Month: November 2021

Today brings great news for Deadhead cinephiles: Martin Scorsese (who turned 79 years old yesterday, by the way) is apparently “on board” to direct a Grateful Dead biopic with Jonah Hill playing the band’s famed leader Jerry Garcia. Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, the duo behind American Crime Story, are writing the script, but beyond that, not much else is known about the project at the moment.

This lack of information leaves a lot of space for imaginations to run wild, and indeed, since the news was revealed, they have all over Twitter. Building off the Hill casting, fans have been taking to social media to declare who they think should play other Grateful Dead members.

People threw out all kinds of picks for Bob Weir, even including his Dead & Company bandmate John Mayer, as well as Timothée Chalamet and Kurt Russell (for younger and older Weir, respectively).

As for Phil Lesh, some folks reckon Martin Starr might be good for the role, as would Jason Segel or perhaps even Tilda Swinton.

Plenty of picks were made beyond those, even some involving other folks from the music world playing Dead members, so check out some more fan casting tweets below.

It’s been three weeks since Eternals theatrical release and, subsequently, three weeks of Marvel hanging on to perhaps their worst-kept secret yet: Harry Styles (yes, that Harry Styles) has joined the MCU. While Marvel played it just as smooth as Styles himself while speculation, stills, and clips of the singer-turned-actor circulated all across the internet, at long last the studio is acknowledging his role in the film, and has released a poster alongside a short character bio filled with his long list of accolades.

In Eternals, Styles, ever-so-briefly, plays Eros, “the Royal Prince of Titan, brother of Thanos, the Knave of Hearts, defeater of Black Roger,” and “the great adventurer, Starfox.” First appearing in Iron Man #5 back in 1972, Eros is a long-time staple in the Marvel Universe and is known for his carefree demeanor and womanizing ways, making Styles an apt casting choice for the son of Eternals A’Lars and Sui-San. By and large, it seems like the internet (well, okay, Twitter) feels the same way about the casting choice, with several positive (and hilarious) tweets surfacing following the announcement.

However, perhaps the best tweets to come from Marvel’s big reveal are the ones drawing attention to Eros’ already existing connection to the Marvel Universe as Thanos’ baby brother. However, if that relationship has you feeling a bit on edge, rest assured that Eros does not share the same power-hunger tendencies as his brother, and is far more likely to break hearts rather than bones. He also, as the internet was quick to point out, it just a whole lot prettier than the purple, planet destroyer.

However, some folks feel that even three weeks later, it was still far too soon for Marvel to reveal Styles’ poster — even if both Styles and Eternals director Zhao have already spoken out about the casting.

Last but certainly not least, a few tweets joked about how Styles was now the latest of Taylor Swift‘s exes to wind up cast in the MCU. Styles joins Loki star Tom Hiddleston and Spider-Man: Far From Home‘s Jake Gyllenhaal (who really can’t catch a break right now) to become the singer’s third old flame to appear in a Marvel movie, just proving that this really is Swift’s world and we’re just living in it.

After learning that a new bill would put billions in the pocket of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, Bernie Sanders came out swinging on Wednesday as blasted the wealthy tech moguls and their decadent space race that has been playing out in the press. While addressing the Senate floor, Sanders voiced his criticism of the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act, which would include a massive subsidy for the already wealthy Bezos.

“This bill would provide and authorize $10 billion in taxpayer money to Jeff Bezos, the second wealthiest person in America, for his space race with Elon Musk, the wealthiest person in America,” Sanders said. “This is beyond laughable.”

At issue is Musk and Bezos essentially taking control of space exploration for their own private enterprise instead of directly benefiting the American people, who Sanders believes should be at the helm. Via Mediaite:

“It is not acceptable that the two wealthiest people in this country… take control of our space efforts to return to the moon, and maybe even the extraordinary accomplishment of getting to the moon,” he added, presumably with the intention of saying “Mars” in his second reference to the moon. “This is not something for two billionaires to be directing. This is something for the American people to be determining.”

Sanders’ remarks notably arrive not long after Musk taunted the senator on Twitter. After Sanders sent a broad, non-specific tweet about the extremely wealthy should “pay their fair share of taxes,” Musk hopped in the replies and wrote, “I keep forgetting that you’re still alive.” As someone who uses social media quite frequently, Musk should’ve been aware that Sanders is well loved on Twitter, and the Tesla CEO spent the next several hours being roasted for his swipe at Bernie.

