Billed as “the biggest comedy festival in the world,” the inaugural Riyadh Comedy Festival (September 26–October 9) boasts an all-star lineup: Dave Chappelle, Louis C.K., Bill Burr, Kevin Hart, Whitney Cummings, Pete Davidson, Aziz Ansari, Jo Koy, and more, all being paid directly by the Saudi government.
The event is produced by Sela, a company owned by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, and overseen by the General Entertainment Authority — chaired by Turki al-Sheikh, a royal adviser accused of overseeing human rights abuses, including detaining critics.
Human Rights Watch slammed the festival as “whitewashing,” calling it a propaganda effort amid an ongoing crackdown on free speech. “These comedians defend free expression, but in Saudi Arabia, people are jailed for it,” said HRW researcher Joey Shea.
Even fellow comics have condemned the move. David Cross published an open letter calling it “gross,” asking what it takes for rich comedians to “condone a totalitarian fiefdom, a fourth house? A boat? More sneakers?” Marc Maron pointed out that “the same guy paying them is the one who paid to bone-saw Jamal Khashoggi.”
Despite the outrage, most headliners seem unfazed. Jim Jefferies said on a podcast, “One reporter was killed, unfortunate, but not a hill I’m gonna die on.” He later vanished from the lineup. Others joked about Saudi misogyny, Chris Distefano quipped that his fiancée couldn’t attend because “women aren’t allowed,” while Mark Normand said he’d bring his wife “to show her how good she has it in America.”
Tim Dillon was even more blunt: “So what, they have slaves? They’re paying me enough to look the other way.” He later claimed he was offered $375,000.
Comedian Nimesh Patel said he declined an offer of “life-changing money” because it wasn’t “life-changing enough,” while Shane Gillis said he took a “principled stand” by saying no, though he admitted, “I didn’t even think about it.”
Many of these comics are multimillionaires with massive touring empires. Yet, they’ve long branded themselves as defenders of “free speech” against so-called cancel culture. Chappelle called himself “team TERF” and railed against “censorship.” Bill Burr once mocked Saudi Arabia’s human rights record, saying he wouldn’t go there and risk “getting my head sawed off on YouTube.” Now he’s headlining Riyadh.
Ironically, leaked contracts show that festival performers agreed not to mock “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, its leadership, culture, or people.” The supposed champions of free expression have literally signed gag clauses.