{"id":10580,"date":"2026-07-19T12:59:35","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T07:59:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=10580"},"modified":"2026-07-19T12:59:35","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T07:59:35","slug":"i-dont-care-if-people-are-offended","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=10580","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;I don&#8217;t care if people are offended&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F3%2F2026%2F07%2F134843216.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft wp-block-nypost-editor-partner-article-links\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Ricky Gervais isn\u2019t backing\u00a0away from controversial comedy.<\/p>\n<p>The comedian doubled down on his long-held\u00a0defense of free speech\u00a0during a recent radio interview, saying he has no interest in changing his material to avoid offending audiences and arguing that backlash only adds to the joke.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t tell people not to be offended; I tell them I don\u2019t care if they are. Be offended if you want, it makes it funnier for me,\u201d Gervais said during an appearance on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@bbcradio2\/video\/7663879115438591254\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">BBC Radio 2.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The 65-year-old comic, whose stand-up specials have frequently sparked criticism over jokes about politics, <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/05\/24\/ricky-gervais-under-fire-for-trans-jokes-in-netflix-special\/\">gender identity<\/a>, religion and <a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2020\/01\/02\/ricky-gervais-only-regrets-one-joke-from-his-golden-globes-hosting-gigs\/\">celebrities<\/a>, rejected the idea that he intentionally sets out to provoke audiences.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can\u2019t help by what you\u2019re offended by, but \u2026 don\u2019t expect me to care \u2026 It\u2019s a myth that I go out to offend. I never go out to offend,\u201d he said. \u201cI just know that it\u2019s probably going to happen because everyone\u2019s different.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gervais argued that virtually any opinion can offend someone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s nothing you can say, particularly anything that\u2019s mildly interesting or contentious or your viewpoint, that someone somewhere won\u2019t find offensive,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Ricky Gervais doubled down on his free speech defense, saying he doesn\u2019t care if audiences are offended by his jokes. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images for SiriusXM<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Reflecting on how reactions to comedy have evolved, Gervais said audiences today are quicker to take offense than they were two decades ago.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd times have changed. Twenty years ago, if someone said I was offended by that, I probably would go, \u2018Why?\u2019 Now I go \u2026 \u2018I know you are. Everyone is.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Gervais has <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/05\/25\/ricky-gervais-defends-taboo-humor-amid-anti-trans-backlash\/\">frequently addressed cancel\u00a0culture and free\u00a0speech<\/a> in recent stand-up tours, he suggested he is ready to move on from the topic.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Gervais argued backlash only makes his comedy funnier, while insisting he never sets out to provoke audiences. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve dealt with it too much, actually. I think the last couple of tours, I have dealt with cancel culture and free speech because I felt I had to. Now, I don\u2019t have to,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m ignoring it all. I shouldn\u2019t even bring it into the room. Those people there who\u2019ve paid hundreds of pounds \u2014 they\u2019re not offended. I can play to a million people, not one complaint.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Gervais insisted the outrage over his comedy doesn\u2019t come from the crowds filling his shows. It comes after his specials reach a much bigger audience online.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The comic noted outrage often comes from his specials reaching 50 million people on Netflix, not from his live crowds. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cAs soon as\u00a0it goes on Netflix, 50 million people. Of course, there\u2019s going to be someone who doesn\u2019t like it. What am I going to do? It\u2019s too late. I\u2019ve been paid.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The comic has <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/05\/18\/ricky-gervais-claims-that-smart-people-understand-offensive-jokes\/\">long dismissed calls to tone down his material<\/a>, repeatedly defending free speech and arguing that comedians shouldn\u2019t shy away from controversial subjects.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this year, Gervais reignited debate by reposting one of the most memorable lines from his 2020 Golden Globes opening monologue, taking another swipe at celebrities who use awards shows as political platforms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you do win an award tonight, don\u2019t use it as a platform to make a political speech,\u201d Gervais told the star-studded crowd.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re in no position to lecture the public about anything. You know nothing about the real world. Most of you spent less time in school than Greta Thunberg.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reposting the quote on X, Gervais added a jab of his own: \u201cThey\u2019re still not listening.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.tiktok.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ricky Gervais isn\u2019t backing\u00a0away from controversial comedy. The comedian doubled down on his long-held\u00a0defense of free speech\u00a0during a recent radio interview, saying he has no interest in changing his material to avoid offending audiences and arguing that backlash only adds to the joke. \u201cI don\u2019t tell people not to be offended; I tell them I&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10581,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/07\/134843216.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10580","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10580","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10580"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10580\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}