Controversial comedian Shane Gillis found himself in a different type of hot seat as he was the latest celebrity putting his spice tolerance to the test on Hot Ones.
The 36-year-old funnyman— who became a huge online star after being fired from Saturday Night Live over racist and homophobic remarks — was reduced to chugging milk to help tamper the most fiery of hot sauces on the hit YouTube series.
‘Be careful, cause sometimes the dairy and hot sauce mixture can cause more problems,’ host Sean Evans warned Shane, who was clearly struggling with the spice level as he pleaded for ‘more milk’.
At one point, the creator of Netflix’s Tires series also joked about collecting ‘Nazi’ keepsakes when Evans asks him about the ‘U.S. history memorabilia hanging from the walls of [his] apartment.’
The Hot Ones episode was released on Thursday, coinciding with calls from several Asian American groups in Los Angeles for him to apologize for using ‘offensive racial remarks’ in his stand-up performances, per Variety.
Controversial comedian Shane Gillis found himself in a different type of hot seat as he was the latest celebrity putting his spice tolerance to the test on Hot Ones
Gillis was reduced to chugging milk to help tamper the most fiery of hot sauces on the hit YouTube series
Representatives from the Media Action Network for Asian Americans, the Chinese American Citizens Alliance Los Angeles, and the Greater Los Angeles Japanese American Citizens League convened at the Chinese American Citizens Alliance Lodge for a press briefing.
During the event, the groups called on Netflix to cancel Tires and urged Bud Light to withdraw all promotional support for his comedy tour until he issues an apology.
In 2019 several clips surfaced in which the star used racist and homophobic slurs on numerous occasions – including on an episode of Matt and Shane’s Secret Podcast.
In the podcast, Gillis and Matt McCusker mocked comedians Judd Apatow and Chris Gethard, referring to them as ‘white f****t comics’ and ‘f***ing gayer than ISIS.’
Gillis is also heard telling McCusker that their conversation is ‘nice racism, good racism.’
Another clip emerged from a September 2018 podcast episode in which Gillis referred to people living in New York City’s Chinatown as ‘f***ing c***ks’.
He also mocked a Chinese accent and the language barrier in the video, saying: ‘Chinatown’s f***ing nuts.’
‘The translation between you and the waiter it’s just such a f***ing hassle, it’s like can you, I’m pointing at it, like this is the f***ing noodles.
At the time the clips resurfaced, Gillis had just been announced as a new addition to Saturday Night Live, but the ensuing controversy led to his dismissal from the show a mere four days later.
He made a statement shortly after the firing, saying, ‘I’m happy to apologize to anyone who’s actually offended by anything I said. My intention is never to hurt anyone.
‘But I’m trying to be the best comedian I can be. And sometimes that requires risks.’
‘Be careful, cause sometimes the dairy and hot sauce mixture can cause more problems,’ host Sean Evans warned Shane, who was clearly struggling with the spice level as he pleaded for ‘more milk’
At one point, the creator of Netflix ‘s Tires series also joked about collecting ‘Nazi’ keepsakes when Evans asks him about the ‘U.S. history memorabilia hanging from the walls of [his] apartment’
The Hot Ones episode was released on Thursday, coinciding with calls from several Asian American groups in Los Angeles for him to apologize for using ‘offensive racial remarks’ in his stand-up performances; (pictured 2023)
In February, Gillis, who was fired from SNL, returned as host with a shockingly risque monologue joking about Down syndrome, race and gays
At the Chinatown press conference on Thursday, MANAA founding president Guy Aoki criticized the quote as a ‘lame apology.’
He added: ‘All of this sends a very hurtful message. If you duck a few years, slowly build your career back up and continue on as if nothing had happened, you can come back even stronger than ever.
‘There’s a history of the industry allowing comedians who make offensive racial remarks… to not have to apologize.’
In February, Gillis returned as host to SNL with a shockingly risque monologue joking about Down syndrome, race and gays.