“Man, I wanna make fun of Simone Biles,” Che wrote Thursday on his Instagram story.
The “Saturday Night Live” performer proceeded to share vile jokes sent to him regarding not just Biles’s mental health but also how she said she was sexually assaulted by Larry Nassar, the former USA Gymnastics doctor accused of sexually abusing hundreds of girls and women. For his crimes, Nassar could spend up to 175 years in prison.
He wrote, “I had like three minutes of Simone Biles jokes in me,” “I’m choosing violence, as the dorky children say.”
Che’s Instagram story, which has since been deleted but captured in screenshots posted to social media, sparked immediate backlash from critics who wanted to “vomit” over the comedian’s attempt to joke about Biles’s sexual abuse and mental health.
Later, the comedian claimed that his Instagram account was “hacked.”
Che wrote, “I can’t believe they got them,” “Y’all know that I only make jokes about cops and Whites. It’s all fine now. I changed my password.
The manager of Che did not respond to a request for comment on Friday morning. Neither HBO Max (which airs his comedy series) nor NBC (which airs both the Olympics & SNL) responded to requests for comment.
After Biles, a 24-year-old who was considered to be the face of USA Olympics at Tokyo Games, pulled out from the team and individual all round finals, the comedian posted the joke on social media. She later acknowledged that she was suffering from the “twisties” — when a gymnast loses control of their body as they spin through the air. Her decision has been celebrated by many and led Biles to realize, she wrote on Twitter, that she was “more than my accomplishments and gymnastics which I never truly believed before.”
However, she’s also been criticised by conservatives and right-wing media for calling Biles, the gymnast with the most medals in international competition, a “shame on the country.”
Che, SNL’s head writer, shared on Instagram how he would like to perform his new material for Biles in front a crowd. He shared an infuriating line from a fan about Nassar knowing Biles “better” than anyone as the Instagram story progressed.
Che wrote, “That’s rough,” and gave the joke a 9/10. “Absolutely tasteless.”
