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Ricky Gervais ‘Canceled’ As ‘Outrageously Offensive’ Joke Sparks Fury
Ricky Gervais has been ‘canceled’ after his ‘outrageously offensive’ joke sparked fury.
Gervais’s Netflix comedy special, SuperNature, has come under fire from LGBTQ rights groups, with GLAAD labeling it as ‘dangerous.’
The organization accused the special of disguising ‘anti-trans rants’ as humor while also spreading misinformation about HIV.
GLAAD released a statement: “We watched the Ricky Gervais ‘comedy’ special on Netflix so you don’t have to. It’s full of graphic, dangerous, anti-trans rants masquerading as jokes.
“He also spouts anti-gay rhetoric and spreads inaccurate information about HIV.”
Gervais, known for his provocative style, prefaces his routine by explaining irony: “That’s when I say something I don’t really mean, for comic effect, and you, as an audience, you laugh at the wrong thing because you know what the right thing is. It’s a way of satirizing attitudes.”
Gervais insists that he supports trans rights, stating per The Guardian: “Full disclosure: in real life, of course, I support trans rights. I support all human rights, and trans rights are human rights. Live your best life.
“Use your preferred pronouns. Be the gender that you feel that you are. But meet me halfway, ladies: lose the c***. That’s all I’m saying.”
GLAAD criticized Netflix for allowing content that ‘incites hate or violence,’ arguing that the platform fails to enforce its own policies in comedy.
“The LGBTQ community and our allies have made it very clear that so-called comedians who spew hate in place of humor, and the media companies who give them a platform, will be held accountable,” the right groups stated.
“Meanwhile, there are PLENTY of funny LGBTQ comedians to support.”
Further criticism of SuperNature comes from Alexis Rangel of the National Center for Transgender Equality, who warns that such jokes perpetuate ‘dehumanizing myths about transgender people,’ potentially inciting discrimination and violence.
During his special, Gervais dismisses the notion that ‘words are actual violence,’ arguing, “These people are virtue signaling … they’re basically saying that minorities don’t have a sense of humor, which is so patronizing.”
The controversy surrounding SuperNature follows backlash against Dave Chappelle’s The Closer, which also contained jokes about trans people.
Protests and staff walkouts at Netflix led the company to update its corporate culture guidelines, affirming its commitment to artistic expression.
CEO Ted Sarandos defended Chappelle’s special, stating: “You can’t please everybody or the content would be pretty dull. I do think that the inclusion of the special on Netflix is consistent with our comedy offering.”
Meanwhile, in an interview on the Stick to Football podcast, Gervais said he does not fear being ‘canceled,’ as he believes he can justify his material.
“I’m aware of it, but I can justify everything. I don’t go out there and just say the first thing that comes to my head, thinking there is no consequence … Everything I do, I’ve got to be able to go, ‘This is why it’s okay,'” he said.
He emphasized that his use of taboo subjects is intentional: “It’s like I’m taking them by the hand through a scary forest, but it’s alright in the end, and we can all laugh about it. That’s what comedy’s for, to get you through scary things.”
Gervais also argued that true cancellation only happens when someone breaks the law.
“Some people didn’t like it, fine. You actually have to break the law to be properly canceled. Otherwise, some people didn’t like it, that’s fine, it’s the way of the world,” he commented.
Another of Gervais’s tours, Mortality, continued his tradition of provocative humor.
Critics have called him a ‘pub bore’ while others have praised his return to the stage.
His material includes controversial jokes about Jimmy Savile, Rosie Jones, and sharia law in Pakistan, the last of which he closes with the punchline: “Liberals hate religious fascism and abuse of girls except when it’s in Pakistan.”
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One of his more contentious jokes in the Netflix special involves a discussion of ‘old-fashioned women’ – defined as ‘the ones with wombs.’
Gervais continues: “I love the new women. They’re great, aren’t they? The new ones we’ve been seeing lately. The ones with beards and c***s.”
He also imagines a woman objecting to sharing a bathroom with a trans woman and responding with: “Well, his p**is.”
His performance also includes a controversial segment on HIV, where he remarks: “That’s not as good as it was, AIDS … in its heyday, it was f***ing amazing, wasn’t it, AIDS?”
He then mimics a gay man in the 1980s refusing s** due to the risk, contrasting it with today’s attitudes: “Now it’s, ‘Give it here. I’ll take pills for the rest of my life.’”
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