The Hollywood Resistance wasn’t ready for its close-up following the 2024 presidential election.
We didn’t even see starlets donning hats resembling a certain female body part. Trade publications like <a href="https://variety.com/2024/film/news/hollywood-fears-trump-president-devastating-1236209319/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Variety</a> and <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/hollywood-trump-resistance-the-sequel-1236076420/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Hollywood Reporter</a> fretted that we might not endure a repeat of Hollywood’s posturing during the first Trump term.
Remember the first Trump term? Death wishes. Clunky documentaries. Comedy shows throwing satire to the side to smite the 45th president. And one ISIS-style photography shoot which pummeled a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/election-night-kathy-griffin-retweets-infamous-pic-of-her-with-trumps-severed-head" target="_blank" rel="noopener">D-list star’s career.</a>
Those fears have melted away in President Trump’s first 100 days in office. The Resistance is back and the worst is (likely) yet to come.
Late-night TV never stopped attacking President Trump. Most programs would consider President Joe Biden and his gaffe-tastic Vice President Kamala Harris fodder during the leader’s one term in office.
The jokes could write themselves. Instead, Colbert and co. pretended as if Trump had never left the Oval Office.
<div id="attachment_825621" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-825621" class="size-large wp-image-825621" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/11/GettyImages-2182289102-864x576.jpg" alt="NEW YORK CITY - OCTOBER 17: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and guest during Thursday's October 17, 2024 show. (Photo by Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/11/GettyImages-2182289102-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/11/GettyImages-2182289102-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/11/GettyImages-2182289102-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/11/GettyImages-2182289102.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Scott Kowalchyk/CBS via Getty Images</div>
ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel greeted Trump’s re-election with literal tears, and it’s been the same ol’, same ol’ ever since. He referred to Trump administration officials as “animals” in an <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/jimmy-kimmel-trump-late-night-future-interview-1235315906/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unhinged Rolling Stone interview</a>. He also described his comedy platform as a place liberals can go to “scream” in Trump 2.0.
NBC’s Seth Meyers is openly advising the Democrats on how to win back the general public, <a href="https://x.com/alexchristy17/status/1917210840106680431" target="_blank" rel="noopener">throwing caution</a> (and comedy) to the wind:
<blockquote>Now is not the time to nitpick the messaging of other Democrats. Instead of critiquing someone else&#8217;s message, go out there and do your own thing and give voters the choice they were deprived of this last election. Take a cue from the ones who are actually going out there doing [bleep] and getting attention for it.</blockquote>
Amber Ruffin no longer has a late-night show to call her own. So she talked herself out of a gig hosting the White House Correspondents’ Association gala by <a href="https://variety.com/2025/politics/news/whca-drops-amber-ruffin-performance-dinner-1236351795/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sharing what she planned to say</a> on the dais. 
When asked if she would hit both sides of the political aisle, she said doing so would make Team Trump “feel like human beings … ‘cause they’re not.”
“Saturday Night Live” continues to hammer all things Trump while aggressively ignoring Democratic blunders, from throwing support to alleged gang members to goofy stunts like Sen. Cory Booker’s 25-hour filibuster.
<div id="attachment_914075" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-914075" class="size-large wp-image-914075" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2209610052-864x576.jpg" alt="SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE -- Episode 1881 -- Pictured: (l-r) Special guest Beck Bennett as Vladimir Putin and James Austin Johnson as Donald Trump during the &quot;White Lotus&quot; sketch on Saturday, April 12, 2025 -- (Photo by: Holland Rainwater/NBC via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2209610052-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2209610052-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2209610052-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2209610052.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Holland Rainwater/NBC via Getty Images</div>
Comedian Bill Burr isn’t a political stand-up, but in recent years he’s called out both sides as he sees fit. Now, Burr is targeting Elon Musk, Trump’s right hand DOGE man across multiple platforms. Burr has blasted Musk as a Nazi and raged against billionaires, part of a new Democratic talking point that ignores their deep Soros family ties.
Other stars keep spreading fake Trump stories without fear of repercussion. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/01/amber-ruffin-comedian-white-house-correspondents-dinner" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Both Ruffin</a> and “Hacks” star <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/hannah-einbinder-israel-massacre-palestinians-hrc-1236170941/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hannah Einbinder</a> pushed the “very fine people” hoax against Trump in recent weeks, earning zero pushback from Legacy Media outlets or so-called fact checkers.
Celebrities may seem a little less vocal in their anti-Trump posturing for one sober reason. Some decamped from X to Bluesky, the platform of choice for the modern Leftist. Now, when stars like “Two and a Half Men” alum Jon Cryer rage against Trump few people actually hear it.
That’s probably why some liberal stars like Stephen King left X only to come back to it weeks later. They were tired of screaming into the void, apparently.
Others use every available podium to decry President Trump.
Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar (“Bad Education”) used his speech at the 50th annual Chaplin award gala earlier this month to says Trump will, “<a href="https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2025/04/29/spanish-filmmaker-pedro-almodovar-trump-will-go-down-in-history-as-the-greatest-mistake-of-our-time/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Go down in history as the greatest mistake of our time.”</a> Director Steven Soderberg (“Black Bag”) only called the president a <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/entertainment/director-of-che-guevara-biopic-worries-trump-popularity-proves-audiences-have-been-rooting-for-movie-bad-guys-all-along/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“villain”</a> by comparison during a press opportunity.
It’s still a sin in Hollywood to treat President Trump as normal, let alone human. Comedian Bill Maher, one of the president’s loudest critics, made more enemies on the Left by breaking bread with the Commander-in-Chief.
Maher hasn’t pulled any punches since the sit down, but he also saw Trump as, gasp, human and said as much. That was too much for fellow comedian Larry David. The “Curb Your Enthusiasm” star’s New York Times op-ed calling both <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/larry-david-whines-about-bill-maher-giving-donald-trump-a-chance-with-trite-hitler-comparison" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trump and Maher Nazis</a> spoke for many of the industry’s dwellers.
<div id="attachment_914179" style="width: 825px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-914179" class="size-large wp-image-914179" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-30-Apr-2025-01-51-PM-1677-815x576.jpg" alt="Credit: Randy Holmes/BILL MAHER. Steve Granitz/FilmMagic/Larry David." width="815" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-30-Apr-2025-01-51-PM-1677-815x576.jpg 815w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-30-Apr-2025-01-51-PM-1677-300x212.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-30-Apr-2025-01-51-PM-1677-768x543.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-30-Apr-2025-01-51-PM-1677-1536x1086.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-30-Apr-2025-01-51-PM-1677-2048x1448.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 815px) 100vw, 815px" />Credit: Randy Holmes/BILL MAHER. Steve Granitz/FilmMagic/Larry David.</div>
Some celebrities insist President Trump will either lock them up or prevent them from returning to America. Rocker Neil Young, who famously tried to get Joe Rogan fired from Spotify during the pandemic, openly worries he won&#8217;t be able to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/apr/02/neil-young-fears-us-ban-donald-trump-criticism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tour the U.S</a>. if he temporarily leaves the country during Trump 2.0.
Stand-up comic Nikki Glaser, who rarely gets political, <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/04/24/entertainment/nikki-glaser-worried-that-she-could-not-be-let-back-into-the-country-for-trump-jokes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shared a similar fear</a>.
Others, like Patti LuPone, embrace big-picture worries, like <a href="https://variety.com/2025/legit/news/george-clooney-patti-lupone-surviving-trump-broadway-pay-1236374131/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America won’t survive</a> a second Trump term.
What’s missing? Overtly anti-Trump project announcements. They may be in the works, but we’ve yet to hear of any major film or TV show dedicated to tackling Trump.
Screenwriters may work around the edges as part of their Resistance sequel. Take “Mountainhead,” a new satire from the creator of “Succession.” The Max original film, debuting May 31, follows four billionaires on vacation as they react to a global crisis from their posh retreat.
Will the movie be a “Smash the Oligarchy” event targeting the Elon Musks of the world? Perhaps. The film’s rush from production — which began in March — to release date teases just that.
Hollywood has nearly four more years to lash out at President Trump in all manner of forms. Chances are we’ll see new films or TV show tackling the 47th president directly. And, if past is prologue, the eye rolling will be epic.
* * *
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Saturday Night Live – Season 50

