Just For Laughs and Air Canada join forces to bring passengers the largest selection of stand-up specials in-flight

Just For Laughs and Air Canada join forces to bring passengers the largest selection of stand-up
specials in-flight, just in time for the holidays!

Montreal, ON – December 13, 2023 – Air Canada customers can now watch their favourite comedians in-flight this holiday season thanks to the airline’s latest collaboration with global comedy leader Just For Laughs. The new content integration, enabled by global airline content specialist, Spafax, will premiere ten new stand-up specials that will be available on board from December until end July 2024.

“Stand-up comedy is the perfect accompaniment to flying with its power to directly engage, entertain and relax passengers through the power of laughter. Air Canada passengers are in for a real treat thanks to this offering,” said David Van Poppel, IFE Content Manager at Spafax. “Having partnered with both Air Canada and Just For Laughs for many years, we at Spafax continue to be impressed by the ingenuity of both parties and we applaud their respective dedication to providing quality creative entertainment to audiences around the world.”

Filmed at the world’s number one comedy festival, Just For Laughs Montréal, the hilarious specials are hosted by some of the biggest names in comedy.

“You know those people on planes who laugh the entire flight thanks to whatever they’re watching onboard? This partnership makes it easier than ever to join in the fun,” said Norman Haughton, Director, IFEC Product and Analytics for Air Canada. “We’re tickled pink to be able to add a dose of laugh-out-loud fun to our in-flight entertainment with Just For Laughs, which celebrates the cultural fabric of Canada while bringing some of the funniest comedy for our passengers to enjoy on their next flight.”

Marina Di Pancrazio, Just For Laughs’ Chief Content Revenue Officer, also commented, ‘We are delighted to be bringing the best of Just For Laughs stand-up to Air Canada passengers. Many of today’s biggest stars were first discovered at our comedy festival in Montreal. This carefully curated selection of stand-up specials features over 50 leading comedy artists that have performed at our festival.’

Just For Laughs has been providing Air Canada with engaging stand-up comedy specials for their in-flight entertainment program since 1995, and the international success, Just For Laughs Gags, for the last 25 years. Overall, Just For Laughs delivers stand-up comedy and the GAGS franchise to multiple airlines and airports worldwide.

The new comedy specials now available on-board Air Canada include:

Ronny Chieng: On Guard – with guests Julie Kim, Rachid Badouri, Alonzo Bodden, Jay Pharoah, and many more.

Chelsea Handler @ JFL – with guests Adam Christie, Jay Jurden, Vanessa Gonzalez, Sam Jay, Salma Hindy, and Atsuko Okatsuka.

Jo Koy @ JFL – with guests Paul Rabliauskas, Jimmy O. Yang, JR De Guzman, Asif Ali and more.

Ken Jeong: Best Medicine – with guests Orny Adams, Jess Salomon, Matt Wright and more.

Tiffany Haddish: Top of the World – a hysterical evening of stand-up comedy with guests Fortune Feimster, Gina Yashere, Ruben Paul, and more.

Trevor Noah @ JFL: Volume 1 – The first of two specials, Volume 1 features Aisha Alfa, Baron Vaughn, Michelle Buteau, Jim Norton, Gina Brillon, and Anthony Atamanuik as President Donald J. Trump.

Trevor Noah @ JFL Volume 2 – Volume 2 of this two-part series, Trevor Noah shares the stage with a host of comics including DeAnne Smith, Alonzo Bodden, Dulcé Sloan and more.

Just for Laughs: All Access, Season 4, episode 2 This latest episode is hosted by Trevor Noah and features performances by Katherine Ryan, Mark Forward, Hasan Minhaj, and Neal Brennan.

Just For Laughs 25^th Anniversary Edition JFL – Bill Burr, Andrew Grose and Kevin Hart get back to their roots at Just For Laughs for the festival’s 25^th anniversary edition.

