Kevin Hart has responded to criticism of his Netflix roast, saying it’s time to “move on.”
The actor and comedian visited “The Breakfast Club” on Tuesday, May 26, and was asked to address The Roast of Kevin Hart following backlash for jokes about slavery, lynching, and the police killing of George Floyd.
While Hart admitted the George Floyd joke pushed the envelope, he said roasts are filled with insult humor.
“The George Floyd joke wasn’t a tasteful joke to our culture, to our audience. But our audience that’s watching the roast, if you’re watching the roast, you get why they’re doing it. You get why the racial humor is on the table,” said Hart.
He compared his roast to Netflix’s 2024 Tom Brady roast.
“Go look at the Tom Brady one, like that’s what they do,” he said. “It’s not new. It’s not a new agenda, it’s not a new approach to comedy.”
Related: Chelsea Handler Goes Scorched Earth Over ‘Racist’ Jokes at Kevin Hart Roast
Hart’s roast streamed live from Los Angeles on May 10, as part of the 2026 Netflix Is a Joke comedy festival.
Celebrity roasters included Hart’s frenemy, Katt Williams, along with Sheryl Underwood, Pete Davidson, Chelsea Handler, Draymond Green, Jeff Ross, The Rock, Tom Brady, Big Jay Oakerson, and Regina Hall, Na’im Lynn, Tony Hinchcliffe, and host Shane Gillis.
Hinchliffe and Gillis have faced the most criticism for jokes many people called “racist,” including Chelsea Handler who berated the two last week in a podcast interview.
Black viewers in particular have asked why Hart did not object when Gillis joked about lynching. “Kevin Hart is so short that they’re gonna have to lynch him from a bonsai tree,” said Gillis.
Or when Hinchcliffe suggested George Floyd is in hell after he was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer in 2020. Hinchcliffe told Hart, “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.”
During Tuesday’s interview, Charlamagne Tha God asked Hart if he thought Hinchcliffe “went too far.”
“It’s Tony Hinchcliffe… I don’t expect less, I don’t expect more,” said Hart, before praising the MAGA comic’s performance.
“I hate to say this, but I’m going to because we’re being honest. People are talking about that joke, talking about the set. Tony Hinchcliffe arguably had the best set, or one of the best sets, between Tony and Sheryl, and I would say Na’im had a really strong set,” said Hart.
The Central Intelligence star also mentioned Pete Davidson’s quip about the 2025 murder of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
“Pete had a great set too. Pete had a Charlie Kirk joke. Like, would I tell those jokes? No. But do I get why they’re being told? Yes,” said Hart.
He was asked about George Floyd’s brother, Terrence Floyd, who recently said Hart should have pushed back when he heard Hinchcliffe’s joke.
The comic immediately dismissed Terrence Floyd’s reaction.
“It’s my production. We’re live… What is it that you expect me to do? You want me to take a live production and stand up, and fight Tony, or have a reaction? Like, Tony told a joke. It wasn’t a tasteful joke to us. We didn’t like it. Okay… We move on!” he said.
Hart also questioned why people are still talking about the roast.
“I don’t understand why we stand on a hill, and it becomes like this, this big thing,” said Hart. “It literally is either you’re a fan of this level of content, or you’re not, and if you’re not a fan, then you don’t watch it.”
The comedian brushed off the backlash and said he gave Netflix executives exactly what they wanted.
“The job at hand was to produce a successful roast, which I did,” he said.
You can watch more of Hart’s interview here.
Discover more from Urban Hollywood 411
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
