Ted Sarandos Sticks by Chappelle Stance but Says ‘I Screwed Up’ Response to Backlash

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos is still supportive of comedian Dave Chappelle, as he proved at last night’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Cleveland. Sarandos, joined by his wife, Nicole Avant, was there to support his father-in-law, former Motown Chairman Clarence Avant, who was getting inducted

For the last couple of weeks, the controversy that surrounded the Dave Chappelle comedy special, “The Closer,” seemed positioned as a fight between Netflix and the LGBTQ community, specifically those that work at the streaming service. This is because Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos seemed to be the bad guy, releasing statements that were tone deaf, at best, and insulting/offensive, at worst.

controversial Netflix comedy special “The Closer” after his comments about the trans community raised some eyebrows.The comedian, 48, shared a five-minute video on Instagram Monday where he performed standup and responded to the backlash. Chappelle stated that he will meet with transgender Netflix employees, however, he won’t be “bending to anybody’s demands.”“To the transgender community, I am more than willing to give you an audience, but you will not summon me.

After nearly three weeks of controversy, Netflix firings and suspensions of trans staff, and protests on the streets of Hollywood over remarks centered on the trans and LGBTQ+ communities by Dave Chappelle in his The Closer special, the comedian today is finally responding significantly — and it’s a mixed bag, to put it mildly.

Jon Stewart is putting on his public relations cap in defense of longtime friend, comedian Dave Chappelle, who Stewart is adamant was not trying to be divisive in his latest comedy special, "The Closer."  Netflix employees staged a walkout on Wednesday after previously taking to social media and issuing internal memos to the streamer’s co-CEO Ted Sarandos, calling for the comedy offering to be removed from the platform after many felt Chappelle made jokes negatively impacting the transgender

Perhaps the most unique aspect of the latest outrage against Dave Chappelle and his stand-up comedy is the fact that Chappelle himself doesn’t seem to be the one stoking the anger even more. In fact, the mess that Netflix finds itself in now after the release of “The Closer,” which many say contains dangerous transphobic content, was largely due to how the co-CEO of the streaming service, Ted Sarandos, handled the situation.

The head of Netflix is walking back some of his words.

Netflix boss Ted Sarandos has admitted he “screwed up” after defending Dave Chappelle’s new comedy special.Chappelle and Netflix were criticised by the LGBTQ community over several jokes featured in his new special, where he labelled himself “team TERF” when discussing the controversy surrounding Harry Potter author JK Rowling.In the wake of the special’s release and subsequent controversy, Netflix then fired an employee for leaking information about the special.Sarandos had sent a memo to

Matt Donnelly Senior Film WriterNetflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos is speaking out over continued criticism of the Dave Chappelle comedy special “The Closer.”On the eve of a planned employee walkout at the streaming giant — organized by trans and LGBTQ+ staffers, content creators and allies — Sarandos addressed numerous points related to recent jokes from Chappelle that have incensed the trans community and been labeled as harmful.The events around “The Closer” have represented a rare blunder for

Today was a big day for Netflix, which reported strong quarterly earnings and “mind-boggling” 142 million households that have sampled runaway hit Squid Game. But the celebration was subdued in the streamer’s upper echelons as the company is still reeling from the internal — and external — backlash against transphobic statements in Dave Chappelle’s latest Netflix special The Closer.

Ted Sarandos has made a new statement following the backlash over his support of Dave Chapelle‘s recent comedy special.

present a public service announcement delivered by celebrities who have worked with Netflix. According to Variety, the group includes Jamil, Van Ness, Haynes, Ross, O’Hara, Sara Ramirez, TS Madison, Our Lady J, Alexandra Billings and Joey Soloway and others.The post also directs readers to the Facebook event page for the walkout, where Team Trans* shirts are available for purchase.

Organizers of a planned walkout this week at Netflix of the streamers’ trans employees said Monday that they will present a list of “firm asks” to company co-CEO and chief content officer Ted Sarandos and are working on a public service announcement supporting their cause that includes participation from Queer Eye‘s Jonathan Van Ness, upcoming She-Hulk star Jameela Jamil, Sara Ramirez, Angelica Ross, TS Madison, Eureka O’Hara and Colton Haynes.

Hannah Gadsby is speaking out.

Christopher Vourlias Before Netflix had grown into a world-conquering streaming giant, “Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry” director R.J. Cutler would routinely bump into the company’s co-CEO Ted Sarandos on the film festival circuit.

GLAAD said in a statement. “But film and TV have also been filled with stereotypes and misinformation about us for decades, leading to real world harm, especially for trans people and LGBTQ people of color.”In Sarandos’ memo, first published by Variety, he amplified remarks he’d already made in defense of the comedy special.

Hannah Gadsby is slamming Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos over his recent comments defending Dave Chappelle’s controversial stand-up special, “The Closer”.

Naman Ramachandran Australian comedian Hannah Gadsby has spoken out strongly against Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos after being referenced in his memo defending Dave Chappelle.“Adults can watch violence, assault and abuse – or enjoy shocking stand-up comedy – without it causing them to harm others,” Sarandos had said in a staff memo on Wednesday, as revealed by Variety. “We are working hard to ensure marginalized communities aren’t defined by a single story.

From the moment Netflix announced itself as an original programming player with House Of Cards, the streamer has been touting its great relationship with talent. That reputation has taken hit over the last week in the wake of Dave Chappelle’s controversial new special The Closer which has had top Netflix talent denounce the comedian’s comments about transgender people as well as Netflix’s support of Chappelle led by co-CEO Ted Sarandos.