Joel McHale Reveals Kardashian Jokes Stopped In 'The Soup' After Kris Jenner Complained
Veteran TV host and comedian Joel McHale is finally off broadcasting reins in his new show that debuted on Netflix on Feb. 18.
In an interview with Variety, the 46-year-old host said Netflix is giving him the freedom to do what he wanted with the show. Hale referenced the management of his previous show, The Soup, which stopped him from making comments on the members of the Kardashian family.
"Way back when, Kris Kardashian would complain about our jokes, and Ted would literally go, 'Hey man, Kris called, can you just lay off of her for a week?" McHale said. He further explained that the restrictions went even tighter when E! transitioned to a new management.
At the time, McHale thought The Soup was bound to end because it was those kinds of jokes that helped the show get higher ratings.
"The next administration, the president said to my face, 'Don't make fun of the Kardashians. We don't want you to make fun of the Kardashians anymore."
New Breed of Comedy
McHale's new show titled The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale has debuted on Sunday on Netflix. Chief Content Officer at Netflix Ted Sarandos was surprisingly generous, especially that there are no focus groups and the management understands the needs of the audience.
The Joel McHale show will still make fun of celebrities, but because Netflix caters internationally, the production team is focused on more diverse plotlines.
However, there is still the element of poking fun on almost everything on the television screens such as The Bachelor, for example. When asked about covering stories on the Kardashians, McHale said it is not mandatory.
A lot of reality shows are available now than in 2012, when The Soup was still active, so scoops on the Kardashians are not the priority. For the first episode, McHale teased they will be making fun of Stranger Things, which garnered multiple recognitions, including Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble and NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Performance by a Youth for Caleb McLaughlin.
Politics And Comedy
Although McHale's brand-new talk show will be covering politics, only the most relevant ones will be aired, but there will definitely be a touch of President Donald Trump.
"No matter what your politics are, the Trump administration takes up 90% of news and entertainment these days," McHale said.
McHale’s web streaming career started on the defunct Yahoo Screen's Community, where it also featured similar comical skits like The Soup.
