Former Seinfeld stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Jerry Seinfeld have made clashing statements on the state of comedy, with Seinfeld speaking out against political correctness and Louis-Dreyfus labeling such complaints as a "red flag."
Jerry Seinfeld sparked online discourse when complaining about the current state of comedy in an interview with the New Yorker, blaming political correctness and the "extreme left" for creating a hostile environment where humor cannot flourish.
Seinfeld blamed the decline of TV sitcoms on "people worrying so much about offending other people ... that's the end of your comedy. They move the gates."
Seinfeld's assessment of the modern comedy landscape was widely mocked online, not just because he regurgitated a tired talking point, but because Jerry Seinfeld's stand-up material is famously inoffensive.
Throughout his decades-long career, the comedian has mostly leaned on puns, cracking one-liners like, "What the hell is dry-cleaning fluid? There's no dry fluids!"
Funnily enough, if Seinfeld's vision of perpetually offended crowds who only tolerate vanilla "dad jokes'' was true to reality, he'd likely be one of the most popular comedians working today.
Seinfeld will always be respected for his Seinfeld sitcom, but his recent directorial debut, Unfrosted, a Netflix movie about the creation of Pop Tarts, was brutally panned by audiences and critics -- and not because it was too edgy.
In a recent interview with the New York Times, Louis-Dreyfus was asked to respond to Jerry Seinfeld's comments on political correctness. The Veep star answered, "I believe being aware of certain sensitivities is not a bad thing."
Louis-Dreyfus went on to describe the changing cultural landscape, and how comedy and drama created decades ago might not age particularly well on a re-watch.
Without specifically naming Seinfeld, Louis-Dreyfus added:
"When I hear people starting to complain about political correctness -- and I understand why people might push back on it -- but to me that's a red flag, because it sometimes means something else."
Louis-Dreyfus went on to clarify that she still reserves the right to "boo anyone who says anything that offends me, while also respecting their right to free speech."
She concluded by naming "consolidation of money and power" as the biggest problem in the entertainment industry, which she considers the real "threat to art."
Notably, Louis-Dreyfus has remained active in today's entertainment landscape -- her comedy series Veep was widely praised for its razor-sharp satire of modern politics, and she has been lauded for her performance in Tuesday, a fantasy drama currently playing in theaters.
Online, Louis-Dreyfus was praised for her thoughtful commentary, with many noting that Veep made use of offensive humor without mocking the marginalized -- those in power were always the butt of the joke.
The clashing statements from the two Seinfeld stars summarizes the discourse around "cancel culture," "political correctness," and "wokeness," which are all used to criticize shifting cultural norms.
Perceptive, insightful comedy is everywhere nowadays -- TikTok alone is full of budding comedians, both good and bad. Edgy comedy, however, has largely gone out of style, replaced by dark, self-deprecating jokes and absurd internet humor.
That being said, South Park is still airing, unchallenged, and offensive commentary can be found all over YouTube and X (Twitter), if one wishes to find it.
