Dave Chappelle and Netflix Working on Multiple New Projects
Despite the controversy surrounding Dave Chappelle's most recent project with the streaming service, Netflix is morning forward with additional specials from the comedian. On Friday, The Hollywood Reporter shared that Netflix announced four new comedy specials that will be hosted and executive produced by Chappelle. Each of the specials will feature a different comedian who will be introduced by Chappelle himself.
This new series of specials will be titled Chappelle's Home Team. The four specials will each feature a different comedian at the helm. The first of the specials, Earthquake Legendary, is set to premiere incredibly soon, as it will drop on Feb. 28. Earthquake Legendary will feature comedian Earthquake, whose real name is Nathaniel Martin Stroman. The next will feature Donnell Rawlings. However, details for the second special, including a name and a release date, have yet to be released. While all of the specials will feature a different comedian's stand-up routine, they will all be individuals who have been in the comedy game for at least 30 years.
"I've been doing this a long time and comedians like Quake and Donnell are not only friends but have inspired my own career," Chappelle said about this new project. "Anyone in the comedy community knows these names and knows their time to shine is long overdue. I am proud to be a part of this moment." Chappelle will be executive producing the specials alongside Stan Lathan, Earthquake, Rikki Hughes, and Jermaine Smith. Lathan, who frequently collaborates with Chappelle, will also direct the four specials.
Chappelle's fans know that this news comes months after he came under controversy for the most recent of his Netflix stand-up specials, The Closer. In the special, which was released in October, Chappelle made a series of controversial jokes targeting the LGBT community and, more specifically, the transgender community. The comedian was specifically called out for using the transgender community as a punchline, as he joked about gender and sided with J.K. Rowling's controversial TERF ideology.
In response to the controversy, Ted Sarandos, the CEO of Netflix, released a statement and initially defended the special. Amid protests from Netflix's own employees, Sarandos later admitted that he "screwed up" and that he should have been more sensitive to the company's employees. At the time, he stated that Chappelle's The Closer was "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."