Anthony Jeselnik Can't Believe Bill Burr Did the Riyadh Comedy Festival

Before we get into the attention-grabbing headline, I want to boost that all of this happened in the context of Anthony Jeselnik promoting his new book club via a fascinating interview with Vulture’s Kathryn VanArendonk. I am fully intrigued by Jeselnik’s efforts to get more people to read. So much so, that I’m even willing to dust off my Instagram account if that’s where he launches it. Jeselnik also dropped a list of The Best Novels of 2025, and I look forward to adding those titles to the ever-growing stack of books I’ll eventually read in the nursing home.

Anyway, while talking to VanArendonk, Jeselnik broached the topic of the Riyadh Comedy Festival. Like a lot of comedians, Jeselnik did receive a generous offer to perform, but he rightly turned it down. Other comedians gladly took the money, and Jeselnik was shocked that Bill Burr was one of them. Not only that, but Burr went on a grievance tour where he lashed out at Marc Maron and anyone who dared to criticize him for attending the controversial event. That’s the part that really rubbed Jeselnik the wrong way.

Via Vulture:

Everyone seems embarrassed, but Burr is doubling, tripling down. Whereas when Pete Davidson was just like, “I said I’d go, and I saw the money,” then people leave him alone. But with Burr, it is insane to me that he would be so dumb. It’s just shocking that he didn’t know what would come for him. And then to be fighting with everyone, screaming at Marc Maron publicly, it’s just wild to me. I haven’t talked with him at all, but I’ve just been stunned. He’s the one name that stuns me. No one’s like, “Oh, Kevin Hart, wow!”

And it wasn’t just defensive. He came out and was like, “They’re just like us! They’ve got the Timberland and the Applebee’s.” He was doing as much PR for them after the fact as he possibly could. Which was like … what did you think the money was for? It wasn’t just for the event.

Jeselnik didn’t stop there. He’s now convinced that Burr is doing more than just defending his Riyadh appearance. “It seems like he’s trying to set up going back — like an annual ‘once a year I perform there’ part of his tour that is repulsive.”

Jeselnik took a final jab by basically suggesting Bill is primed to go off the deep end Ricky Gervais-style, if he’s not already there. “I’ll be surprised if Burr’s next special isn’t addressing most of it.”