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Smosh founders, Ian Hecox (left) and Anthony Padilla (right) in 2012.

Smosh is an American YouTube sketch comedy-improv collective founded by Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox. Initially starting as a comedy duo of Hecox and Padilla, the channel began expanding to include additional cast members starting in 2010, with the majority of new cast members joining after Smosh was acquired by Alloy Digital (later rebranded to Defy Media) in 2011.[1] Padilla left the channel in 2017 to pursue his independent channel, while Hecox remained with Smosh through the merge with Mythical Entertainment. In June 2023, it was announced that both Padilla and Hecox had bought Smosh from Mythical Entertainment, and the two founders would resume working together on Smosh as an independent entity.

History

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2002–2011: Comedy duo

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Smosh started as a website created by Anthony Padilla that he and his friends would use to upload Flash animations and talk to each other online. Eventually, he was joined by childhood friend Ian Hecox when the two started their YouTube channel. The videos started as lip syncing to theme songs for various movies and TV shows, such as Power Rangers, Mortal Kombat, Pokémon, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but as their uploads became more popular, they eventually transitioned to sketch comedy.[2][3] The majority of videos focused on the two in various comedic skits and music videos, but would also include occasional appearances from family and friends, such as Hecox's mother and longtime friend Brian Rassmussen.[4]

2011–2016: Expansion and Alloy Digital acquisition

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In 2010, Smosh launched a new feature on their website called the "Smosh Pit", a blog that consisted of various pieces of pop-culture trivia, and written comedy. As part of this new feature, they also launched a new series on their second YouTube channel called "Smosh Pit Weekly" that summarized various articles posted on the website. Rather than hosting the series themselves, they recorded auditions for a host that were uploaded as a part of their "Ian is Bored" series, and let their fans vote on who they should pick.[5] Eventually, the two hired Mari Takahashi as the show's host, making her the first addition to the Smosh cast.[6][7][8]

Following Smosh's acquisition by Alloy Digital, the duo made plans to start Smosh Games; a new channel focused on video game news and let's play videos. To help run the channel, Alloy brought in three new cast members from the recently acquired Clevver Media; David "Lasercorn" Moss, Joshua "Jovenshire" Ovenshire, and Matt Sohinki.[9][10] The channel launched on September 25, 2012, and continued to expand with additional members from 2014 to 2018, such as Amra "Flitz" Ricketts, Wes Johnson, Ericka "Boze" Bozeman, and Damien Haas.[11]

As for their main channel, Padilla and Hecox began adding new cast members in 2015 with the addition of Keith Leak Jr., Olivia Sui, and Noah Grossman.[12][13] The three were announced as main cast members at the end of the main channel video "APPLE WATCH SUCKS" on March 13, 2015.[14] This group would eventually be followed by Courtney Miller and Shayne Topp later that year, which would complete the group that would be known as the "Smosh Squad." Much like the first group of new cast members, Miller and Topp were announced as joining the cast at the end of a main channel video on July 17, 2015.[15] Hecox would later upload a video on the Smosh channel showing all the new cast members.[12]

2017–2018: Departures and Defy Media shutdown

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Smosh began to see cast members leave the company consistently throughout 2017 and 2018. On June 14, 2017, Padilla announced that he would be leaving Smosh due to a lack of creative freedom.[16] Shortly after, both Lasercorn and Sohinki announced that they would no longer be full-time members of Smosh Games due to similar reasons, but both stated that their decisions were not in response to Padilla's departure.[17][18] In 2018, Flitz also left Smosh Games after being accused of sexual assault.[19][20] Both Jovenshire and Takahashi left the company in 2018 as well, but continued to appear in videos as freelance employees, and made no announcements about their departures until much later on.[21]

Later that year, Defy Media (formerly Alloy Digital) abruptly announced that they would be shutting down all operations and laying off their employees.[22] During this time, both Johnson and Boze left,[23] but the remaining cast stayed with the company while being independent.[24]

