On March 21, not one, but two standup specials from Dave Chappelle’s “personal comedy vault” will be available to stream on Netflix; today, the streaming giant released the first full-length trailer, which promises a Chappelle that has not exactly mellowed with age.
A Tribe Called Quest’s “We the People…” plays over brief clips of Chappelle’s performances, which were taped in Austin in April 2015 and L.A. in March 2016. (Tribe was the musical guest during the post-election episode of SNL that Chappelle hosted, his first hosting gig.) The promo teases some provocative material, the first new specials Chappelle has released since 2004’s Dave Chappelle: For What It’s Worth. He jokes about meeting O.J. Simpson and Nicole Brown, and watching ISIS beheading videos on YouTube (“Don’t like”).
That shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering Chappelle’s victory lap has already generated criticism that the comic went too far: In November, the New York Observer reported on a set at a New York club in which Chappelle defended Trump’s “pussy grabbing” comments. (Recently, he told an interviewer for Canada’s CBC, “I think Trump’s kind of bad for comedy,” because everyone’s started to do the same jokes — though he’s staying active in politics outside comedy.) Of course, these specials were filmed before Trump won the Republican primary, so they just may be a Trump-free zone.
A third special is also in the works; watch the trailer for the first two below.