Abbi Jacobson (born 1984) is an American comedian, actress, writer, producer, and illustrator. She co-created and co-starred in theComedy Central seriesBroad City (2014–2019) withIlana Glazer, based on the web series of the same name.^[1] Her other roles include voicing Katie Mitchell inThe Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021), Nya inThe Lego Ninjago Movie (2017), andPrincess Bean in the seriesDisenchantment (2018–2023), in addition to appearing in the live-action filmsPerson to Person (2017) and6 Balloons (2018). She is a writer and co-creator of theAmazon Prime seriesA League of Their Own (2022), in which she also stars as Carson Shaw, a baseball player in theAll-American Girls Professional Baseball League.

Abbi Jacobson
Jacobson at the 2015PaleyFest
Born	1984 (age 40–41) Wayne,Pennsylvania
Education	Maryland Institute College of Art (BFA) Emerson College
Occupations	Comedian actress writer illustrator
Years active	2009–present
Spouse	Jodi Balfour ​ (m. 2023)​

Abbi Jacobson was born in 1984 inWayne,Pennsylvania.^[2] She is the daughter of Susan Komm, an artist, and Alan Jacobson, a graphic designer.^[3][4] She is Jewish, attendedHebrew school and had aBat Mitzvah.^[5][6] She was raised inWayne, Pennsylvania, where she attended Valley Forge Middle School andConestoga High School.^[7][8] She also participated inBirthright Israel, a free ten-day trip toIsrael for young Jewish adults between the ages of 18 and 26.^[9]

She studied fine arts and video production at theMaryland Institute College of Art (MICA), graduating in 2006 with a B.F.A. in General Fine Arts.^[10][11] While at MICA, she studied stand-up comedy for one year with poet Jeremy Sigler, having transferred for a term to study acting atEmerson College.^[12]

Jacobson moved to New York City after graduating fromMICA. She began taking classes with theAtlantic Theater Company and theUpright Citizens Brigade Theatre, where she metIlana Glazer.^[13][14][15]

From 2009 to 2011, Jacobson and Glazer wrote and performed in aweb series titledBroad City, which focused on their lives in New York.^[16] The series was nominated for anECNY Award for Best Web Series.^[13] It was well received by critics and developed a cult following.^[17] At the Upright Citizens Brigade, Jacobson and Glazer adapted the series into a live show that they performed in, calledBroad City Live.^[13]

In 2011,cable networkFX, working withAmy Poehler as the producer, purchased a script commitment for the series from Glazer and Jacobson. However, the network did not approve the script and decided not to proceed with development. Glazer and Jacobson then approachedComedy Central, who agreed to purchase the script from FX and order a pilot.^[18][19]

Broad City made its broadcast television premiere in January 2014 and was received with positive reviews and strong ratings, becoming Comedy Central's highest-rated first season since 2012 among the younger demographics, including adults 18–34, with an average of 1.2 million viewers.^[20]

The show has received critical acclaim from fans and critics alike. Review aggregation websiteMetacritic noted season 1 received "generally favorable reviews", giving it a score of 75 out of 100, based on reviews from 14 critics.^[21] Karen Valby fromEntertainment Weekly described the show as a "deeply weird, weirdly sweet, and completely hilarious comedy".^[22]The Wall Street Journal referred to the show as "Sneak Attack Feminism". CriticMegan Angelo quotes Abbi Jacobson: "If you watch one of our episodes, there's not a big message, but if you watch all of them, I think, they're empowering to women."^[23]The A.V. Club criticCaroline Framke wrote thatBroad City was "worth watching" despite its "well-trod premise", and that the series is "remarkably self-possessed, even in its first episode".^[24] Jacobson was a fan of bands like Phish growing up and would often spoof her jamband fandom onBroad City.^[25]