Hollywood Reacts To 100 Days Of Trump

actors

Bill Maher

comedian

Donald Trump

Hollywood

Jimmy Kimmel

Larry David

President Trump

Stephen Colbert

Television

Trump Administration

CNN Republican commentator Scott Jennings laid into comedian Larry David (&#8220;Curb Your Enthusiasm&#8221;) during a recent panel discussion, arguing that he was using his platform to shut down political discourse and bully other Democrats into silence.
Jennings referenced a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/larry-david-whines-about-bill-maher-giving-donald-trump-a-chance-with-trite-hitler-comparison" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent op-ed</a> David wrote — in which he suggested that comedian Bill Maher having dinner with President Donald Trump was no different than having dinner with Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler — and argued that David&#8217;s goal was not so much to shame Maher as it was to issue a warning to anyone who might have considered meeting with Trump in the future.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Scott Jennings STUNS CNN panel with the obviously correct analysis on Larry David&#39;s GHOULISH column🔥<a href="https://t.co/m6wxseFNgl">pic.twitter.com/m6wxseFNgl</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1914677191557738756?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;The message of this is not to — because Bill Maher, first of all, I totally agree, he&#8217;s totally in the right to do it,&#8221; Jennings began, saying that while he certainly disagreed with Maher on a wide range of political issues, he felt the HBO host was right to encourage dialogue with people who have different political views. &#8220;I loved his monologue, even thought I disagree with almost everything he believes politically, he ws right to do this and he was right to speak out about it.&#8221;
&#8220;But this isn&#8217;t about that dinner. It&#8217;s about the next one,&#8221; Jennings continued. &#8220;Because this is the modern Left. It&#8217;s an attempt always to intimidate people into not ever doing it again. It&#8217;s to silence yourselves, or we&#8217;ll do it for you. That&#8217;s the purpose of this op-ed, so that the next comedian, or the next person on the American left chooses not to speak to Donald Trump.&#8221;
&#8220;This isn&#8217;t — this is all an effort to get people not to do what you just said, which is to talk to each other and our political leaders,&#8221; he concluded.
Maher <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/im-telling-you-it-happened-bill-maher-reveals-what-was-said-during-private-dinner-with-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">met with Trump</a> at the behest of mutual friend Kid Rock, and later delivered a monologue describing just how different the president had been in person than he was on the public stage. The comedian did not hold back the criticism, however, and argued that he&#8217;d prefer to see the private version of Trump take on the public-facing role.

Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 12 Premiere

CNN Republican Torches Larry David’s ‘Dinner With Hitler’ Column Attacking Bill Maher

CNN Republican Torches Larry David's 'Dinner With Hitler' Column Attacking Bill Maher

