Warning: This article contains discussion of racial discrimination and rape which some readers may find distressing.
Chelsea Handler has criticised fellow comedians over jokes she says crossed a line with racial subject matter during The Roast of Kevin Hart.
Roasts are designed to be harsh, with performers often pushing boundaries and aiming for shock value as part of the format.
Netflix’s The Roast of Kevin Hart, which aired earlier this month, featured a wide mix of punchlines — from Pete Davidson’s comments involving Charlie Kirk, to digs at Hart’s personal life, and even references to allegations linking him to convicted felon Diddy.
For many viewers, nothing seemed off-limits in a show built on the idea that everything is fair game.
Handler, however, has taken issue with parts of the set delivered by Tony Hinchcliffe and Shane Gillis. While speaking on Deon Cole’s podcast, she said she believed their material leaned into racism.
She argued that white comedians should not make jokes in that manner about Black people, calling them “racists” and “bigots” and saying jokes about lynching are comparable to jokes about rape.
During the roast, Gillis made a remark about Hart’s height, saying he is “so short, you’d have to lynch him from a bonsai tree”, while Hinchcliffe referenced George Floyd with the line: “The Black community is so proud of you. Right now, George Floyd is looking up at us all laughing so hard he can’t breathe.”
Floyd, a Black man, died in 2020 after being restrained by a white police officer, who knelt on his neck until he stopped breathing.
On the podcast, Handler said jokes tied to Black suffering were “disgusting”, and claimed Hinchcliffe and Gillis were using “roast culture” as cover for material she found unacceptable.
She also suggested she had anticipated an unpleasant tone based on who was booked for the lineup.
Chelsea Handler goes OFF on Tony Hinchcliffe & Shane Gillis for making “racist” jokes at the Kevin Hart Roast and claims White people should NOT be joking about Black people in that kind of way since its equivalent to joking about r-pe 😳
“I knew enough about Tony & Shane…… pic.twitter.com/jjhgXUdPBz
— Killa 🌺 (@KillaKreww) May 20, 2026
Handler went on to argue that some topics should be off-limits, focusing in particular on lynching. She added that she views it as no different from making jokes about sexual assault.
She said: “I knew enough about Tony and Shane… They’re racists, they’re bigots, they’re sexist… I don’t find those jokes funny.
“Lynching Black people is not a joke. It’s worse than rape.”
Gillis later issued a response to The Hollywood Reporter, saying: “This is a big moment for Chelsea. I am glad she’s capitalizing. Good for her. We’re all rooting for her. Anyway come see me July 17 at the football stadium in Philly.”
Hinchcliffe’s Floyd-related jokes drew backlash on the night, including from Floyd’s family.
Travis Cains, a spokesperson for The Gianna and George Floyd Foundation, told TMZ that Kevin Hart not publicly addressing Hinchcliffe’s remarks was “sad for the culture”. The outlet also reported that Floyd’s family consider Hinchcliffe to be a “racist comedian”.
After the controversy, a petition calling for Netflix to donate proceeds from the roast to the Floyd Family Center for Social Equity passed 10,000 signatures.
If you have been the victim of discrimination, you can report it via the US Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division here. In an emergency, always call 911.