Matt Walsh Discusses How He Chose DEI As The Issue To Tackle In ‘Am I Racist?’

Matt Walsh spent some time this week discussing his hit new comedy, “Am I Racist?” with media personality George Janko and musician Zuby.

The conversation with Janko inevitably turned to what sparked the idea for the documentary. Previously, Walsh had starred in the 2022 documentary “What Is a Woman?,” which exposed radical gender theory in society.

Walsh said his idea stemmed from the success of “What Is a Woman?” and the simple act of asking that question of so-called gender experts, which “takes down the whole house of cards.” 

He said after the movie had “a real impact in the culture,” he was eager to take on another topic, especially since films have longer staying power compared to daily podcasts.

“There was a question of, well what’s the next big topic?” Walsh said. “What’s the other big one? It’s pretty clearly race. And so we decided that has to be the topic.” 

He also talked about taking a new approach for this film instead of being skeptical and asking questions. “With this, we thought it would be an interesting strategy if instead of being skeptical, I’ll start by asking questions to these race hustlers… and I’ll just believe whatever they tell me. I’ll let them guide me down the rabbit hole.” 

“I’ll try to put into practice whatever they say,” Walsh added. “And we’ll see where it takes us. Where do we end up 90 minutes later into the film, if I’m actually believing all this stuff? That’s the journey of the movie.” 

Walsh also said making this kind of movie made sense because he’s “contrarian by nature” and for right now, everything in the culture is so wrong that being contrary is actually the correct path.

The podcast host and documentary star also appeared on “The Real Talk with Zuby” podcast to delve into details about the film.

Zuby agreed with so many other reviewers, saying “Am I Racist” is “genuinely hilarious.”

The pair spent some time talking about how Walsh was able to access some of the guests, and he said it all came down to one thing: money.

“This thing is a grift; it’s a scam,” Walsh told Zuby. “We fully embraced the fact that we paid them. I think maybe they get dollar signs in their eyes and they’re willing to overlook things that would otherwise be red flags.”

He also mentioned the “bubble” that most self-professed DEI experts live in, saying they aren’t even aware of people who disagree with them. “They live very insulated lives,” Walsh added.

“To them it’s kind of unthinkable that they’d ever be in a room with anyone who would challenge them or try to expose them,” he said.

Zuby said he was “amazed” that Walsh was able to speak with “White Fragility” author Robin DiAngelo, which Walsh said he did by wearing a very simple disguise and even using his real name. 

The “Am I Racist?” star said DiAngelo was on the “wish list” when he and the crew first figured out what kind of movie to make, but he didn’t imagine they’d be able to get her.

As for the motivations of the anti-racist followers, Walsh gave his thoughts on why they’re motivated to do what they do. 

“I think that all of them have to believe it at some level, like psychologically… I think 75%, it’s a full on grift for them, where they know what they’re saying isn’t true, and there’s a 25% where they tell themselves that a lot of this stuff isn’t true, a lot of this stuff might be surface level harmful, but it’s for the greater good, and so this is what we have to do.”

“I do think they believe in their own moral superiority,” he added.

“Am I Racist?” debuted at number four at the box office alongside major Hollywood productions with much higher production and marketing budgets, The Daily Wire previously reported.

The film currently has a 98% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is Certified Hot on the site’s popcorn meter, which means at least 500 of those reviews come from verified ticket purchasers. Tickets are available at amiracist.com.