On his centennial, Mel Brooks finally takes the top spot as AFI moves Blazing Saddles to number one, knocking Some Like It Hot from its decades-long perch.

The American Film Institute has revised its "100 Years...100 Laughs" comedy ranking, moving Mel Brooks' 1974 western satire Blazing Saddles from sixth place to number one. The announcement came in honor of Brooks' 100th birthday on June 28, 2026, displacing Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot, which had held the top position since the list was first compiled.

AFI President Bob Gazzale marked the occasion with a nod to Brooks' own catalog: "He's right! We're happy to right this wrong as Mel celebrates his centennial. It's good to be the king, and may he live to be a 2,000 year old man," per Deadline.

Blazing Saddles now sits at number one, with Singin' in the Rain at number five. Two more Brooks films appear further down the revised ranking: The Producers (1968) at number 11 and Young Frankenstein (1974) at number 13, giving Brooks a stronger footprint on the list than any other single filmmaker.

Whether the revision reflects genuine critical recalibration or a well-timed birthday tribute is worth asking. Some Like It Hot had anchored the top of that list for decades. Its displacement by Blazing Saddles, a film that once seemed too raucous and confrontational for canon status, says something about how comedy's relationship to offense has shifted. The jokes that made studios nervous in 1974 now look like the sharpest ones on the list.

Brooks turns 100 knowing that the industry, however belatedly, has agreed.