Bill Burr has defended his appearance at the controversial Riyadh comedy festival, calling his critics “sanctimonious cunts”.
The comedian has been under fire, alongside Kevin Hart, Louis CK, Aziz Ansari and Dave Chappelle, for being on the lineup for what was billed as “the world’s largest comedy festival”. The Human Rights Watch called out the event as a distraction, aiming to focus on something light rather than the “soaring number of executions” taking place while comedians such as Marc Maron and Shane Gillis expressed disappointment. David Cross wrote that he was “disgusted” in a statement.
Burr spoke to Conan O’Brien as part of a live podcast, and said he felt “wonderful” about his appearance and doesn’t “give a fuck what all these phoney fucking people are saying”.
“It was necessary,” he said. “It felt right afterward. I vibed with them and they were funny. Fuck, they were funny fucking people. I don’t know what to tell you. I had a good time.”
He claimed he was one of the comedians who had “the most amount of shit” for appearing.
“All of these sanctimonious cunts out there … who don’t really sincerely give a shit,” he said. “If you actually give a fuck about those people and how they’re living over there, there’s gonna have to be these types of things to pull them in. And I will tell you, the Cheesecake Factory in Riyadh, it’s incredible. It’s right next to Pizza Hut and KFC, and if you want a pair of Timberlands, it’s across the street next to the Marriott, catty-corner to the fucking Hilton.”
Burr also said that the US was “moving towards” Saudi Arabia with Ice “fucking grabbing moms and dads and sticking them in a van for making illegally made fucking tacos” which he called “fucking insane”.
Since appearing, the lesbian comic Jessica Kirson has expressed “sincere regret” but said she was there to “help LGBTQ+ people in Saudi Arabia feel seen and valued”. Those in the community have zero legal protections in the country and could face execution.
Burr called out the “hardcore psycho gays” for the backlash she faced.
This week also saw Ansari, who is currently promoting his directorial debut Good Fortune, asked about the event by Jimmy Kimmel.
“It’s something I put a lot of thought into,” he said. “I have an aunt that lived there for a while and I talked to her about this and she said there’s people over there that don’t agree with the stuff that the government’s doing and to ascribe the worst behaviour of the government on to those people is not fair just like there’s people in America who don’t agree with the things the government is doing.”
He added that he thought the festival would help to push “things to be more open and to push a dialogue”. But he “shares the concerns” and has said that part of his fee is going towards organisations that support free press and human rights in the region.
Louis CK also addressed the backlash, calling the festival “a good opportunity” and saying “comedy is a great way to get in and start talking”.
Members of the Human Rights Watch had tried to meet with the comedians on the lineup before the event but had no response.
“The seventh anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi’s brutal murder is no laughing matter, and comedians receiving hefty sums from Saudi authorities shouldn’t be silent on prohibited topics in Saudi like human rights or free speech,” said Joey Shea, Saudi Arabia researcher. “Everyone performing in Riyadh should use this high-profile opportunity to call for the release of detained Saudi activists.”
In August, the Human Rights Watch stated that Saudi authorities had executed at least 241 people in 2025 and if this number continued at the same rate, it would exceed all prior yearly records.