Billy Eichner has attacked fellow comedian Dave Chappelle for making jokes about transgender people — and swiped at Netflix for streaming his content — in a standup performance also carried by Netflix.
In Netflix’s new Pride month special Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration, Eichner invokes Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law — using the left’s misleading “Don’t Say Gay” moniker — to go after Chappelle.
“We all know how backwards and dangerous the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ laws are,” Eichner says, according to multiple reports.
“Queer people, and especially trans people, are under legislative attack in this country. Trans people are being demeaned. They’re trying to dehumanize trans people. They’re trying to erase trans people. And I’m not even talking about Florida. I’m talking about Dave Chappelle’s latest Netflix special!”
While the “they” of the setup may not explicitly refer to Netflix, the LGBT-centric news outlet Queerty celebrates this punchline as a “roast” not just of the comic but the streaming platform, too.
Eichner adds: “Oh, come at me! I don’t have Jamie Foxx to defend me, but I have Rosie O’Donnell and the entire Gay Men’s Chorus!”
The performer is referring to Chappelle’s own Netflix special The Closer, in which he addressed his ongoing feud with transgender activists and cracked some new jokes on the subject.
Queerty’s Cameron Scheetz writes that “while it doesn’t make up for the hurt” of jokes from Chappelle and, more recently, Ricky Gervais, “we’re at least relieved to see [Netflix] has also created a platform where a whole army of queer comics can snap back.”
Chappelle has himself engaged in public trash talk of another artist featured on Netflix, telling critics of The Closer that they “must admit that Hannah Gadsby is not funny” as a precondition for speaking with him about his latest show’s controversial jokes.
Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration features a range of standup comics, culminating with an appearance by Sandra Bernhard.
Eichner recently slammed Hollywood as “very homophobic underneath the surface.” The comedian was publicizing his raunchy, LGBTQ-themed romantic comedy Bros, which Universal will release this year.
Follow David Ng on Twitter @HeyItsDavidNg. Have a tip? Contact me at dng@breitbart.com