Hannah Gadsby says Netflix's 'Gender Agenda' is a comedy special for the gays
Hannah Gadsby’s new Netflix special, “Gender Agenda,” is the direct result of what the comedian described as the “brouhaha” surrounding the streaming giant’s showcasing of Dave Chappelle.
Hannah Gadsby’s new Netflix special, “Gender Agenda,” is the direct result of what the comedian described as the “brouhaha” surrounding the streaming giant’s showcasing of Dave Chappelle, who has a history of making jokes about transgender people.
“Last time Netflix brought this many trans people together was for a protest,” Gadsby, who uses they/them pronouns, jokes at the start of the 75-minute show, referring to when hundreds of Netflix employees, many of them transgender, organized a work stoppage in October 2021 in opposition to Chappelle’s special “The Closer.”
Hannah Gadsby at the Alexandra Palace in London.Matt Crossick / Netflix“Gender Agenda,” which premiered on March 5, gives voice to seven genderqueer comedians from around the world: Oregon-based Mx. Dahlia Belle; New York-based Jes Tom and Asha Ward; Canada-based DeAnne Smith; and U.K.-based Chloe Petts and Krishna Istha. Gadsby, who has three other Netflix specials under their belt — “Nanette,” “Douglas” and “Something Special” — spearheaded the show, which they also host.
“There are just so many transphobic comedians being platformed and ritually remunerated, and I wanted to humanize genderqueer and trans comics on the very platform where they’re being dehumanized,” Gadsby said in an interview with NBC News.
Netflix declined to comment, and Chappelle did not immediately return a request for comment.
Rating: 5