Fans of Chappelle's Show can celebrate its official return to Netflix! Dave Chappelle, who was performing a routine at Austin venue Stubbs titled "Redemption Song", confirmed the news at the end of his performance which was posted on his Instagram page.
Chappelle's Show was removed from Netflix at his request back in November of last year due to a dispute around a contract that Chappelle had with Comedy Central owner ViacomCBS. Chappelle alleged that ViacomCBS was allowing the series to be licensed without his agreement and the deal also prevented him from receiving any royalties. In a reference to the incident, Chappelle mentioned how he never asked Comedy Central for anything and that he appreciated the fans taking their eyes off of the show until this all got squared away. He also gave kudos to Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos and Chris McCarthy of ViacomCBS for doing the right thing, even if it meant it was going to be a financial detriment to them. Here is what he has to say:
"I never asked Comedy Central for anything. If you remember, I said, ‘I’m going to my real boss,’ and I came to you [the audience] because I know where my power lies. I asked you to stop watching the show and thank God almighty for you, you did. You made that show worthless because, without your eyes, it’s nothing. And you stopped watching it. They called me and I got my name back and I got my license back and I got my show back and they paid me millions of dollars. This is a very important moment. I want to thank Ted Sarandos at Netflix, a CEO with the courage to take my show off its platform [at] financial detriment to his company, just because I asked him. And I want to thank Chris McCarthy of CBS Viacom. This guy’s younger than me. And like most people younger than me has an interest in making the past right, and did something that was very courageous. And finally, after all these years, I can finally say that Comedy Central, it’s been a pleasure doing business with you."
It's nice to see this all worked out now and it's really great to see these two entities come together in order to make this right for Chappelle. Chappelle's Show is his baby and he should have an agreement in place to make sure that he benefits from the show he created. This is all Chappelle really wanted in the end and now the show is back on the platform for all the fans to relive.
Chappelle's Show made its way back to Netflix today, February 12, 2021. Will YOU be checking out the show again?