Bruce McCulloch raises this Toronto sketch group to new heights in 'TallBoyz'

A cop that solves crimes by smelling his own farts? A boy-band member with a parasitic twin back-up singer? A rapper that ends his beef with a trip to the zoo?

No, these aren't plots to your next fever dream – they're scenes from the latest CBC Television sketch comedy show TallBoyz.

The TallBoyz are, well, four very tall comedians: Guled Abdi, Vance Banzo, Franco Nguyen and Tim Blair… together they stand a collective 25'2" tall. They caught their big break when comedy giant Bruce McCulloch (The Kids in the Hall) discovered Banzo while teaching at Humber College.

McCulloch knew the TallBoyz were on to something special when he caught the troupe performing as "TallBoyz II Men" at The Theatre Centre in Toronto. When McCulloch set off to get them a television show on CBC, he delicately toed the line between director and mentor while letting the troupe run wild with their surrealist humour.

Sketches from TallBoyz make no short order of the absurdity of music culture, intersectional identities and modern masculinity. And who better to help it all come to life than the former Kid in the Hall himself.

This transcript has been edited for brevity and clarity.

What are you most excited about when people see the show?

There's so much great comedy in Canada, and has been for a generation, that hasn't quite made its way to air. These guys are emblematic of sort of a really energetic, kind, hilarious group that's going on in Toronto right now. It's wonderful to be able to figure out how they can get their first show… They're on fire. It's so fun to watch a group of young people reach their potential very quickly. 

You've worked with a lot of young comedic actors in your previous projects on This Blows and Young Drunk Punk. What was different working with the TallBoyz?

They're their own entity… When you have a formed entity, you have to respect the language of that entity and not go, "No, don't do that. We're gonna do this," but instead use their energy and steer the boat slowly because, you know, it's their show. To give them all the input they can take and teach them, but don't freak them out. I always say to them, "I'm going to freak you out slowly." 

It's so fun to watch a group of young people reach their potential very quickly.- Bruce McCulloch

Working with the TallBoyz troupe, is there anything that reminds you of your days on Kids in the Hall?

The joy of following the work fast is the thing that so viscerally reminds me of being with the gang. 

These guys are of their era and they're so kind and loving together. They're not competitive. It was a different conversation on The Kids in the Hall. We would always go, "My sketch is better!" [The TallBoyz] don't do that. So I had to learn to speak their language. 

If I had a time machine, what would Bruce McCulloch from the '80s think about TallBoyz?

I would think they were funny, like, "Oh my God, these guys are hilarious!" and that they have their own kind of music. I don't think I would be part of their group because I am too bossy. Twenty-six-year-old Bruce McCulloch was not the gentle creature that the TallBoyz are.

What show you compare TallBoyz to?

We talk about the Detroiters a lot, those guys love that show. Portlandia, in a way, is a reference for me because it's quite fun and visual. It's a slightly more surreal show, but it has a good sense of place. 

I feel [it] is a Toronto that you've never seen before, that feels like the Toronto that I—and more importantly, they—live in. I mean, it's probably comparable to The Kids in the Hall show, in a way. But the greatest thing is probably not really comparable to anything. 

You self-identify as a "punk". What is your definition of punk?

I'm still a punk. I'm still an old guy who doesn't fit in. I was a young guy who [didn't] fit in. I think it's like questioning the world. I've had some success but even when I'm in a boardroom at NBC I'm more of a punk in my mind then than I was in the streets of Calgary getting punched in the head. It's questioning society, questioning the world and going, "Things don't have to be the way they are." 

What is "punk" about the TallBoyz?

They have some of that energy in their show… They're questioning what's going on socially and politically. They're fearless in their ideas and they can be strong, like using race or they can use the silliest ideas that make my 10-year-old son laugh and they're not afraid of that.

Stream TallBoyz on CBC Gem

Click below to watch the first episode of TallBoyz.