(Via Mediaite)

Dana Boulos can’t be stopped. The photographer, director, DJ, creative director, and overall renaissance woman took a childhood passion for visual mediums and a restless spirit and spun it into a career full of boundary-breaking achievements. Her reputation precedes her as a “can do anything, will do anything” type of creative mind.

That mentality and approach is why Boulos has been identified as one of The Next 9 by Porsche. From fashion photography and consulting to a future as a feature filmmaker, Boulos got to where she is by never taking “no” for an answer.

“I’m always trying to push through the idea that everything is possible,” Boulos tells me over Zoom one unseasonably cold LA morning in October. “If you can dream it, you can achieve it. That’s something that’s been ingrained in my brain. I don’t care what anyone says, I don’t care if someone says ‘no,’ or ‘it’s never been done before.’ That’s exactly how you know you can do it.”

With a strong drive and a determination to get things done, Boulos is an expert at responding to the moment. That’s probably why when she isn’t weaving together glowing and ethereal dreamlike visuals, she’s moonlighting as a DJ, a job that requires you to not only capture the vibe of a room but respond to it and morph it into something new.

“At the end of the day, you’re creating something out of nothing,” she notes. “When it comes to DJing, you’re setting the mood… Directing is the same thing, you’re in control, but you’re managing people. Everything is a team effort, you need to know how to manage that team and bring the best out of the people you’re working with.”

Boulos credits her upbringing with equipping her with the necessary skills and tools to thrive as a multi-hyphenate.

“Both of my parents are Lebanese,” she says. “I grew up with this mentality that you work very hard and you don’t give up. They came to America with nothing in the late ‘70s/early ’80s and just decided they will make a life for themselves… I see that as motivation. Do what you love and money will come from it.”

The impact of Boulos’ parents cannot be understated. You can trace her relentlessness, her ability to accomplish any task she sets out to achieve, and her aspiration to be the best to her earliest memories.

“My dad worked so many years and finally bought a Porsche,” she says. “That car has always been in my world. It’s beautiful, it’s luxurious, but it’s also very powerful. I was lucky that when I was learning how to drive, my dad let me drive his Porsche. That had an impact on me, I thought ‘oh my god, he trusts me with this car; he believes I can do it.’”

That early instillation of confidence helped to form Boulos’ strong belief in her own abilities. It’s a skill she’s still focused on today — constantly analyzing her past work, looking for ways to improve, and take things to the next level. And it’s all been leading up to a feature film that explores her experiences growing up as a woman with a Middle Eastern background and finding her place in the world.

“It’s very traditional to get married and have the men take care of you,” she says. “But it wasn’t like that in my household. It was very much you do you, and you work hard on it. That’s something I’ll be touching on when working on cinema projects and features… Being able to do and have a funded film. That’s a whole different ball game… Having a film premiere at Sundance or Cannes. That’s the next goal for me.” Boulos says with finality, before suddenly adding, “As well as creating a physical book.”

Her ambitions are huge. Her successes are legit. And her mind never stops working. Dana Boulos is firing on all cylinders.

For more on The Next 9 series, check out our hub page.

Last year, when any talk of Adele‘s upcoming album 30 were just rumors, the singer broke her radio silence on social media to post a questionable photo. The singer was pictured sporting a Jamaican flag bikini and bantu knots in her hair, leading many on social media to call her out for cultural appropriation while others, including “White Boy Summer” mastermind Chet Hanks, had quite the opposite response. Now that’s she’s back in the limelight, Adele has finally addressed the photo once and for all.

The singer sat down for a cover interview with The Face to talk about how her life has changed since her divorce, as well as some details about her album. Adele also spoke about the photo of her from last year that sparked controversy, saying she admits she didn’t “read the room” properly, particularly since it was posted just a few months after the murder of George Floyd:

“There was so much going on in America at that point. I didn’t read the room and I f*cking should have because I live in America. But my [Black] girlfriends here, they were, like: ​’Are you alright? We’re not offended personally because we know you, but this is why [people are upset].’ My biggest question is why I felt the need to f*cking post that when I’m so f*cking private anyway. I was having such a lovely day with my friends in Jamaica, and that’s the vibe of Notting Hill Carnival for me, always has been. But I didn’t give that any context either.”

Read Adele’s full interview with The Face here.

30 is out 11/19 via Columbia Records. Pre-order it here.

