We have heard a lot about cancel culture in the past several years. People tend to get upset, sometimes over trivial matters and at other times, over something legitimate but in either case, it can have a negative impact on the life and career of those who are targeted.
Nobody knows this better than Ricky Gervais, although he can’t seem to stop himself from offending people and running the risk of being canceled. In fact, he has been ‘canceled’ after people got furious when he told a joke that they considered ‘outrageously offensive’.
Gervais’ comedy special on Netflix, SuperNature is being targeted by LGBTQ rights groups. In fact, one particular group, GLAAD is referring to it as being ‘dangerous’. That organization spoke about the ‘anti-trans rants’ of the comedian as being disgusting and they also said that he was spreading lies about HIV. They released a statement, saying: “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 is no stranger to controversy. His comedic style is beyond provocative and often expresses some type of irony that is meant to offend. In fact, the comedian explains irony in the following way: “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.”
Something else that you may find interesting is that claims to support the rights of transgender individuals. In an interview, he said: “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.” Netflix was criticized by GLAAD for promoting and permitting content that ‘insights hate or violence’. They have their own policies in place on comedy, and the organization is accusing them of not enforcing those policies.
“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.”
They also say that there are ‘PLENTY of funny LGBTQ comedians to support.’
Alexis Rangel of the National Center for Transgender Equality is also somebody who is unhappy with Super Nature. They warned that the jokes told in the comedy special are responsible for ‘dehumanizing myths about transgender people.’ Gervais speaks about this during his special, saying that words are not necessarily on par with violence. He said: “People are virtue signaling … they’re basically saying that minorities don’t have a sense of humor, which is so patronizing.”
When it gets right down to it, Gervais is not afraid of being canceled. He feels that it is possible to justify his humor.
He said: “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. “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.
“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.” One of the jokes that got him in hot water on Netflix involves discussing ‘old-fashioned women’ he then defined them as being ‘the ones with wombs.’
He continued: “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.” His performance was also touching on HIV, saying: “That’s not as good as it was, AIDS … in its heyday, it was f***ing amazing, wasn’t it, AIDS?” He then visually made fun of gay men in the 1980s all all who were avoiding sex because of fear. He went on to say “Now it’s, ‘Give it here. I’ll take pills for the rest of my life.’”