Lisa Ann Walter Talks New Comedy Special, Says She 'Can’t Wait for People to See This Side' of Her (Exclusive)

Lexi Lane, Seyanna BarrettSun, May 24, 2026 at 6:00 PM UTC

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Lisa Ann Walter at the 2026 Disney Upfront on May 12
Credit: Arturo Holmes/Getty -

Lisa Ann Walter's new comedy special, It Was an Accident, was filmed at Philadelphia's Helium Comedy Club during a sold-out show

Walter reflects on her comedy roots, starting in the late '80s alongside Jeff Ross and Dave Chappelle

The Abbott Elementary star jokes about parenting and career pivots, blending humor with personal anecdotes in her special

Lisa Ann Walter "can't wait" for people to see her comedy special.

During the Disney 2026 Upfront on May 12 in New York City, Walter, 62, chatted about her new set, Lisa Ann Walter: It Was an Accident.

"I can't wait for people to see this side of me," the Abbott Elementary star exclusively told PEOPLE. "There's a lot of people, especially here in New York. People remember when I started, which was a million years ago in the late '80s. And the height of the comedy boom, people who were my compatriots coming out, Jeff Ross and Dave Chappelle and all these great, talented people. And when I'm out at the clubs now doing it again, people come to see me who remember me from back then."

Lisa Ann Walter; Dave Chappelle; Jeff Ross
Credit: Emma McIntyre/Getty; Arturo Holmes/Getty; JC Olivera/Getty

Walter added, "But for a lot of people, for most people, they discovered me from The Parent Trap or some of the TV shows that I did. So finding me as a comic is new to them, but I'm looking forward to them watching it. It's a really good show. And it's funny,"

A synopsis for her comedy special reads, "Onstage in a salon-style room, Walter digs into aging, parenting, family and career pivots with the blunt charm you know from her screen work. The special gives her the chance to be blunt and personal at the same time, turning the stuff most people keep to themselves into hilarious anecdotes."

She filmed the special during a sold-out performance at the Helium Comedy Club in Philadelphia last summer.

"There was a reason why we shot it in Philly," she said, according to ABC 7. "Because they don't fake it there. If you're not funny, they let you know. They let you know when they love you."

Walter also shared that her Abbott costar Sheryl Lee Ralph told her, "She's like, girl, you're going to be onstage with red velvet drapes and a gold jacket. And it's going to be in Philadelphia."

Before Walter played Chessy in 1998's The Parent Trap and Melissa Schemmenti on Abbott Elementary, she told Disney+ that "stand-up was what brought me to the party in Hollywood."

“Within six months, I was on Showtime at the Apollo, not as an amateur, but as a featured act," Walter said. “I was one of only maybe 30 [women] that worked as a headliner in the entire country... And I mean, [comedy clubs were] really, really monitoring our voices.”

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During the special, she also jokes about raising her four children: Jordan Baum, 38, Delia Baum, 35, Spencer Walter, 25, and Simon Walter, 25.

"I'm a mother of four, so I've been a mother as long as I've been an adult. I had my first child when I was just out of college, so there isn't much about being around children that's new to me," the actress told PEOPLE in 2025. "I feel like it prepares you when you're used to being a mother and wrangling. I have four kids. That's a lot these days, so wrangling children is something I'm pretty adept at."

Lisa Ann Walter and son Jordan in September 2022; Lisa Ann Walter and her kids in July 2025.
Credit: Lisa Ann Walter/Instagram (2)

Walter also spoke about her children discovering her stand-up in a 2023 appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden. “One of them saw a bit I did about them and he actually, I think, was quite proud," she explained. "But I was like, ‘You know I'm totally busting you? You don't talk to me. Whenever you do, it's to criticize something about me.' "

She continued, “I get a lecture on the gig economy, I'm not allowed to return any food at a restaurant. I'm a Karen all of a sudden. But meanwhile, they keep coming home because I have free food and WiFi, so they keep showing up.”

As for what's next for Walter on Abbott Elementary, she has "no idea" yet. "And the writers are so good at coming up with stuff that I don't think of that I would not even hazard a guess," she told PEOPLE. "I mean, they're really great at writing me some off-the-wall stuff and then balancing it with a couple of episodes where it's really heartfelt and I get to actually act and show that side of my talent. So I like when they do that. But it's up to them."

"Whatever they come up with is great," Walter added.

Lisa Ann Walter in 'Abbott Elementary' as teacher Melissa Schemmenti
Credit: Disney/Gilles Mingasson

She is currently making her off-Broadway debut in the production of Heathers: The Musical with two roles as guidance counselor Ms. Fleming and character Veronica Sawyer's mom.

"I love it. I'm working with some of the most talented kids who work Broadway and national touring shows. They have incredible voices. I share a dressing room with 23-year-olds. It's keeping me young. I feel like it's a little bit of what I do in my stand-up act. I'm just their funny auntie saying outrageous crap. They love it," she shared.

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Lisa Ann Walter: It Was an Accident is now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”