On Tuesday night, comedian Dave Chappelle was attacked on stage at Los Angeles’ Hollywood Bowl Arena by a man who rushed on stage.
While 48 year old Dave Chappelle, was performing, an audience member stormed the stage, lunged at him, and tackled him to the ground.
The suspect has been identified as 23-year-old Isaiah Lee, and an LAPD spokesman has stated that the incident is being investigated and that Lee is in police custody. He was charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon because the replica handgun he was carrying “contained a knife blade.” The bail amount is set at $30,000.
While the motivation for the attack is unknown, one thing is certain: Dave Chappelle was not injured as a result of the attack.
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The show, which was part of the Netflix Is a Joke festival, strictly prohibited attendees from using their phones. Nonetheless, video of the incident, which shows Chappelle being tackled while holding a microphone, quickly went viral.
“It was crazy,” Ahmed Ali, who attended the show, told USA TODAY.
“There was a lot of confusion,” said the 36-year-old, I think we all thought it was part of the show at first.”
Following that, Jamie Foxx and Chris Rock, who were also in attendance, appeared on the stage.
Chris Rock then jokingly asked if the attacker was Will Smith, referring to Smith’s slap at the Oscars in March.
After the incident, Dave Chappelle joked that the attacker “was a trans man,” referring to the backlash he received for his controversial jokes about the transgender community in Netflix special “The Closer.”
Later, the comedian stated that he would be happy to meet with any member of the transgender community, but he would not be swayed by “anyone’s demands” to censor his routine.