Bill Maher admits he still fears getting canceled despite cultural 'vibe shift' after election
During a conversation about free speech with actress Drew Barrymore, Maher said it had become less "dangerous" to speak out on controversial issues as there had been a cultural "vibe shift" against woke-ism over the past two years. But he confessed he still feared that his everyday conversations in public could be used against him to end his career.
"We did have a vibe change because the Democrats lost so badly in 2024. The blush is off the rose on left-wing censorship and 'Oh my God, you can't say that.' Stop telling me what I can do. What I can say. What I can think. Who my heroes are supposed to be. Just get the f--- off me. That is what's viscerally going on with me when I have issues with the left," Maher said.
Barrymore praised him for his boldness and asked him if there was anything that still "scares" him.
"Oh, what scares me is... at any moment, you can like say something that, really in private conversation, wouldn't upset anybody. Yes. But these snitches and b----es will be able to use it to attack and end you, which they did once on 'Politically Incorrect,'" he said.
"When I go out… it's unlikely anything is going to happen that would end my career, but it is possible."
Maher explained how he carried this "paranoia" with him constantly. Although it wasn't as severe as other problems people face, he said it wasn't insignificant.
"I'm always... and now it's like a running joke because you know, 'Did anything bad happen?' Like that sort of paranoia. No. Is it as bad as things other people go through? No. But living with that paranoia is not nothing," he lamented.
"I don't feel guilty saying that's a complaint I have about life. Everybody has their complaints. That's one of mine. Is it as bad as starving? No. But it's not nothing. It kind of sucks that you can't pull into the driveway without having a peaceable night at dinner without thinking, 'Did anything bad happen?'"
The "Real Time" host previously opened up about his worries about getting canceled in a 2023 CNN interview.
"It just makes me laugh when people say to me, 'You know, you're uncancellable.' Are you kidding? In two seconds, I could get canceled. Anybody could," he told the news outlet.
Maher faced backlash for controversial remarks following 9/11, and ABC canceled "Politically Incorrect" the following year amid declining advertiser support.
Days after the terrorist attack, Maher insisted it was "cowardly" for the U.S. to use cruise missiles overseas, while the terrorists who flew planes into the World Trade Center were "not cowardly."
The liberal comedian faced intense backlash from viewers and advertisers at the time and ABC pulled the plug on his show the following year. In 2003, he launched "Real Time with Bill Maher," which continues to air on HBO.
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