Dave Chappelle is the king!
Netflix has fired an employee organizer for allegedly leaking internal documents as the fallout over offensive comments in the new Dave Chappelle stand-up special continues.
The streaming platform confirmed to the Guardian on Friday it had fired the employee, whose name has not been released, for sharing “confidential” and “commercially sensitive” information outside the company.
The company said the decision came after a Bloomberg story reported data from an anonymous internal source that showed the Chappelle show’s calculated “impact value” was lower than the $24.1m cost to make it. The cost and impact data for other shows was also leaked including Squid Game, its most popular series, which cost $21.4m.
“We understand this employee may have been motivated by disappointment and hurt with Netflix, but maintaining a culture of trust and transparency is core to our company,” the spokesperson said.
Frustration over the company’s release of the Chapelle special – in which the comedian makes a series of anti-trans jokes about gender-neutral pronouns and the genitalia of transgender people – has sparked “unprecedented” leaks from incensed employees, the Bloomberg story said.
Chappelle has previously been criticized for his comments attacking the trans community in earlier comedy specials.
The employee who was fired Friday is currently pregnant and has been a lead figure in encouraging trans employees and allies to walk out of work in protest, a report from the Verge said.
In the face of increasing backlash, Netflix has repeatedly doubled down on its support of the special. In multiple internal memos, co-CEO Ted Sarandos dismissed criticisms of the special and defended Netflix’s decision to release it.
