Justin Willman conjures laughter in 'Magic Lover' special

UPI

7 hours ago

Justin Willman combines stage magic with stand-up comedy in his new special "Magic Lover," available Tuesday on Netflix. Photo courtesy of Netflix
June 17 (UPI) -- Comedian and magician Justin Willman combines his two passions in his new Netflix special, Magic Lover, and the performer said he finds the two arts to be "very similar."
Willman, 44, is known for combining magic and comedy in his Netflix series Magic for Humans and The Magic Prank Show, as well as his former hosting gigs on shows including Cupcake Wars and Baking Impossible.
Magic Lover, his first-ever combination magic show and stand-up comedy special, is out Tuesday on Netflix.
Willman told UPI in a recent interview that comedy and magic are a natural pairing.
"I think magic inherently kind of has comedy baked into it," he said. "Because I find even when I'm not doing a trick that's funny, people's reaction to having their mind blown is often to laugh. So there's almost like a biological connection between the two."
Willman said jokes and magic tricks can also be very similar in structure.
"A joke has a setup and a punchline, and a trick has a setup and a reveal. I think those are very similar. And in intertwining magic and comedy, you know, the tricky part is to make sure they don't distract or dilute one another."
Willman said he has been "spending years" trying to strike the right balance between magic and comedy, which he said "comes down to timing."
"I find a good joke to be great misdirection because when someone's laughing, they're not burning you with their eyes necessarily. So I think I initially was drawn to magic and comedy kind of being a combo just because of the psychological utilitarian purpose that comedy had as a misdirection device."
Magical origins
Willman said his love of the performing arts started with comedy.
"The love of comedy is what came first. I very vividly remember begging to stay up late and watch Johnny Carson with my parents when I was 6, 7, 8 years old."
Willman said he would pick apart the jokes that made his parents laugh to try to see what made them funny.
"My parents were both serious people, and obviously as I kid I could make them laugh, but the way that I would see comedy make them laugh felt different," he recalled. "Like it was like a superpower that I wanted to unlock, but I had no clue how to."
The aspiring young comedian hit a literal bump in the road at the age of 12 when he broke both of his arms trying to ride a bike while wearing in-line skates.
"When I got my cast off months later, my doctor randomly recommended I learn card tricks as physical therapy. So he prescribed me magic, basically," Willman said.
Willman spent months mastering basic tricks, and by the age of 14 he was performing at children's parties.
"That's when I kind of realized, I made 40 bucks just now for 45 minutes of work. Like, I could make a living doing this. And that's kind of when the show business career, I guess, technically started."
When good tricks go bad
Willman said part of the appeal of magic is the uncertainly -- never quite knowing when something isn't going to go quite as planned.
"I did have a really bad experience once. I was doing a kid's birthday party outside. It was a beautiful day. I made a bird appear, my dove, and it flew up into a tree. I forgot that my pet bird could fly. I try to act like that's supposed to happen, you know, 'the show must go on,'" he said.
However, the situation went from bad to worse when Willman spotted a hawk circling overhead.
"And, in front of the children, this hawk swoops down, snatches my dove and flies away with it," he said. "Kids were crying, I couldn't really play it off. It was pretty brutal. From that point on, I kinda realized 'Maybe using my pets that I love in my act is not the way to go.'"
These days, animals play less of a role in Willman's stage performances, but there are still numerous variables involved. Much of his act involves "mind tricks," such as baiting an audience member into thinking of a particular word.
The secret, Willman said, is always having a contingency plan -- and, if the contingency plan has to happen, making sure the audience doesn't realize that what they are seeing is "Plan B."
"I love the idea that every show is a bit of a wild card," he said. "Like if every show [had] zero risk involved and exactly what I want to happen will happen, it feels a little, I don't know, unexciting to me."
He said his 30 years of experience in magic has given him more of a "thrill-seeking" approach to the craft.
"I think that little bit of uncertainty, where a lot is left to an audience's will or ability to change their minds, I think is what people think about later," Willman said.
The variables are "where the magic is," he said.
Magic for the modern age
The art of magic has evolved in the decades since Willman started performing, and he said the rise of technologies like CGI, video effects, AI and deepfakes have "forced a lot more creativity" when it comes to trying to inspire awe in viewers.
"It definitely has at least made me want to make the magic about something more than just the trick," he said. "Whether it's about something funny or earnest or heartfelt or absurd or about something topical, it's not just about the trick. The trick is a delivery device for this point of view or this angle or my hot take on something."
Despite being best known for TV, Willman said he feels magic is meant to be experienced live, and he planned his special around trying to make Netflix viewers feel like a part of the live audience.
"I approach everything that I do that is filmed, whether it's Magic for Humans or this special -- I try to make it feel like you are experiencing it like the person who's there, using as few cuts as possible."
Willman said he hopes his special will inspire viewers to want to go out to see live magic shows in person.
"If you enjoyed it on your couch watching the TV, you will love it in person," he said. "I think wherever technology and AI and all this goes, it won't ever change. ... Experiencing this crazy thing in person, I feel like we will crave that kind of tactile wonder more than ever. At least, I really hope so. I'm banking on it. I have no fallback plan."
Justin Willman: Magic Lover is available to stream now on Netflix.