Dave Chappelle raised eyebrows over the weekend after he used his set at the inaugural Riyadh Comedy Festival in Saudi Arabia to blast the status of free speech in the United States.
Per The New York Times, the comedian was performing before an audience of 6,000 when he remarked, “Right now in America, they say that if you talk about Charlie Kirk, that you’ll get canceled. I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m gonna find out."
He added, “It’s easier to talk here than it is in America.”
Chappelle went on to suggest that he feared retaliation once he returned to the U.S.
“They’re going to do something to me so that I can’t say what I want to say,” he said from the stage.
His comments sparked immediate discussion, especially about the irony of criticizing American free speech laws while performing in Saudi Arabia. The country's media outlets are government-licensed, and a wide range of speech is prohibited, from dissent against the monarchy to promoting activist causes.
In 2022, doctoral student Salma al-Shehab was sentenced to 34 years in prison for retweeting women’s rights activists, though her sentence was later reduced after global backlash.
Performances at the Riyadh Comedy Festival itself reportedly came with restrictions. Comedian Atsuko Okatsuka shared terms of the appearance contract online, which barred performers from criticizing religion or the Saudi royals.
Meanwhile, comic Tim Dillon claimed he was dropped from the lineup over a resurfaced joke about Saudi Arabia after being offered $375,000 to perform.
Several comedians defended the festival as an important cultural exchange. Bill Burr, who performed during opening night and praised the event on his podcast.
“It was great to experience that part of the world and to be a part of the first comedy festival over there in Saudi Arabia,” Burr said. “The royals loved the show. Everyone was happy. The people that were doing the festival were thrilled. The comedians that I’ve been talking to are saying, ‘Dude, you can feel [the audience] wanted it. They want to see real stand-up comedy.’ It was a mind-blowing experience. Definitely top three experiences I’ve had."
The Riyadh Comedy Festival, billed on Saudi tourism sites as “the world’s largest comedy festival,” features more than 50 international performers, including Chappelle, Kevin Hart, Aziz Ansari, and Gabriel Iglesias. But the event has also been accused of “comedy washing” the Saudi regime’s record of human rights abuses in exchange for lucrative payouts.
Not every comedian was willing to take part. Shane Gillis said during an episode of his Matt and Shane’s Secret Podcast that he was offered a “significant bag” to perform but turned it down.