‘It’s a good system!’ Ricky Gervais praises being able to offend in comedy – one month after hitting back at critics over ‘transphobic’ Netflix routine
Ricky Gervais has praised offensive comedy in a new tweet – one month after defending his decision to joke about AIDs, cancer and Hitler in his Netflix special.
The Office star, 60, who has been embroiled in controversy throughout his career and was accused of being ‘transphobic’ in his show, SuperNature, took to Twitter to give his view on offensive skits.
Comedian Robin Ince wrote on Twitter on Monday: ‘What I find odd about the offensive comedy debate is it seems to say “comedy must be allowed to be offensive but it is wrong for people to be offended” – make up your mind.”
Opinion: Ricky Gervais has praised offensive comedy in a new tweet – one month after defending his decision to joke about AIDs, cancer and Hitler in his Netflix special (pictured 2019)
Ricky responded: ‘Everyone is allowed to offend and everyone is allowed to be offended. It’s a good system.’
The tweet comes on month after Ricky hit back at critics after Twitter’s ‘woke brigade’ turned on the comic for mocking cancel culture with jokes about transgender people, Adolf Hitler and AIDS in his new ‘SuperNature’ Netflix special.
The comic kicks off the show with a warning about irony as he describes the concept of comedy to the audience as ‘basically a bloke talking’, before purposely failing to recall any ‘funny female comedians’.
In ‘SuperNature’, Gervais wastes no time singling out the ‘virtue-signalling’ and ‘dominant mobs’ who are quick to criticise just to ‘bring people down to raise their own status’.
Onstage: The Office star, 60, who has been embroiled in controversy throughout his career and was accused of being ‘transphobic’ in his show, SuperNature, took to Twitter to give his view on offensive skits
But his jokes were later described as ‘dangerous’ material by an American LGBT rights group, while Stonewall accused him of ‘making fun of trans people’.
In response, Gervais told The Spectator: ‘My target wasn’t trans folk, but trans activist ideology. I’ve always confronted dogma that oppresses people and limits freedom of expression.’
He again retorted against woke critics last night as he told The One Show that comedy should be used as a tool for ‘getting us over taboo subjects so they’re not scary any more’.
He said: ‘I think that’s what comedy is for, really – to get us through stuff, and I deal in taboo subjects because I want to take the audience to a place it hasn’t been before, even for a split second.
‘Most offence comes from when people mistake the subject of a joke with the actual target.’
Ricky responded to comedian Robin Ince on Twitter: ‘Everyone is allowed to offend and everyone is allowed to be offended. It’s a good system.’
He added: ‘I think that’s what comedy is for – getting us over taboo subjects so they’re not scary anymore. So, I deal with everything. And I think we second guess the audience too much.’
Gervais’ new special has received the backing of viewers for broaching controversial topics including the trans debate, racism, identity politics and Hitler – weeks after Netflix was accused of ‘being infected by the woke mind virus’ by Elon Musk.
Just minutes into his opening monologue, Gervais yawns to the crowd as he talks about ‘those old-fashioned women, you know, with wombs’.
He later moves onto quips after transgender women and pronouns, drawing huge laughs from the crowd when he mocks up a debate over gendered toilets. He at one point references his transition to becoming ‘Vicky Gervais’.
Gervais later offers a strong rebuttal to cancel culture, reminding audiences that their opinion on a comedian’s work isn’t necessarily the prevailing thought of everyone.
Controversy: Ricky’s jokes in ‘SuperNature’ were described as ‘dangerous’ material by an American LGBT rights group, while Stonewall accused him of ‘making fun of trans people’
‘When someone says to me: ‘Oh they’re not funny’, even if I agree with them I say ‘well you can’t say that, you don’t find them funny’.
‘I hate when people say: ‘That joke was offensive’. No, you’ve got to say you found it offensive. It’s all about feelings, and feelings are personal.’
Turning his attention to a new brand of ‘woke comedy’, in which he says comics are required to sign a waiver before their sets promising not to say anything contentious, he told the audience he would rather watch American stand-up comedian Louis CK masturbate.
‘Can’t mention him anymore, he’s cancelled. Not enough to apologise and move on’, he jokes.
Discussing Kevin Hart’s decision to remove himself from hosting the Oscars in 2018 after historical homophobic tweets emerged, Gervais tells his audience: ‘You can’t predict what will be offensive in the future. You don’t know who the dominant mob will be.
