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Martin Mull made generations laugh, but comedy was only one part of his story. Who Is Martin Mull? looks beyond his familiar screen persona to explore his life as a musician, cult comedian and accomplished painter.

The star-studded documentary traces Mull’s creative life and the artistic passion that remained central to it. Friends and fellow performers including Steve Martin, Tom Waits and David Alan Grier offer insight into a talent whose work extended far beyond comedy.

Who Is Martin Mull? premieres October 7, 2026 on Netflix as part of its special comedy documentary lineup.

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TV
Transcript
00:00I don't know where to begin because, to me, you truly are a jack-of-all-trades.
00:06Jerk-of-all-trades.
00:09Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Martin Maul.
00:12People now may not know he was a big deal in the 70s.
00:19Music, acting, comedy, he can do everything.
00:22He toured the country, he opened for the biggest rock acts on the planet.
00:26He was kind of like a strange friend of your parents.
00:30Like a vacuum salesman on your porch.
00:32Martin's act was completely different from any other.
00:36It was bizarre.
00:37And I was intimidated.
00:39Wait a minute, he guest-hosted The Tonight Show?
00:41Over 30 times.
00:43The people here at NBC have decided to bestow upon me the right to host The Tonight Show for $300.
00:50After that, I had another life as an actor.
00:53I was in countless films and television shows.
00:56Clue, Arrested Development, Grocery.
00:58We were the first gay marriage on television.
01:01I'm sure what every casting director said is, I want a Martin Maul type.
01:05And it ended up being Martin Maul eventually.
01:07Martin Maul was the absolute top of comedy.
01:11And that's not what he did best.
01:14You are a painter and a good painter.
01:17That's my main thrust.
01:19You can call me a shitty actor, but please, this means something to me.
01:23This is who I really am.
01:26In my heart, there was a great divide between that which I did to put a roof over our heads
01:32and my painting.
01:33And it's been a battle trying to get that painter identity away from my being connected
01:38to show business.
01:39He would say to me, I only do this so that I can paint.
01:42I was like, wait, what?
01:44I'm going to become a painter.
01:47It's like more of my family.
01:48You're not.
01:49And I realized, if you're not putting your deepest, innerest parts into your work, then
01:55you're not doing your job.
01:56The prices just doubled and then tripled.
01:59One of the pieces went to the Whitney Museum in New York.
02:03Working in show business as well as doing this, one is a therapist for the other.
02:08Do you know how many shitty painters there are in SAG and AFTRA?
02:13Johnny Depp paints.
02:18Dare to dream we all have the long career that Martin has.
02:22I think that he's as unique a person as I've ever met.
02:25This is an artist who deserves to be better known as a painter.
02:30Who is Martin Law?
02:33And who gives a shit?
02:37I was a bit confused.
02:38I thought this was a roast.
02:40So I prepared several pages of really bad things to say.
02:45Now I realize it's more of a toast.
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