Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
Human Rights Watch They have said that they are “unable to accept” donations from comedians performing at the Riyadh Comedy Festival. Aziz Ansari He said he planned to donate part of his fees to rights groups.
Riyadh Comedy Festival hosted for the first time saudi arabiaGovernment of, ran from 26 September to 9 October 2025 as part of “Vision 2030”. This initiative is the brainchild of the Saudi Crown Prince mohammed bin salmanalso includes The highly controversial LIV golf tournament and investments in the technology, gaming and venture capital sectors.
After the festival was first announced in July, prominent comedians such as Kevin Hart, dave chappelleJack Whitehall, Aziz Ansari and Jimmy Carr were announced as part of the lineup. According to one comedian who was previously invited, it was believed that the performers were earning anywhere from several hundred thousand dollars to more than a million.
In those days, Comedians labeled as “sellouts” by some peers and fansAnd faced heavy criticism for agreeing to be part of the festival. Critics pointed to a number of rights issues Washington Post Journalist Jamal Khashoggi‘S murder And there has been an increase in sentences ranging from executions for non-fatal and drug-related crimes to long prison sentences for social media posts.
Defending his decision to perform at the festival, Ansari said he did not think it was fair to “blame the worst behavior of the government” on people who live in the country and do not agree with it.
He said he “shared the concerns raised by people, and it’s all legitimate” and that he discussed with his team the possibility of donating “a portion of the fee” to “functions that support the free press and human rights” such as Reporters Without Borders and Human Rights Watch.
Comedian Jessica Kirson also said she “deeply” regretted performing and would donate her entire fee to an unnamed human rights organization.
In a statement, Human Rights Watch said they were “unable to accept donations”.
“Human Rights Watch urged the protesting comedians to call for the release of human rights defender Waleed Abu al-Khair and female fitness instructor and women’s rights activist Manhail al-Otaibi. No one appears to have done so publicly,” said Joy Shea, Saudi Arabia researcher at Human Rights Watch.
He said, “Human Rights Watch did not call on comedians to boycott the Riyadh Comedy Festival, but instead asked them to express their support for freedom of expression by urging the release of unjustly imprisoned Saudi activists.”
“Aziz Ansari and other comedians have generously offered to donate part of their performance fees to rights groups like Human Rights Watch, but although we cannot accept it, it is not too late to call for the release of detained Saudi activists.
“Riyadh Comedy Festival is part of the Saudi government’s cover-up strategy Its human rights record is poorAnd it is the responsibility of the participating comedians to avoid tarnishing the reputation of the government.
Human Rights Watch issued a similar statement in September, calling on the lineup’s comedians to “use the comedy festival to publicly urge Saudi authorities to free unjustly detained Saudi dissidents, journalists, and human rights activists.”
Independent Ansari’s representatives have been contacted for comment.
Tim Dillon, a comedian who was supposed to perform, but instead performed He was later dropped from the line-up for joking about slavery in Saudi Arabia.Said he was offered $315,000 (£236,710) for one show. Dillon claimed that his more famous colleagues were paid more than $1.6m (£1.2m).
Pete Davidson defended his decision to participate, telling podcaster Theo Vaughan that he agreed to perform after seeing the amount to be paid.
Comedians Jim Jefferies and Chris Distefano also cited the high salaries in their defense. “I didn’t even want to do it,” Distefano told Stavros Halkias. “And then [Distefano’s wife] It was like ‘You’re going to take that stupid money.’
Comedian Shane Gillis said he was offered a spot at the festival, but turned it down, citing the Saudis’ alleged involvement in funding the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which Saudi Arabia has repeatedly denied. He claimed the festival “doubled” its offer after he said no.
Marc Maron addressed the irony of flamboyant comedians performing in a state accused of brutally suppressing free speech, asking: “How do you promote this? ‘From the people who brought you 9/11, two weeks of laughter in the desert – don’t miss it.'”
American comedian David Cross also said he was “disgusted and very disappointed by this whole wretched thing”. and called out comedy veterans Chappelle, Louis CK, and Burr for their past statements on “cancel culture” and “freedom of speech.”
reportedly dave chappelle “It’s easier to talk here than in America,” he told the audience of approximately 6,000 during his set.,
“Right now in America, they say if you talk about it charlie kirkThat you will be cancelled. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but I’ll find out,” he said. Chappelle later said he was worried about returning to the United States because “they’re going to do something to me so I can’t say what I want to say.”