The concept of the comedy roast has been around for decades. It's a bizarre way of tearing someone to shreds in front of a crowd while still somehow paying tribute to them. A consensual person is chosen as the subject and is then "roasted" by a panel of friends, family, and professional comedians. Comedy Central revolutionized the format when they created their show 'Comedy Central Roast' in 2003, which has featured many high-profile celebrities over the years as well as a panel of the sharpest comedians in the business. Each event has a dedicated Roast Master who hosts the show and takes potshots at the other roasters, as well as the "guest of honor."
While many roasts feature robust subjects who can handle a few jokes from their good friends, there have been many occasions when the jokes were so vicious that they caused real offense.
Such was the case at the recent Netflix roast of Tom Brady titled 'The Greatest Roast of All Time.' The live-streamed event took place on the evening of May 5, and the night began with an introductory roast from Kevin Hart. Then Roast Master Jeff Ross made his spectacular entrance wearing a jersey printed with the name 'Roast J Simpson'—a harbinger of the tasteless jokes to come. Ross detailed Brady's life story through a series of harsh but hilarious barbs, but one joke went too far for the former football star's comfort. Ross described Brady as a scrawny underdog showing up for his first day as a New England Patriot. He joked that Brady walked into team owner Robert Kraft‘s office and said, "I’m the best decision your organization has ever made. Would you like a massage?"
The joke referenced Kraft's involvement in a 2019 investigation into sex trafficking at several Florida massage parlors. Kraft was charged with solicitation after he was reportedly captured on secretly installed cameras at the parlors, but the evidence was determined inadmissible in court. The camera showed Brady's reaction to the joke and he certainly wasn't laughing. Ross blew a kiss to Robert Kraft who was sitting in the audience, and tried to continue, saying, "I love Robert Kraft, I….,” but was interrupted when Brady stood up and whispered in his ear, "Never say that s*** again." Ross acquiesced and expertly moved on with the roast. Other celebrities who took to the mic included Ben Affleck, Kim Kardashian, and Will Ferrell.
Click through the following gallery to see which other celebrities offered themselves up to be roasted (and got absolutely annihilated).
The Jonas Brothers got the roast treatment in November of 2021. Not only were they trashed by a panel of expert comedians, they were even insulted by their then-wives. Sophie Turner went to town on the brothers for the chastity rings they touted as teenagers.
The Jonas Brothers roast was particularly rough for Kevin, the third Jonas Brother that people seem to forget… Netflix even got in on the action! Kevin shared a video of the ‘Jonas Brothers Family Roast’ on his Netflix menu, which had the tagline “With Joe Jonas and Nick Jonas.” Brutal!
Justin Bieber signed himself up to be roasted in 2015, in an attempt to clean up his image and endear himself to the public after a few rough years. It’s hard to say whether the roast did that or had the opposite effect, as most of the jokes focused on his bad behavior and drug scandals!
Martha Stewart appeared as one of the guests and was surprisingly sharp. She joked about her stint behind bars for fraud, giving Bieber some tips “to use when he inevitably ends up in prison.”
Franco is known for being a bit of a Renaissance man in Hollywood. Natasha Leggero summed him up by saying: “James Franco, acting, teaching, directing, writing, producing, photography, soundtracks, editing—is there anything you can do?"
Charlie Sheen got roasted in 2011 at a moment of peak chaos in his life. He had recently been kicked off ‘Two and a Half Men’ for his destructive behavior and substance abuse issues, which were still raging. The comedians on that episode had an easy time finding subjects to make fun of, that’s for sure!
Sheen took it all with good grace, even though it was pretty brutal. Actress Kate Walsh appeared and took a shot at his custody battle: “You know, it’s amazing. Despite all those years of abusing your lungs, your kidneys, your liver, the only thing you've had removed is your kids.”
Donald Trump was roasted back in 2011, long before his presidential campaign was taken seriously and he was still considered a TV personality. Snoop Dogg appeared as a roaster and joked about Trump’s plans: "Donald says he wants to run for president and move on into the White House. Why not? It wouldn't be the first time he pushed a black family out of their home."
Comedian Anthony Jeselnik came at Trump with another cutting joke: "The only difference between you and Michael Douglas from 'Wall Street' is nobody's going to be sad when you get cancer."
Alec Baldwin has a reputation for being an angry guy, particularly after an infamous voicemail he left his young daughter, Ireland, was leaked to the press. He was going through a nasty divorce at the time and told his 11-year-old that she was a “rude, thoughtless, little pig.” A grown-up Ireland had a chance to get her father back when she appeared on his roast!
She definitely delivered the best joke of the night, saying her father was "more than some lunatic that loses his temper. He also loses Emmys and Oscars and custody of his firstborn child."
The 2005 roast of Pamela Anderson featured celebrity guests like Jimmy Kimmel, Sarah Silverman, and Courtney Love. Love was acting pretty erratically throughout the show, seemingly inebriated, and was the butt of more jokes than Anderson!