Season one of the show received a 96% rating fromRotten Tomatoes, based on reviews from 23 critics, with the site's consensus stating, "From its talented producers to its clever writing and superb leads,Broad City boasts an uncommonly fine pedigree."^[26]The A.V. Club namedBroad City the second best TV show of 2014 for its first season.^[27]

In February 2014, Comedy Central renewed the show for a second season.^[28] Season two received positive reviews, with Metacritic giving it a score of 89 out of 100, based on reviews from 8 critics.^[29] Rotten Tomatoes gave the second season a rating of 100%, based on reviews from 11 critics, with the site's consensus: "Led by two of the funniest women on TV,Broad City uses its stars' vibrant chemistry to lend an element of authenticity to the show's chaotic yet enlightening brand of comedy."^[30]

In January 2015, the series was then renewed for a third season, which premiered on February 17, 2016.^[31] In January 2016, the series was renewed for a fourth and a final, fifth season.^[32]

In 2011, Jacobson wrote and performed in a solo show calledWelcome to Camp, which ran in New York and Los Angeles.^[33]

In December 2015, Jacobson was cast in the filmPerson to Person, oppositeMichael Cera andPhillip Baker Hall, written and directed by Dustin Guy Defa.^[34] Jacobson also starred inThe Lego Ninjago Movie, released on September 22, 2017.^[35]

Her first appearance inBoJack Horseman was in the 2016 episode "The Bojack Horseman Show", in which she voiced Emily.

In 2017, Jacobson hosted a 10-episode podcast about modern and contemporary art calledA Piece of Work co-produced byThe Museum of Modern Art andWNYC Studios.^[36] She plans to do a second season.^[37]

From 2018 to 2023, she voicedPrincess Bean inMatt Groening'sDisenchantment.^[38]

Jacobson appeared in a March 2020 episode ofCurb Your Enthusiasm.^[39]

In 2021, Jacobson voiced Katie Mitchell in theSony Pictures Animation filmThe Mitchells vs. the Machines.^[40]

In 2022 she served as a writer, producer, co-creator and star of the Amazon seriesA League of Their Own, based on the 1992film of the same name, where she plays catcher Carson Shaw.^[41] The series is critically acclaimed and has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 95%.^[42]

In 2013, Jacobson published twocoloring books withChronicle Books:Color This Book: New York City andColor This Book: San Francisco.^[13] Jacobson also illustrated a book titledCarry This Book, published October 2016 byViking Press.^[43] It features colorful, humorous illustrations of the imagined contents of various celebrities' bags. "I have always been intrigued by what people carry around with them. It can tell you everything" says Jacobson in the book's introduction.^[44] Well received by critics,Carry This Book was aNew York Times bestseller.^[45]

Jacobson published another book,I Might Regret This: Essays, Drawings, Vulnerabilities, and Other Stuff. The book was published on October 30, 2018, withGrand Central Publishing.^[46] With drawings throughout, the book of personal essays is centered around Jacobson's solo three week cross-country road trip.^[47] The 320 pages of personal essays and various short stories, although some are comical in nature, largely focus on Jacobson getting over her first love, first relationship with a woman, and general issues of identity.^[48] According to Jacobson, the book is centered around self-reflection: "It's about how I've felt like an internal outsider for my entire life because I just never understood what love was, that I would never get to experience it, and being a public figure only heightened that anxiety."^[49]

In October 2023, Jacobson signed theArtists4Ceasefire open letter toJoe Biden,President of the United States, calling for a ceasefire of the Israeli bombardment of Gaza.^[50]

In an April 2018 interview, Jacobson stated that shedates men and women but "they have to be funny, doing something they love."^[51]

She has been in a relationship with actressJodi Balfour since October 2020.^[52] As of June 2024, Jacobson and Balfour are married.^[53]

• A Piece of Work podcast WNYC Studios
• A Piece of Work podcast The Museum of Modern Art
• Broad City on Comedy Central
• Abbi Jacobson atIMDb
• Abbi Jacobson onInstagram