser made history in January 2025 as the first woman to host the Golden Globes solo. She returned to host the ceremony again in 2026, earning Emmy and WGA Award nominations for that second outing, and is set to host the Globes for a third consecutive year in 2027, both Deadline and Page Six reported. Her latest comedy special has picked up three 2026 Emmy nominations, on top of her Emmy nomination this year for hosting the Globes, according to Page Six.
On the touring side, Glaser is currently performing her Stunning Tour across North America and Europe, with the North American leg wrapping up in December, according to Yahoo. That tour follows her Alive & Unwell Tour, which Page Six reported grossed $19.5 million over 120 shows and is set to air on Hulu. Those numbers have put her among the highest-grossing live touring comedians working today, according to Page Six.
Film And TV Deals Built During Her UTA Years
Much of Glaser's expansion into film and television took shape while she was still with UTA, and those projects are expected to carry forward under her new representation. She is set to star opposite Kim Kardashian in Netflix's The Fifth Wheel, directed by Eva Longoria. She also has an animated feature for Netflix, Steps, co-starring Amanda Seyfried, which is scheduled to premiere in November.
Beyond those two projects, Glaser sold a pitch to Paramount Pictures for a comedy inspired by the classic board game MASH, in which she will co-write, produce and star. She is also attached to a new romantic comedy at Universal Pictures, where she will star, co-write and produce, with Judd Apatow, known for Knocked Up, producing, according to Deadline and Page Six.
While the scope of Glaser's upcoming slate is well documented, the reasoning behind her sudden exit from UTA remains unclear. None of the insiders cited by Page Six offered a concrete explanation, and Glaser's team has not issued a public statement addressing the switch. For now, the story circulating around Hollywood is less about why she left and more about how quietly it happened, with even people close to her reportedly left in the dark until the news broke.
