Ricky Gervais Defends 'Taboo' Jokes After Facing Backlash for Netflix Special

Ricky Gervais is speaking out amid the backlash surrounding his new Netflix special, SuperNature.

During his set, the 60-year-old comedian made a series of graphic anti-trans and LGBTQIA+ statements, causing significant controversy online.

Ricky made an appearance on BBC One’s “The One Show” on Tuesday (May 24), where he discussed the criticism he’d received about his comments.

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“I think that’s what comedy is for, really — to get us through stuff, and I deal in taboo subjects because I want to take the audience to a place it hasn’t been before, even for a split second,” he said. “Most offense comes from when people mistake the subject of a joke with the actual target.”

He continued, “It starts and they go, ‘What’s he going to say?’ I tell the joke. Phew, they laugh. It’s like a parachute jump — it’s scary, but then you land and it’s all OK.

“I think that’s what comedy is for — getting us over taboo subjects so they’re not scary anymore. So I deal with everything,” Ricky added. “And I think we second-guess the audience too much.”

The controversy comes after Netflix faced a similar controversy last year with the release of Dave Chappelle‘s special The Closer, in which he made a series of transphobic remarks. Netflix’s employees subsequently staged a walkout in response to his comments.