Comedians slam Saudi Arabia’s attempt to whitewash its crimes with ‘world’s largest comedy festival’

Laughter is the kind of wholesome and unifying thing the world needs more of. But not when it serves to whitewash the war crimes of dictatorial regimes. And that’s why comedians are calling out their peers’ participation in the “world’s largest comedy festival” in Saudi Arabia.

As the Canary has reported, the chauvinist Saudi regime commits countless human rights abuses. It has strong links to the non-state terrorism of groups like Al-Qaeda and Daesh (Isis/Isil). It created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis in Yemen via a brutal bombing campaign, leading it towards Earth’s worst famine in a hundred years. And it played a key role in the destructive escalation of the Syrian civil war. Indeed, before the US-Israeli genocide in Gaza, Washington’s lucrative support for Saudi Arabia was possibly the best proof that the empire had no interest in human rights or democracy in the world.

Now, Saudi rulers want us to just laugh about it all.

Don’t laugh at the regime, though…

Comedian Atsuko Okatsuka rejected an offer to help whitewash the Saudi regime’s crimes. And she shared an image showing the type of censorship performing comedians would have to submit to:

Indeed, organisers fired comedian Tom Dillon after he “joked on his podcast about Saudi Arabia’s poor human rights record”. He had transparently said “they are paying me enough money to look the other way”. Other comedians, meanwhile, joined Okatsuka in rejecting high-value offers.

High-profile comedians like Jimmy Carr, however, have accepted offers to perform. This is despite Carr defending freedom of speech and his ability to “joke about anything“. Carr has apparently tried to keep this performance under the radar.

Other big names performing include Dave Chappelle, Jack Whitehall, Bill Burr, and Chris Tucker. There seems to be a notable lack of female performers, though, which is very much on brand for a country that has institutionalised the misogynistic treatment of women.

Saudi Arabia comedy festival: whitewashing an execution spree

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has pointed out that:

In 2025, the Saudi government has been on an execution spree to crush peaceful dissent, including speech.

By early August, Saudi authorities had executed more than one person per day, including “peaceful activists and journalists”.

Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), however, seems to be hoping that his aggressive bankrolling of “high-profile events featuring major international artists, celebrities, and sports figures” will whitewash his regime’s abuses.

HRW researcher Joey Shea said performing comedians who don’t call out Saudi Arabia’s abuses:

risk bolstering the Saudi government’s well-funded efforts to launder its image

She added that the comedy festival is:

just one small example of how, over a longer period of time with enough of these events, with enough of these high profile investments, this whitewashing strategy is incredibly effective.

A number of comedians have slammed their peers for participating. Zach Woods took a satirical shot, saying:

Name one comedian who hasn’t whored themself out to a dictator

He added, sarcastically:

Ugh, what a cock block Human Rights Watch is for comedy!

Referring to co-headliner and sexual predator Louis CK, Woods’s video carried the title:

Louis CK AND the Saudi Royal Family! Who could ask for more?!

@zachwoods

Louis CK AND the Saudi Royal Family! Who could ask for more?!

♬ original sound – Zach Woods

Comedian David Cross, meanwhile, commented:

I was not offered the gig but it should go without saying that there’s not enough money for me to help these depraved, awful people put a “fun face” on their crimes against humanity.

He added:

I am disgusted, and deeply disappointed in this whole gross thing. That people I admire, with unarguable talent, would condone this totalitarian fiefdom for…what, a fourth house? A boat? More sneakers?

And he said:

I don’t understand how being rich can make someone such a whore. Poor people desperate to improve their (or their families lives), sure. Still not acceptable but I can understand the desperation to put food on the table. But this? I mean, it’s not like this is some commercial for a wireless service or a betting app. This is truly the definition of “blood money”. You might as well do commercials for Lockheed Martin or Zyklon B.

The only way people may forgive performing comedians, he suggested, is if they use their platform to take a shot at the regime with a comment like:

Alright, so it’s great to be here. I’m gonna be killing it tonight! But in the good way! Straight up. No MbS.

Featured image via the Canary