Joe Rogan’s appearance on comedian Tony Hinchcliffe‘s new Netflix special is drawing criticism online.
Hinchcliffe, who gained popularity as the host of his Kill Tony podcast, went viral in October over comments he made about Puerto Rico at a campaign rally for then-presidential candidate Donald Trump. While speaking at the event, which took place at New York’s Madison Square Garden, Hinchcliffe called the territory a “floating island of garbage.”
On Monday, Hinchcliffe made his Netflix debut with a series of Kill Tony comedy specials and a solo stand-up performance. The episodes—which were filmed at Rogan’s Comedy Mothership in Austin, Texas—share the same format as the podcast. During the shows, comedian hopefuls have one minute to impress Hinchcliffe and his panel of comics or risk getting roasted.
Rogan appeared as a panelist in the first special, and his screen time sparked backlash from some viewers on social media. Newsweek has contacted Rogan’s representative for comment via email.
On the “Kill Tony” subreddit, /u/BullishPig wrote: “Joe Rogan is the Worst guest ever. Why they keep bringing him on?”
Replying to the post, /u/Creative-Cry2979 wrote, “The guy owns the place, of course he’s gonna be there if Netflix is gonna come out to film the episode.”
“There wouldn’t be modern KT without Rogans cash and influence,” /u/j0shman added.
“I understand what you are saying,” /u/cosmiccookie91 commented. “Like, I get it he kinda has to be there he owns the club, and you know it’s on Netflix, but come on, at least engage more. I feel like he’s like that on every episode that he is a guest on. I feel like he should have definitely engaged more, knowing it was going to air on Netflix. I feel like that whole Netflix show was unauthentic.”
“He just sits there and laughs,” /u/Applecity82 wrote, while /u/Born_Ad_818 added, “Not even being funny but I legit forgot he’s a comedian.”
In a separate post, /u/Imaginary-Yam-4944 wrote: “When will tony finally admit to himself he can’t keep booking Rogan for these big ticket shows. The fans don’t like him as a guest and new viewers will be deterred. Honestly I’m not even a fan of his podcast anymore, Rogans gone off the deep end and is no longer what we used to enjoy him for. Anyone who can’t see that is lying to themselves.”
Other Redditors defended Rogan, with /u/Skizzius commenting on the post, “The hardcore fans who go on Reddit don’t like him. The larger audience, including people who might watch on Netflix for the first time, do like and know him.”
“Let Tony do his thing,” /u/PraetorianAE wrote. “I appreciate whoever they choose to be guest.”
“When you have your own show you can pick who to book lol,” /u/ihaveapotato0 added.
Rogan rose to fame in the ’90s on the NBC sitcom NewsRadio and went on to host the network’s stunt show Fear Factor. Since then, he has become one of the most influential podcasters in the world with The Joe Rogan Experience, which he launched in 2009. Today, Rogan’s net worth is estimated to be about $200 million.
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