Our 2026 Emcee Kerry Coddett

Kerry Coddett is a Brooklyn-born writer, director, actress, stand-up comedian, and all-around storyteller. Her work thrives in the gray areas: where nuance reigns, contradictions thrive, and preconceived notions unravel. She recently made her directorial debut with the short film ZEKE, which premiered at the American Black Film Festival. The film earned critical acclaim and numerous awards at festivals nationwide. In 2025, her one-woman show, MUDHOLE, made its sold-out Off-Broadway debut at Ars Nova’s prestigious ANT Fest. Kerry was also a standout Fellow in the 2025 Rideback Rise program. This is a highly selective content accelerator founded by Netflix’s Head of Film to support visionary POC filmmakers in developing market-ready, mainstream projects. (Their words, not hers.)

She has most recently served as a co-producer and writer on an upcoming drama series for Apple TV. She is a graduate of the WGA Showrunner Training Program. She was the Co-Executive Producer, Showrunner, and Head Writer on Yvonne Orji’s A Whole Me for HBO. Before that, she wrote on both seasons of Flatbush Misdemeanors on Showtime and appeared as a recurring guest star in season 1. On-screen, Kerry has appeared in Hulu’s Ramy, Showtime’s Desus and Mero, and Pause w/ Sam Jay on HBO. Before turning to comedy, Kerry graduated from college cum laude at 19 and started her own business as a fashion designer and stylist for Jay-Z.

She is also the founder of Kwanzaa Crawl, an annual New York City community event that brings in over $500K in one day for local Black-owned businesses.