The Hollywood Reporter polls industry insiders and mines the data to assemble the second annual list of the artists and executives with the clout to make the world laugh, delivering eyeballs to film and TV and billions in arena grosses.
Amy Poehler
Actress-Writer-Producer
CATEGORY The Legends
“There’s a fine line between ‘Never been better’ and ‘The sky is falling,’ ” philosophizes Poehler about the current state of comedy. “The way people are consuming entertainment now, you can either think it’s the end of days or you can appreciate the opportunity.” Poehler, 47, clearly chose the latter. The SNL and Parks and Rec alum directed her first feature, Netflix’s girl-trip comedy Wine Country, and will be shooting her second for the streamer, Moxie, about a 16-year-old girl who discovers her mom’s Riot Grrrl past, as early as this fall. “I like the problem-solving aspects of directing — and then you have to decode what you’ve shot in a dark room,” she says. “I love dark rooms.” Poehler also is voicing and co-producing a new animated Fox series (Duncanville), has just wrapped the second season of Making It, her crafting competition show for NBC, and continues to produce Netflix’s Russian Doll, which just got picked up for a second season.