Paul McCartney Declines Netflix Live Roast Offer
Sir Paul McCartney was approached to be the subject of Netflix’s next live roast event, but the former Beatle ultimately passed on the idea as the streamer continues expanding its roast franchise.
Comedian Jeff Ross confirmed that producers asked McCartney to take the “hot seat” after Netflix’s high-profile Tom Brady roast, and Ross called it a “fantasy roast” because McCartney is “so loved,” Variety reported.
Netflix declined to comment, and a representative for McCartney did not immediately respond to the publication’s request for comment. The report also noted that Netflix’s stand-up comedy chief Mr. Robbie Praw previously said the company had “thrown around a lot of names” for a potential roast as it looks to keep the format “eventized” with major celebrity subjects.
Netflix’s most recent live roast, “The Roast of Kevin Hart,” streamed Sunday night from the Kia Forum in Los Angeles with Mr. Shane Gillis hosting and a lineup that included Chelsea Handler, Pete Davidson and Regina Hall, with surprise appearances from Dwayne Johnson and Katt Williams. Ross said he’d like to see a pop or rock star next, floating ideas including Drake and Stevie Wonder.
McCartney has remained a rare target for that kind of comedy given his cultural status, and the Netflix outreach adds to the list of modern-pop-culture oddities that have followed him, including when he was temporarily banned from Reddit in a separate online episode.
With McCartney declining, Netflix’s producers appear set to continue hunting for another blockbuster “GOAT” subject who can anchor the next round of live roasts and replicate the audience scale of the Brady special.
