What Is Shut Up Evan?

Shut Up Evan began as a tattoo, one that’s etched into my left lower arm. I had reluctantly begun my training for the 2017 New York City marathon. Whining became an essential part of my process early on, and my best friend began to regularly command me to “shut up, Evan” over my whines. A tattoo was born shortly thereafter: SHUT UP EVAN.

Then, three years later: a podcast of the same name. Then, three years after that: this newsletter, the name now canon.

Shut Up Evan, in this form, is a free weekly newsletter focused on a theme, usually of the pop-culture variety. You’ll get detailed breakdowns and analysis of topics ranging from Gwyneth Paltrow’s ski trial to And Just Like That…’s Carrie and Seema having it out on Madison Avenue, exclusive interviews with famous folks like James Marsden, Parker Posey and Greta Lee, unfiltered theater and film reviews and occasional stories about grief and Internet trends.

Who is Evan?

My story begins at age 7, when my parents entered me into a competition in search of the next glasses model for a local eyewear brand. I won.

And though the offers didn’t exactly roll in afterward — not a single one, if memory serves — I see this as the beginning of my origin story.

I’m a BFA in theater-weaponizing homosexual who vacillates between writer, editor, journalist and cultural commentator, whatever that means. I’ve written a book about Buffy the Vampire Slayer (featuring interviews with Sarah Michelle Gellar (!) and Stacey Abrams (!!), New York Magazine cover stories on the ladies of Euphoria, and was named one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business 2021.

You might know me from my Instagram. Here’s a 2012 photo of the Sarah Michelle Gellar life-size stand-up poster that my parents bought from Japan next to an Albert Einstein poster my roommate put up in our East Village apartment. One of my earliest celebrity interactions comes from (appropriately) Sarah Jessica Parker in 2014: “Here comes the storm,” she tweeted with a link to an Instagram photo that I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess featured a storm. I replied: “You are the rainbow that comes afterward,” which can either be read as cute or creepy. “Ah come on!” she replied. “I net you say that to all the girls.” What a typo! It wasn’t long after that I had my first public interaction with the individual of whom I consider myself the world’s preeminent historian: Sarah Michelle Gellar. “What do you miss most about living in NYC?” I asked her during her #AskRealSMG live tweet session. (God, I miss early Twitter.) “Walking,” she responded. I’m sure I lost my shit. Oh, and here’s my 26th birthday invitation which featured Sarah Michelle Gellar swaddling her son with my face Photoshopped over his. On the cute or creepy spectrum, I’m leaning creepy on this one.

Why should you become a paid subscriber?

First and foremost because operating a newsletter, in the same vein as a newspaper or digital publication, takes a lot of work. Writing the stories is one thing, but ensuring that they are all cleanly edited, include photos with captions, and arrive, without fail, on a weekly basis, requires a small but mighty team dedicated to creating premium content.

Second and secondmost, paid subscribers receive access to dedicated bi-weekly (likely more on a weekly basis, but would rather undersell) paid subscriber-only posts. These posts are where we let down our hair more and speak with less filter. Paid subscribers will also enjoy complete access to the entire Shut Up Evan archive and the ability to comment.

Some other big moments throughout my career:

December 20, 2017: Kim Cattrall blocked me

What Is Shut Up Evan?

Who is Evan?

Why should you become a paid subscriber?

Some other big moments throughout my career:

Subscribe to SHUT UP EVAN: THE NEWSLETTER

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Evan Ross Katz