Media

Politics

Scott Jennings

Larry David can’t stand the fact that Bill Maher didn’t hate Donald Trump after they had dinner together.
The 77-year-old “Curb Your Enthusiasm” creator wrote an opinion piece attacking Maher for being open-minded, repeating the tired trope throughout the piece that Trump is Hitler.
The satirical <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/21/opinion/larry-david-hitler-dinner.html">essay</a> based on Maher’s remarks, titled “My Dinner With Adolf,” was published by The New York Times on Monday. 
“I had been a vocal critic of his on the radio from the beginning, pretty much predicting everything he was going to do on the road to dictatorship,” David wrote, pretending to tell the story from Maher’s perspective. “But eventually I concluded that hate gets us nowhere. I knew I couldn’t change his views, but we need to talk to the other side.”
David went on, “I joked that I was surprised to see him in a tan suit because if he wore that out, it would be perceived as un-Führer-like. That amused him to no end, and I realized I’d never seen him laugh before. Suddenly he seemed so human. Here I was, prepared to meet Hitler, the one I’d seen and heard — the public Hitler. But this private Hitler was a completely different animal. And oddly enough, this one seemed more authentic, like this was the real Hitler. The whole thing had my head spinning.”
“‘I must say, mein Führer, I’m so thankful I came. Although we disagree on many issues, it doesn’t mean that we have to hate each other.’ And with that, I gave him a Nazi salute and walked out into the night,” David’s essay says.
Maher, who has been openly critical of Trump, had a private dinner with the president earlier this month. He later admitted to enjoying himself and feeling better about the president on his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxlopbcfXpQ">show</a>, &#8220;Real Time with Bill Maher.&#8221;
“And I know as I say that, millions of liberal sphincters just tightened. ‘Oh, my God, Bill, you gonna say something nice about him?’ What I’m gonna do is report exactly what happened. You decide what you think about it, and if that’s not enough pure Trump hate for you, I don’t give a f***,” Maher said of the meeting. 
“I don’t remember exactly what we were talking about, but it must have been something with the 2020 election because I know he used the word ‘lost,’ and I distinctly remember saying, ‘Wow, I never thought I’d hear you say that,’” Maher added. “He didn’t get mad. He’s much more self-aware than he lets on in public.”
“Everything I’ve ever not liked about him was — I swear to God — absent, at least on this night with this guy,” the “Real Time” host said. “He mostly steered the conversation to, ‘What do you think about this?’ I know: your mind is blown. So is mine.”
“A crazy person doesn’t live in the White House,” he added. “A person who plays a crazy person on TV a lot lives there, which I know is f***ed up. It’s just not as f***ed up as I thought it was.”

David and Maher

Larry David Whines About Bill Maher Giving Donald Trump A Chance With Trite ‘Hitler’ Comparison

Larry David Whines About Bill Maher Giving Donald Trump A Chance With Trite 'Hitler' Comparison

Adolf Hitler

Celebrities

New York Times

“Curb Your Enthusiasm” creator <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/larry-david">Larry David</a> posted a heartfelt tribute to his late friend and colleague <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/richard-lewis">Richard Lewis</a>, who passed away this week.
“Richard and I were born three days apart in the same hospital and for most of my life he’s been like a brother to me,” David wrote in a statement shared by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/entertainment">HBO</a>, per <a href="https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/larry-david-tribute-richard-lewis-curb-your-enthusiasm-1235925761/">Variety</a>. “He had that rare combination of being the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/comedian">funniest</a> person and also the sweetest. But today he made me sob and for that I’ll never forgive him.”
Lewis played a fictionalized version of himself opposite David in the long-running comedy series. 
“Comedian/Actor Richard Lewis passed away peacefully at his home in Los Angeles last night after suffering a heart attack,” Lewis&#8217; rep <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/legendary-comedian-richard-lewis-dead-at-76">shared</a> in a statement on Wednesday. “His wife, Joyce Lapinsky, thanks everyone for all the love, friendship and support and asks for privacy at this time,” the statement continued.
The news comes almost one year after Lewis announced that he was retiring from stand-up comedy after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
“For the last three-and-a-half years, I’ve had sort of a rocky time,” Lewis said in a video he posted on social media in April 2023.
“I went to a neurologist and they gave me a brain scan and I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and that was about two years ago,” he added. “But luckily I got it late in life and they say you progress very slowly if at all and I’m on the right meds so I’m cool.”
Lewis and David discussed the reality of death in an episode of “Curb” which aired shortly before Lewis’ death this week.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Larry David Learns Golf Etiquette | Curb Your Enthusiasm | Max" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CRaPOhvrOVo?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
“I’m leaving you in my will. I’m tweaking it, and you’re in it,” Lewis said in the episode, which aired February 18. David got annoyed at the prospect, saying he didn’t need the money.
“When I die, I want you to know how much I cared about you,” Lewis said. “You’re my best friend. You’re getting it.”
David kept insisting against it, but Lewis won out, saying it was happening anyway. David finally replied by saying, “Oh my God, f*** you.”
Later in the episode, David accused Lewis of making the gesture just so David would reciprocate. This led to them arguing about who would live longer.
“I’m going to outlive you by 20 years,” David told his friend.

Larry David Richard Lewis

Larry David Posts Tribute To Richard Lewis Following His Death: ‘Like A Brother To Me’

Larry David Posts Tribute To Richard Lewis Following His Death: 'Like A Brother To Me'

Death

Entertainment

Richard Lewis

U.S.

“Star Trek” actor and leftist activist <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/celebrities">Wil Wheaton</a> was not amused when <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/larry-david">Larry David</a> pretended to attack the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/sesame-street">Elmo</a> puppet during a “Today Show” segment on February 1.
The 51-year-old actor <a href="https://www.facebook.com/itswilwheaton/">posted</a> a lengthy rant about the incident on Facebook, calling the “Curb Your Enthusiasm” creator a “stupid, self-centered, tone-deaf a**hole” for the stunt.
“Holy s*** it&#8217;s even worse than I thought,” Wheaton wrote of the incident. “What the f*** is wrong with that guy? Elmo is, like, the best friend to multiple generations of children. In the Sesame Street universe, ELMO IS A CHILD, who is currently putting mental health and caring for others in the spotlight.”
“And Larry F***ing David &#8230; did &#8230; that? And thought it was going to be &#8230; funny? What? What an a**hole. What a stupid, self-centered, tone-deaf a**hole,” he continued.
The actor went on to describe abuse he experienced at the hands of his father, which he said triggered his feelings about David pretending to beat up Elmo.
“&#8230;This appalling, unforgivable, despicable act hits more than one raw nerve for me, and I&#8217;m going to say what I wish I&#8217;d been able to say when this sort of thing happened to me,” Wheaton wrote.
“Like, read the room, d***head. It isn&#8217;t always about you being the center of attention. And understand what&#8217;s happening in the moment, f***. Understand that there are larger things in the world than you and your garbage ego,” he went on. 
Elmo was appearing on the show right after a tweet from the Muppet character’s official X account <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elmo-checks-in-with-followers-on-x-tweet-goes-viral-with-messages-of-hopelessness">went viral</a>. “Elmo is just checking in! How is everybody doing?” the post said. Most people responded with messages of despair and hopelessness. 
<a href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-9096" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://onelink.to/dwapp&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1700760801843000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2PQrVSrJfhxNb4LcARqniG">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP</a>
David was appearing on “The Today Show” to promote the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/larry-david-insists-hes-not-lying-over-curb-your-enthusiasm-ending">last season</a> of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” when he jokingly assaulted the puppet. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
OMG: Larry David &#8212; whose interview was a few segments away on NBC&#39;s &#39;Today&#39; show &#8212; comes out of nowhere &amp; beats up Elmo after his sit-down to talk about the responses to his <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/emotionalwellbeing?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#emotionalwellbeing</a> post.<a href="https://twitter.com/craigmelvin?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CraigMelvin</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SavannahGuthrie?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SavannahGuthrie</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/hodakotb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HodaKotb</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/alroker?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AlRoker</a>, &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/elmo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Elmo</a> were FLOORED. <a href="https://t.co/cW36SHYX6y">pic.twitter.com/cW36SHYX6y</a>
&mdash; Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) <a href="https://twitter.com/CurtisHouck/status/1753071728845066596?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“Elmo inspired a deeply meaningful and important moment of collective support among disparate people who have been struggling through the traumas of a pandemic, daily mass shootings, the rise of fascism and everything associated with Trump&#8217;s violence and cruelty,” Wheaton insisted, adding that the joke was “appalling behavior.” 
“A man who would belittle and mock that isn&#8217;t much of a man at all. Shame on you, Larry David,” the “Star Trek” alum concluded.

