"There's a contingent of people you knew weren't going to say no: Jeff Ross, Kevin Hart, Chris Tucker, Russell Peters, Sebastian Maniscalco. They might as well rename this shit the Back Taxes Tour. The co-headliner combo of Louis C.K. and Jimmy Carr on Oct. 5 is to be expected. Then you get to names like Bill Burr, Pete Davidson, Aziz Ansari, Mo Amer ... man, they must be getting a lot of money."
"Tim Dillon, a comedian who was scheduled to perform in Riyadh but was nixed for making a joke about slavery in Saudi Arabia on his podcast, claimed he stood to make $375,000 off doing one show there. Earlier this month, when he was defending his decision, he said that comedians in a higher "bracket" were being paid around $1.6 million each, and lower-tier talent was getting $150,000. "They're paying me enough money to look the other way," Dillon said. "Do you understand?""
The Riyadh Comedy Festival features numerous well-known stand-up performers across two weeks. The lineup includes high-profile names who accepted invitations alongside some who declined. Reported appearance fees vary widely, with claims of hundreds of thousands to over a million dollars for top-tier acts. The event has prompted ethical debate because of Saudi Arabia's human rights record. Some performers defended taking the gigs as career or financial decisions, while others labeled entertainment money as tainted. Podcast conversations and public reactions have highlighted tensions between lucrative offers and moral objections to performing in the country.
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