Fans of Dave Chappelle were elated earlier this month when the comedian dropped his latest Netflix special, The Closer. Unfortunately, the hype was quickly cancelled out by several outraged viewers expressing their discontent with some of the 48-year-old’s jokes.
If you’ve already watched, you know that some of Chappelle’s comments poked fun at things like the “Me Too” movement, the LGBTQ community, and the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Just a few days ago, we reported that the Washington-born star claimed he “loved” being cancelled after receiving a standing ovation at a Los Angeles screening of his untitled documentary.
While some continue to express their discontent on social media, Netflix co-CEO, Ted Sarandos has come to his pal’s defence.
In a memo obtained by Variety, he wrote, “Several of you have also asked where we draw the line on hate. We don’t allow titles Netflix that are designed to incite hate or violence, and we don’t believe The Closer crosses that line.”
Sarandos continued, “I recognize, however, that distinguishing between commentary and harm is hard, especially with stand-up comedy which exists to push boundaries. Some people find the art of stand-up to be mean-spirited but our members enjoy it, and it’s an important part of our content offering.”
The CEO also clarified that removing The Closer from Netflix is, “not something we are going to do.”
Along with this news, Complex notes that days after tweeting about the Chappelle special, an out trans employee has been suspended from the streaming giant for allegedly crashing a meeting along with two others.
“I work at @netflix. Yesterday we launched another Chappelle special where he attacks the trans community, and the validity of transness – all while trying to pit us against other marginalized groups,” the aforementioned worker wrote on October 6th.
Have you watched The Closer yet? Do you take issue with the stand-up comedian’s jokes, or are people taking things too personally?