Dave Chapelle's long-awaited return in the form of two comedy specials on Netflix have been accused of transphobia, homophobia and insensitive to rape victims.
The Half Baked star's two shows - one filmed in Los Angeles, the other in Austin after a 10 year hiatus - include material on race relations in the US, OJ Simpson, Bill Cosby, fatherhood, and the time a man threw a banana peel at him, among other topics.
Chapelle uses the homophobic slurs "fags" and "dykes" casually in his new stand-ups, along with an extended bit on transgender rights that has riled people up.
"How the f**k are transgender people beating black people in the discrimination Olympics?" he asks as part of the joke.
"If the police shot have as many transgenders as they did n**gas last year, it'd be a f**king war in LA. I know black dudes in Brooklyn - hard street mother**kers - that wear high heels just to feel safe."
Chapelle also recalls trying to help a "man in a dress" who became heavily intoxicated at a party he was at, only to be admonished to referring to the person as a man.
"The rhetoric in Chappelle's jokes fortifies the narrative that trans people aren't real and are therefore deceiving cis people - and this is almost always the rationale for killing trans people, particularly trans women of colour," writes Tiq Milan on BuzzFeed.com.
"Seven transgender women have been killed so far this year, putting 2017 on track to be the deadliest year on record for trans people. And according to a report by the Anti-Violence Project, transgender women account for 72 percent of hate-based homicides."
Similar pieces have been published on New Republic, Jezebel and New Now Next among others.
Chapelle's new bits on Bill Cosby's alleged history of rape and NFL star Ray Rice's savage assault on his fiancé have also drawn criticism.
"Rape is never funny," writes George Johnson on Ebony.com.
"When people make these types of jokes for quick laughs, those who are silent may just be victims who are forced to relive painful traumas. Moreover, while Chappelle admitted rape is a heinous crime, making light of the Bill Cosby case and calling the elderly comedian 'the Steph Curry of rape' diminishes the effect it has on victims."
However, critics in general have been positive about Chapelle's comeback. On review aggregator website Metacritic, they've received scores of 81 and 70 out of 100.
Netflix reportedly offered Chapelle US$60 million for three shows, with the third being filmed this year.
Both Deep in the Heart of Texas: Dave Chappelle Live at Austin City Limits and The Age of Spin: Dave Chappelle Live at the Hollywood Palladium are available to New Zealand Netflix subscribers.
Newshub.
