Comedian Matt Rife has been hit with a surge of backlash as a result of his new Netflix special, Natural Selection, which many viewers have described as upholding sexist bias and misogynistic depictions.
In the stand-up show, which was released on the streaming platform last week, Matt is seen opening with a segment about Washington DC, the place where the special was filmed, and the differences between "ratchet" Baltimore and "beautiful" Maryland.
Highlights
- Matt Rife's Netflix special sparks controversy for sexist jokes.
- Show opens with jokes about domestic violence, shocking audiences.
- Critics slam Rife's views on astrology and women's decision-making.
He says: "I've only been to Baltimore one time, and the hostess who seats you had a black eye."
Matt Rife received backlash following the release of his new Netflix special featuring questionable jokes that some have described as being sexist
Image credits: mattrife
"A full black eye. It wasn't like, 'What happened?' It was pretty obvious what happened.
“But we couldn't get over, like, this is the face of the company? This is who you have greeting people?
Image credits: mattrife
"And my boy, who I was with, was like, 'Yeah, I feel bad for her, man, I feel like they should put her in the kitchen or something where nobody has to see her face.'
“And I was like, 'Yeah, but I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn't have that black eye.'"
Whilst some audience members gasped in shock, the 28-year-old comedian continued: "Testing the water, seeing if y'all are going to be fun or not.
“I figured we start the show with domestic violence, the rest of the show should be pretty smooth sailing.
"Of course, I felt bad for her.
“She should have had her protection crystals, you know what I mean?"
Natural Selection, which was released last week, opens with a joke about domestic violence
Image credits: mattrife
Matt goes on to engage in a lengthy segment focused on "crystal girls" and women who attribute their "poor decision-making skills" to astrology.
Where astrology was once a male-dominated field, today’s astrological community has become incredibly diversified, but particularly appreciated by women.
“Metaphysics, astrology, and tarot have recently boomed because historically speaking, this was a space where witchy women could have access to their own independence that was never defined by, or connected to, a man… Astrology has a direct correlation with sexism,” Desiree Roby Antila, a professional astrologer, explained, as per Stylecaster.
Image credits: Netflix
With clips of the show quickly emerging on social media, Matt faced a wave of criticism.
Drew Afualo, famous for her feminist activism on TikTok, responded in a video: "In case anyone's curious, no I'm not f*cking surprised."
"I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn't have that black eye," Matt joked
Image credits: Netflix
"You're telling me a man who goes on other people's podcasts and openly objectifies and criticizes women's bodies is misogynistic? Yeah, no sh*t."
Image credits: Netflix
The 28-year-old influencer went on to liken Matt's "jokes" to scrolling through a "white uncle's racist Facebook page" and challenged his supposed on-purpose attempt to alienate his female fans.
She continued: "If you want to appeal to exclusively misogynistic men, you are mediocre and couldn't afford veneers.
“Or maybe you're not that f*cking funny. At least not to me personally. But what would I know?
“I'm just an astrology-obsessed, crystal-loving, f*cking dumb *ss b*tch on the internet.”
“She should have had her protection crystals, you know what I mean?" the comedian quipped in the Netflix special
Image credits: Netflix
In February, Matt made an appearance on the Stiff Socks Podcast where he ridiculed women with "giant clit[s]," saying it was like "god left a tag on you," as reported by Buzzfeed.
In an interview with the New York Times, in the face of all the backlash and controversy, the comedian said: “You’re mad at somebody that’s just trying to make you laugh?"
You can watch the trailer for Natural Selection below:
“That’s such an insane concept to me."
Image credits: mattrife
In a separate interview with Variety, ahead of the release of Natural Selection, the comedian said: "One of the biggest misconceptions of things I get ridiculed online for is people are like, 'Oh, he only has a female fan base.'
“In the beginning, yes, because I did blow up on TikTok which is very female-dominant."
Matt went on to admit that during his live shows, the audience’s gender was split equally, as he explained: "It’s couples coming out. It’s groups of dudes who are coming.
“And that’s one thing that I wanted to tackle in this special was showing people that, like, despite what you think about me online, I don’t pander my career to women.
“I would argue this special is way more for guys.”
The link on the comedian's "apology" posted on Instagram stories leads to an online medical store for special needs helmets
Image credits: mattrife
Upon being questioned about a fear of offending certain people, the comedian answered: "I don’t really adhere to this whole sensitivity rumor in the comedy world that you can’t say anything anymore. That’s bullsh*t.
“You can say whatever you want. Now, you have to prepare for repercussions.
“But at the end of the day, it all comes down to how do you sleep at night?"
The Ohio native has amassed an impressive 18.2 million followers on TikTok, rising to fame as he produced his own YouTube specials — “Only Fans,” “Matthew Steven Rife,” and “Walking Red Flag” between 2019 and 2023.
Matt went on to make his television debut on MTV’s “Wild ’n Out” and has had guest appearances on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and “Fresh off the Boat.”
Viewers weren't particularly impressed with Matt's Netflix special