Wil Wheaton

Wil Wheaton Rages Against Larry David Jokingly Attacking Elmo Puppet On Live TV

Facebook

Sesame Street

TV’s crankiest character is kvetching for the last time.
Larry David’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” kicks off its 12th and final season on Feb. 4, ending a remarkable run that changed TV comedy for the better.
Or, rather, the show’s lack of change gave us hope in the Age of Woke.
David’s ability to spoof his image remains a wonderful bit of performance art. He wasn’t a household name prior to the HBO series’ debut in 2000. It didn’t take long for him to go from “the guy who co-created ‘Seinfeld’” to “Curb’s” signature jerk.
He might be the least likable main character since “All in the Family’s” Archie Bunker. Each episode gave us a new reason to boo him and his selfish ways. Like actor Carroll O’Connor of “Family” fame, David made his Larry doppelgänger oddly lovable, flaws and all.
“Curb’s” improv-heavy style delivered a different brand of sitcom, stripped of canned laughter and stale setups. Like “Seinfeld,” “Curb” often introduced several plotlines that came together in the show’s waning moments.
And we never saw it coming.
Of course, “Curb” was and remains hilarious, thanks to a deep cast including Richard Lewis, Ted Danson, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin, and, most of all, J.B. Smoove. The latter’s introduction in season six gave Larry the ultimate on-screen partner.
<div id="attachment_690129" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-690129" class="size-large wp-image-690129" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-1974493864-864x576.jpg" alt="LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 30: (L-R) Jeff Garlin, Cheryl Hines, Larry David, Susie Essman, and J.B. Smoove attend the Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 12 premiere at DGA Theater Complex on January 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for HBO)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-1974493864-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-1974493864-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-1974493864-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-1974493864.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for HBO</div>
The show’s protracted run could have been “problematic” for David and fans alike. The show started at a time when “safe spaces,” “trigger warnings” and Cancel Culture weren’t part of the vernacular.
David and co. had nearly free reign in the early years. No one could “cancel” a “Curb” installment for bruising their feelings.
Would David’s “Curb” bow down to the woke mob? Could his on-screen character be less monstrous and more of an “ally?” The show would crumble as a result, of course, but we’ve seen more than a few comedy institutions decay under the weight of our woke age.
“Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!”
Not “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
Even the Left-leaning Guardian applauded David’s showcase for not bowing to modern sensibilities – <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/oct/03/curb-your-enthusiasm-review-if-it-aint-woke-dont-fix-it" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“If It Ain’t Woke, Don’t Fix It,”</a> read one headline.
<div id="attachment_690207" style="width: 660px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-690207" class="size-large wp-image-690207" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-102599274-650x576.jpg" alt="NEW YORK - JULY 02: Larry David and Cheyenne Jackson (R) on location for &quot;Curb Your Enthusiasm&quot; on the streets of Manhattan on July 2, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Bobby Bank/WireImage)" width="650" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-102599274-650x576.jpg 650w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-102599274-300x266.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-102599274-768x680.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-102599274.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px" />Bobby Bank/WireImage</div>
Signature episodes showed David’s fearless approach to comedy. A 2011 episode dubbed “Palestinian Chicken” found Larry torn between his fellow Jews and a delicious new restaurant. Larry ends up siding with a beguiling Palestinian woman named Shara (Anne Bedian) who ran a restaurant teeming with anti-Semites.
She even called him an “occupier” as they make love. David recently dubbed it his <a href="https://twitter.com/Variety/status/1752523735842566307" target="_blank" rel="noopener">favorite “Curb” episode</a>.
The show’s complicated politics shouldn’t be over-examined. David’s approach is nuanced and absurd, his willingness to be true to the character triumphs in the end.
David’s character came of age when other antiheroes ruled the small screen. Think Tony Soprano and Walter White, to name just two. The on-screen Larry wasn’t whacking mobsters or cooking meth. He went through life being offended by everyone crossing his path.
And, more often than not, he selfishly used his money and fame to keep the world at arm’s length.
<div id="attachment_690223" style="width: 773px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-690223" class="size-large wp-image-690223" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-103126001-763x576.jpg" alt="NEW YORK - JULY 27: Larry David on location for &quot;Curb Your Enthusiasm&quot; on the streets of Manhattan on July 27, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Bobby Bank/WireImage)" width="763" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-103126001-763x576.jpg 763w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-103126001-300x226.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-103126001-768x580.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-103126001.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 763px) 100vw, 763px" />Bobby Bank/WireImage</div>
“Curb” rarely dabbles in modern politics, but when it does Larry and co. aren’t crashing any Libertarian dinners. And it wouldn’t be authentic if the on-screen Larry, a product of the Hollywood ecosystem, rocked a MAGA hat sans irony.
“Curb’s” antihero was liberal to the core, but the show dedicated an episode to Larry using that red Trump hat to his advantage. He realized strangers would flee from the sight of any MAGA hat wearer, so he proudly wore it to fend off strangers.
Pure “Curb.”
How did David keep “Curb” honest? Like his on-screen persona, he doesn&#8217;t dwell on <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/curb-your-enthusiasm-boss-larry-davids-willingness-offend-1276219/">what other people think of him</a>, according to the show’s executive producer Jeff Schaffer.
“Here’s the thing for us: Nothing is really off limits. I think it’s just how you do it. Any subject is totally fair game; it’s how you execute it. Larry is willing to address issues other people just might not want to touch at all, and I think there’s a very good reason for that, and that’s that he doesn’t care if you watch.”
Some media outlets decried a <a href="https://observer.com/2020/02/larry-david-hbo-curb-your-enthusiasm-metoo-happy-new-year/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“Curb” MeToo plotline as “clumsy,”</a> a commentary that didn’t impact David or the show. Wokesters sensed David and co. didn’t have time for such complaints, so they rarely rose up to attack him or the series.
Even when Garlin, a fixture on “Curb” as Larry’s best bud, got booted from his other gig at ABC’s “The Goldbergs” for <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/03/jeff-garlins-exit-from-the-goldbergs-was-a-long-time-coming-says-wendy-mclendon-covey#:~:text=The%20Goldbergs%20have%20been%20through,was%20a%20long%20time%20coming.%E2%80%9D">allegedly coarse comments and “unwanted hugs”</a> David professionally stood by him.
“Curb” delivered a quasi-“Seinfeld” reunion in season seven, one served up on the show’s unique terms. The sitcom’s main characters joined Larry David for a “new” episode, but we saw it all go down behind the scenes.
<div id="attachment_690213" style="width: 904px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-690213" class="size-large wp-image-690213" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-91286063-894x576.jpg" alt="NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 30: (L-R) Actors Larry David, Susie Essman and Jerry Seinfeld attend the &quot;Curb Your Enthusiasm&quot; Season 7 New York screening at the Time Warner Screening Room on September 30, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/WireImage)" width="894" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-91286063-894x576.jpg 894w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-91286063-300x193.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-91286063-768x495.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/02/GettyImages-91286063.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 894px) 100vw, 894px" />Jamie McCarthy/WireImage</div>
Plus, Larry used the plot to reunite with his ex-wife, played by Hines, lowering expectations for “Seinfeld” fans demanding a perfect reunion moment.
Like “Seinfeld,” “Curb” is leaving at the top of its game with no regrets or talk of “jumping the shark,” the phrase used for shows that outlast their welcome.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
* * *
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of <a href="http://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://twitter.com/HollywoodInToto?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@HollywoodInToto</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

