Top 10 Comedy Movies That Offended the Most People

#10: “Pink Flamingos” (1972)

The “Pope of Trash”, John Waters is a master at the art of ruffling fathers. His films push the boundaries, giving voice to some of the most taboo stories in American cinema, and “Pink Flamingos” stands out as one of his most surreal. Starring famed drag queen Divine, “Flamingos", follows Babs Johnson, “the Filthiest Person alive”. When her title is threatened by a jealous criminal couple, things go from filthy to nauseating. Without getting into the gritty details, let’s just say “Flamingos” was slapped with a hefty NC-17 rating when re-released in 1997. It was also banned in Australia, Switzerland and parts of Norway and Canada. Today, the film has a cult following thanks to its fascinating exploration of abjection and an ending so shocking it still drops jaws.

#9: “Sausage Party” (2016)

Based on its title, it’s clear that “Sausage Party” isn’t your typical cartoon flick. Released in 2016, Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill, Danny McBride and Bill Hader provide the voices to a cast of anthropomorphic food products who discover the truth behind their existence. It was nearly rated NC-17 rating, due to its crude content. Nonetheless, “Sausage Party” was a box office hit. It even became the highest-grossing R-rated animated film ever, a title it held onto until 2020. However, its success wasn’t without backlash. It was reported that many of the film’s animators faced grueling working conditions resulting in zero pay for overtime and receiving no credits. Years later, it was legally determined that the employees were owed compensation.

#8: “Soul Man” (1986)

After hearing the premise of 1986’s “Soul Man”, it’s astonishing to believe that it was ever made.

The movie centers around a young law student who takes tanning pills in an effort to appear African American so he can obtain a scholarship to attend law school. If the storyline wasn’t bad enough, dark makeup was used on C. Thomas Howell, which drew comparisons to blackface. During its release, the NAACP publicly denounced it while students at UCLA protested it. Even future Oscar winner Spike Lee expressed his criticism of the film. That being said, the movie does have two staunch supporters: The film's stars, Howell and Rae Dawn Chong, who have publicly supported it.

#7: “Tropic Thunder” (2008)

In 2008, audiences packed the theatre to see the comedy event of the year: “Tropic Thunder”. With an A-list cast and rave reviews, it seemed like the Ben Stiller directed flick was unstoppable. However, that wasn’t the case. Disability activists, including the Special Olympics, called out the portrayal of the character of Simple Jack. Then there was Robert Downey Jr. who played Kirk Lazarus, a white actor, who undergoes a surgical procedure to darken his skin to play a black man. And lastly, Tom Cruise as Lee Grossman, a Jewish studio exec, was called antisemitic as Cruise is not Jewish, with many claiming his portrayal leaned into stereotypes. To this day, Stiller has defended the film, making no apologies for its many controversies.

#6: “Dogma” (1999)

When Kevin Smith’s fantastical comedy, “Dogma” came out at the end of the millennium, the Catholic Church was none too pleased. Deeming it as blasphemy, advocacy group the Catholic League was up in arms over the story about two outcast angels on a mission to get back to heaven even if that means bidding adieu to humanity. In fact, things got so heated that its release was delayed by nearly a year. Smith, who had received threats against his life, took the whole ordeal in stride, even showing up to a protest acting like he was opposing the film.

#5: “Team America: World Police” (2004)

Trey Parker and Matt Stone are no strangers to controversy. The duo already stirred the pot with the feature adaptation of their series “South Park” in 1999. However, their next project came with strings attached. Enter: “Team America: World Police”, an action comedy about an actor who joins a task force to fight terrorism. Oh, and the entire cast is made of puppets. While the production was taxing, the real trouble happened afterwards. A very intimate scene involving two puppets warranted an NC-17 rating, going through several edits before being pared down to an R rating. Also a slew of celebs are parodied in the film, including a not-so-happy Sean Penn who famously sent Parker and Stone a strongly worded letter.

#4: “Borat” (2006)

In 2006, Sasha Baron Cohen took his cult persona, Borat Sagdiyev, from the small screen to the big screen. Soon after its release, “Borat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan became a pop culture phenomenon. The satirical mockumentary sees the “Da Ali G Show” character travel from his native Kazakhstan to the US to film a documentary on American life. Borat’s regressive views and ignorance translated into some truly shocking moments and Cohen upset a lot of folks. From Kazakhstan to subjects featured in the film, “Borat” faced a wave of complaints and lawsuits. Many also believed the film and character were anti-Semitic, though Cohen himself is Jewish. However, the backlash didn’t stop Cohen bringing Borat back for a sequel in 2020.

#3: “Blazing Saddles” (1974)

A satire of the Western genre, “Blazing Saddles”, is one of Mel Brooks’ most notabe films. The story centres around Bart, a Black railroad worker who becomes a sheriff of a small town riddled with racists. On one hand, many see it as a biting satire, while many others see it as downright offensive. A quick Google search, and one will encounter endless disputes about whether its humor is harmful or not. From race to sex and everything else in between the jokes are non-stop, proving that no topic is off limits. Decades after its release, Whoopi Goldberg came to the film’s defense on “The View” stating that “Blazing Saddles” is one of the greatest because it hits everybody.”

#2: “The Interview” (2014)

The year was 2014 and the world anxiously awaited the release of what might have been the most contentious film of the decade. “The Interview”, stars James Franco and Seth Rogen as a TV host and producer who are tasked with assassinating North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, caused a media frenzy and global panic. Saying that the North Korean government was less than thrilled is a massive understatement. The nation threatened to commit terrorist attacks against cinemas, leading to delaying its release. Guardians of Peace, a group suspected to be a part of the North Korean government, hacked Sony Pictures Entertainment’s data, releasing private emails and top-secret info. Eventually, Sony opted to release the film on streaming to avoid any further security threats.

#1: “Monty Python’s Life of Brian” (1979)

It’s no surprise that a film about religion made by Monty Python would cause an uproar. “Life of Brian”, follows Brian, a man who happened to be born on the same day and place as Jesus, who accidentally gets confused for the Son of God. Labelled blasphemous, the film was protested by religious groups in England and America. It was also banned in Norway, Ireland and some places in the UK. Objectors especially took offense to the ending, which features a crucifixion. Even decades later, screenings of the film continued to cause outrage. That being said, at least, we can all agree to“Always Look on the Bright Side of Life”.

Which one of these films do you think was the most controversial? Let us know in the comments!