Paramount+ has released a teaser for the first of 14 South Park specials on the streaming service. South Park: Post COVID catches up with Kyle and Stan 40 years in the future. They’ve grown apart — until [dramatic trailer voice] everything changes. “Remember when we were little? We said we’d always be there for each other when things got bad,” Kyle tells Stan, who replies, “What do you mean? What’s happened?” We don’t learn the answer in the clip above… or what Cartman looks like as an adult. Does he resemble his imprisoned uncle, or is he short and muscular, like Joe Rogan?

Honestly, I’m not sure if I want to know.

“It’s the boys dealing with a post-COVID world. They’re just trying to get back to normal,” co-creator Trey Parker told the Hollywood Reporter about the special. “So, it is like our show. We’re just trying to get back to normal.” Co-creator Matt Stone added, “We’re trying to make what’s on Paramount+ different from anywhere else, so hourlong made-for-TV movies is where our head is at. We’ll do two made-for-TV movies every year. They will be big, but they are not quite movie scale.” Also big: their $900 million deal.

South Park: Post COVID premieres on Paramount+ on November 25.

With no thanks at all to the Atlanta Falcons or the defense of the Cleveland Browns, Week 10 was a success in this space at 3-2 overall in NFL picks. It wasn’t fancy by any means, but through 10 weeks of NFL action, a 59 percent winning clip has emerged and there is no shame in that. Week 11 is a bit of a strange card overall but, as we do each week, let’s check in on the season-long progress before handing out some winners.

• Last Week: 3-2
• 2021 Season: 29-20-1

Come get these winners.

Atlanta Falcons (+7) over New England Patriots

This is really gross and I kinda can’t believe I’m doing it. Atlanta was hideous last week and New England won by a million. Both teams were involved in errant picks in this space. This line opened well short of seven, went to 7.5 (!) in some places, and now has settled in this range. I tend to trust home teams a bit more on Thursday evening and, while the Falcons are inconsistent to say the least, it would’ve been unfathomable to me to lay seven with the Pats in Atlanta just a few days ago. This is an overreaction and I feel obligated to take the candy.

Washington Football Team and Carolina Panthers UNDER 43 points

Washington’s defense stinks, but so does Carolina’s offense. The Panthers will be run-heavy, maybe even more so with Cam Newton, and I do trust Carolina’s defense in this spot. This feels like a legitimate slugfest and we’ll need some field goals and punts.

Indianapolis Colts and Buffalo Bills UNDER 50 points

Buffalo’s offense isn’t quite dominant right now, but I do have faith in their defense. On the other side, the Colts are more than happy to run the ball, and I’ve long thought Indianapolis was better than the perception on defense. This number is a tick high.

Seattle Seahawks (+2.5) over Arizona Cardinals

This is the season for Seattle. They’ve been in a tailspin and, after a shutout loss to the Packers last week, the Seahawks return home to face a division rival. Arizona has been fantastic this season, but Kyler Murray won’t be 100 percent if he plays. Of course, we’re hoping beyond hope that Russell Wilson got the rust off last week and is able to cook, but we’re largely just playing the number and the spot here.

Kansas City Chiefs (-2.5) over Dallas Cowboys

It’s been two weeks of Jekyll and Hyde from the Cowboys. They were horrible against Denver (and we profited) and they dominated Atlanta (and we didn’t). Meanwhile, Kansas City showed flashes of life last week. The Chiefs are usually an ultra-public side but, in playing against a Dallas team coming off a dominant win, that isn’t really the case, and we’re getting some value here at Arrowhead. Lay the small number.

Back when I first saw King Richard back in September, I didn’t know much about it other than Will Smith plays Richard Williams, the father of Venus and Serena Williams (played in the film by Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton). It’s about halfway through before Jon Bernthal shows up – you know, the guy best knows for playing the Punisher and, more recently, Tony Soprano’s dad – and he’s got knee-high socks, short shorts, a pretty fun mustache, and an “aw, gee shucks,” attitude – and, yes, it took me a couple minutes to convince myself this was actually Bernthal as the Williams sisters’ trainer, Rick Macci.

For what it’s worth, Bernthal has been getting a lot of that. It’s not the typical role for Bernthal, so much so that director Reinaldo Marcus Green wouldn’t see him until he asked for an audition, in which he lost 30 pounds from his Punisher physique in order to play the lanky Rick Macci. Ahead, Bernthal explains why he wanted to play a role like this, so different than what we are used to seeing, which leads to his own personal philosophy as far as his career path goes – he truly loves auditioning, which seems rare for an actor – and, why, to this point, his philosophy has paid off and when he gets a role, he feels he’s truly earned it.