The Final Season Of ‘Curb’ Has Arrived. Not That There’s Anything Wrong With That.

Cancel Culture

Comedy

Jerry Seinfeld

Readers Pass

Comedian Larry David was scheduled to appear on Thursday morning&#8217;s broadcast of the &#8220;TODAY&#8221; show on NBC — but he crashed the set a bit early, shocking hosts when he burst onto the scene and physically assaulted another guest, the &#8220;Sesame Street&#8221; Muppet, Elmo.
Elmo joined the show after an X post about emotional well-being garnered a lot of attention — and the hosts wanted to continue that conversation. David, however, apparently had only one thing on his mind.
Newsbusters Managing Editor Curtis Houck shared a video clip of the wild scene, captioning it, &#8220;OMG: Larry David — whose interview was a few segments away on NBC&#8217;s &#8216;Today&#8217; show — comes out of nowhere &amp; beats up Elmo after his sit-down to talk about the responses to his #emotionalwellbeing post. @CraigMelvin, @SavannahGuthrie, @HodaKotb, @AlRoker, &amp; @Elmo were FLOORED.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
OMG: Larry David &#8212; whose interview was a few segments away on NBC&#39;s &#39;Today&#39; show &#8212; comes out of nowhere &amp; beats up Elmo after his sit-down to talk about the responses to his <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/emotionalwellbeing?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#emotionalwellbeing</a> post.<a href="https://twitter.com/craigmelvin?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CraigMelvin</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SavannahGuthrie?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SavannahGuthrie</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/hodakotb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HodaKotb</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/alroker?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AlRoker</a>, &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/elmo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Elmo</a> were FLOORED. <a href="https://t.co/cW36SHYX6y">pic.twitter.com/cW36SHYX6y</a>
&mdash; Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) <a href="https://twitter.com/CurtisHouck/status/1753071728845066596?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The conversation between Elmo and the hosts had just wrapped up, and Guthrie announced that they planned to &#8220;go over to Al (Roker) for a check of the weather&#8221; — and that&#8217;s when the chaotic scene began to unfold.
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&#8220;Wait, wait, wait!&#8221; The camera panned back from Roker and his weather map to the hosts on the couch — and they all burst out laughing, with shocked expressions on their faces, as David walked onto the set and grabbed Elmo by the neck. With one hand he held the Muppet still, and with the other he punched several times — and the laughter continued.
Without a word, David turned on his heel and walked off the stage.
&#8220;Elmo loved you before,&#8221; the Muppet called after him.
&#8220;Ask permission, ask permission before you touch people, Larry,&#8221; host Craig Melvin admonished the exiting comedian.

