Rogan: ‘The Awakening Killed Comedy’

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Remember R-rated comedies?

They made us howl in theaters all over the country, and we watched them over and over again as soon as they hit cable and streaming channels. Think:

  • “Bridesmaids”
  • “There’s Something About Mary”
  • “Step Brothers”
  • “Role models”
  • “Knocked”
  • “Uninvited Guests”
  • “Hangover”

So what’s the latest R-rated comedy to crush the box office? Yes, 2021’s Free Guy turned out to be a rare and wonderful comic treat. However, this was done under the PG:13 rating banner.

Joe Rogan knows what happened.

“The Awakening killed the comedy movie in a lot of ways,” Rogan told guest Tom Pape on the latest episode of The Joe Rogan Experience.

He is right, of course. The new comedy rulebook, unofficial but mandatory, makes adult humor a challenge, if not a career threat.

“Is there even an attempt to make a politically correct comedy?” he asked.

Rogan mentioned American Psycho, a 2000 film based on the famous book by Bret Easton Ellis. This film showcased the serial killer and his curious pop culture leanings. Such stories, Rogan notes, are still acceptable in today’s awakened society.

The awakened left also looks at films about professional killers from the other side.

Comedies, on the other hand, operate in a curious and more rigorous framework.

“When you make fun of something, something weird happens… it’s supposedly an endorsement of what the activity is, even if it’s completely unacceptable,” says Rogan. Recall how USA Today once opposed Animal House, in part because some of the students behaved oh so badly in the film.

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The Pope suggested that younger Americans are more accepting of harder comedies. This could pave the way for a return to old-school comedy.

Rogan, surprisingly well versed in cancellation culture, retorted mildly.

“If you were to make this film, the backlash would be absolutely real. People would go crazy. But that’s what they’re afraid of. They are not afraid if they have a market [for the film],” he says. “They would definitely have a market, but how many people would be canceled because of it? How many people would be attacked because of it? How much would the studio protest?”

“When was the last great comedy movie where people were roaring in the cinema… and then everyone was told they should go see it,” he says. The genre has been killed.

RELATED: Big tech crushes conservative comedy

Rogan admitted that some PG or PG:13 comedies are still funny, like Jumanji. This does not detract from his main idea.

Todd Phillips certainly agrees with Rogan.

The Joker director has directed a bunch of raunchy R-rated comedies like The Hangover Party trilogy, Old School and Road Trip. So why did he make a supervillain movie in 2019 instead of returning to his favorite genre?

Woke up.

“Try being funny with this awakening culture today,” Phillips told Vanity Fair. “There have been articles written about why comedy doesn’t work anymore – I’ll tell you why, because all the fucking funny guys are like, ‘Fuck this shit, because I don’t want to offend you. It’s hard to argue with 30 million Twitter users. You just can’t do it, right? So you just say, “I’m going out.”

Phillips made the announcement in 2019 during his Joker press tour. Has the situation changed at all since then? Have there been any outrageously funny R-rated movies in theaters in the last three years?

Rogan knows the answer to this question. As the others.