Matt Rife defends prior joke about domestic violence: ‘Not all see themselves as victims’

‘Sometimes people need to laugh to heal through the things that make them uncomfortable’

4 months ago

Comedian Matt Rife has commented again on the backlash he previously faced over a controversial joke he made about domestic violence during his Netflix special.

Last year, Matt Rife started his 2024 comedy special, Natural Selection, by talking about a waitress he’d seen with a black eye. He said: “My boy who I was with was like, ‘Yeah, I feel bad for her, man, I feel like they should put her in the kitchen or something where nobody has to see her face.’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, but I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn’t have that black eye.”

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At the time the joke sparked huge controversy and outrage, with Matt responding in an “insensitive” manner through an Instagram story. He uploaded a URL link to his story with the text: “Tap to solve your issue,” which directed his followers to a website selling helmets for people with special needs.

One year later his newest special, Lucid, has been released and he’s addressed the backlash he faced over the joke. In a new interview with he addressed the joke and explained that “not everyone wants to be seen as a victim.”

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He said: “Whether it’s depression or a physical disability, not everyone wants to be seen as a victim. They also want to laugh at themselves. Sometimes people need to laugh to heal through the things that make them uncomfortable.”

He also revealed that fellow comedian Dave Chappelle gave him some advice after the controversy, explaining: “Even when the world turned against me after the special, Chappelle was like, ‘Don’t f**kin’ give in. It doesn’t matter what you do. If you apologise, you still lost.’”

Lucid is available on Netflix now – For all the latest Netflix news, drops, quizzes and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.