2019–2023: Mythical acquisition and continued expansion

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On February 22, 2019, Smosh announced that they had been acquired by Rhett & Link as a part of Mythical Entertainment.[25] Following this acquisition, both Lasercorn and Takahashi returned to run Smosh Games, but would leave again in 2020 to start a new channel with former Smosh members Sohinki, Jovenshire, Flitz, and Johnson.[26] Smosh saw a massive expansion of on-screen talent during this time, which also included more consistent appearances by their crew. New main cast members in this time included Kimmy Jimenez, Jackie Uweh, Amanda Lehan-Canto, Chanse McCrary, Angela Giarratana, and Arasha Lalani.[27][28][29]

2023–present: Padilla's return and Smosh as an independent venture

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In November 2022, Padilla and Hecox reconnected, and on June 20, 2023, the Smosh channel uploaded a video announcing that Padilla had returned to Smosh, and that they had purchased the channel and would be returning to their sketch comedy duo format.[30] Despite Padilla's return, members of Smosh's team such as Topp, Miller, and Haas, would make recurring appearances on the channel.[30] On August 23, 2023, Smosh announced on Twitter that Jackie Uweh has left the cast to join The Second City in New York,[31] while Kimmy Jimenez would confirm in a leaving video that she had left Smosh after having transitioned from being a cast member to a producer role at some point during 2023.[32]

On January 1, 2024, Trevor Evarts of Mythical Entertainment announced on Twitter that he joined the Smosh cast.[33] Later on that year long-time crew member, Tommy Bowe began to be referred to as a cast member in videos.[34]

Members

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Current

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Image Performer Time on Smosh
Ian Hecox by Gage Skidmore.jpg
 Ian Hecox 2005–present
Anthony Padilla (7484977542).jpg
 Anthony Padilla
  • 2005–2017
  • 2023–present
Keith Leak Jr. 2014–present
Olivia Sui 2015–present
Noah Grossman.png
 Noah Grossman
Courtney Miller
Shayne Topp DLL.png
 Shayne Topp
Damien Haas.png
 Damien Haas 2017–present
Amanda Lehan-Canto 2020–present
Chanse McCrary 2022–present
Arasha Lalani
Angela Giarratana
Tommy Bowe 2024–present
Trevor Evarts

Former

[edit]
Image Performer Time on Smosh Main channel Smosh Pit Smosh Games
Mari Takahashi.png
 Mariko "Mari" Takahashi
  • 2011–2018
  • 2019–2020
 Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY
Jovenshire.png
 Joshua "Jovenshire" Ovenshire 2012–2018 Green tickY Green tickY
Lasercorn.png
 David "Lasercorn" Moss
  • 2012–2017
  • 2019–2020
 Green tickY Green tickY
Matthew Sohinki.png
 Matthew Sohinki 2012–2017 Green tickY Green tickY
Amra Flitz Ricketts.png
 Amra "Flitz" Ricketts 2013–2018 Green tickY Green tickY
Wesley Wes Johnson.png
 Wesley "Wes" Johnson Green tickY Green tickY
Ericka "Boze" Bozeman 2017–2019 Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY
Kimmy Jimenez 2018–2024 Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY
Jackie Uweh 2019–2023 Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY
Ify Nwadiwe.png
 Ify Nwadiwe 2020–2022 Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY
Saige Ryan Green tickY Green tickY Green tickY

