Julio Torres is a Salvadoran-American Emmy-nominated and Peabody-winning comedian, writer, director, and actor. Torres is best known for writing on Saturday Night Live, co-creating, producing, and starring in HBO's Los Espookys, and for creating, writing, directing, and starring in A24's critically acclaimed Problemista.
Torres worked as a writer on The Chris Gethard Show before he was hired to write for Saturday Night Live. He worked at SNL from 2016 to 2019, writing sketches including "Papyrus" and "Wells for Boys". He was nominated for four Emmys as a member of the SNL writing team. He has appeared on The Tonight Show and other late-night programs. His comedy is frequently described by critics as "otherworldly" and "surrealist," with elements of the fantastical and a melancholy undercurrent. After pitching a Spanish-language comedy to HBO, the comedian Fred Armisen brought Torres and Ana Fabrega on to co-write the series. Armisen and Torres had met when the former hosted SNL. Torres was also a co-showrunner and actor on the project, which became Los Espookys. The first season aired in 2019, and it was renewed for a second season later that year. Torres plays Andrés, a wealthy heir who searches for answers about his mysterious past.
His comedy special My Favorite Shapes premiered August 10, 2019, on HBO. It was directed by his frequent collaborator Dave McCary and produced by Fred Armisen and Lorne Michaels. Torres played the gay barista Jules in the 2021 comedy film Together Together. His first feature film, Problemista, was released in the United States released by A24 on March 1, 2024. Torres wrote and directed the film, a surrealist comedy, in which he portrays Alejandro, a Salvadoran creative struggling to succeed in New York City before his work visa expires, alongside Tilda Swinton.
In 2024, Ryan Gosling asked Torres to return to SNL with a sequel to "Papyrus". Although cut for time during Gosling's live episode, "Papyrus 2" was later released online in full.