Just For Laughs featuring Kevin Hart – Step back in time to 2009 and watch Kevin Hart, Jim Gaffigan, Jon Dore, and more perform on the Just For Laughs stage.

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About Just For Laughs

Global leader in comedy and home to the #1 Comedy Festival in the World, Just for Laughs Group has been launching and championing top comedic talent - including Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Burr, Kevin Hart, Amy Schumer, Trevor Noah, Ali Wong, Hannah Gadsby, Hasan Minhaj, Jo Koy and Russell Peters - for close to 40 years. Founded in 1983, the company is an international powerhouse in the creation of multiplatform comedic content. Every year, millions of spectators are entertained at its worldwide festivals, from Montréal – the biggest comedy event in the world – to Toronto and Vancouver, Canada; Austin, U.S.A.; London, UK; and Sydney, Australia; featuring thousands of Canadian and international comedians - from well-established artists to aspiring up-and-comers. With concentrated growth on television development and production, the Group’s digital and televised content is shown in over 150 countries and followed by an online audience of over 14 million. In addition, the Group produces touring shows, stages its own musicals and is the originator of the ComedyPRO industry conference.

About Just For Laughs Television

A division of global leader in comedy, Just For Laughs Group, Juste pour rire TV/ Just For Laughs Television specializes in TV development and production of unscripted and scripted content. With divisions in the USA and Canada, Just For Laughs Television productions feature some of the world’s top comedic talent - from Kevin Hart and Nikki Glaser to Ali Wong, Hasan Minhaj and Jo Koy - and have been seen in the US and internationally on Netflix, Amazon Prime, HBO, FOX, ABC, NBC, MTV, TBS, IFC, The CW, TF1, Comedy Central, Showtime, Hulu, BBC, BBC America, Kevin Hart’s LOL Network, and TEN Australia. And in Canada on an array of Bell networks and platforms (CTV Comedy, CTV, The Movie Network, HBO Canada, Crave), and CBC. Juste pour rire TV focuses on the development of comedic content delivered by some Quebec’s most foremost Francophone artists – from Rachid Badouri and Cathy Gauthier to Dominic Pacquet, Mehdi Bousaidan and Marianna Mazza. Their TV productions have been featured on Noovo, Radio-Canada, TVA, Tou.tv, Unis, TV5, Z, Crave, Vrak and Ici Artv. Home to the #1 Comedy Festival in the World and with concentrated growth on television development & production, festivals, live tours and content distribution, Just for Laughs Group has been launching and championing top comedic talent for close to 40 years. For more information, visit www.hahaha.com.

About Air Canada

Air Canada is Canada's largest airline, the country's flag carrier and a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network. Air Canada provides scheduled service directly to more than 180 airports in Canada, the United States and Internationally on six continents. It holds a Four-Star ranking from Skytrax. Air Canada's Aeroplan program is Canada's premier travel loyalty program, where members can earn or redeem points on the world's largest airline partner network of 45 airlines, plus through an extensive range of merchandise, hotel and car rental rewards. Its freight division, Air Canada Cargo, provides air freight lift and connectivity to hundreds of destinations across six continents using Air Canada's passenger and freighter aircraft. Air Canada has committed to a net zero emissions goal from all global operations by 2050. Air Canada shares are publicly traded on the TSX in Canada and the OCTQX in the US.

About Spafax Group

Spafax is a travel media network with one purpose: to entertain, inform and inspire travelers everywhere. Spafax delivers content technology and media assets at scale for the world’s leading airlines and curates a vast catalog of global Movies, TV, Audio and Games across every major entertainment market. Current clients include Air Canada, British Airways, Emirates, Explora Hotels, jetBlue, LATAM, the Lufthansa Group, Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways and many others. Spafax provides brands with unique access to a global network of close to a billion passengers, across hundreds of touchpoints. The group is headquartered in London with over a dozen offices around the world. Spafax is a WPP company.