Darcy & Jer: Inside The Lives Of The TikTok Comedy Duo And Their 20-Year Relationship
Known to their millions of fans as Darcy & Jer, Darcy Michael and Jeremy Baer have taken the comedy world by storm — and they've used the power of social media to do it. Real-life spouses who've been a couple for 20 years, as a comedy duo, they can boast of 4.5 million followers across their various platforms, while pulling in a wildly impressive 50 million views a month. The pair have earned these legions of fans with the hilarious and relatable videos they share, with a positive frame of mind while occasionally delving into more serious topics, such as homophobia, politics, and mental health.
The pair has managed to monetize their online popularity, turning what began as a fun family endeavor into a lucrative business that encompasses branded merch and even a European cruise vacation with fans. Given that Darcy has been diagnosed with ADHD and both are proudly LGTBQ+, neurodivergence is at the center of the comedy, with the two aiming to create a safe, inclusive online space where those and other topics can be addressed with sensitivity, no judgment, and, above all else, humor.
Where Darcy & Jer have really taken off, however, is on TikTok, where they've garnered over three million followers; in fact, it's not uncommon for one of their posts to exceed a million views. Read on for a look at inside the lives of Darcy and Jer and their 20-year relationship.
Darcy had a solo comedy career
Prior to Darcy & Jer, Darcy Michael has been a standup comic for some time. Back in 2012, he was described as a "veteran" on the comedy circuit in his native Canada when he was interviewed by That Shelf. "Ah, well I think people either throw me into the stoner-comic thing or the gay-comic thing. I think we're all labeled at some point," he said, explaining attempts to pigeonhole him as a performer.
In 2014, Michael had catapulted to the next stage in his comedy career, having made the finals of SiriusXM's Best Comic in Canada competition and preparing to perform for a crowd of 19,000-plus at Vancouver's Rogers Arena, opening for internationally famous Canadian comic Russell Peters. At the time, he could hardly believe what has happening. "I still won't be surprised if I show up to Rogers Arena on show day to find out I was just being punked," he joked to the Delta Optimist.
Michael experienced another career breakthrough in 2018, when he landed his own comedy special on Canadian streaming service Crave, "Darcy Michaels Goes to Church." As a press release for the special pointed out, his material delved into his personal life with husband Jeremy Baer as gay parents. "One day I'm going to have to sit my grandkids down and be like, well kids, I met your grand-pappy when I was trolling the internet for sex ... and he replied first!" he joked in his routine.
How Darcy & Jer became TikTok superstars
The path that Darcy & Jer took to become TikTok superstars was a unique one. As they explained during an appearance on "Vancolour," a few months before the pandemic hit in spring 2020, they'd got a puppy, Yuma, with Michael Darcy creating a TikTok account for the pet, intending to send videos to husband Jeremy Baer while he was at work. Unexpectedly, one of Yuma's videos went viral, catapulting the account from a handful of followers to more than 100,000. "I got jealous, 'cause I was like, 'I've been in this industry for 15 years, touring coast to coast, schlepping for every job, my six-month-old golden retriever is now more famous than me,'" he explained.
He then set up his own TIkTok account, with one of his earliest posts featuring a clip from his 2018 Canadian TV comedy special, in which he jokes about what it's like to be a gay dad to a daughter. That video, like Yuma's, went viral.
Michael then seized the opportunity to create more, sharing brief slices of his life with Jer that slowly generated an increasingly larger fan base. It was one video, titled "Pop Quiz for My Husband" (and went on to become an ongoing series), that really generated serious attention. "That's when the beast was born," Michael said in an interview with Xtra. "That's when all of a sudden the monster that I thought I was in control of — this f***er took it over."
How their wedding propelled Darcy into comedy
Marrying Jeremy Baer was a significant event in the life of Michael Darcy — in more than just the obvious ways. As Darcy told Now Toronto, during their wedding reception he was asked to give a speech. Having nothing prepared, he delivered an improvised monologue that had the crowd in stitches. That was when the proverbial lightbulb went off in Baer's head, suggesting his husband take a shot at standup comedy. "It was probably the best show of my life," Darcy recalled. "When I'm intimidated by an audience, I think, 'Hey, if I can make my a**hole family laugh, I can make anybody laugh.'"
Eventually, Darcy carved out a unique niche for himself with his act as an "undercover" gay comic, coming across as straight at the beginning of his act only to reveal his homosexuality once the audience was laughing along with him. "I've never done a show where I didn't come out," he said.