I know this is not the way it works, but in my mind, you’re having a meeting with your team and you say, “I want to do something completely different where people don’t even recognize me at first. Get me that role.” And then you show up in this.

[Laughs] Wow, man. Nah, dude. It doesn’t go down the way it does in your mind, man.

Well, when they make your biopic, that’s the way it happens.

Are we at a fancy restaurant when that meeting happens?

Yes. In your biopic, that’s the way it happens.

“Come on, guys!”

And the audience watching your biopic then thinks, oh, that’s how that happened.

No, man.

Okay.

Look, take this for what it is. I really do not have a strategic bone in my body. And I think probably to a fault, as far as my career goes. I really do put it out there that I like to read everything. And when there’s something that I really dig, I want to go after it. I read this script, and I just thought it was this just beautiful meditation on family and on fatherhood and on faith and sports. You know, man, I’m an ex-athlete, and I’m raising kids right now who play sports and I’m seeing the full spectrum of how beautiful it can be and how toxic it can be. And then I went and sat down with Reinaldo and we kind of connected immediately. And, look, he didn’t initially see me for it…

Wait, so when you say he didn’t see you for it, did you had to talk him into it?

No, man. I was like, “Let me read for it.”

Okay.

I mean, I was almost 200 pounds. I had just got done doing The Punisher. I said, dude, let me make this easy. Let me make you a tape. Let me show you. And I love that. The double-edged sword of getting to a place in your career where things come to you, rather than you go fight for them, is you lose the ability to go audition for stuff. There’s nothing I like more than auditioning.

Really? Because I’m under the impression most actors don’t like doing that.

Look, I can’t speak for most actors. I’m sure that’s true. I’m just not that way. The audition is the only time you get to go throw your version of the character down with absolutely no one else’s input…

I see.

Where no one else can say shit. It’s your version. And then you get to walk on set sort of feeling like, hey, I earned this, and I’m here for a reason. And, look, was this very different than other things? Yeah. But I knew in my heart, for me, it just meant a lot to me. It was important to me. For me, it’s this kind of mirror to the entertainment business. Where at first, you’re completely shut out, nobody wants anything to do with you, you’re an outsider. And then, all of a sudden, you get a little bit of success and a little bit of heat, and everybody wants a piece.

This is an interesting character because his relationship with the Williams sisters is so important, but the movie does not shy away from some things that happened to his other students, like Jennifer Capriati. So what’s going through your head? Because this involves real people.

Yeah, look, any time it’s real people, it’s sensitive. I think, ultimately, what I love about this movie is that this isn’t just a highlight reel of the greatest moment in the Williams sisters’ lives. It’s this real exploration of what got them there, and their family, and the inner workings, and the nooks and crannies of it. And to me, it’s not sentimental. It’s not delivered through this kind of only-positive lens. They explore the real mistakes. Richard Williams makes mistakes, and it doesn’t shy away from that. And the same with Rick. There is no question there are moments in this film where he’s got dollar signs in his heart.

Did you meet him?

I did.

What was that like? Because, again, the movie doesn’t shy away from his relationship with Jennifer Capriati and her troubles in that decade. What did you talk about with him about that?

Look, I think oftentimes… you know, I just got done playing a real character as well, who’s in prison right now, and I was doing extensive conversations with him as well. And I think that the danger in that… and I’ve run the gauntlet there. Like, Scorsese, he wouldn’t let Henry Hill on set. He wouldn’t let Jordan Belfort on set…

Wait, I thought Jordan Belfort, isn’t he in The Wolf of Wall Street? I guess they just let him on set for that one scene then…

Right, but they didn’t let him have any contact. Yeah, you know what I mean?

Okay, got it.

And so, I think that the problem is that anytime you’re going to be portrayed in a movie, you want yourself portrayed in a certain way.

Sure, yeah.

And I’ve often found, one of the old techniques to character work in theater, they tell you the first thing you do is go find everything other characters say about your character, and that’s how you figure out who your character is. It’s not about what you say about yourself. You know, the first thing Serena said to me when I had talked to her about Rick, she said her time at Macci’s was one of the funnest times of her life, that he just made things fun. I loved working with Demi and Saniyya on tennis. I loved making them laugh. I loved when they laughed at me. I loved when they made fun of my short-shorts and my high socks and my goofy mustache. They would laugh at me every time I walked out of the trailer.

