Comedian Louis C.K. will release a new stand-up special on Netflix on June 30, marking his first major-streaming release since the fallout from sexual misconduct allegations nearly eight years ago. The special, titled Ridiculous, is his first stand-up project distributed by a major media company since 2017.
C.K. was accused by five women of sexual misconduct and later admitted to some of the acts described. In a statement at the time, he apologized, said he had initially thought his behavior was acceptable, and later understood there was a power imbalance and that he had acted irresponsibly. The scandal made him one of the first major celebrities tied to the #MeToo wave.
After the allegations, Netflix, FX and HBO stopped working with him, a film starring him was canceled, and his management dropped him. He then disappeared from public view for several years and released four recent specials independently. Over the past year, however, he has returned to selling out venues and surprise club shows, drawing both applause and criticism online.
Netflix released a trailer on Tuesday showing C.K. joking about sending his aging father to a nursing home. The comedian has spent about a year testing material for the new special in live performances, including a recent show at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles as part of the Netflix Is a Joke festival. In 2020, he self-released Sincerely Louis C.K. through his website, opening with references to the controversy, and later issued several more independent specials. In 2022, despite the industry backlash, he performed in Israel for the third time, like Kevin Spacey.
