Cameron Esposito

Cameron Esposito was born Cameron Anne Young Anastasia Esposito on October 17, 1981 in Western Springs, Illinois, to Italian‑American parents Brenda and Nick. Raised as the middle child of three daughters, she excelled academically, becoming a National Merit Scholarship semifinalist and swimming competitively in high school. After graduating from Benet Academy in 2000, she pursued theology and English literature at Boston College, where she also played rugby and performed with the improv troupe My Mother’s Fleabag. Although she initially enrolled in a Master of Social Work program at the University of Chicago, she left after one semester to follow a burgeoning passion for comedy, a decision that would soon define her professional trajectory. In Chicago she honed her stand‑up skills at venues such as The Lincoln Lodge, and by 2007 she was a regular on the local circuit, supplementing her income with work in special education, law clerking, and nannying. Her breakthrough came in 2013 with an appearance on The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson, earning praise from Jay Leno who called her “the future of comedy.” Since then she has appeared on Conan, Last Call with Carson Daly, and voiced Carroll the Cloud Person on Adventure Time, while also gaining recognition as Consequence of Sound’s 2014 Comedian of the Year. Esposito’s career has been defined by a commitment to LGBTQ+ visibility and social justice. She co‑created the groundbreaking series Take My Wife with partner River Butcher, first streaming on Seeso and later picked up by iTunes and Starz. Her podcast Queery interviews queer luminaries such as Lena Waithe, Margaret Cho, and Roxane Gay, reinforcing her role as a cultural commentator. In 2018 she released the hour‑long special Rape Jokes, raising $65,000 for RAINN, and in 2020 published the memoir Save Yourself. More recent projects include a stand‑up special Four Pills (2025) and a guest‑judging spot on King of Drag. Openly lesbian and gender‑fluid, she married comedian River Butcher (2015‑2018) and later editor Katy Nishimoto in 2021, and announced she is expecting her first child in 2025.