Timeline

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Notes

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References

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  1. ^ Team, The Deadline (January 14, 2013). "SMOSH Says It's The No. 1 YouTube Channel In Subscribers". Deadline. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  2. ^ Borden, Jane (July 16, 2015). "How Sacramento's YouTube darlings Smosh went Hollywood and scored big time". Sacramento News & Review. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  3. ^ Dreier, Troy (October 4, 2012). "Smosh: YouTube Gods and Unlikely Online Video Superstars". Streaming Media Magazine. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  4. ^ "Smosh Answer The Web's Most Searched Questions". Wired. July 28, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  5. ^ "WORST AUDITION EVER! (Ian is Bored 43)". YouTube. November 22, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  6. ^ "MEME SCHOOLGIRL!". YouTube. April 25, 2011. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  7. ^ Bort, Julie (December 10, 2015). "When Smosh star Mari Takahashi started out, YouTube comments were so cruel they made her cry". Business Insider India. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  8. ^ Gutelle, Sam (August 14, 2017). "Smosh Announces Slate Of Seven Shows For Rebranded Smosh Pit Channel (Exclusive)". Tubefilter. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  9. ^ Block, Alex Ben (June 18, 2012). "Alloy Digital Acquires Clevver Media". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  10. ^ "OMG! Smosh Games!". YouTube. September 26, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  11. ^ Alexander, Julia (October 16, 2017). "Smosh Games talks future of YouTube and gaming on the world's biggest network". Polygon. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  12. ^ a b Rolli, Bryan (August 14, 2017). "15 things you didn't know about Smosh, one of YouTube's biggest channels". The Daily Dot. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  13. ^ Hamedy, Saba (April 16, 2017). "How two high school friends built a YouTube empire". Mashable. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  14. ^ "APPLE WATCH SUCKS". YouTube. March 13, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  15. ^ "HAND BOMB". YouTube. July 17, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  16. ^ Crecente, Brian (June 15, 2017). "Smosh co-founder leaves YouTube channel over lack of creative freedom". Polygon. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  17. ^ "Lasercorn's Next Step". YouTube. August 5, 2017. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  18. ^ "Sohinki's New Chapter". YouTube. August 5, 2017. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  19. ^ Weiss, Geoff (January 8, 2018). "Amra 'Flitz' Ricketts Departs Smosh Games Amid Sexual Assault Allegations". Tubefilter. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  20. ^ Jackson, Gita (January 5, 2018). "YouTuber Leaves Smosh Games After Sexual Assault Allegations". Kotaku. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  21. ^ "Did Joven Steal A Show From Shayne & Damien? - SmoshCast #11 - Highlight". YouTube. May 1, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  22. ^ Spangler, Todd (November 6, 2018). "Defy Media Is Shutting Down, Will Lay Off Employees". Variety. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  23. ^ Hale, James (April 11, 2023). "Streamers on the Rise: How Ericka Bozeman became Twitch's true crime queen". Tubefilter. Retrieved October 16, 2023. Bozeman officially joined Smosh in late 2017, and stayed with the company until 2019. In the wake of former Smosh owner Defy Media's collapse, Bozeman stepped away from Smosh and from content creation.
  24. ^ "Smosh is Homeless". YouTube. November 12, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  25. ^ Spangler, Todd (February 22, 2019). "Smosh Acquired by Rhett & Link's Mythical Entertainment". Variety. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  26. ^ Holland, Patrick (September 27, 2020). "From ballerina to gamer and entrepreneur: The Mari Takahashi origin story". CNET. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  27. ^ Spangler, Todd (April 7, 2022). "Smosh Hires Casting Veteran Lesley Wolff as Director of On-Air Talent". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
  28. ^ Bender, Brittany (December 19, 2022). "Smosh: Under The Mistletoe Had Serious Potential, Fell Short: Review". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
  29. ^ Comments, Tom Chang | Last updated | (August 3, 2024). "Dropout Drops Dirty Laundry Season 4 Trailer: Star Trek, Smosh & More". bleedingcool.com. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  30. ^ a b Spangler, Todd (June 20, 2023). "Smosh Co-Founders Anthony Padilla, Ian Hecox Reunite to Acquire Comedy Brand From Rhett & Link (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  31. ^ @smosh (August 23, 2023). ".@Jacklyn_uweh is off to Second City in New York 🎉 We love you so much, Queen Jackie. You'll be missed ❤️" (Tweet). Retrieved September 21, 2023 – via Twitter.
  32. ^ Kimmy Jimenez (March 1, 2024). Bye Smosh :/. Retrieved July 25, 2024 – via YouTube.
  33. ^ Evarts, Trevor [@trevorevarts] (January 1, 2024). "I AM OFFICIALLY JOINING @smosh AS A CAST MEMBER!!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  34. ^ Smosh Pit (July 25, 2024). Acting Out Scenes From A Hat. Retrieved July 25, 2024 – via YouTube.
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