Hannah Gadsby calls out Netflix CEO for ‘dragging her into Dave Chappelle’s transphobia scandal’

Hannah Gadsby has berated Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos for dragging her “into his mess” after referring to her in a statement defending Dave Chappelle’s stand-up special “The Closer” amid accusations of transphobia and bigotry.

In an Instagram post on Friday, the Australian comedian, who has two comedy specials on the streaming platform about homophobia and sexism, offered a scathing response to Sarandos.

Referring to a memo sent to employees suggesting that Chappelle’s and Gadsby’s programs offer different content to ensure “marginalized communities are not defined by a single story,” the 43-year-old said she was “subjected.” was to hate online.

“Hey Ted Sarandos! Just a quick note to let you know I’d rather you didn’t drag my name in your mess,” Gadsby wrote on Instagram.

“Now I’m dealing with even more of the hatred and anger that Dave Chappelle’s fans love to unleash on me every time Dave gets $20 million to process his emotionally stunted partial worldview.

“You haven’t paid me nearly enough to deal with the real consequences of the hateful dog you refuse to acknowledge, Ted.

“F*** you and your amoral algorithm sect…I do things with more backbone than you.

‘That’s just a joke! I certainly didn’t cross a line because you just told the world there isn’t one,” she concluded.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Sarandos for comment regarding Gadsby’s Instagram post.

Gadsby, who hails from Tasmania, gave the scathing response after Sarandos mentioned her in his statement to staff this week, while championing the anti-LGBTQI views Chappelle is known for in his comedy specials.

“We are working hard to ensure that marginalized communities are not defined by a single story. So we have Sex Education, Orange Is The New Black, Control Z, Hannah Gadsby and Dave Chappelle all on Netflix. The key to this is increasing diversity within the content team itself,” Sarandos wrote in his statement.

Activists have pushed for Chappelle’s title to be removed from Netflix, and some of the company’s employees are planning a strike in protest.

But others have vigorously defended the comic’s special, with the family of Daphne Dorman — a transgender woman and friend of Chappelle’s who committed suicide in 2019 — saying they probably would have found his material funny.

In his long mission this week, Sarandos stood up for Chappelle’s ‘The Closer’ and the right to be available on the streaming service.

While acknowledging the trans community’s concerns, he denied that when so-called transphobic views are platformed, they lead to real-world harm, citing examples of other Netflix shows or “titles.”

“We know some of you are angry, disappointed and hurt by our decision to put Dave Chappelle’s latest special on Netflix,” Sarandos wrote in the email to staff obtained by Variety.

“With ‘The Closer’, we understand that it’s not about offensive content, but titles that can magnify real-world harm (such as further marginalizing already marginalized groups, hatred, violence, etc.)

“Last year we heard similar concerns about 365 days and violence against women. While some contributors disagree, we strongly believe that on-screen content doesn’t directly cause real-world harm,” he continued.

The film 365 Days, to which Sarandos refers, is about an Italian mob boss who kidnaps a woman he is in love with and demands that she spend the next year in his villa.

The film was criticized by sexual assault survivors, with singer Duffy writing in an open letter to CEO and co-founder Reed Hastings that it “glorifies the cruel realities of sex trafficking, kidnapping and rape.”

Sarandos’ memo continued: “The strongest evidence to support this is that screen violence has increased dramatically over the past thirty years, especially with first party shooter games, and yet violent crime has dropped significantly in many countries.

“Adults can watch violence, assault and abuse — or enjoy shocking stand-up comedy — without harming others,” he said.

GLAAD, a queer media watchdog, disputed Sarandos’ claim, with a spokesperson telling Variety that the organization “was founded 36 years ago because media representation affects LGBTQ people.

“Authentic media stories about LGBTQ lives have been cited as directly responsible for increasing public support for issues such as marriage equality,” they said.

But film and TV have also been filled with stereotypes and misinformation about us for decades, leading to real-world harm, especially for transgender and LGBTQ people of color. Ironically, the documentary ‘Disclosure’ on Netflix shows that very clearly.’

In “The Closer,” Chapelle backed author JK Rowling with her comments on gender, saying “gender is a fact” and announcing, “I’m team TERF.” TERF stands for Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist.

The term is generally used by some trans people and their allies to attack others who disagree with some parts of their call for equality for trans people.

Hot-button issues include whether trans women and girls should be allowed to compete against girls in some sports, whether trans women should have access to certain spaces — including women’s prisons and domestic violence shelters — and whether children who believe they are trans should be turned down. hormones administered to delay the onset of puberty.