Comedian Dave Chappelle compared interactions with actor Jim Carrey while filming 1999's Man on the Moon to trans-identifying people in his latest Netflix special.
Chappelle, who said he was "the biggest Jim Carrey fan in the world," opened his latest comedy special, The Dreamer, by recounting his experience meeting Carrey on the set of the film after late comedian Norm MacDonald offered to introduce them. Upon meeting Carey, Chappelle learned the actor remained in character as comedian Andy Kaufman on and off camera during the film's production.
"I didn't know any of that," Chappelle said. "I just walked in there to meet him, and when he walked into the room where we were supposed to meet, I screamed, 'Jim Carrey!'"
Chappelle said the film crew told the comedian to refer to Carrey as "Andy," to which Chappelle said he "didn't understand."
"And then he came over and he was acting weird," Chappelle continued. "I didn't know he was acting like Andy Kaufman."
The comedian said he obliged requests and referred to Carrey as his character in the film, though said he was "disappointed" because he "wanted to meet Jim Carrey."
"I had to pretend this n---a was Andy Kaufman all afternoon," Chappelle told the audience. "He was clearly Jim Carrey. I could look at him and I could see he was Jim Carrey."
Then, Chappelle fired off his punchline: "That's how trans people make me feel."
Social media users praised Chappelle's latest special following its release.
Activist Chris Elston, who goes by “Billboard Chris," said Chappelle was "telling the truth about trans" in an X post.
"Whatever your opinion about Dave Chappelle or even Jim Carrey, this analogy is spot on," wrote researcher and editor at Wrong Speak Publishing, Haley Kennington.
"This is how you handle bullies," wrote another user. "You never bend the knee."
Chappelle, who often jokes about transgender-identifying people and other LGBTQ+ topics during his performances, famously discussed backlash to his routine during his 2021 special, The Closer.
In the previous special, the comedian detailed his experience working with a less experienced transgender-identifying comedian named Daphne Dorman, who committed suicide in 2019. During the special, Chappelle, who said he developed a friendship with Dorman, fired off a series of jokes about his late friend and the LGBTQ+ community's response to his bits, though declared he would not joke about the topic in the future.
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"I don't know what the trans community did for her, but I don't care because I feel like she wasn't their tribe, she was mine," Chappelle said of Dorman during The Closer.
"She was a comedian in her soul," Chappelle added. "He was a wonderful woman."