Los Angeles Premiere Of HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” Season 12 – Arrivals

Larry David Shocks Hosts, Crashes ‘TODAY’ Set To Punch Elmo In The Face

Larry David Shocks Hosts, Crashes 'TODAY' Set To Punch Elmo In The Face

Al Roker

Savannah Guthrie

TODAY Show

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/larry-david">Larry David</a> swears it’s not a joke this time; “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/television">Curb Your Enthusiasm</a>” will be coming to an end.
“It’s time,” the 76-year-old <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/entertainment">television series</a> creator told <a href="https://variety.com/2024/scene/columns/larry-david-why-curb-your-enthusiasm-ending-hbo-last-season-1235892968/">Variety</a> before the show’s Season 12 premiere at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. “Twelve seasons – that’s a lot for a television show – over 24 years. It was time.”
The “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/comedy">Seinfeld</a>” producer admitted he had said the show was done before only to come back, but he insists this time is different. “Yeah, I said it before. But I wasn’t 76 when I said it,” David added.
David attended the premiere with castmates Cheryl Hines, Jeff Garlin, Susie Essman, J.B. Smoove, Keyla Monterroso Mejia, Ted Danson, and Vince Vaughn.
Hines, who plays David’s ex-wife Cheryl in the long-running comedy, said the announcement that it was really over wasn’t too theatrical.
“Larry would always say, ‘I think this is the last season,’ and he said that again and I said, ‘OK, I’ll believe it when I see it in print,’” she said. “So it wasn’t a big ceremonious moment. I just thought OK, it’s not the last season.”
Essman said the series is ending partly because it’s been on the air for so long.
“I think he just feels done. He did all those ‘Seinfelds.’ He did 120 ‘Curbs.’ Plus, the pilot hour. So I think he just feels done, and it’s time to move on to some other craziness,” the actor said. “We talk a lot,” Essman continued. “We’re very close friends so we talk on the phone a lot and we test a lot, and I think in a conversation before we started shooting this season he told me it was over. He’s told me that before.”
Garlin, who plays David&#8217;s manager and best friend Jeff Greene on the show, said he was the only one who cried when it was all over. 
“But only one person cried – me!” he said, per Variety. “No one else cried. People got a little bit teary, but I bawled. [Larry] patted me on the back. He showed support. You have to understand, it was overwhelming in that moment. This is 25 years of my life. It was very emotional, but I’m so happy that we’re done.”
Meanwhile, Smoove said even though they filmed a finale, he still believes the show could come back. 
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“I don’t trust Larry,” he said. “I think he’s going to get home, sitting around his fancy living room with his fancy little coffee table, drinking one of those espressos with his leg crossed over. He’s going to get bored. Larry is going to get bored, and Larry is going to call everybody one at a time. Might be two years from now, might be three years from now. Might be four. I don’t know when but Larry will get bored.”
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” premiered in 2000. The sitcom follows David&#8217;s life as a semi-retired television writer and producer with many celebrities and guest stars playing fictionalized versions of themselves. It has been nominated for 47 Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Comedy Series for ten seasons. It won the 2002 Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy.

Larry David Insists He’s ‘Not Lying’ Over ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Ending

Larry David Insists He's 'Not Lying' Over 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' Ending

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/larry-david" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Comedian Larry David</a> confronted <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/elon-musk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elon Musk</a> at a wedding in 2022 to express his displeasure with the billionaire’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/politics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">political</a> leanings, according to a new biography.
The interaction was recorded in author Walter Isaacson’s recently released book “Elon Musk,” per <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/09/18/larry-david-confronted-elon-musk-about-supporting-republicans/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The New York Post</a>. Isaacson wrote about how David went up to the billionaire Tesla CEO while they were both attending the nuptials of UFC and WWE owner Ari Emanuel in St. Tropez.
The “Seinfeld” creator allegedly asked Musk: “Do you just want to murder kids in schools?” which was likely a reference to the Uvalde school shooting and resulting calls for gun reform from the Left. The tragedy occurred a few days before Emanuel’s wedding.
“No, no,” Musk said as he appeared “baffled” and “annoyed,” per the biography. “I’m anti-kid murder,” the SpaceX owner added.
“Then how could you vote Republican?” David retorted.
Isaacson said David confirmed the interaction did happen.
“His tweets about voting Republican because Democrats were the party of division and hate were sticking in my craw,” David told the author. “Even if Uvalde never happened, I probably would have brought it up, because I was angry and offended.”
MSNBC “Morning Joe” co-anchor Joe Scarborough said he found the exchange “pretty amusing” when David told him about it. 
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“I had told Ari I was not a big fan of Elon, so he seated me with him,” Scarborough said. David was put at the table as well.
Emanuel told the author that he had no bad intentions when making the wedding seating arrangement. He’s quoted as saying, “I actually thought that would be a great table.”
While Musk appeared to have Democratic leanings in the past, he has seemingly moved to a more pro-free speech stance and is perceived to be more closely aligned with Republicans. His most dramatic move was purchasing the social media platform Twitter, now rebranded as X, in response to their censorship policies.
“Unless the woke mind virus, which is fundamentally anti-science, anti-merit, and anti-human in general, is stopped, civilization will never become multiplanetary,” Musk told Isaacson in the book, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elon-musk-blasts-school-turning-his-son-trans-and-into-a-full-communist" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.

Larry David Elon Musk

Larry David Once Asked Elon Musk If He Wanted ‘To Murder Kids In School’

Larry David Once Asked Elon Musk If He Wanted 'To Murder Kids In School' 

