British comedian Ricky Gervais has proven time and time again over the course of his career that he’s not afraid to ruffle a few feathers with his comedy. With a new Netflix special Armageddon set to hit the streamer on Christmas Day, the actor and stand-up comedian is already stirring up controversy due to a joke about terminally ill children. Gervais was asked about the thousands of people petitioning Netflix to not air the special, and he had quite a bit to say.
The petition at change.org — which as of this writing has collected more than 12,000 signatures — accuses Ricky Gervais of “mocking terminally ill children” in Armageddon by calling them “baldy.” The comedian spoke to BBC’s Headliners podcast about those who said they were offended by the bit. Gervais argued:
