Weird Al Yankovic Declines Lucrative Offer from Riyadh Comedy Festival

Musician and comedy legend “Weird Al” Yankovic reportedly turned down a lucrative offer amounting to “seven figures” to perform at Saudi Arabia’s controversial debut comedy festival last year.

In a discussion with Pennsylvania’s Tribune-Review, the Grammy-winning parody artist shared his reasons for rejecting the invitation to perform at the first-ever Riyadh Comedy Festival. The notion of accepting payment from Saudi Arabia made him uncomfortable.

“I was invited to the Riyadh Comedy Festival, which is something that I obviously did not want to do,” Yankovic reportedly said. “They offered me, I’m not going to say how much, but it was seven figures to do one show, which is way more than I’ve ever been offered in my life to do a show.”

He further expressed that while he doesn’t judge performers who chose to participate in the event, attended by approximately 6,000 people, he couldn’t align himself with the implications of performing at the festival.

“But I just couldn’t be part of that,” he continued. “I’m not dissing anybody who took the money because I’m sure everybody that went there got a lot of money. I’m sure they had their own reasons and justifications for doing it. But I’m doing enough that I don’t need to take any amount of money if it makes me feel icky, and that kind of did.”

In the past, the comedian also declined another substantial offer for an AI advertisement, citing similar discomfort with accepting such proposals.

“I wish people would offer me things that I didn’t feel bad about accepting,” Yankovic told the Tribune-Review, regarding the AI ad.

Meanwhile, the Riyadh Comedy Festival last year sparked criticism from the comedy community. Hosts and comedians like Bill Maher and Jimmy Kimmel critiqued peers, including Dave Chappelle and Aziz Ansari, for attending the event. Maher challenged Chappelle’s claims about the freedom to criticize in Saudi Arabia.

In media interactions, Kimmel highlighted the Saudi government’s infamous involvement in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. Ansari defended his participation by emphasizing the potential to promote dialogue and openness in the repressive societal context.

Fox News Digital sought comments from Yankovic and the Saudi Arabian General Entertainment Authority. Additional insights were provided by Marc Tomasco, while Julia Bonavita contributed with analysis and cultural commentary.