Top 10 Reactions to Dave Chapelle's Sticks and Stones
#10: VICE
VICE rose to prominence as an edgy outlet that pushed the boundaries. But they had no time for “Sticks & Stones”. Accusing Chappelle of doubling down on “misogyny and transphobia”, their review came out swinging. It was all there in the headline: “You Can Definitely Skip Dave Chappelle’s New Netflix Special ‘Sticks & Stones’”. Writer Taylor Hosking cited Chappelle’s joke in the special that anyone molested by Michael Jackson should have felt honored, as well as the comedian’s jabs at the trans community. Hosking called Chappelle’s approach in “Sticks and Stones” a “rejection of change” that will end up “tarnishing his own legacy.”
#9: Netflix
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One of the most surprising responses in all this is Netflix’s. Throughout the furore, the streaming giant has remained silent. Reportedly, Netflix paid Chappelle $60 million as part of a three-special deal. So they obviously have a LOT riding on this. Another reason for their reticence could be the divide between critical and audience reception. While critics savaged “Sticks & Stones”, earning it a miserable 35% score on Rotten Tomatoes, audiences loved it, giving it an audience score of 99%. That means that ANY response is sure to anger a LOT of people.
#8: Wall Street Journal
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In contrast to VICE, the venerable Wall Street Journal actually went to bat for Chappelle’s takedown of “cancel culture”, calling him an “equal opportunity offender”. Writer Gerard Baker argued that the comedian’s routine targets everyone - “the hypocrisies, inconsistencies, absurdities and extremism in our culture”. Baker admitted to feeling surprised, and perhaps offended, at Chappelle’s jokes about white people dying from opioid abuse. But, Baker said, he could also laugh at them. The fact that the special is controversial, Baker concluded, just reflects the “boringly predictable” nature of modern popular culture, thanks to (in his words) “the vice-like grip of the liberal establishment”.
#7: Jerry Seinfeld & Arc Digital
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Several comedians have also come out to either defend or criticize Chappelle. One of the biggest names to have gotten involved is Jerry Seinfeld . . . although only indirectly. In a Tweet, he linked to what he referred to as an “interesting article” by Art Tavana of Arc Digital. Tavana contended that Chappelle was actually punching up, not down - by speaking for “un-woke America” against liberals. He likened Chappelle to George Carlin, who also ridiculed contemporary trends, as well as to a shooter in a school cafeteria . . . with eyewitnesses seeing him differently depending on their perspectives. To describe this comparison as unexpected is perhaps an understatement.
#6: New York Post
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While media outlets such as VICE and Arc Digital came out blasting Chappelle or his critics, the New York Post tried to dissect his appeal instead. Maureen Callahan opened her opinion piece by asking: “Can a provocateur, by nature, ever go too far?” She argued that Chappelle had gone too far in calling Michael Jackson’s accusers liars, and blaming Louis C. K.’s female victims; but that critics were overlooking his “insightful thoughts” on the opioid crisis and gun control. She concluded that “we need transgressors” to “speak the unspeakable” and to force us to “question, question, question”.
#5: Matt Stone
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The creators of “South Park”, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, are no strangers to controversy themselves. During an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Matt Stone threw in his two cents on the backlash. He said he felt bad for TV critics, because according to him, they HAVE to criticize Chappelle’s special, regardless of their own personal opinions, in order to keep their jobs. “When I read TV reviews or cultural reviews,” he wrote, “I think of someone in prison, writing”. It might not really be what they really think, he said, but just what they’re obligated to publish.
#4: Joel Kim Booster
One of the jokes that most offended critics was Chappelle’s comparison of being trans to being trans-racial. Needless to say, many people thought that his impersonation of a Chinese stereotype was in poor taste. We’ve seen several comedians come out to defend Chappelle, but Joel Kim Booster was not one of them. Booster said the joke made him feel “old” and described the routine as “kind of sad”. He further went on to characterize Chappelle as “someone who has been rich for a long time now and no longer has that many interesting things to say”, while also adding that “it’s his right as a comic, I guess.”
#3: Dan Reed
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As mentioned earlier, Chappelle made several jokes about Michael Jackson’s accusers, poking fun at their misfortune while defending the pop star’s innocence. Many were appalled by Chappelle’s remarks, including director of “Leaving Neverland” Dan Reed. While attending the 2019 Creative Arts Emmys, Reed told Deadline that he didn’t find the comedian’s jokes to be funny or clever. The director also clarified that he doesn’t want “Leaving Neverland” to be seen as a part of cancel culture, saying: “There’s nothing in the film that says, ‘Don’t listen to Michael Jackson.’ There’s nothing in the film that says ‘Cancel MJ’. We’re not a part of cancel culture.”
#2: Sarah Silverman
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Considering Sarah Silverman’s political position as a liberal, it was fairly surprising to see her come out and defend Chappelle. During an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Silverman brought up the topic of politics in comedy and mentioned “Sticks and Stones”. While admitting she didn’t agree with some of the things Chappelle said, she still loved the special and found it funny, saying “That’s comedy: you overstep.” Silverman further went on to describe cancel culture as “righteousness porn” while presenting the idea that people can change and stating “It’s not very Jesus-like to just cancel people.”
#1: Bill Burr
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As of late, Bill Burr has been speaking out to defend several comedians, including Shane Gillis, who was fired from SNL due to homophonic and racist comments. In an interview with Forbes, Burr offered strong opinions about the criticisms aimed at Chappelle. In his opinion, much of the backlash against offensive humor is “ridiculous”, and driven by money. Outrage sells, and has become another part of the news cycle. He argued that the attention and anger that we direct at controversial comedians would be better directed at big businesses, such as pharmaceutical companies and banks.
