Exclusive: Urzila Carlson Talks ‘Kinda Pregnant,’ Amy Schumer Sleepovers and Invisible SPFs

When Kinda Pregnant released—and debuted at number one—on Netflix last month, comedian Urzila Carlson quickly solidified herself as a fan favorite with her laugh-out-loud scenes. On the heels of the success, Carlson just released a hilarious new comedy special on YouTube, titled Just No! Now, as she preps for her upcoming North American comedy tour, taking place in May and June, the comedic performer chatted with us about her Amy Schumer friendship, the sunscreen she shares with her kids and what sleep looks like as she travels the globe.

You’ve had a super busy beginning of 2025 with Kinda Pregnant. Where are you now with your schedule?

Right now, last night, I had written my brand new show that I’m touring Down Under, You Don’t Say. I did it for the first ever time in front of a test audience of 55. That went really well. Then next week, I go to Melbourne, and I do the Melbourne Comedy Festival Gala. Then I start touring from then on…Australia, then I come to the U.S. and North America.

When you are on the road and on planes and doing all these things, how do you make sure you get your sleep and your self-care?

Melatonin is my friend! I force myself to take it and to try to sleep. I usually don’t perform on travel days, but as I’m getting busier and my kids are getting to that age—my kids are eight and 11—I try and fit in as much as I can. As I land, I’ll do a show and then hit a melatonin and just stay in bed. Even if I’m not asleep, I will stay in bed till the next morning, at least 6 a.m. Then, I try and do stuff during the day.

I don’t drink. That’s a big thing for me. That was the top of my self-care things; I gave up booze. Not completely, but pretty close. I’ll still have a glass of champagne on someone’s birthday or whatever. Overall, I don’t drink when I work because this industry can be such a tricky beast. Everyone wants to have a drink with you. If you go for every drink, you’re going to be a very drunk lady.

But I mainly don’t drink so I never feel crud in the morning. I also started playing golf, so I can get out into the sunshine and force myself out of the hotel room. I think that’s an important thing, is to get out. If I’m in a new city or whatever, or even if I’m in a city that I’ve been to heaps like Melbourne, I make sure I go and do something like go to a theatre show or go to a new exhibit at the museum or something.

Even now, when my kids look at stuff…Oh, my daughter, she’s got a new teacher. Then they had to write their teachers letters to introduce themselves. I read this thing, it had to be five pages. She’s like, “We have traveled to Edinburgh and this is what we did. We went to London and this is what we did. We were in Hollywood and this is what we did.” Nowhere does it say, “And then Mama had to go to work.”

And Mama had to go to work every night, let me tell you! But we do like to make sure that we’re tourists, and then at night, I do my show. That way, when I look back at it, I go, ‘Oh, my God, I saw these amazing cities and everything they had to offer. I got to do some work there.’

That sounds fun, but also tiring. Do you ever have any time for yourself…or is it all work and kids and trying to catch up on sleep when you can?

When I have a day off. When I’m on the road, I try and like I say, pack as much in. Then, I’ll always have one day off in that time. Truth be told, that’s when I have to do the washing!

It is a lot of things to do in a lot of hours, but it’s also a lot of fun things. It’s not strenuous. I travel in luxury, and then I get to a nice hotel. I have a good cup of coffee, hopefully, and then go and do something fun. It’s exhausting and it’s always full on but I am an active relaxer. Even when I’m at home, I always think ‘After this, I’m going to go out. I want to go restack the firewood.’ I have to be busy. That makes me happy.

You’re in Australia and New Zealand a ton. Since we are a beauty magazine, I’d love to hear about any go-to sunscreens. Are you good about sun protection?

Oh, I’m very good. Hang on. I’m going to go grab one that I love. It is really nice and sheer for the kids too and they love it. It’s Neutrogena and it’s really sheer and it’s SPF 50. It’s a little spritz almost, but I’m telling you the sun cannot get through this thing. We just keep topping up with it. You get the cream too, which I use. I don’t really like any of the creams because it always feels sticky. This thing, I put it on and I even put my makeup over it. It’s not sticky, it’s not anything. It’s amazing.

Their SPF is always good.

Yes. Love it.

The tour is your next big work thing right now. Is there anything else you’re looking forward to this spring?

Yes! I start off in New York, and then I’ll collect Amy Schumer. We have a sleepover planned in LA [laughs] with the other girls who all live in LA, including Alex Saks, our producer of the movie, Kinda Pregnant. Then, we’re all going to hang out for a couple of days in Los Angeles and have some girl time. It will be fun. I’m looking forward to it!