Elyse Willems

{{Short description|Canadian internet personality, comedian, and writer.}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Elyse Willems

| image = RTX 2017 - Always Open panel (35500410710) (cropped).jpg

| caption = Elyse Willems at RTX Austin 2017.

| birth_name =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1986|05|03}}

| birth_place = Toronto, Ontario, Canada

| other_names =

| education = University of Toronto

| occupation = Writer • producer • performer • co-creative director

| yearsactive = 2013–present

| spouse = James Willems

| employer = Rooster Teeth (2015-2024)

| website = {{URL|elysewillems.com}}

| footnotes =

}}

Elyse Willems (born May 3, 1986){{cite web|url=https://www.instagram.com/p/B_u0Vr9AY67/|title=James Willems on Instagram|publisher=Instagram|access-date=October 26, 2020}}{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-hu5a4ufe4&ab_channel=Funhaus|title="Are Birds Evil?" and Other Tough Questions - The Funhaus Podcast|publisher=YouTube (Funhaus)|date=January 14, 2021|access-date=January 22, 2021}} is a Canadian internet personality, comedian, and writer. She is best known for her work as a cast member and producer at Funhaus, a division of Rooster Teeth Productions, since November 2015.{{cite web|url=https://www.linkedin.com/in/elysewillems/|title=Elyse Willems - LinkedIn|access-date=October 23, 2020}} Since then, Willems has appeared and been involved in numerous productions by Rooster Teeth.

Willems self-published her debut novel, A Night in Halloween House, which became a bestselling Halloween children's book on Amazon in October 2020.{{cite book|title= A Night in Halloween House: Willems, Elyse, McQuaig, Adam: 9781735982410: Amazon.com: Books|isbn= 978-1735982410|last1= Willems|first1= Elyse|date= 21 October 2020|publisher= Elyse Willems}}

Biography

Willems was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario{{cite web|url=https://www.elysewillems.com/|title= Elyse Willems|access-date=October 24, 2020}} in a family of Polish descent. After graduating from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Government,{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiOTWAoRvIo&ab_channel=Funhaus|title=TEEN VS *** - Google Trends Show - YouTube|publisher=YouTube|date=June 5, 2016|accessdate=October 25, 2020}} Willems relocated to Los Angeles in January 2012.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOrmdsTQtNY&ab_channel=IncognitoMode|title=RTX Sydney Interview with Elyse Willems - YouTube|publisher=YouTube|date=February 18, 2017|access-date=October 26, 2020}} She worked at Viacom as a production assistant on GameTrailers from August 2012, later becoming a segment producer at Defy Media in 2014, where she produced, wrote and hosted Mandatory Update, a weekly comedy news show that provided a satirical commentary on the video game industry.

In November 2015, Willems joined Rooster Teeth as a cast member of Funhaus. There, she has collaboratively produced and co-written numerous series, such as Arizona Circle, Sex Swing, and Twits & Crits, as well as produced and performed in gaming videos and podcasts. Willems has made several appearances at RTX conventions, including a Ladies of Rooster Teeth panel at RTX Sydney 2017 where she expressed her frustration at credit for things she has done being given to her male peers in the past,{{cite web|url=https://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/02/rtx-sydney-i-didnt-want-to-die-this-time/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210030819/http://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/02/rtx-sydney-i-didnt-want-to-die-this-time/|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 10, 2017|title=RTX Sydney: I Didn't Die This Time|publisher=Kotaku|date=February 10, 2017}} and on the series Always Open, hosted by fellow Canadian Rooster Teeth member and friend Barbara Dunkelman.{{cite web|url=https://www.gamespot.com/videos/rtx-austin-2018-1-on-1-with-rwbys-barbara-dunkelma/2300-6445407/|title= RTX Austin 2018: 1 on 1 with RWBY's Barbara Dunkelman and Funhaus' Elyse Willems! - GameSpot|publisher=GameSpot|access-date=October 24, 2020}} In 2017, a shortened clip focusing primarily on Willems from one of Funhaus' videos went viral. The clip featured Funhaus members, including her husband, jokingly criticizing a female character for wearing a ponytail while Willems, who is wearing a ponytail in the clip, reacts in the background.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLMkUKAiVDY&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=SkylerHatesAlice|title=Jesus Christ Bruce... - YouTube|publisher=YouTube|date=April 30, 2017|access-date=October 26, 2020}} The clip appeared in one of PewDiePie's videos,{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmRt1GgCqxg&ab_channel=PewDiePie|title=YOU LAUGH, YOU DIE - YLYL #0020 - YouTube|publisher=YouTube (PewDiePie)|date=February 26, 2018|access-date=October 26, 2020}} and garnered almost fifteen million views worldwide. Willems clarified that the intent was humorous and that her reaction was deliberately comedic.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fdGIOBBoCU&ab_channel=AshTulett|title=James and Elyse on Reddit scandals, impressions and long distance relationships - YouTube|publisher=YouTube|date=July 21, 2017|access-date=October 26, 2020}}

In 2020, Willems served as the series creator and one of the participants in Last Laugh, a Rooster Teeth series centered around a social experiment where twelve contestants spent six hours in one room while trying to make each other laugh or smile.{{cite web|url=https://teneightymagazine.com/2020/04/20/rooster-teeth-debuts-last-laugh-comedy-series/|title= Rooster Teeth Debuts 'Last Laugh' Comedy Series – TenEighty – Internet culture in focus|publisher=TenEighty|access-date=October 25, 2020}} Willems also streams with her husband James in order to fundraise for various charities and causes, and is among the popular streamers who raised funds for The Jimmy Fund to support research at Dana–Farber Cancer Institute on November 1, 2020.{{cite web|url=https://gaminglyfe.com/popular-streamers-play-against-cancer-for-jimmy-fund-lets-game/|title= Popular Streamers Play Against Cancer for Jimmy Fund Let's Game|publisher=GamingLyfe|date=October 21, 2020|access-date=October 25, 2020}}

Willems self-published her first novel, titled A Night in Halloween House, in October 2020.{{cite web|url=https://bleedingcool.com/games/interview-funhaus-elyse-willems-talks-about-her-first-novel/|title=Interview: Funhaus' Elyse Willems Talks About Her First Novel|publisher=Bleeding Cool|date=November 11, 2020|access-date=November 12, 2020}}{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkFgDYdykWE|title=Elyse Willems Wrote a Book (and Nick Read it) - We Have Cool Friends - YouTube|publisher=YouTube (Kinda Funny)|date=November 17, 2020|access-date=November 18, 2020}} It was released on Amazon in both paperback and Kindle editions, and became the bestselling Halloween children's book. In 2021, she and James were credited as writers for IllFonic's Arcadegeddon.{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/Gerritzen/status/1413268173365813248/photo/1|title=gerritzen on Twitter: "This really makes me smile. Thank you @ElyseWillems & @JamesWillems for being on this crazy ride!"|publisher=Twitter|access-date=July 13, 2021}}

Personal life

Willems is married to fellow performer and Funhaus cast member James Willems,{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/breebrouwer/2016/07/12/funhaus-comedy-channel-offensive-charm/#a7ce61c74cd0|title=For YouTube channel Funhaus, Being Funny (And Offensive) Is Just Part Of The Brand's Twisted Charm|work=Forbes|date= July 12, 2016|access-date=October 26, 2020}} and they live in Los Angeles, California.{{cite web|url=https://roosterteeth.com/g/user/ElyseWillems|title= Elyse Willems's Profile - Rooster Teeth|access-date=October 24, 2020}}