Speaking of the short-shorts, when you show up, it took me four or five minutes to convince myself that was you. I’m wondering if you’re getting that from other people, where they don’t recognize you?

Yeah, man, I definitely am.

And it’s not just the look, either. I’m talking about the whole character you’re doing. It’s just not what a lot of people are used to seeing from you.

Totally. And look, man, he’s out there. There’s no question. He is a larger-than-life character in real life. If you go onto his Instagram, if you look the guy up, if you talk to anybody who’s played at his academy, he’s larger than life. And he’s from this very specific place on the border of Ohio and Kentucky, where the accent is just this conglomeration of all these different things. And look, not enough people know who Rick Macci is, and it really mattered that I wanted to sort of get him right. I lost 30 pounds! I really wanted to look like him. I had just got off The Punisher…

I think I saw this right after I saw The Many Saints of Newark, so it was whiplash how different you look.

Yeah, and in The Many Saints of Newark I wore a fat suit to sort of makeup for the weight that I was losing for King Richard.

Oh, I didn’t know that.

Yeah, and also just getting the game of tennis in my bones was just this beautiful benefit to doing the movie, but so important. I was training three to six hours a day, every single day. And not just training tennis, but training on how to coach and learning how to feed, learning how to run drills, learning the vocabulary of that. I know how to coach tennis now! And what an unbelievable kind of opportunity. And you’re sort of halfway there, just at that, and I’m really grateful for it.

Always good to talk to you.

Rock and roll. I’ll talk to you soon.

‘King Richard’ will be in theaters this weekend and also streaming via HBO Max. You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.

Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City is not going to be the same kind of film as previous entries in the movie version of the beloved video game franchise. The latest release — which is one of several adaptations of the series that will come out in the coming years — will try to go in a direction that is not only more akin to the games, but also embraces its horror routes.

One of the leads of the movie will be Avan Jogia, who plays the traditionally cool, calm, and collected Leon Kennedy from Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 4, and Resident Evil 6. Jogia comes to the movie not only as a fan of the horror genre but as a fan of the Resident Evil games themselves — he says he’s put hundreds of hours into the series.

Funny enough, this isn’t Jogia’s first foray into the world of the undead: he played Berkeley in Zombieland: Double Tap. But with Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City, which hits theaters on Nov. 24, he’ll be taking on a character that is highly-regarded among fans of the series. Uproxx got a chance to talk to Jogia about the movie, his time spent playing games growing up, and more.

So how was filming the movie? I’m sure there’s a sense of relief now with everything kind of wrapped up and a chance to relax and wait for it to come out.

Yeah, it was great. It’s equally great to have time to yourself to reflect and relax. We shot during the pandemic, and we were one of the only films that were able to get out during the pandemic. We feel very lucky to have gotten to the end of the production with everyone being healthy and we’re excited to see it out.

What drew you to work on a project like Resident Evil in particular?

I’m a big fan of the games. I grew up playing them. I put in 500-plus hours as Leon before I was ever playing Leon in a movie. So mostly it’s sort of a childhood dream. It’s one of these moments in your life where you’re like, “Oh wow I’m playing a character that I played as a kid.” It’s an odd one and a really exciting one too.

That’s so awesome because I always think back to when I used to dress up as my favorite video game character for Halloween as a kid, and you get to actually do that for real.

Yeah! It’s crazy. And yeah, I don’t think that if you told me, “Hey, you’re going to play this guy in 20 years or 15 years,” like, no, I would never have been like, “Oh, yeah, that’s totally gonna happen.” It’s a weird thing.

What’s your favorite Resident Evil game?

I grew up with Resident Evil 4. That was my game. The world of that game is super cool and the monks and all that stuff … it was the over-the-shoulder camera switch. I think Resident Evil 3 was still the locked on camera. If you look at Resident Evil 2, the remake, that’s over the shoulder positioning like we’re more used to.

I agree. It’s a lot of fun to go back, but it’s also more terrifying. It’s funny, I go back to play some of the older Resident Evil games and it’s hard to get scared by them. Did you ever play the original game?

Oh yeah, I have to agree with you. The thing about being a game that’s there for the genesis of gaming, Resident Evil is one of those games, it’s a genre-creating title. It’s not even genre-defining. This created the survival-horror genre. And so, when you go back and play the original Resident Evil, it’s not going to be as terrifying because our palette has changed. But you have to respect the originator.

Kinda going off that, how much inspiration did you take from the original Resident Evil movies?

