THE FUSE

HBO gave Sarah Sherman no limits. When she filmed her first comedy special, Sarah Squirm: Live + In the Flesh, she wanted it to showcase all the wild, out-of-the-box elements of her stage act. She knew that was a tall order—her comedy generally focuses on the terrifying and gross aspects of bodies in explicit detail. Surprisingly, the network was fully on board. “It’s Sarah unleashed,” Sherman says of the special, which was filmed at Brooklyn’s Bell House and premieres at 9 P.M. ET tonight on HBO. Her wildness contrasts with the relatively buttoned-up performances she gives as a Saturday Night Live cast member. “The longer I’m at SNL and being very well behaved on live network television, the more I get my freak on outside of work.” Ahead of Sarah Squirm’s debut, Sherman spoke to ELLE about prosthetics, SNL insecurity, and why even Joe Rogan might like the special.