As his comedy career gained traction, Darcy could have relocated to New York or L.A., to work the iconic clubs where big-time comedy careers are made. However, as he told the Vancouver Observer back in 2012, he had no intention of doing that. "My husband and daughter are both locked into their lives in Vancouver and I would never consider moving them," he explained. "I'll always go where the work is, but I'm Canadian through and through: that'll never change. I'll always call Vancouver home."
They've embarked on a live comedy tour
While Darcy Michael has been a professional comic for over a decade, the same is not true for Jeremy Baer, who held a traditional non-showbiz job throughout their marriage. Their success as a TikTok duo, however, led Baer to join his husband onstage when they decided to take their social media antics on the road for their No Refunds Tour. The tour proved to be wildly successful, taking them throughout North America and even Europe, extending from 2023 and into 2024.
"I don't think either one of us would have predicted this level of — I hate using the term — success, but we're really rich," Michael told Xtra. "I mean, Jer left his job a year ago and he had a high-paying corporate job. But we both agreed that he had to quit, I can't keep up with this alone." As Baer explained, they'd hit the point where they needed to hire someone. "I was like, I'm not just working to pay someone else when the stuff he needs help with is all the stuff I'm gonna add," he said.
For comedy veteran Michael, working with his husband has completely changed his act. "We're taking the approach of like Sonny and Cher, George and Gracie — no one's done that as queer couples, that I've seen especially at our age," Michael explained. "I don't think I know anyone else that's doing what Jar and I are doing on stage," he told Gay Calgary.
Why they think they're a 'nightmare' for tour promoters
Taking their show from TikTok to the stage has been a wildly successful venture for Darcy & Jer. They've also been adamant about ensuring they don't burn out, and schedule ample breaks between shows. "We're kind of a nightmare for the tour promoters," Darcy Michael told Gay Calgary, citing the years he spent on the road performing standup comedy for their decision to space out dates, which results in a longer tour but allows he and husband Jer Baer to maintain a more relaxed scheduled.
"I toured for so long before all this, it's really hard to have a good quality of life on the road," Michael explained. "When Jer and I decided to do this, I would way rather stretch this out over a longer period of time," he said, noting that they'd typically spend do five or six shows, then return home for a few weeks and then repeat the process.
Meanwhile, Michael has also had the chance to watch his husband blossom as a performer — something so out of the blue he hadn't even considered it happening. "Well, it's been amazing for me, because you're married to someone for 20 years, and then all of a sudden the shy, introverted man that I thought I knew is all of a sudden going to be up on stage with me in front of 1,200 people," he told Xtra.
Darcy starred in a Canadian sitcom
In addition to all the hours he spent performing standup comedy, Darcy Michael has also done some acting, in TV series including "Lucifer", "DC's Legends of Tomorrow," and "The Twilight Zone." He was also a series regular in "Spun Out," a Canadian TV sitcom starring "Kids in the Hall" alum Dave Foley.
In the series, a workplace comedy set in a public relations firm, Michael played quirky staffer Gordon. Speaking about his role on the show with The Georgia Straight, Michael confessed that he's no method actor. "I put on a silly voice and stick out my gut and make my bald spot bigger," he joked of his acting technique. According to Michael, at the time he'd noticed that his role on the show was drawing bigger crowds to his live performances, but also led to some confusion from "Spun Out" fans. "I play a very specific guy on the show and he's not me at all," he said. "So it's been really fun to talk to fans after the show and them saying, 'You're not a lot like Gordon.'"
"Spun Out" was canceled amidst a cloud of scandal when one of the series' actors, J.P. Manoux, was arrested and charged with voyeurism after allegedly spying on two women who'd rented a condo from him, via a hidden camera he'd installed.
How they've responded to homophobic hate
As an out-and-proud gay couple who've been together for 20-plus years, homophobia has always been something that Darcy Michael and Jer Baer have been forced to deal with. Now that Darcy & Jer are hugely popular stars on TikTok and on tour, the love they receive from fans far outweighs any online hate flung at them. For Michael, however, it's also par for the course, since confronting homophobia was something he did every night as a standup comic. Speaking with Now Toronto, Michael recalled one show in a small Alberta town where some local skinheads were threatening him with violence. "But I did 45 minutes and every gay joke I would have done in Toronto or Vancouver," he said. "If I don't do that, I'm empowering their hate."
In fact, Michael has long been a believer that, as an entertainer, he has a responsibility to use his platform to push back against homophobic hatred. "My parents always said to me, if you have a stage, use it," he told Xtra. "If you have people's attention, use it for the messages you want to put out there."