Honestly, I don’t think a lot. I mean, I think that (director) Johannes Roberts was really, you know, concentrated on the games as the jump-off material. Those movies are … obviously, you don’t make that many movies and make that much money, making those movies if people don’t love them. There are fans of those films. I think that this is just a different type of film. It’s more horror-centric less action-centric. It’s really a horror movie first and then it does the action and all that other stuff, but Johannes is a horror film director. So, that’s where he draws his inspiration from.

Have you watched a lot of horror movies yourself?

Yeah, I love the genre. I sorta left the genre in the early-2000s because we kinda got into torture porn and all that genre of horror film. That’s not really my thing, but yeah, I love giallo films, I like schlocky ’80s horror, I like psychological horror like Rosemary’s Baby, and I really like the new horror renaissance that’s happening with films like The Witch and Midsommar and Hereditary, and there’s other really cool films being made that are playing with the elements of horror. I think what makes me gravitate to horror is it’s such a part of our human experience. Fear is something that we experience in our lives and the thing about movies or horror films is it’s a safe way to experience that very human feeling of unease.

Going back to games, what other kinds of games do you like playing? What are some of your favorites?

My mother was a gamer. I’m second generation, she’s beaten every Zelda title, so Zelda was a part of my beginnings. I got into Elder Scrolls, Skyrim, Morrowind back in the day. Now, as an adult, I’m playing more like grand strategy games. I’m playing like Crusader Kings, games that require lengthy multi-generational strategy and you have to know about tithes and medieval law and inheritance law. It’s a really boring adult game. It’s funny seeing someone who grew up with games, their taste in games get old and lame. I was playing an Eastern European government simulation game at one point and I was like, this is too much, I gotta play something with a sword or a dragon in it, I don’t know what I’m doing.

So shifting gears here a little bit. You recently wrapped up production on a project you’re directing called Door Mouse. What was that like?

It’s super cool. For me, I’m just a fan of making stuff and creating things. I’m a fan of fans. I wanted to make a movie that sort of felt like a throwback to the films that I liked growing up. And it’s about this woman named Mouse who’s a comic book illustrator, and she doesn’t what she’s doing with her life and she’s working at this club, and these people start going missing from the club, and she has to figure out why they’re going missing. So it’s like a film noir movie where people say the cool line and have the great jacket on and like, I want to make a movie movie. So I did that, and I attempted that, and I had a really good time making it. I’m always exploring new creative disciplines and new creative mediums. I’ve written a book and I’d love to get into game design at some point, but that’s a hard niche to get into. But yeah, I like to make stuff and so directing this movie was a really fun part of myself to explore.

Dave Chappelle’s The Closer controversy has caused plenty of backlash over his trans jokes, including how he called himself “Team TERF” (in agreement with JK Rowling’s trans-exclusionary radical feminist position). He’s been cancelled from film festivals and disinvited at his alma mater (to which Chappelle responded with a slight slam), which has also pumped the brakes on the renaming of a theater in his honor. The comedian, however, is not without support, and that includes Caitlyn Jenner declaring that Chappelle is “100% right” and Jay-Z calling the comedian “brave.”

The host of HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher has also stepped up to defend Chappelle. In particular, Maher takes issue with how detractors are using the “transphobic” label for Maher’s jokes, and he was also clear (while visiting with CNN’s Chris Cuomo) on this point: “I’m team Dave and free speech.” Here’s more of what Maher said, via The Wrap:

“You say ‘going after.’ You use terms like ‘homophobia.’ I was speaking recently about ‘-phobia.’ There’s a word that’s traveled quite a bit from its original meaning. He’s not afraid of homosexuals. It’s not transphobic. This trans stuff is very new. I don’t think he, myself or any other right-thinking person thinks there aren’t such things in the world as people who are trans, who are born in a body that doesn’t align with what their brain is telling them.”

The thing is, Maher’s trying to read Dave’s mind, and Dave hasn’t actually articulated what Maher is inferring here. Chappelle did, however, declare that “gender is fact” during The Closer. His reaction to the resulting fiasco has not adopted much nuance, either. Rather, he’s been defensive, joking of his alma mater, “They’re canceling stuff I didn’t even want to do.” Of being cancelled in general, he previously claimed, “I love it.” And he also issued demands for speaking with trans Netflix employees (who haven’t taken him up on the offer as of yet).

Still, Chappelle’s receiving support for his side of the argument, and that includes Jon Stewart, who recently insisted that Dave isn’t a “hurtful” person.

(Via The Wrap)