Current:Home > FinanceKatt Williams accuses Cedric the Entertainer of stealing his 'best joke' from the '90s -WealthSphere Pro
Katt Williams accuses Cedric the Entertainer of stealing his 'best joke' from the '90s
View
Date:2025-04-27 21:53:56
Knock knock, it's Katt Williams, and he's here to set the record straight.
The actor-comedian took aim at fellow comics Cedric the Entertainer, Steve Harvey and Rickey Smiley during an appearance on the "Club Shay Shay" podcast published Wednesday.
Williams told host Shannon Sharpe that he wanted to address the mistruths said about him by "low-brow comedians" on Sharpe's show, describing Cedric, Harvey and Smiley as a "gang."
"For 30 years, they're a group. These aren't three random guys," Williams said. "All of these dudes are co-entwined and they share secrets, and this is the age of truth."
Here's what Williams had to say.
Katt Williams accuses Cedric the Entertainer of stealing his 'best joke' from the '90s
Williams accused Cedric the Entertainer of stealing a joke from his comedy set in the late '90s, which he also performed on the BET program “ComicView.”
"This is not just a random joke. This is my very best joke and it's my last joke, and it's my closing joke," Williams said. "1998, I'm doing this joke. It's on 'ComicView.' Cedric comes to The Comedy Store. He watches me in the audience. He comes backstage. He tells me what a great job I did and how much he loves the joke. Two years later, he's doing that as his last joke on 'The (Original) Kings Of Comedy,' and he's doing it verbatim."
While Williams initially gave Cedric a "pass" for his use of the joke, he changed his tune after Cedric later denied taking from Williams' material. "He thought that I was just a no-name comedian and that he could take this joke and nobody would know," he said.
Cedric the Entertainer responded to Williams in the comments section of an Instagram post that featured a clip from the "Club Shay Shay" podcast, calling Williams' allegation "revisionist history."
"Regardless of whatever Katt's opinion, my career can't be reduced to one joke Katt Williams claims as his," Cedric wrote Wednesday. "I been (in) over 40 movies, my specials and brand speak volumes for I am. The (people) I have put on including 'Katt in the Hat'. At the Gibson Amphitheater."
Katt Williams denies Rickey Smiley had his 'Friday After Next' role
Williams and Smiley co-starred in the 2002 dramedy "Friday After Next," the third film in the "Friday" franchise starring Ice Cube and John Witherspoon.
Williams portrayed the character Money Mike, while Smiley played the role of Santa Claus. Smiley previously told Sharpe he originally had the role of Money Mike.
"This man told you he had Katt Williams' role. He was going to be Money Mike, and Katt Williams was going to be the Santa Claus," Williams said. "We auditioned in Los Angeles. I was audition No. 201. Two-hundred Black comedians auditioned for the role of Money Mike with me. You’re saying all 201 of us was auditioning, and you had already had the role and had already shot the role in four days?"
Following their experience on "Friday After Next," Williams claimed he had a clause placed in his contract stipulating that he would only work with Smiley if he was wearing a dress in his roles.
"Now, what was Rickey Smiley's next movie? Was it 'First Sunday'? Did he wear a dress in it? You bet he did. It's in my contract," Williams said. "That's where he's a believable actor. Him and Tyler Perry can't play a man to save their life. They play good women."
After his performance in "Friday After Next," Smiley appeared in the 2003 film "Sweet Hideaway," per the comedian's IMDb page. "First Sunday," which starred Smiley and Williams, was released in 2008.
Katt Williams claims 'Friday After Next' once included sexual assault scene
Williams later claimed Smiley didn't secure the role in "Friday After Next" because he wasn't OK with a scene in which the character Money Mike is sexually assaulted.
According to Williams, when he first auditioned for the role, the script contained a scene of the character being raped in a bathroom.
"Katt Williams had to take the risk in front of the studios and the cast and the power that be in his very first movie, and say, respectfully, humbly, guys, if we're talking about anything else, I have no credibility and I have no pull," he said. "But we're talking about comedy, where I have all the credibility and all the pull."
Williams said he ultimately didn't feel the assault would be funny.
"We're trying to make a classic comedy, and this comedy involves a rape, and rape is never funny, no matter who it happens to, or what the circumstances are," he said. "If you would allow me to allow us to do this movie without a Black man getting raped in it, I promise you that it'll be twice as funny as it would be with him getting raped."
Katt Williams accuses Steve Harvey of ripping off Mark Curry sitcom
Williams alleged that Harvey, who starred as a high school music teacher on 1996's "The Steve Harvey Show," lifted the premise of his show from comedian Mark Curry. Curry starred as teacher Mark Cooper on the sitcom "Hangin' with Mr. Cooper," which debuted in 1992.
"The same Steve that went to go watch Mark Curry do his whole sitcom and then stole everything Mark Curry had," Williams said. "Now Steve got a sitcom where he's the principal and he wears a suit."
Williams also dissed Harvey's acting chops, skewering Harvey's claim that he didn't want to pursue a film career.
"You couldn't be a movie star," Williams said. "There are 30,000 new scripts in Hollywood every year. Not one of them asked for a country bumpkin Black dude that can't talk good … and look like Mr. Potato Head. There ain't none. You have to have range."
Contributing: Taijuan Moorman
Katt Williams:Comedian arrested, charged with assaulting driver after fight over transporting dog
More Katt Williams:Comedian pleads no contest to taking camera
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Sam Taylor
- Powerball winning numbers for September 30: Jackpot rises to $258 million
- How Halloweentown’s Kimberly J. Brown and Costar Daniel Kountz Honored the Movie at Their Wedding
- Florida enacts tough law to get homeless off the streets, leaving cities and counties scrambling
- Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
- 'McNeal' review: Robert Downey Jr.’s new Broadway play is an endurance test
- Jay Leno says 'things are good' 2 years after fire, motorcycle accident in update
- MLB playoffs are a 'different monster' but aces still reign in October
- Realtor group picks top 10 housing hot spots for 2025: Did your city make the list?
- John Amos, 'Good Times' and 'Roots' trailblazer and 'Coming to America' star, dies at 84
Ranking
- 'Squid Game' without subtitles? Duolingo, Netflix encourage fans to learn Korean
- Cleveland Browns rookie DT Mike Hall Jr. suspended five games following August arrest
- Wildfires in California have burned 1 million acres so far this year. Heat wave poses more risk
- 'No one was expecting this': Grueling searches resume in NC: Helene live updates
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- Lana Del Rey’s Wedding Dress Designer Details Gown She Wore for Ceremony
- After Helene’s destruction, a mountain town reliant on fall tourism wonders what’s next
- Kristin Cavallari explains split from 24-year-old boyfriend: 'One day he will thank me'
Recommendation
California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel
7 Debate Questions about Climate Change and Energy for Pennsylvania’s Senate Candidates
Katy Perry wears zippered bag dress to Balenciaga's Paris Fashion Week show
Key swing state faces ‘daunting’ level of uncertainty after storm ravages multiple counties
In ‘Nickel Boys,’ striving for a new way to see
Mike McDaniel, Dolphins in early season freefall without Tua after MNF loss to Titans
Proof Hailey Bieber Is Keeping Her and Justin Bieber's Baby Close to Her Chest
What is distemper in dogs? Understanding the canine disease, symptoms and causes