James Corden Remains Unrepentant In His Awfulness

In the days since James Corden was banned, then unbanned, from the NYC restaurant Balthazar for being a rude prick, he had a sitdown with the New York Times. At one point during his conversation, he said, “I can see why and how it must have looked — ungracious, ungrateful, and brattish.” He was not talking about his entitled treatment of his waiter but about a time when he received an award and took the opportunity to complain that the show he was on did not get more recognition. Regarding his boorish behavior, he professed no guilt.

Actually, that’s a bit of an understatement. What he said was, “I haven’t done anything wrong on any level.” He then went on to claim that nobody cares anyway. He says that only people on Twitter care and that they also think Hillary Clinton was elected in 2016. Instead of just admitting he made a mistake, which he apparently did to save face with Balthazar’s owner Kevin McNally.

I understand his position here. Saying he was wrong and apologizing publicly would be the classy thing to do. It requires confidence, candor, and tact. Only an empathetic, level-headed person would cop to f***ing up as he did. Corden possesses none of these qualities. To call McNally and privately grovel for forgiveness, instead of the people he actually hurt, only to publicly deny guilt, is the act of a sniveling coward. It’s what I would expect from someone who could be so cruel to people just trying to get by.

It’s Corden’s dismissal of the situation that is even more hilarious. It highlights just how small and pitiful of a man he is. He claims he “hasn’t really read anything” about the situation. Then why did you call McNally, James? If it’s a “silly thing to talk about,” why do you plan to bring it up on your show on Monday? He’s attempting to eat his cake and have it too, and it only makes him look worse.

At one point Corden says, “I promise you, ask around this restaurant. They don’t know about this. Maybe 15 percent of people. I’ve been here, been walking around New York, not one person’s come up to me. We’re dealing in two worlds here.” He’s not wrong about the “two worlds” comment. The dude is dining on the Upper East Side and acting like he’s sitting in front of the TKTS booth in Times Square or riding the subway. He is separate from the people who would care, which probably makes it easier for him to scream at them.

Also, does he think the servers are going to turn him away or give him a hard time? These people are just trying to get through their day without getting screamed at by an entitled brat. If anything, restaurant workers probably just know now to give him a wide berth. At the end of the interview, his waiter claims to only be “vaguely” aware of who he is, and honestly, that just sounds like someone trying to stay out of a mess. It sounds like a worker who has grace and manners and a good head on their shoulders, something Corden would know nothing about.

Corden will be leaving the late-night scene in 2023, and that departure cannot come soon enough.