Who is Matt Rife? Five things to know about the Columbus native and comedian
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With his star rising faster than you can say "chiseled cheekbones," it might seem a bit obtuse to ask, "Who is Matt Rife?"
You know he's funny. You know he's classically handsome. You know he's a Columbus native who's coming home for four sold-out shows at the Palace Theatre on Wednesday and Thursday.
But who the heck is Matthew Steven Rife, really? To answer that question, we've compiled these five factoids about the 28-year-old TikTok sensation turned world-famous comedian.
He's a slasher film star
Rife plays Flash in the 2018 B-movie "Black Pumpkin," which one viewer described as seeming like "it was written by someone who hasn’t had a social interaction or watched a movie since the '80s." Indeed, "Black Pumpkin" has all the hallmarks of an '80s horror flick: teen sex, a serial-killing demon, and blood — lots and lots of blood.
More about Matt: Facts to know about the comedian and TikTok star from Columbus area
Does Flash meet a gory demise at the hands of "Bloody Bobby"? No spoilers … let's just say that handsome face gets a bit of a makeover.
"Black Pumpkin" can be seen for free on Tubi and Vudu, as well as on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Google Play, and YouTube TV.
He's as 'incredibly surprised' by his success as the rest of us
"It’s still crazy to me. I started posting just to see what would happen," Rife said of his start on TikTok during an interview with international fashion mag Numéro. "Everybody else was doing it, so I thought I should probably get on board." Obviously, TikTok users also got on board, since his now-viral videos have racked up more than 2 billion views worldwide and earned him more than 17 million followers. Rife also has more than 5 million Instagram followers and nearly 2 million subscribers on his YouTube channel.
He dated Kate Beckinsale
Rife had a year-long relationship in 2017-18 with the English actress that he describes as "complicated." He came under fire for sour-grapes remarks made in 2019, when Beckinsale moved on to another young comedian with an even bigger star: Pete Davidson. During an interview with TMZ, Rife warned the then-25-year-old Davidson to "run," in addition to telling him, "Enjoy it while you can." Rife has since apologized for his comments, admitting he was being "petty."
Last chance: Tickets selling fast for comedian Pete Davidson's Oct. 17 show at the Southern Theare
He's not all laughter and light
Though Rife has been quite candid on the subject, many may not know that he struggles with clinical depression and anxiety. He even works the topic into his stand-up routine, most notably in his crowdfunded, self-produced debut comedy special, "Only Fans." Rife credits comedy for helping him cope with his mental woes.
In this video, which contains adult language, Rife puts an amusing spin on his mental health woes.
He's an animal lover
Rife does a lot of work with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) to bring awareness to the issue. The merch table at some of his shows even hawk cuddly stuffed animals in Matt Rife T-shirts.
If you missed out on snagging tickets for one of Rife's appearances this week, there are still a few seats left in Paris in October — 2024, that is. But if you're one of the lucky ones, you're in ample company. When Rife announced his “ProbleMATTic World Tour” in June, more than 250 dates in North America, Europe, and Australia sold out in 48 hours. The online stampede, which resulted in 600,000 tickets sold crashed the Ticketmaster website.
On the local front, an internet traffic jam also initially crashed computer systems, according to Jim Fischer, communications manager for CAPA. Once things were up and running again, Rife's first performance sold out within an hour after the presale started.
"Live Nation then announced the additional three performances. Those too sold out of their allotment the first day of presale. Any tickets that had been held for public on sale were sold within 45 minutes of going on sale," Fischer said.
No surprise that Matt Rife is breaking the internet. After all, he's breaking hearts around the world.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Five things to know about comedian Matt Rife
