A broken ankle, a broadcasting school rejection, and countless hours of networking are things Kiwi stand-up and TV star David Correos credits to his thriving comedy career.

He speaks to Mitchell Hageman about why “no” is often the best answer you can receive, and how to fight the fear of failure with opportunity.

When life shuts the doors on David Correos, you best bet he opens all the windows. The 32-year-old Billy T Award-winning comedian says that, over time, he’s learned that a “no” can often be much more powerful than a yes.

“I was a competitive weightlifter, and then I broke my ankle while I was just starting to do comedy,” he told the Herald, of his first big life hurdle.

“It was a nice switch-up. It was almost like a blessing to end one chapter and then begin another.”

A stint at broadcasting school also wasn’t to be, but the rejection only fuelled Correos’ desire to take every opportunity that came to him.

“I feel like there were other people that really wanted it more than I did, and the tutors never saw what I was going for,” he said.

David Correos believes that his failures were often more valuable than his successes. Photo / Supplied

Once he found stand-up and the doors it could open, everything “kind of clicked into place”. He’s since starred in hit shows such as 7 Days and Homebound 3.0, toured Australasia with stand-up routines, and hit the stage of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

“It’s really funny because all of these schools and training institutions that I signed up for, I ended up getting to do the work anyway, just doing it sideways through stand-up,” he said.

“You get to put every hat on, and quite early I was like, oh, that’s a really powerful thing.”

 Correos mused that if he wasn’t rejected in those early stages, he might not have taken things as seriously and charted his own path in a way that worked for him.

“I think that’s definitely coming from my weightlifting background of learning about failures. I think the failures are more powerful than the wins.”

Stand-up isn’t just a career for Correos, it’s an outlet that’s deeply personal to him. He credits it as a form of expression and as an outlet for other sides of himself.

“Comedy means a lot to me, the live version especially. During the Covid pandemic when there was no stand-up, I think I went a bit depressed”.

His wild, irreverent, and often cheeky humour often comes from a place of exploring the “acting up” he did during his teenage years.

“I probably act up less because of stand-up, because I’ve got a platform to kind of be that version of myself”.

A recent comedic skit where Correos performed a DJ set in a 24-hour gym went viral online. While he received a written warning for the hilarious stunt, he’s still allowed back, which came as a surprise to him.

“It’s crazy, you can do whatever you want, but they still won’t cancel your gym membership. They still want your money, which is pretty funny.”

With the second season of Kiwi series Homebound 3.0 scheduled to hit screens this month, Correos said it was purely by luck that he landed the role of Dave, the Uber driver turned friend.

The hit series follows the story of a struggling writer who is forced to move back home and deal with the disappointment of his Chinese parents.

“I get a call on the Friday from [production company] Kevin and Co. going, hey, we had someone drop out of the show and we need someone to fill this role.

“They were like, it starts filming on Monday. I went, all good, looking at my calendar like I wasn’t doing anything over the next month and a half.”

Working with Kiwi talent such as Kimberley Crossman and creator and writer Sam Wang helped Correos stretch his comedy muscles even more, he said.

“I was around a lot of people that were at a high calibre. After a couple of weeks of filming with them, I felt like I really got into my groove”.

Correos’ advice for young up-and-comers wanting to break into the comedy scene is that exposure to the craft and its community works wonders.

“Check out your local scene. Just look up stand-up comedy in your city and see if there’s anything going,” he said.

“A lot of the scenes are very, very friendly, so just keep on working, keep on talking, and keep on getting your name out there.”

Homebound 3.0 Season 2 kicks off on Three and ThreeNow from Thursday, May 15.

David Correos: Noise Zealand (as part of the NZ International Comedy Gala), May 14-17 in Auckland and May 20-24 in Wellington. Tickets can be found at www.comedyfestival.co.nz.

Mitchell Hageman joined the Herald’s entertainment and lifestyle team in 2024. He previously worked as a multimedia journalist for Hawke’s Bay Today.