Jimmy Kimmel grills Aziz Ansari for Riyah comedy…
Liberal discuss show host Jimmy Kimmel grilled comic Aziz Ansari on Monday for performing at a comedy competition in Saudi Arabia, noting he’s one of many to be scrutinized for taking money from Saudis.
The leisure world has been rocked in latest weeks by a huge comedy competition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, that includes many of the world’s best-known working comedians.
The performers have been accused of normalizing or “artwashing” the Saudi Arabian regime with their leisure.
One comic who refused to take part in the competition, Atsuko Okatsuka, shared purported screenshots of a contract that performers allegedly had to signal guaranteeing their content didn’t violate the rules of the Saudi Arabian authorities.
The contract reportedly prohibited “any material considered to degrade, defame, or bring into public disrepute, contempt, scandal, embarrassment, or ridicule” the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
“This is, obviously, something that’s become a big part of the news because people, a lot of comedians especially, are very upset, because the people who paid the comedians to come to this are not good people. It’s a pretty brutal regime. They’ve done a lot of horrible, horrible things,” Kimmel told Ansari, asking him why he’d carried out it.
Aziz Ansari speaks with Jimmy Kimmel during his look on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on Oct. 6, 2025. Disney via Getty Images
Anzsari was among the performers accused of normalizing or “artwashing” the Saudi Arabian regime with their leisure. Disney via Getty Images
Ansari answered that he put a great deal of thought into his selection to attend, noting an aunt of his who lived there for some time argued there are loads of people in Saudi Arabia who don’t agree with what their authorities is doing, just like in the United States.
While Kimmel agreed in concept that “we’re doing horrible things over here” in America, he argued the Saudi Arabian authorities is clearly on a different stage.
Jimmy Kimmel during a capturing of his show on Sept. 23, 2025. Disney
Aziz Ansari was among 26 comedians to carry out at the Riyadh Comedy Festival between Sept. 26 and Oct. 9, 2025. Riyadh Comedy Festival
“They murdered a journalist. These are not good people over there,” Kimmel said, in reference to the notorious state-sponsored homicide of Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Turkey in 2018.
“I was just there to do a show for the people,” Ansari replied. “Whenever there’s repressive societies like this, they try to keep things out — whether it’s rock ‘n’ roll music or blue jeans — because it makes people curious about outside ideas, outside values. And this is a very young country. Like, half the country is under the age of 25, and things can really change. And, to me, a comedy festival felt like something that’s pushing things to be more open and to push a dialogue.”
He said he hoped he’d pushed issues “in a positive direction.”
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