‘Like, the worst thing you can say today, get you cancelled on Twitter, death threats, the worst thing you can say today is, ‘Women don’t have penises’, right?
‘Now, no one saw that coming. You won’t find a ten-year-old tweet saying ‘Women don’t have penises.’ You know why? We didn’t think we f***ing had to!’
Comedy routine: The comic starts the show by describing comedy to the audience as ‘basically a bloke talking’, before purposely failing to recall any ‘funny female comedians’
Fury: The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, a campaign group based in the US, slammed Gervais for his takes on transgender issues and homosexuality in his Netflix special
And in another joke towards the end of the show in which he addresses self identity, Gervais says he supports trans rights – a remark met by cheers by a few members of the audience.
Ricky Gervais’ gags which kickstarted a Twitter row
Mocking up a debate over gendered toilets, Gervais starts the joke: ‘They are ladies, look at their pronouns. What about this person isn’t a lady?
‘Well, his penis.’
‘Her penis you f****** bigot’.
‘What is he rapes me?’
‘What if SHE rapes you?’
Turning his sights onto a new branch of ‘woke comedy’, in which he says comics are required to sign a waiver before their sets promising not to say anything contentious, he jokes he would rather watch American stand-up comedian Louis CK masturbate.
‘Can’t mention him anymore. He’s cancelled’, he adds.
Gervais later tells his audience: ‘You can’t predict what will be offensive in the future. You don’t know who the dominant mob will be.
‘Like, the worst thing you can say today, get you cancelled on Twitter, death threats, the worst thing you can say today is, ‘Women don’t have penises’, right?
‘Now, no one saw that coming. You won’t find a ten-year-old tweet saying ‘Women don’t have penises.’ You know why? We didn’t think we f***ing had to!’
Discussing the minorities and the demographics of Britain, Gervais points out: ‘We’re 5 per cent black, 5 per cent Asian. 5 per cent LGBQT.
‘I’m a white, heterosexual multi-millionaire. There’s less than one percent of us.
‘Do I whine? No. I don’t mind’.
In another joke towards the end of the show in which he addresses self identity, Gervais says he supports trans rights – a remark met by cheers by a few members of the audience.
He adds: ‘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**k, that’s all I’m saying.’
He adds: ‘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**k, that’s all I’m saying.’
Talking to the audience about cancel culture and the transgender issues during an opening monologue, Gervais tells the audience: ‘Ah women. Not all women, I mean the old-fashioned women, you know the ones with wombs? Those f***ing dinosaurs.
‘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. They’re as good as gold, I love them.
‘And now the old-fashioned ones say ‘oh, they want to use our toilets’. Why shouldn’t they use your toilets? For ladies! They are ladies — look at their pronouns!’
Acting out a discussion, he adds: ‘What about this person isn’t a lady? ‘Well, his penis.’ Her penis, you f***ing bigot! ‘What if he rapes me?’ What if she rapes you, you f***ing TERF w***e?’
The British comedian didn’t hold back in the programme and also joked about ‘taboo’ subjects including Hitler, famine and AIDS.
And he has been praised for the ‘zero f***s given’ approach to the Netflix special.
One viewer said: ‘How dare comic/actor Ricky Gervais have funny and accurate jokes about people with zero self awareness!’
Another said: ‘Well, the far left mob is at it again, trying to cancel comedian Ricky Gervais for making jokes about trans people.
‘I saw the bit and though the jokes were fine. Light-hearted, no hate. I’ll have to hurry and watch the whole show now in case it gets removed.’
A third added: ‘I’m watching #SuperNature in part because everyone is already offended.
Gervais previously revealed he wants to get ‘cancelled’ and is keen to push boundaries as far as he can with his long-awaited return to stand-up comedy.
The actor admitted he’s determined to turn up the shock-factor, even if it has a negative impact on is long-term career prospects.
He told Heat: ‘One thing I’ve decided to definitely do, and can’t wait to start on, is my new stand-up show, which is going to be called Armageddon.
‘I’m treating it like it’s my last one ever. It won’t be, but I want to put everything into it. I want to try and get cancelled. No, I just want to go all-out there.
‘It’s about the end of the world and how we’re going to destroy ourselves for lots of reasons, whether it’s media stupidity, or the actual end of the world.’
Praise: Some fans praised the star’s attention grabbing routine
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