The first of its kind live Netflix comedy roast of Tom Brady was largely a win for most of the performers involved — with the notable exception of Kim Kardashian. The reality TV star was surprisingly and savagely booed when she arrived on stage, much to her chagrin. Roastmaster Kevin Hart even had to ask the audience to simmer down after the boos droned on for a good ten seconds and threatened to drown out her first joke.
Netflix had to know there would be some unexpected hiccups when it decided to broadcast a live roast of a controversial superstar like Tom Brady, though chances are the streamer wasn’t expecting the mishaps to be Kim Kardashian-related. Dubbed The Greatest Roast Of All Time: Tom Brady, the event went off fairly successfully, with only a few hitches. But the biggest stunner of the night (other than Bill Belichick’s shockingly funny set and delivery) had to be the Kardashian moment.
Kim certainly wasn’t expecting it. Sitting in the audience and getting called up to the microphone as a “surprise” roaster (unlike the numerous roasters seated on stage and announced beforehand), Kardashian was ushered up to the stage by the Roastmaster General himself, Jeff Ross. She clutched her champagne glass, donning fancy jewelry, dyed blonde hair and a strapless dress — and seemed ill-prepared for what happened next.
After first saying “Thank you” in response to a smattering of applause she received, the audience reaction quickly and loudly shifted to a much stronger chorus of boos. So much so that the commotion interrupted Kardashian’s first joke about Kevin Hart’s height. “All right, all right, all right…”
“I know a lot of people make fun of your height…” Kardashian began, before the boos were too overwhelming to ignore and she shot the audience a “How dare you” glare. When that didn’t work, she tried to cut them off with “All right, all right, all right…”
When that didn’t suffice either, Kevin Hart had to chime in with his own reprimanding “Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa –” to the crowd, which eventually came to order, but the damage had been done.
The moment was particularly stunning on a night when reviled longtime Patriots coach Bill Belichick was in the house and even he didn’t garner this kind of vilified reaction.
There were many uncomfortable moments throughout the evening, but that’s usually half the fun of a roast. Kevin Hart urged the audience a few times over the evening to “get comfortable being uncomfortable.” But hurled personal insults and tasteless innuendo generally got laughs time and again, while the only moment to really cause mass outrage was the simple moment of Kim Kardashian approaching the podium.
Why was Kim Kardashian so savagely booed?
The question then becomes… why? Why was Kim Kardashian singled out and so mercilessly booed? Was the audience filled with Swifties? Her famous exes? Netflix executives jealous that The Kardashians is on Hulu instead of their own streamer? Calabasas residents upset that she has become the face of their fair city?
Or has she possibly just become so overexposed and famous despite a perceived dearth of accomplishments that the audience couldn’t help but give voice to the collective frustration of the nation?
Whatever the cause, Kardashian then gamely went on to deliver her set — which included jokes about Kevin Hart’s height, her transgender stepparent Caitlyn Jenner, her father defending O.J. Simpson, and the dating rumors between her and Brady. Almost certainly the barbs were written by someone else, but Kardashian did deliver the jokes cleanly enough to turn some of those early jeers into genuine laughs.
There were numerous people on stage Sunday night at the KIA Forum in Los Angeles who could have been seen as the villain of the evening, though betters probably never would have guess at the top of the list would be Kim Kardashian. Nevertheless, she no doubt made Bill Belichick proud by “doing her job” on stage — she powered through the negativity and made sure the unflattering attention and feelings stayed centered on roastee Tom Brady the rest of the night.
