What to know
- Mae Martin will be hosting the 2026 Juno Awards, held at the TD Coliseum in Hamilton
- Martin is an accomplished stand-up comedian, actor and musician. They’re best known for the series Wayward and their comedy specials, Dope and Sap.
- The 55th Juno Awards will be broadcast Mar. 29, 2026.
Canadian comedian, actor and musician Mae Martin will be hosting the 55th Juno Awards, which will be held in Hamilton at the end of March.
Martin, 38 and from Toronto, is best known for their stand-up, will be the first comedian to host The Junos since Russell Peters in 2009. Their last hosting gig was at the 2024 Canadian Screen Awards. They will be the first non-binary person to host the Junos.
“I wake up nervous just to be alive, so I’m nervous to host the Junos. But I’m honoured. It’s such a deeply iconic Canadian institution and part of Canadian culture, so I’m excited,” Martin said in an interview with Now Toronto. “I hope I do it justice. I hope I make it feel like a party, that’s what I want.”
Martin has two comedy specials under their belt — Dope and Sap. Dope was nominated for Best Comedy Show at the prestigious Edinburgh Comedy Awards and Sap premiered on Netflix, earning them a Juno Award nomination for Comedy Album of the Year.
Last September, Martin starred in, wrote for and executive produced the limited series, Wayward, which debuted at #1 on Netflix to critical acclaim and over eight million views globally. In February, they released an indie rock album, titled I’m a TV and will be embarking on a North American comedy tour later this year.
@nowtoronto Sounds like the cast of "Wayward" had a blast on set 😂 The new thriller mini-series, starring Toni Collette, premiered at TIFF and is coming out on Netflix on Sept. 25! Who's watching?? #Wayward #TIFF50 #TIFF2025 ♬ original sound – Now Toronto
Martin also hosts the Handsome podcast alongside fellow comedians Tig Notaro and Fortune Feimster.
When asked about how they plan to usher in more Canadian identity to the Juno Awards this year, especially with the recent push to bring all things Canadian into the limelight, Martin said they’ve been feeling an abundance of pride in being Canadian.
“I think we’re feeling a lot of pride in our Canadian identity these days and a lot of protectiveness over it. But it’s been exciting,” they said. “A lot of people today are asking me about Heated Rivalry or these shows — I was lucky my show found a global audience so it’s exciting seeing stuff coming out of Canada that breaks through like that because the reason it does is that artists are being allowed to have a really clear vision and voice. So, I hope the energy will be celebratory anyway and we’ll all just be happy to be there.”
@nowtoronto Canadian comedian, actor and musician Mae Martin will be hosting the 55th Juno Awards, which will be held in Hamilton at the end of March. 🎉#JunoAwards #MaeMartin ♬ original sound – Now Toronto
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The 2026 Juno Awards will be broadcast on Mar. 29 at the newly revamped TD Coliseum in Hamilton.
