Lil Rel Howery facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lil Rel Howery
Howery in 2018
Birth name	Milton Howery Jr.
Born	(1979-12-17) December 17, 1979 (age 45) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Medium	Stand-up television film
Spouse	Verina Robinson (m. 2008; div. 2017)
Children	3

Milton "Lil Rel" Howery Jr. (born December 17, 1979) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is famous for his roles in TV shows and movies. You might know him as Robert Carmichael in the TV comedy The Carmichael Show (2015–2017) or as Rod Williams in the exciting film Get Out (2017). He also created and starred in his own TV series called Rel (2018–2019).

Growing Up in Chicago

Milton Howery Jr. grew up in Chicago, Illinois. He was born on December 17, 1979. From fifth to ninth grade, he went to Providence St. Mel School. Later, he transferred to Crane High School.

How He Started Comedy

While at Crane High School, Lil Rel discovered his talent for making people laugh. He wrote jokes and even created a script for a talent show. After that, he decided he wanted to be a professional comedian. He got the nickname "Lil Rel" because he played high school basketball and reminded people of his older cousin, Darrel.

Lil Rel's Comedy Journey

Lil Rel Howery started his comedy career performing in clubs around Chicago. He first appeared on television in January 2007 on a show called Last Comic Standing. That same year, he was also featured on P. Diddy Presents: The Bad Boys of Comedy on HBO.

Early TV Roles

In 2012, Lil Rel was part of a TV show called In Living Color on Fox. This show was a new version of a popular comedy sketch series from the 1990s. After that, he worked as a writer, producer, and actor on the truTV sketch comedy series Friends of the People.

In 2015, he joined the cast of the NBC sitcom The Carmichael Show. He played the character Bobby Carmichael alongside the show's creator, Jerrod Carmichael.

Stand-Up Specials

Lil Rel has also released several stand-up comedy specials. In 2016, Netflix released his first solo special, Kevin Hart Presents: Lil Rel: RELevent. Later, in 2019, HBO released his second special, Lil Rel Howery: Live in Crenshaw. His third special, I said it. Y'all thinking it., was filmed in Chicago and came out in 2022.

Big Screen Success

One of Lil Rel's most famous movie roles was in Jordan Peele's film Get Out (2017). His performance as Rod Williams was a big hit, and he won the "Best Comedic Performance" MTV Movie & TV Award in 2017.

He has starred in many other movies too. In 2021, he played Buddy, a security guard, alongside Ryan Reynolds in the comedy film Free Guy. He also appeared in Vacation Friends (2021) and its sequel Vacation Friends 2 (2023). In 2024, he played Harold's friend Moose in the movie Harold and the Purple Crayon.

His Own TV Show

On May 10, 2018, Fox launched Rel, a sitcom where Lil Rel Howery played the main character. He also helped create and produce the show. He shared that the show was inspired by his own life experiences, including being a dad. The series first aired on September 9, 2018.

From 2019 to 2022, Lil Rel played the character Bishop on the HBO Max sitcom South Side.

Film and Television Roles

Lil Rel Howery has been in many films and TV shows. Here are some of them:

Film Appearances

Television Appearances