Shane Gillis stirs controversy with Trump, Bill Belichick jokes during edgy ESPY Awards monologue
It's not uncommon to see the host start to light up the crowd with some playful jabs here and there at award shows, but Gillis' biting humor drew some jeers along with cheers inside the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
One of his most-discussed jokes revolved around new North Carolina Tar Heels head football coach Bill Belichick, as Gillis made a comment about his 24-year-old girlfriend, Jordon Hudson.
"A bookie is what Bill Belichick reads to his girlfriend before bedtime," Gillis prefaced his joke. "They read, 'Very horny caterpillar,' 'The Little Engine That Could But Needed A Pill First,' and of course, the classic, 'Good Night Boobs.""
The divide in the crowd started to come when Gillis mentioned Joe Rogan with a joke about NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, but it quickly turned into something aimed at President Donald Trump.
"Joe Rogan actually wanted me to be here to host this award show so that I could capture Adam Silver because Joe thinks he's an alien," Gillis said. "And Donald Trump wanted me to be here to capture Juan Soto for the same reason."
Gillis didn't stop there with the Trump mentions, as he poked fun at the 47th president for recently saying he wants to stage a UFC fight at the White House.
Then, it got into the current political argument around the supposed Jeffrey Epstein client list.
"Donald Trump wants to stage a UFC fight on the White House lawn. The last time he staged a fight in D.C., Mike Pence almost died," Gillis said. "… Actually, there was supposed to be an Epstein joke here, but I guess it got deleted. Probably deleted itself, right? Probably never existed. Let's move on as a country and ignore that."
Gillis also mentioned WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark, which didn't get the best of reactions after what he "predicted" when she retired.
"She's going to work at a Waffle House so she can continue doing what she loves most, fist-fighting Black women," Gillis said to a mixed reaction.
Finally, another interesting joke choice was taking a shot at the late O.J. Simpson, which was an ode to the late comedian Norm Macdonald, the host of the show in 1998.
"Travis Hunter won the Heisman Trophy this year," Gillis said. "He's the first defensive player since Charles Woodson to win the Heisman. Congratulations, Travis Hunter, winning the Heisman, that's something they can never take away from you. Unless you kill your wife and a waiter, in which case, they can take that away from you."
Gillis, who stars in the Netflix series "Tires," also took aim at Aaron Rodgers, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and more in what some view as off-color, while others thought it was just for laughs.
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