John Cleese reportedly had his microphone confiscated after making a controversial remark about ‘competition’ between cultures.
The 82-year-old Monty Python star fronted his titular event, John Cleese in Conversation at SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, on March 11 – alongside fellow comedians Dulcé Sloan, Jim Gaffigan, and Ricky Velez.
According to the Hollywood Reporter Cleese along with his fellow comics discussed colonisation in the talk.
‘[People] get competitive about this business of being oppressed,’ the Rat Race actor said. ‘You do know the British have been slaves twice, right.’
The publication claims that members of the audience were uncomfortable over the comments, reporting that while some were ‘laughing and applauding, some weren’t, and it was hard to know how exactly to take it.’
In an attempt to stop the actor from saying more, Sloan reportedly took away Cleese’s microphone, and told the audience: ‘I saved a comic whose career I respect.’
However, Cleese reportedly replied: ‘I want reparations from Italy.
‘And then the Normans came over in 1066… they were horrible people from France and they colonised us for 30 years and we need reparations there too, I’m afraid.’
Speaking afterwards, Cleese is thought to have told the crowd: ‘The thing is, I’m going to be dead soon. That’s why I’m in favour of global warming – I don’t want to be cold ever again.’
The star, who is best known for comedy classics such as Fawlty Towers, provided further insight into his upcoming cancel culture documentary, John Cleese: Cancel Me, in November 2021.
The documentary, which is set to premiere this year, will explore the positive and negative aspects of the phenomenon.
‘There was a poll in Britain asking do you know what cancel culture is, 58% of the people didn’t,’ he said.
‘I’m trying to figure out the good side of it and the not so good, some, not all of the woke don’t understand anything about irony.’
Metro.co.uk has reached out to reps for John Cleese and SXSW for comment.
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