According to Kevin Hart, he “personally [doesn’t] give a s***” about so-called cancel culture — but he certainly has a lot to say on the matter.
“Nobody’s perfect” seems to be the rallying cry of those opposed to cancel culture — including Kevin Hart.
In an interview with the Sunday Times, the comedian and actor attacked the internet trend, saying, “Shut the f–k up!”
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Cancel culture — the viral phenomenon of “canceling” people, brands, companies and shows because of problematic ideologies either from the past or present — has changed comedy, according to Hart, 41. Things that used to be funny or accepted are now cancellable, and the possibility of old stand-up bits and tweets resurfacing could “bite you in the ass.”
The only way to grow, he said, is to mess up and learn from it.
“If you allow it to have an effect on you, it will. Personally? That’s not how I operate,” Hart told the UK outlet. “I understand people are human. Everyone can change.”
Hart, having been canceled a number of times in recent years, also reflected on stepping down from hosting the Oscars in 2019 after receiving backlash on the internet over homophobic tweets and old jokes.
He posted a lengthy apology on his Instagram after the debacle, re-emphasizing the need for personal growth that comes from learning from mistakes.
Hart isn’t the first celebrity to mock cancel culture, though. Last month, Chris Rock blamed the trend for creating “boring” entertainment because people are playing it too “safe.” Both comedians echoed similar sentiments about cancel culture transforming the comedy sector.
While the cancel culture trend has gained traction the last few years — most notably with Ellen DeGeneres and J.K. Rowling in 2020 — this year, even Dr. Seuss was subject to cancel culture.
In March, the books’ publisher announced it was pulling the licensing to six titles due to offensive depictions of black and Asian characters.
According to Hart, comedians like himself are holding themselves back for fear of running afoul of a sensitive climate.
“You’re thinking that things you say will come back and bite you on the ass,” he said of censoring his material. “I can’t be the comic today that I was when I got into this.”
He later clarified that ruffling feathers with an off-color joke is “not necessarily about cancel culture, it’s backlash.
“It’s about the intent behind what you say — there’s an assumption it’s always bad and, somehow, we forgot comedians are going for the laugh. You’re not saying something to make people angry. That’s not why I’m on stage. I’m trying to make you laugh and if I did not make you laugh I failed. That’s my consequence.”
Ultimately, Hart feels that society should be able to have disagreement without division or backlash.
“If there’s a message to take from anything I’ve said, it’s that in this world of opinion, it’s OK to just disagree,” he told the paper. “It’s OK to not like what someone did and to say that person wasn’t for me. We are so caught up in everybody feeling like they have to be right and their way is the only way. Politics is f***ed up because, if you don’t choose our side, you’re dumb.
“It’s a divide. It’s f***ed up. But I’m not about to divide. I don’t support the divide! I put everybody in the f***ing building. We all come into this building Kevin Hart is in and we all laugh. I bring people together — like it or not.”
The father of four also addressed the controversy surrounding his Oscars announcement and his past jokes about the LGBTQ community.
“If people want to pull up stuff, go back to the same tweets of old, go ahead,” he said. “There is nothing I can do. You’re looking at a younger version of myself. A comedian trying to be funny and, at that attempt, failing. Apologies were made. I understand now how it comes off. I look back and cringe. So it’s growth. It’s about growth.”
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