Elon Musk

Gun Control

A class-action <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/lawsuit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawsuit</a> blamed several celebrities for exposing members of the public to the implosion of <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/cryptocurrency" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cryptocurrency</a> exchange FTX, which plaintiffs characterized as a “Ponzi scheme.”
The company filed for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/30-year-old-billionaire-loses-entire-fortune-overnight-as-his-bahamas-based-cryptocurrency-empire-implodes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bankruptcy</a> on Friday after customers discovered that firms controlled by Sam Bankman-Fried and his associates were allegedly fraudulently intertwined, causing a liquidity crisis as users rushed to withdraw funds. The <a href="https://htv-prod-media.s3.amazonaws.com/files/ftx-lawsuit-1-main-1668613943.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawsuit</a>, filed on Tuesday in the Southern District of Florida on behalf of investor Edwin Garrison and others affected by the company’s sudden failure, named as defendants former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and celebrity ambassadors who allegedly participated in the “fraudulent scheme” against unsophisticated investors.
The lawsuit argued that the brand ambassadors, many of whom received equity stakes in the company, neglected to perform “any due diligence” before marketing FTX to the public, adding that their failure to disclose “the nature, scope, and amount of compensation they personally received” in exchange for promoting FTX constitutes “a violation of the anti-touting provisions of the federal securities laws.”
Among the defendants listed were Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady and supermodel ex-wife Gisele Bündchen, who appeared in an advertisement for the company and held equity stakes. The lawsuit also noted that celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary assured the public that FTX was a reliable entity as recently as last month.
Other celebrities listed in the lawsuit include Golden State Warriors point guard Steph Curry, retired baseball player David Ortiz, basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal, comedian Larry David, and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
The lawsuit, citing “misrepresentations and omissions made and broadcast around the country through the television and internet” by the defendants, claimed that the celebrities were responsible for the “many billions of dollars” lost by the plaintiffs. A number of individual users and institutional clients still have as much as $8 billion remaining with the company, which Bankman-Fried has reportedly attempted to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-crypto-billionaire-sam-bankman-fried-whose-entire-fortune-just-went-to-zero-is-calling-around-for-new-investors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">solicit from investors</a> with little success.
Bankman-Fried, whose $15 billion net worth evaporated along with the collapsed company, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/we-got-overconfident-and-careless-sam-bankman-fried-reveals-what-went-wrong-with-ftx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">commented</a> via social media that his present goal is to “do right by customers” before shifting his focus to investors. Referencing his coverage from the media as a cryptocurrency wunderkind, some of which <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-york-times-runs-puff-piece-about-disgraced-billionaire-sam-bankman-fried-leaves-out-connections-to-democrats" target="_blank" rel="noopener">continued</a> even after his company declared bankruptcy, Bankman-Fried asserted that his team was once “held as paragons of running an effective company.” Nevertheless, features “on the cover of every magazine” and attention as the “darling” of Silicon Valley caused him to grow “overconfident and careless.”
The young entrepreneur and his associates are presently under supervision by police in the Bahamas, where his company is headquartered, since they reportedly considered fleeing the country for Dubai, according to a <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/sam-bankman-fried-is-under-supervision-in-bahamas-looking-to-flee-to-dubai" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from Cointelegraph. Bahamian and American officials are <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bahamas-may-ship-disgraced-crypto-ceo-sam-bankman-fried-back-to-the-united-states" target="_blank" rel="noopener">working</a> to transport Bankman-Fried out of the island nation as regulators seek to address the crisis. Members of the House Financial Services Committee will hold hearings on the situation next month, during which they plan to hear from Bankman-Fried and other executives involved in related entities, including competitor Binance, which nearly purchased FTX.
Bankman-Fried <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/here-are-the-democrats-and-republicans-who-received-campaign-cash-linked-to-bankrupt-crypto-empire-ftx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">donated</a> $39 million during the recent midterm election cycle on behalf of Democratic candidates and organizations, according to <a href="https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/top_donors/2022?disp=D&amp;type=V&amp;superonly=N" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from Open Secrets, which listed him as the nation’s sixth-largest individual midterm donor. FTX Co-CEO Ryan Salame donated heavily to right-leaning organizations, according to more <a href="https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/donor_detail/2022?id=U0000004758&amp;type=I&amp;super_only=N&amp;name=Salame%2C+Ryan+D.+%26+Susan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from Open Secrets.

Collage Maker-16-Nov-2022-04.14-PM

Tom Brady, Steph Curry, Other Celebrities Sued For Pushing ‘Ponzi Scheme’ FTX

Celebrities And Sports Stars Named In Class Action Lawsuit Against FTX

Business

Crime

Cryptocurrency

Gisele Bundchen

Lawsuit

Shaquille O'Neal

Steph Curry

Tom Brady

A host of celebrities stand to lose massive stakes in <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/cryptocurrency" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cryptocurrency</a> platform FTX after the company suddenly went under last week.
FTX filed for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/30-year-old-billionaire-loses-entire-fortune-overnight-as-his-bahamas-based-cryptocurrency-empire-implodes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bankruptcy</a> on Friday after users discovered that firms controlled by Sam Bankman-Fried, the 30-year-old founder of FTX, were likely fraudulently intertwined. The entrepreneur went from maintaining a $15.6 billion net worth to having “no material wealth” virtually overnight, according to <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-11/bankman-fried-s-effective-altruism-implodes-with-his-fortunes#:~:text=The%20Bloomberg%20Billionaires%20Index%2C%20which,to%20have%20no%20material%20wealth." target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Among other aggressive marketing efforts, FTX had solicited a number of professional athletes to participate in advertisements featuring the exchange platform. Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady and supermodel Gisele Bündchen, who <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tom-brady-confirms-divorce-from-wife-gisele-bundchen-after-13-years-of-marriage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">divorced</a> last month, were once <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uymLJoKFlW8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">brand ambassadors</a> with the company and held equity stakes, according to a <a href="https://blog.ftx.com/blog/mid_year_review_2021/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from FTX.
Golden State Warriors player Steph Curry was also made an ambassador for the company and given shares, according to a <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/tom-brady-steph-curry-and-kevin-oleary-set-to-lose-big-from-ftx-bankruptcy-filing-11668205535?mod=banking" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from MarketWatch. Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence agreed to a multi-year sponsorship contract with FTX in which he would receive cryptocurrency as part of his signing bonus. The company also signed deals to become the “official cryptocurrency exchange partner” of Major League Baseball and paid to call the Miami Heat’s home court the FTX Arena until at least 2040.
Blockfolio, a subsidiary of FTX, became a sponsor of Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy’s retail investing show Davey Daytrader Global. According to Portnoy, the company was their “biggest client ever.” Influencer and athlete Logan Paul partnered with FTX ahead of his fight with Floyd Mayweather, while comedian Larry David appeared in a Super Bowl <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH5-rSxilxo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">commercial</a> for FTX earlier this year.
Los Angeles Angels pitcher and outfielder Shohei Ohtani became a global ambassador for the company at the end of last year and received “all of his compensation in equity and cryptocurrencies,” according to a <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mlb-superstar-shohei-ohtani-joins-ftx-as-global-ambassador-through-long-term-partnership-301425911.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>. Other ambassadors included basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal, celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary, retired baseball player David Ortiz, and tennis star Naomi Osaka, according to a <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-celebrities-including-tom-brady-tied-to-ftx-see-the-list-11668109684" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from The Wall Street Journal.
Account holders reportedly had difficulty removing their assets from FTX after the company filed for bankruptcy. It is not clear whether the celebrities paid in cryptocurrency continued to manage the digital coins in FTX accounts.
At least some celebrities and investors, however, were wise enough to avoid FTX and Bankman-Fried. As revealed in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/he-set-off-my-bs-detector-musk-wanted-nothing-to-do-with-now-bankrupt-crypto-billionaire-who-wanted-a-piece-of-twitter-buyout" target="_blank" rel="noopener">messages</a> between Elon Musk and investment banker Michael Grimes, the purported wunderkind had expressed interest in joining the world’s richest man as he acquired social media company Twitter, through both a multibillion-dollar stake and assistance with engineering a blockchain component for the platform.
When approached by Grimes about the potential partnership, Musk said that he was “backlogged with a mountain of critical work matters” and observed that supporting Twitter via blockchain would be “impossible,” since the bandwidth requirements would demand an “absolutely gigantic” peer-to-peer network that would defeat the purpose of decentralization. After Grimes said that Bankman-Fried would still be interested in Musk’s vision for Twitter purely from an investment standpoint, the world’s richest man agreed to speak with him later as long as he did not “have to have a laborious blockchain debate.”
Once the cryptocurrency exchange fizzled, Musk <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1591224814597189633" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed</a> on social media that he had never trusted Bankman-Fried. “He set off my bs detector,” Musk said, “which is why I did not think he had” $3 billion.
Bankman-Fried, a self-proclaimed “effective altruist,” contributed nearly $39 million to support Democrats in the recent midterm elections, which occurred days before his company imploded, according to <a href="https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/top_donors/2022?disp=D&amp;type=V&amp;superonly=N" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from Open Secrets. He had been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/billionaire-ftx-founder-who-lost-entire-fortune-gave-massive-sum-to-democrats-before-empire-collapsed" target="_blank" rel="noopener">preparing</a> to spend as much as $1 billion during the 2024 election cycle to keep the Democratic Party in control of the White House.

