John Mulaney’s show in Columbus, Ohio had a surprise warm-up for the main star – Dave Chappelle, who came for a visit from his nearby Yellow Springs home to lend a hand. Audience phones were locked in a pouch, so no video of the moment exists.
A Chappelle joke that offended some was about his recent encounter at the Hollywood Bowl with a stage crasher. He was briefly engaged by a couple in the audience.
“I mean, it wasn’t a gun, it was a knife! A gun that identifies as a knife?” Chappelle said. “He then paused, smiled a bit, and moved on quickly. The homophobic joke was him reportedly saying, “Maybe you two are gay, I don’t know, nothing wrong with that if that’s the case.”
Mulaney hugged Chappelle at the end of the set, but Fils-Aime said that the embrace Doesn’t indicate his “stance” or anything.
There were some online complaints about Chappelle’s surprise appearance from those still smarting from his allegedly transphobic comments in his Netflix specials, particularly, The Closer.