According to Michael, the rise in openly anti-gay sentiment in recent years is something he'd like to see everyone, not just the LGBTQ+ community, take more seriously. "And you know, all that's done is by not pushing back on them, it's just emboldened their hate," he said.
They're not afraid to get political if necessary
The relationship between Darcy Michael and Jeremy Baer is at the core of Darcy & Jer's comedy, yet they'll venture into hot-button areas if necessary. This is certainly true of the couple's approach to politics. "I'm very political, I'm a news junkie off screen. I could just stand on my pulpit and rage about everything that's happening all the time," Michael told Gay Calgary.
However, that's an impulse he's learned to resist, but admitted it can be a fine line. "I don't want to be those guys that avoid politics on our stuff, but at the same time, I want people to just be able to forget and lead by example that there is hope for happiness," he explained. That said, he couldn't help himself when the Supreme Court overturned Roe V Wade was overturned, setting up a fundraiser that generated approximately $20,000 for an abortion-rights association. "It's tough to find the balance for us," he said of when to delve into politics. He also admitted that, as two white men in Canada, he and Baer had enjoyed a certain level of privilege. "If we were a black trans woman in America, I don't know if our content would be the same joy-filled thing," he said.
"We're trying to find the balance," he told the Delta Optimist. "We don't want to be too funny all the time, but we also don't want to be total Debbie Downers."
Even they're stunned by how famous they've become
The rapid growth of Darcy & Jer's following on TikTok not only increased their income, it also made them famous — which has placed them in some rarified situations they could never have imagined a few years earlier. "The last 12 months have been wild," Darcy told Xtra. "We flew down to South by Southwest so Lizzo could teach us to twerk ... And then Comic-Con with the cast of 'Lord of the Rings.' Every time we try to be like, 'that's the moment,' something else comes along. It just keeps snowballing." Fame has also brought the couple some perks, including attending a Kelly Clarkson concert in Los Angeles, and then meeting the "American Idol" alum backstage.
They've also used their fame to take on Bill C-11, which proposed amendments to Canada's Broadcast act that could pose an existential threat to content creators such as themselves. As Darcy told the Globe and Mail, the bill adds burdensome restrictions and a whole lot of bureaucracy in order to demonstrate to authorities that the content he and Baer create is, indeed, Canadian.
"I shouldn't have to. I am Canadian content," he said, jokingly adding, "I don't know how else to prove it other than I'm a gay married stoner. Those are three things you can't necessarily sing loudly about in other countries."
They turned down a massive offer amid Hollywood strikes
Every so often, Darcy & Jer find themselves in a position where they're faced with a moral quandary. That was the case in 2023, when Darcy Michael and Jeremy Baer were offered a lucrative deal to promote a TV show to their millions of social media followers. The money, Darcy told the New York Daily News, was significant. He became suspicious when he realized the deal was about a third higher than similar offers they'd received in the past. He then realized the reason: because of the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes, Hollywood writers and actors are prohibited from promoting their own projects, which would constitute stepping over the picket line. Hiring a pair of hugely popular Canadian content creators to promote a project, however, wouldn't break any rules. Yet it didn't sit right with the couple.
"I was like, 'Oh, wait, this is because it's going to come out during the strike.' We ain't doing that," Michael explained. "It was definitely them trying to get people to say yes to fast cash, because how do you promote a show if you can't use any of the actors?"
As both a writer and performer himself, Michael had no hesitation in declaring where his allegiance lay. "If Hollywood gets mad at me for calling them out, f*** 'em, I don't care," Michael said. "I stand with actors and writers, always."
Their daughter Grace has become part of the act
Followers of Darcy & Jer's TikTok antics have certainly noticed that the couple's daughter, Grace, occasionally joins her dads as part of the act. For example, one Instagram video was instantly relatable to any parent of a teenager, with Jeremy Baer offering a "parenting tip" to deal with a teen who doesn't respond to a text. "Change the Netflix password," he suggested.
For Darcy Michael, however, he'd previously made a conscious decision not to discuss his daughter in his comedy — for a while, at least. As Michael explained in a 2016 interview for Air Canada, he frequently discussed Grace when she was little, but decided to stop doing that when she became a teenager. "I said, 'I'm gonna give you four years off from being in the act, but I get to retroactively use all the material the second you turn 18,'" he said. That way, Darcy explained, he'd be sharing hilarious anecdotes about Grace at 13 when she was actually 18, when she'd presumably matured enough that his jokes involving her wouldn't prove too embarrassing.
At the time, Michael was champing at the bit in anticipation of her 18th birthday. "I'm just sitting on this treasure trove of terrible things to say about her — I mean, about me as a parent," he said.