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Love comedy? Well, Netflix plans to put on a massive, 11-day stand-up comedy festival that will feature over 130 comics. That’s right! Among the comedy stars will be Dave Chappelle, whose newest comedy special, The Closer was quite controversial for the streaming service – read on to find out more!
Netflix Is A Joke Fest
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The festival, named Netflix Is A Joke Fest, will take place across 25 venues, all in Los Angeles, including The Hollywood Bowl and The Greek Theater. Bill Burr (seen above), Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, Kevin Hart, David Chappelle, and John Mulaney will all headline events. There will also be a fantastic LGBTQ+ Celebration event featuring the likes of Margaret Cho, Tig Notaro, Wanda Sykes, Eddie Izzard, and Sandra Bernhard, among many others.
In addition to the comedians listed above, Ali Wong, Amy Poehler, Amy Schumer, Aziz Ansari, Bert Kreischer, Chelsea Handler, Chris Rock, Conan O’Brien, David Letterman, Ellen DeGeneres, Hasan Minhaj and Ronny Chieng, Iliza Shlesinger, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, Jerry Seinfeld, Jonathan Van Ness, Ken Jeong, Kevin Smith, Larry David, Maya Rudolph and Gretchen Lieberum, Mike Birbiglia, Mike Myers and David O. Russell, Nick Kroll, Nicole Byer, Patton Oswalt, Pete Davidson, Ray Romano, Seth Rogen, Theo Von, Tina Fey, and many others will appear at different events throughout the city. If you have a comedy favorite, they’ll probably be there!
“It’s absolutely thrilling for Netflix to be hosting a comedy festival of this magnitude in Los Angeles,” Robbie Praw, Netflix’s director of stand-up and comedy formats, explained. “We can’t wait to bring much needed laughs to audiences in LA and around the world on Netflix. Netflix Is A Joke Festival is going to give comedy fans the opportunity to see the greats and discover new faces in one of the greatest cities in the world.”
Controversial Figures
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For those wondering, Chappelle will headline an event at The Hollywood Bowl. The comic’s most recent – and final – special for Netflix, The Closer, was one of the most divine stand-up specials of all time. While most people loved the special, as evidenced by the user reviews and user figures, a small, but vocal, minority considered it transphobic.
Afterward, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos admitted he “screwed up” in not preparing Netflix employees better for the content. However, he has refused to take the special down, defending both free speech and the company’s ability to offer content to a wide variety of tastes. “[The Closer is] consistent with our comedy offering, it’s consistent with Dave Chappelle’s comedy brand and this is … one of those times when there’s something on Netflix that you’re not going to like,” he explained. The streaming giant continues to have a working relationship with Chappelle, considered by many as the greatest stand-up comedian of all time, including having him as part of the Netflix Is A Joke Fest.
Does the festival sound like something you’re interested in? Well, the Netflix Is A Joke Fest will run from April 28 to May 8. Presales will go live on December 7, while the rest of the tickets will hit sellers on December 10.
