Nate Bargatze’s “Big Dumb Eyes” world tour isn’t over yet — it currently extends through the middle of August — but it has already made a defining mark in the comedy world, earning the top spot for highest-grossing comedy show this year, per Billboard.
So far, over 76 shows into the tour, the comedian has sold more than 677,000 tickets. The year-end gross total comes in at $56.7 million — roughly $13 million more than Kevin Hart’s “Acting My Age” tour, which holds the No. 2 spot for 2025, Billboard reported.
“Big Dumb Eyes” was especially popular in Utah, where it recently broke an attendance record at Salt Lake City’s Delta Center.
Nate Bargatze breaks record at the Delta Center
Well aware of his popularity in Utah, Bargatze predicted a BYU football win over Iowa State when he appeared as a celebrity guest picker on ESPN’s “College GameDay” in late October.
“This is a business decision right here,” he said with a smile, per Deseret News. “I’ve got four shows in Salt Lake City. BYU, baby!”
A little over a month later, the Emmy-nominated comedian from Tennessee put on four sold-out shows at the Delta Center — a run that has now become the arena’s highest-attended comedy act, drawing more than 56,500 fans, according to a news release shared with the Deseret News.
The “Big Dumb Eyes” tour is now also the No. 2 most attended event in Delta Center history — second only to Garth Brooks in 2015, per the news release.
Bargatze previously did four shows at the Eccles Theater in 2022 and three shows at the Delta Center in 2023. The comedian spoke to the Deseret News at that time about the popularity of clean comedy in Utah.
“You always heard (Jim) Gaffigan and (Brian) Regan could go there,” he said in 2023. “You heard, ‘If you’re clean, you do really great in Salt Lake City.’ ... I actually now have a lot of close friends that live in Salt Lake City. And I actually end up there a lot.”
Nate Bargatze’s next chapter
It’s a busy season for Bargatze.
The comedian recently announced he’s leaving his podcast to pursue movies, TV and even a theme park, as the Deseret News reported.
Moving more into TV hosting after helming the Emmy Awards this past September, Bargatze will host a new game show — which he also executive produces — called “The Greatest Average American” that premieres in February.
As the Deseret News reported, the premise of the show embraces Bargatze’s persona — celebrating the glory of being “perfectly average.” The grand prize: the average American salary of $67,920.
Bargatze will also soon make his feature film debut, starring alongside Mandy Moore in “The Breadwinner,” a film that hits theaters March 13.
An amusement park in Nashville is also in the works for Bargatze, per Deseret News.
The comedian said he wants to create “safe” environments for people to escape the “chaos” of the world, Deseret News reported.
“I want to create moments for you guys and your families,” he said. “And I want to continue to gain your trust because you don’t owe this to me. You can trust me and know that I’m building stuff with you in mind.”