Collage Maker-14-Nov-2022-03.32-PM

From Brady To Shaq, Here Are The Celebrities Who Lost Big On The FTX Implosion

Celebrities Will Lose Big From FTX Implosion

Dave Portnoy

In a wide-ranging quarantine <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/04/style/larry-david-curb-your-enthusiasm-coronavirus-psa.html">interview</a> with New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, Larry David, co-creator of “Seinfeld” and creator and star of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” said that it’s time for Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to drop out of the Democratic presidential primary.
“I feel he should drop out,” David said.
<blockquote>Because he’s too far behind. He can’t get the nomination. And I think, you know, it’s no time to fool around here. Everybody’s got to support Biden.</blockquote>
David is also known to many for his uncanny impersonation of the Vermont senator on “Saturday Night Live.” David first appeared as Sanders on “SNL” during the 2016 Democratic primary between the senator and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. David was brought back to the stage after Sanders announced his candidacy for the 2020 nomination.
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, “at least 15 states and one territory have postponed or otherwise extended their presidential primaries,” according to <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/states-shelve-primary-contests-now-coronavirus-shuffles-2020/story?id=69713829">ABC News</a>. The Democratic National Convention has also been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/finally-dnc-moves-democratic-national-convention-to-august">delayed</a>, moving from its initial mid-July date to sometime in August.
All of this has stalled what was a roaring comeback for the Joe Biden campaign, which, prior to the former vice president’s landslide victory in South Carolina in late-February, was looking bleak.
Following his win in the Palmetto State, Biden whipped up enough enthusiasm to score victories in 10 of the 14 Super Tuesday states, gaining the upper hand on rival Sanders. Biden also went on to win eight more races in Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Washington, Arizona, Illinois, and Florida prior to most other primaries being postponed.
As of publication, Joe Biden has 1,217 delegates, and Sen. Bernie Sanders has 914. To clinch the Democratic nomination at the convention, a candidate must have 1,991 pledged delegates.
Despite Sanders’ increasingly narrow path to the nomination, as well as pressure from the media, the senator has refused to bow out of the race.
On Wednesday, Sen. Sanders told Whoopi Goldberg of “The View” that he wasn’t dropping out:
<blockquote>Last I heard, people in a democracy have a right to vote and they have a right to vote for the agenda that they think can work for America, especially in this very, very difficult moment. We are assessing our campaign, as a matter of fact, where we want to go forward.</blockquote>
The senator went on to speak about his work on the next proposed COVID-19 stimulus legislation.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Bernie Sanders on staying in the race: “Last I heard, people in a democracy have a right to vote and have a right to vote for the agenda that they think can work for America, especially in this very, very difficult moment. We are assessing our campaign.” <a href="https://t.co/XqBZIxsIGR">https://t.co/XqBZIxsIGR</a> <a href="https://t.co/WPNsidZQ7f">pic.twitter.com/WPNsidZQ7f</a>
— ABC News (@ABC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ABC/status/1245379379108220928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 1, 2020</a></blockquote>
According to the <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/us/2020_democratic_presidential_nomination-6730.html">RealClearPolitics</a> national polling average, Joe Biden leads Bernie Sanders by 20.5 points (56% to 35.5%). Although the polling isn’t as fresh, Biden leads Sanders by a 22.5-point margin in <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/oh/ohio_democratic_presidential_primary-6873.html">Ohio</a>, he leads Sanders by an 11.5-point margin in <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/pa/pennsylvania_democratic_presidential_primary-6860.html">Pennsylvania</a>, and he leads Sanders by an 18.3-point margin in <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2020/president/wi/wisconsin_democratic_primary-6848.html">Wisconsin</a>.
The <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/elections/betting_odds/democratic_2020_nomination/">betting odds</a> also give Biden a seemingly insurmountable lead with 83.9 points. Sanders actually comes in fourth place with 5.2 points behind New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (6.3 points) and Hillary Clinton (6 points), neither of whom are running for president.

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