Chelsea Handler has come under fire after calling out comedians at the Kevin Hart roast for being “racist” and “sexist.”
During a recent appearance on actor Deon Cole’s “Funny Knowing You” podcast, she had a lot to say about the event, branding the vibes “gross,” while especially taking aim at comedians Shane Gillis and Tony Hinchcliff for their jokes.
However, Chelsea Handler’s remarks have now backfired, with many slamming the actress online for participating in the roast in the first place.
Handler had nothing nice to say about the recent Netflix roast of Kevin Hart, which featured her and several other comedians taking jabs at each other, sometimes with some extreme jokes.
While chatting with actor Deon Cole on his podcast, the former talk show host didn’t hold back as she slammed Shane Gillis and Tony Hinchcliff, claiming that she had received info from the men’s ex-partners who told her a lot about them, which made her realize that they are “pretty bad.”
When asked to clarify, she noted, “It’s just everything we know. That they’re racist, that they’re bigots, they’re sexist. That they think they are like, invincible.”
Handler went on to claim that their comedy at the show was “ick” and “gross,” stressing that she doesn’t find such jokes funny.
“Lynching Black people is not a joke. It’s worse than rape,” she said, adding, “people are like, ‘it’s a roast, you go for it,’ I’m like, ‘you can go for it without being gross.’”
The Comedienne Said Jokes About Sherryl Underwood’s Late Husband Crossed The Line
Handler took things a step further by bringing up jokes made at fellow comedian Sherryl Underwood’s expense at the roast.
According to Handler, it crossed a line when they made fun of Underwood’s husband taking his own life, and for her, that was “gross” and shouldn’t have been joked about.
However, she did note that Underwood was fine with the roast before emphasizing that she, however, was not okay with such jokes. “If she says she’s fine with that, she’s fine with that, but I wasn’t fine with that. I thought it was disgusting too,” Handler explained.
She further stated that she came into the roast with the goal of elevating it and making it less “gross” for Kevin Hart.
“There was so much disgustingness that I knew it was gonna be such a gross vibe, that I would be able to elevate it, no problem, and that’s what I went to do,” she said. “I was like, ‘Alright, well, I’ll pick it up because they are gonna try and bring it down, and Kevin didn’t deserve that. He deserved like an elevated roast.”
Chelsea Handler’s Remarks About The Roast Backfired
The comedian’s comments have since gone viral online, with netizens blasting her for being a part of the Netflix special and trying to “cancel” comedians for making jokes at a roast.
One X user noted, “What a disgrace to comedy, missing the point by so much she might as well be looking at this from Mars.”
Another commented, “Chelsea is a has-been hack who is jealous of the new crop. It was a roast. Kevin Hart was laughing his -ss off. Which was the whole point.”
“She’s so god-d-mn annoying sometimes .. Sucks because she can be really funny… smh,” another person said.
Several also called out Handler for seemingly taking offense on Underwood’s behalf over jokes made about her late husband, with many pointing out that Underwood had made an appearance on Shane Gillis’ podcast after the roast, showing that she was okay with the jokes.
“Hilarious, the dawgs just dropped a new pod with Sheryl Underwood while Chelsea is here complaining on her behalf,” one person noted.
Another said, “Leave it to a white liberal woman to be offended over jokes she can’t claim offense over. She’s not black. She’s not Cheryl Underwood. STFU.”
The Former Late-Night Talk Show Host Was Called Out For Dining With Jeffret Epstein
During the roast, one of the moments that stood out was when Gillis took aim at Handler and brought up her relationship with the late financier, Jeffrey Epstein.
“Chelsea is a Zionist,” Gillis began. “Not saying that’s a good or bad thing. Speaking of dead kids, she’s a big fan of abortions. Chelsea’s been scraped more times than the grill at Benihana.”
He continued, “Speaking of tossing tiny shrimp into a child’s mouth, Chelsea Handler went to dinner at Jeffrey Epstein’s house in 2010. Look it up, there are articles.”
Following Handler’s recent remarks, many slammed her for not addressing Gillis’ Epstein comment, with one person noting, “Racism this, misogyny that, she just not gonna address the Epstein callout? Bc that seems more prevalent.”
Amid the backlash, several defended Handler’s stance and praised her for condemning jokes that bordered on being “racist” and “sexist.”
Chelsea Handler Was Called Out For Her Past Hollywood Hustle
The Kevin Hart roast has certainly put Handler back in the spotlight, as insiders recently scrutinized her past dealings with Hollywood power players, noting that her recent brand of mocking the industry was ironic.
A source who spoke to Rob Shuter for his “Naughty But Nice” Substack shared that the comedian was once a frequent face at Hollywood parties and dinners hosted by disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein before the #MeToo movement derailed his once-thriving career.
“Chelsea now acts disgusted by Hollywood culture, but she absolutely benefited from it when it suited her,” an insider told the journalist, adding that she was “playing the exact same game as everyone else.”
Another insider shared that “It’s hard to position yourself as this fearless outsider exposing Hollywood hypocrisy when you were actively participating in the machine for years.”
“Chelsea wasn’t outside the system — she was part of it,” they added.
