Kevin Hart Disses Cancel Culture, Defends Comic Who Told George Floyd Joke

Comedian and actor Kevin Hart defended a fellow comic on Tuesday over a George Floyd joke he told at Netflix’s “Roast of Kevin Hart” earlier this month.

Hart said he didn’t like the joke from Tony Hinchcliffe that some people have deemed racist, but he stressed that this type of over-the-top comedy is exactly what always happens at roasts, and he will always “appreciate humor.” Hart even went as far as to say that Hinchcliffe had one of the best sets at the roast, if not the best set. 

“The George Floyd joke, it wasn’t a tasteful joke to our culture, to our audience, but … if you’re watching the roast, you get why they’re doing it,” Hart said on “The Breakfast Club.” “You get why the racial humor is on the table. I wasn’t shocked — that’s what they do! Go look at the Tom Brady [roast]. It happens every year when they do a roast.”

During the roast, Hinchcliffe said to Hart, “The black community is so proud of you. … Right now, George Floyd is looking up at us all laughing so hard he can’t breathe.”

“People are talking about that joke,” Hart continued. “Talk about the set! Tony Hinchcliffe arguably had the best set, or one of the best sets.” 

Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Netflix

“I’m going to appreciate humor,” the comedian continued. “I don’t get affected by the attempt of humor. I get it.”

Hart also went on to ask what people were looking for from him. “What is it that you expect … to take a live production and stand up and fight Tony, or have a reaction? … Tony told a joke, it wasn’t a tasteful joke to us. We didn’t like it. Okay, ‘Hey man, f*ck that joke!’ We move on.”

“It literally is, either you’re a fan of this level of content, or you’re not,” he added. “And if you’re not a fan, then you don’t watch it.”

Kevin Hart is in Tony Hinchcliffe’s corner after the controversial comic was blasted for a George Floyd “joke” during Kevin’s roast.

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— TMZ (@TMZ) May 26, 2026

Hart himself had a run-in with cancel culture. Back in 2018, he was chosen to host the Oscars, but was threatened to be dropped if he didn’t make a public apology over past jokes that some deemed homophobic.

Though he did ultimately offer a public apology, Hart initially refused to apologize and said he had already addressed the old jokes in the past.

“So, I just got a call from the Academy, and that call basically said, ‘Kevin, apologize for your tweets of old or we’re gonna have to move on and find another host,’” he recalled at the time. “I chose to pass. I passed on the apology.”

“The reason why I passed is because I’ve addressed this several times,” he continued. “This is not the first time this has come up. I’ve addressed it. I’ve spoken on it. I’ve said where the rights and wrongs were. I’ve said who I am now versus who I was then. I’ve done it. I’m not gonna continue to go back and tap into the days of old when I’ve moved on and I’m in a completely different space in my life.”

“You live and you learn and you grow and you mature,” he added. “I’m in a space where all I can do is be better as a human being.”

Hart later said that he was sorry that he “hurt people” and was choosing not to host the Oscars so as not to be a “distraction.”