Ari Shaffir’s comments on the death of Kobe Bryant certainly did not go over well when he initially made them. In the days since, many have voiced their displeasure in his over-the-line joke, and Shaffir also was dropped by management over his remarks. One of his close friends, Joe Rogan, and his guest on his podcast, Jim Norton, gave their thoughts on the situation.
“He needed to know that there are consequences for just saying ridiculous s— that you’re not supposed to say when people die,” Rogan said.
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Shaffir has been known to make jokes quickly after any notable celebrity passes away. Rogan admits that by doing that, and creating that audience, he feels the need to outdo himself each time.
Rogan says his Kobe joke crossed the line in a major way.
“It was so stupid, but it’s also what you said earlier, that you gotta keep ramping it up,” Rogan said. “When you do outrageous things to get people to be like ‘Oh, look at Jimmy, he’s crazy,’ you get caught in a trap and you keep doing it more and more outrageous.”
Shortly after the tragedy that took the life of Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven others, Shaffir posted a video to Twitter. In it, he made a few jokes about his passing.
“Kobe Bryant died 23 years too late today,” his video began. “He got away with rape because all the Hollywood liberals who attack comedy enjoy rooting for the Lakers more than they dislike rape. Big ups to the hero who forgot to gas up his chopper. I hate the Lakers. What a great day!”
The New York Comedy Club, where Shaffir is a performer, had to cancel some of its upcoming shows after threats reportedly came in after the comedian’s joke.
After the backlash he received, Shaffir went on to post a public apology to his Instagram. In his statement, he explained how his “dark comedy” has become a thing among his followers.
“Every time a beloved celebrity dies I post some horrible s— about them,” he wrote in the apology post. “I’ve been doing it for years now. I like destroying gods. And right when a famous person dies they’re at their most worshipped. So as a response to all the outpouring of sympathy on social media, I post something vile. it’s just a joke. I don’t really hate any of the people.”
