Coroner's report gives. US comedian's cause of death

American comedian Jak Knight took his own life with a gunshot wound to the head, coroners have revealed.

The 28-year-old’s body was found on an embankment in Los Angeles on Thursday.

Now the county medical examiner and coroner has filed the report under his real name Jakim Maulana, giving the official cause of death as suicide.

Knight co-created the casino-set comedy Bust Down, which streams on Peacock in the US, wrote  for Netflix cartoon Big Mouth and was an executive story editor on a season of Black-ish.

And as a stand-up he was named a 2014 Comedy Central Comic to Watch and  opened for Dave Chappelle, Joel McHale and Aziz Ansari, among others.

Colleagues were quick to pay tribute on social media after his news of his death spread last week.

Kumail Nanjiani said: 'Rest In Peace Jak Knight. Hilarious comedian and a great guy. I can’t believe it.’

James Adomian added: ‘Whenever I was on a lineup with Jak Knight, I knew it was going to be a wildly funny night. Always loved watching him over the last decade. He was winning big, all of it well deserved, so witty and memorable every moment onstage and off. A painful loss to comedy.’

Andrew Goldberg, who co-created Big Mouth, posted a picture of a smilinh Knight, saying: ‘This is how I’ll always remember my friend Jak Knight: laughing and making us laugh. He was brilliant, hilarious, loving, and one of a kind. My heart goes out to his family, by blood and by comedy, and everyone who loved Jak. There were a lot of us, and we miss him already.’

• Samaritans provides 24/7 emotional support to people who are in distress or feeling suicidal. Call  free on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org

Published: 19 Jul 2022