Ahead of the release of his new film Top Five, the comedian Chris Rock has offered a wide-ranging critique of contemporary America with acerbic takedowns of the Republicans, race relations in the US and perceptions of Barack Obama’s presidency.
In a conversation with New York Magazine columnist and former New York Times journalist Frank Rich, the comedian commented on everything from Bill Cosby and gay rights to the Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson.
On Ferguson
Speaking about Ferguson and the media reaction to the event, he said: “Here’s the thing. When we talk about race relations in America or racial progress, it’s all nonsense. There are no race relations. White people were crazy. Now they’re not as crazy. To say that black people have made progress would be to say they deserve what happened to them before.”
On Obama
His most caustic criticism came when Rich brought up Barack Obama and the progress his election was supposed to represent.
“So, to say Obama is progress is saying that he’s the first black person that is qualified to be president. That’s not black progress. That’s white progress,” he said.
“There’s been black people qualified to be president for hundreds of years … There have been smart, educated, beautiful, polite black children for hundreds of years. The advantage that my children have is that my children are encountering the nicest white people that America has ever produced. Let’s hope America keeps producing nicer white people.”
On Cosby
With regard to the veteran comedian who has been pursued by allegations of sexual assault by a number of women, Rock said: “I don’t know what to say. What do you say? I hope it’s not true. That’s all you can say. I really do. I grew up on Cosby. I love Cosby, and I just hope it’s not true. It’s a weird year for comedy. We lost Robin, we lost Joan, and we kind of lost Cosby.”
On gay rights
On the subject of gay rights Rock referred to Ellen DeGeneres as the “gay Rosa Parks” before commenting on Michael Sam, the NFL’s first openly gay player and Apple CEO Tim Cook, who recently came out.
“If Rosa Parks had one of the most popular daytime TV shows, I’m sure the civil-rights movement would’ve moved a little bit faster too,” he said.
When asked about Cook he said: “I think [Cook coming out] is actually bigger than the football player. Because the average person in that locker room is in his 20s. And it’s just not a big deal to be around a gay guy – if you’re in your 20s. Whereas Tim Cook is around these corporate guys. That is the epitome of a boys’ club. That is sexist, racist – the least inclusive group of people you’re ever going to find. Men who have no problem being called owners. Who actually wants to be called an owner, even if you owned a football team? Just the title owner is just so nasty and disgusting.”
On the reaction to SNL
The comedian who wrote, directed and stars in Top Five, also offered his thoughts on the reaction to his Saturday Night Live sketch about the opening of Freedom Tower, which he referred to as the Never Going In There Tower. His comic assessment of the structure drew the ire of Fox New presenter Peter Johnson Jr, who said: “When you resort to that kind of comment in an insane, overblown, horrific way, then you’re doing a disservice to comedy.”
Rock also spoke about how comedians are often the targets of criticism which they wouldn’t receive if they were working in another medium.
“Honestly, it’s not that people were offended by what I said. They get offended by how much fun I appear to be having while saying it,” he said.
“You could literally take everything I said on Saturday Night and say it on Meet the Press, and it would be a general debate, and it would go away. But half of it’s because they think they can hurt comedians.”
On Hillary for president
When asked by Rich who could compete with Hillary for the Democratic nomination, he said:
“I mean, I would love to see Hillary, but there’s a part of Hillary that’s like the Democratic McCain at this point. As he showed, ‘It’s my time’ is not really enough. But you know, I’m absolutely ready for a woman president. I’m ready for a woman nighttime-talk-show host, to tell you the truth. I wonder which will be first.”
On Hollywood
“I’m still on the table, which is good. No one’s yanked me off,” he said when asked about his relationship with the powers that be in Hollywood and the realities of trying to be a leading man.
“You can be behind and on the table. I never take any of it personally. It’s all money, especially when you’re talking about playing a lead of anything. I guess if you’re a supporting character, friendships may come into play here and there –strings can be pulled in the lower echelons. But as far as being a leading man, there’s a printout, and there’s how much the movie made here, here and here. How do you do in Budapest? How do you do in Calgary? Germany? And they make the decision.
Rock also recently split opinion in the music world by declaring that Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was the best record of the last 30 years, adding that it was better than Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
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