Comedian Marc Maron has opened up about the fractured friendship with Louis CK following the comedian’s 2017 downfall, revealing the painful dynamics that led to their estrangement and awkward reconciliation.
In a candid interview with Esquire, the WTF podcast host discussed how their once-close relationship deteriorated after The New York Times published allegations of SA against Louis CK. The two comedians had famously aired their grievances in a celebrated two-part WTF episode in 2010, which Slate named among the best podcast episodes ever recorded.
When the scandal broke, Maron says he and his team were forced to respond while on the road. His measured statement acknowledged that Louis had lied to him about the scope of the situation, while expressing conditional support as a friend. However, Maron made clear he wasn’t willing to defend Louis’s behavior or “die on that hill with him.”
“I think he felt like I betrayed him somehow,” Maron explained. The statement marked the end of their communication for years.
The silence eventually broke when Louis sent what Maron described as a “weird email” addressing the work of Maron’s late partner, Lynn Shelton. Louis suggested he was open to talking, but Maron set a firm boundary: he would reconnect, but wouldn’t revisit how he handled Louis’s scandal.
“I said, ‘Yeah, I’m willing to talk, but I’m not going to address, you know, how I handled your problem. You know, that’s done,'” Maron recalled. Louis responded that he wasn’t sure if that was possible, effectively ending the conversation again.
More recently, the two have achieved an uneasy détente. Maron recounted encountering Louis at the Comedy Cellar, where Louis acted “completely pleasant” and engaged normally, as if their years-long tension had evaporated. A similar interaction occurred at the Comedy Store.
“So that’s that,” Maron said. “We’re okay. I wouldn’t say we’re friends anymore, but the tension is not there.”
Despite this thaw, Maron expressed doubt about having Louis back on his podcast before WTF concludes its run after 16 years. He explained that Louis has framed his situation in a way he can “live with,” but Maron isn’t certain what such a conversation would achieve or whether it’s necessary.
The interviewer suggested it would be a fitting callback for the show’s final stretch, but Maron remained hesitant about whether Louis would be willing to genuinely revisit their relationship and the events that fractured it.