Golden Globes Comedian Jerrod Carmichael Mocks Ye, Praises Spielberg

On Tuesday night’s Golden Globes awards broadcast, host Jerrod Carmichael took a comedic shot at antisemitic rapper Ye (formerly Kanye West) and praised the power of director Steven Spielberg’s filmmaking. 

Carmichael said after a commercial break, “I want to take out a second to shout out Steven Spielberg, who is here. It’s an honor sir. Congrats on ‘The Fabelmans.’ I actually saw it with Kanye and it changed everything for him.” The audience erupted in laughter at Carmichael’s joke. 

He continued his warm sentiments for the legendary filmmaker, blended with the jab at Ye: “That’s how good you are. You changed Kanye West’s mind.” 

Spielberg responded by laughing and raising his hands to the sky in prayer, as though to suggest “if only.” 

“The Fabelmans” would go on to victory at the annual awards ceremony put on by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The semi-autobiographical film about a young Jewish man’s discovery of his love for filmmaking took home the award for Best Picture – Drama, and was presented to Spielberg by fellow acclaimed director Quentin Tarantino. Spielberg himself also won the Best Director award. In his acceptance speech, the director praised his family, who inspired the movie’s characters. 

The film has seen critical success, with a high Rotten Tomatoes score of 91% based on 294 reviews. It is similarly well-regarded by viewers, receiving an 82% audience score based on over 1,000 responses. 

However, “The Fabelmans” has yet to see strong financial returns, so far only generating about $16 million globally. The Golden Globes frequently serve as a signal to potential Oscar victories, and further awards could be crucial for greater box office success for the deeply personal Spielberg project. 

Meanwhile, Ye continues to lay low after months of spouting antisemitic invective beginning in October. Recent reports continue to suggest that the hip hop mogul is potentially trying to avoid being served a $4.5 million lawsuit from his former business manager Thomas St. John. 

Ye was last spotted on Sunday attending church, where he was photographed. Ye’s forthright antisemitism and his announcement of a 2024 presidential campaign has now inspired a small movement of student activists centered around the efforts of Nick Fuentes, the noted antisemite, Holocaust denier and white nationalist who dined with Ye and Donald J. Trump in November.

After an Oct. 8, 2022 tweet in which he announced he was going “death con [sic] 3 on Jewish people,” Kanye West (Ye) has repeatedly doubled down on antisemitic hate speech, even going so far as to praise Hitler, a man responsible for the systematic murder of six million Jews during the Holocaust. This arrives at a troubling time when antisemitism is on the rise, with the Anti-Defamation League noting a 34% year-over-year increase in antisemitic incidents (assault, harassment and vandalism) in America in 2021. Many companies have cut business ties with the rapper/fashion designer, while numerous musicians, friends and politicians have condemned his comments according to Billboard.

 

Produced in association with Jewish News Syndicate.

(Additional reporting provided by Alberto Arellano)