What are the comedians going to the comedy festival?

Once again in May, the head of the Saudi Arabian Entertainment Authority, Turki Al -Sheikh Country plans To host a giant international comedy festival that includes “the best 50 comedies in the world”. In all evidence, the festival organizers made a sincere attempt to provide this noble promise, and to collect a group of, if not the best comedians in the world, the most famous. Four months later, the Rayada comedy festival begins on Friday, September 26; It will continue until October 10. If it seems like the two stars comedians, many of them are Voice defenders of freedom of expressionIt would attract the high eyebrows for their decision to perform a well -known government Political censorship and Breaking human rights violations – They have. Here is a quick summary of all the rhetoric and controversy that repeats the RIYADH comedy festival so far.

It includes a wide list of comedy comedy that it performs at the Retada Comedy Comedy Festival, Kevin Hart, Bill Pour, Gabriel Iglisias, Aziz Ansari, Louis CK. The full assortment can be seen here.

Human Rights Watch, a non -profit organization that monitors human rights standards all over the world, accused The comedians who perform at the festival being complicit in deviating attention from “brutal repression of freedom of expression and violations spread in the field of human rights.” Org refers to the timing of the festival with the seventh anniversary of the death of journalist Jamal Khashogi under the auspices of the state. They also point out that the festival occurs because the government is responsible for “an unprecedented increase in executions in 2025, without due legal procedures.” (“The Saudi authorities have implemented at least 241 people in 2025, as of August 5,” the organization Fluctuations.

Only a few comedians spoke about the reason for them in Riyadh, despite the moral questions and the construction of a violent reaction, but those who tend to refer to the big salary. Comedian Tim Delon claimed Its pod It has been offered 375,000 dollars, while some prominent comedians were offered to $ 1.6 million. Chris Desfevano said in a podcast episode 2 bears, 1 cave He is considering rejecting the opportunity, but his fiancée encouraged him to take the party to help pay the price of their wedding, their home and their children. Davidson’s house presented a similar justification in the September 23 episode of At the end of last week with Theo iPhone. He said, “I see the number and go, I will go.” The comedian added that he received an additional “FLK” because his father died during the September 11 attacks, noting that the Saudi government is widely believed to have funded the base.

Other comedians have pointed out that there is no consistency in performance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia when other governments worldwide also sponsoring moral measures. Jim Jeffrez, on the August 20 episode of At the end of last weekFor example: “People used to go,” Oh, how dared to go there after a reporter was killed? “… you don’t think our governments hear people?”

Mark Maroun and Zak Woods both released online clips mocking the Rayada comedy and participating performance artists. in Video on InstagramWoods defends the aspects of the festival against “DWEBAZOIDS” who say people should not do a comedy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. “Take a single comic name that did not raise himself to a dictator,” he said jokingly. “Sinbad, in the eighties of the last century, will go to the performance of the death who hide in Argentina. The master will make special programs for IDI Amin.” Maron, at the same time, chest Excerpt from the reserve group He thought about how to upgrade the festival: “From the people who brought you September 11: two weeks of laughter in the desert.” He added that it is “easy” to take the “highway” given that he was not asked to perform in the festival.

David Kroos, who has not been invited to perform at the festival, Make up In a blog, how it was “disgusting and disappointed very much” in those who agreed to perform, naming Chaplin, Burr, Carr and CK, and pointed to the paradox, especially from the comedians who are doing the Freedom of Freedom of Expression against Cong Culture. “You can’t talk about it again. We have all seen the contract you had to sign.” Then he indicated that the ridiculous, cheerful comedians Two thousand and cards“You thought I took money from a group of people responsible for financing al -Qaeda!”

The comedians who said they were asked to perform at the festival, but they refused Stavros Halkas and Shane Gillis. “I can’t do that,” said Halkas while talking to Desviano on the above mentioned 2 bears, 1 cave episode; Gillis said on podcast, Podcast Matt and ShaneHe rejected an “important bag” for a festival’s performance. He said, “I took an initial position.” “You are not 9/11 Your friends.”

Delon, who was initially scheduled to perform at the Retada Comedy Festival, He claimed in the September 20 episode of podcast It was removed from the festival squad because the organizers took over a problem with the jokes that he made during a precedent podcast on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s use of slave workers.

Another Magdul, NIMESH PATEL, published the Instagram story on September 25, indicating that after some additional thinking, he made a decision to return to the festival. “I will not go to Saudi Arabia,” he wrote. “I canceled last week. I said at first yes. They offered a lot of money. Since you are checking my pocket, I am not in a situation that allows me to say no in changing life. But it was not a changing life. So, I go to my moral saying on the words of thanks, but do not forget 91, or ask about you 9/11?