Ben Stiller Blasted by Emmys Viewers After 'Fleabag' Comment

During the 2019 Emmys broadcast, Ben Stiller made a joke about the series Fleabag that wound up getting the actor blasted by viewers and fans. During the show, one of the jokes that Stiller delivered referred to the Amazon Prime series as a "comedy about a sex addict." This did not sit will with fans of the series, who quickly took to social media to let the actor know what they really thought about his quip.

"Ben Stiller is about as funny as syphilis. Please take your talentless a— away, and stop sullying the legends that are your parents," one person boldly tweeted.

"Ben Stiller out here slandering FLEABAG, get your jumpsuits ladies we revolt at dawn," another fan joked.

"The disrespect from Ben Stiller," someone else wrote, "Fleabag is much more than that."

Ben Stiller described Fleabag as a “comedy about a sex addict” pic.twitter.com/AL0gXZKRWf

— Liam Floyd (@liamfloyd) September 23, 2019

"I care about Ben Stiller understanding Fleabag about as much as I care about understanding why we still have Ben Stiller," one other upset fan stated.

Not everyone was angry with Stiller, however, as one person pointed out that he likely did not write the joke himself, explaining, "People in my tl seem to believe Ben Stiller wrote the line about Fleabag being a sex addict, so I worry it would break their hearts to know a) presenters don't write their copy; which means b) that line went through DOZENS of brains who all went, 'Yup, perfect.'"

Ben Stiller: "Imagine (@BobNewhart's) surprise if he saw some of tonight's nominees, like Fleabag, a comedy about a sex addict, or Barry, a funny show about a cold-blooded killer."

Me: "Have you never watched an episode of The Bob Newhart Show?"

— Michael Dale (@MichaelDale) September 23, 2019

Notably, Stiller was not the only star to find themselves the target of online criticism during the 2019 Emmys show, as Masked Singer judge Jenny McCarthy was also blasted by social media users over her handling of Red Carpet hosting duties.

"Is Jenny McCarthy drunk? She just told Christina Applegate that she grew up watching her on TV and remembered thinking she wanted to be like her when she was older...but...she's only 1 year younger than Christina," one person said of McCarthy's behavior. "Christina seemed annoyed by the whole interview."

The show overall was also not as big of a success as Emmy broadcasts in years past, as TV Line reports that it only brought in about 6 million viewers. This is down nearly 40 percent form 2018.