Jeff Ross, the most seasoned Roast Master on the show, pointed at her and said "How is it that Courtney Love looks worse than Kurt Cobain right now?" It was reported that Love checked herself into rehab the next day, and Ross commented that “roasting saves lives."
David Hasselhoff was roasted in 2010 by comedians including Lisa Lampanelli and Greg Giraldo, as well as his ‘Baywatch’ co-star Pamela Anderson. She came in with a brutal joke, saying “Oh, David. I know you’re in pain. I know what you’re going through. Except when they roasted me, I was relevant.”
Hasselhoff was experiencing a particular low in his career after a video of him drunkenly eating a hamburger in front of his kids went viral. Whitney Cummings made fun of his brief music career by saying: "When I tried to buy your music on Amazon.com, it said 'users who bought this item also bought…a shotgun.'"
The late Hugh Hefner was roasted in 2001, with Jimmy Kimmel leading as Roast Master. The roast took place just two weeks after the September 11 attacks, clearly too soon to start making jokes! Nonetheless, comedian Gilbert Gottfried stepped up and said he was late to the show because his plane had a layover at the Empire State Building.
The audience did not respond well, so Gottfried tried to reel them back in by telling a famous joke called “The Aristocrats” that would go down in history as one of the filthiest, most hilarious deliveries of all time.
The late Joan Rivers was always brutal with her own jokes, so when she got roasted, she got roasted good! Her friends all focused on her age and plastic surgery, one joking, “You used to look your age; now, you don’t even look your species.”
Rivers knows how to give as good as she gets, so when the roast was over and she had her chance to speak, she was ready to slay. In fact, her first move was to slap the Roast Master, her good friend Kathy Griffin!
Chevy Chase isn’t exactly known for being level-headed and easy-going. When very few celebrity faces appeared at his roast, it put him in a foul mood from the get-go. This meant that he was even less able to take a joke than usual… He took his seat at center stage and looked dumbfounded as strangers proceeded to tear him to shreds.
‘Comedy Central Roast’ alum Greg Giraldo pretty much summed it up: "You've made 40 movies, and Al Franken is the biggest movie star who showed up. An O.J. roast would have had more star power!"
Rapper and reality TV star Flavor Flav was roasted in 2007, shortly after his disastrous reality series ‘Flavor of Love,’ and while he was likely still battling a serious drug habit (he later revealed that he was spending US$2,500 a day on crack and cocaine).
Looking at the skinny rapper, Jeff Ross joked “starving children send YOU 50 cents a day.” At one point, Ross simply said, “This roast is impossible, how do you embarrass a crackhead who wears a Viking helmet.”
Comedian Bob Saget was roasted in 2008. He started out as a stand-up with a reputation for raunchy humor but became a household name after starring in the mild-mannered family sitcom, ‘Full House,’ which also featured the young Olsen twins.
Many viewers felt that the roasters went too far when they made vulgar sexual jokes about Saget and the Olsen twins. Saget himself spoke out afterward and said he thought it was a bit much.
Sitcom star Roseanne Barr started her career as a stand-up comedian, so she had plenty of funny friends ready to roast her into oblivion. Her roast was attended by Jane Lynch, Carrie Fisher, and even her ex-husband, Tom Arnold!
Lynch fired shots at both Barr’s weight and Arnold’s apparent drug use in one go. “Roseanne, it’s not your fault you were attracted to Tom. You thought with all that white powder on his upper lip, there must have been a donut somewhere.”
Sources: (Rolling Stone) (The Richest) (Yard Barker) (Nicki Swift)
See also: Funny celebrity moments: pranksters on the red carpet
The most vicious celebrity roasts of all time
Tom Brady's roast got off to a rocky start due to Jeff Ross' risky joke
CELEBRITY Comedy
The concept of the comedy roast has been around for decades. It's a bizarre way of tearing someone to shreds in front of a crowd while still somehow paying tribute to them. A consensual person is chosen as the subject and is then "roasted" by a panel of friends, family, and professional comedians. Comedy Central revolutionized the format when they created their show 'Comedy Central Roast' in 2003, which has featured many high-profile celebrities over the years as well as a panel of the sharpest comedians in the business. Each event has a dedicated Roast Master who hosts the show and takes potshots at the other roasters, as well as the "guest of honor."
While many roasts feature robust subjects who can handle a few jokes from their good friends, there have been many occasions when the jokes were so vicious that they caused real offense.
Such was the case at the recent Netflix roast of Tom Brady titled 'The Greatest Roast of All Time.' The live-streamed event took place on the evening of May 5, and the night began with an introductory roast from Kevin Hart. Then Roast Master Jeff Ross made his spectacular entrance wearing a jersey printed with the name 'Roast J Simpson'—a harbinger of the tasteless jokes to come. Ross detailed Brady's life story through a series of harsh but hilarious barbs, but one joke went too far for the former football star's comfort. Ross described Brady as a scrawny underdog showing up for his first day as a New England Patriot. He joked that Brady walked into team owner Robert Kraft‘s office and said, "I’m the best decision your organization has ever made. Would you like a massage?"
The joke referenced Kraft's involvement in a 2019 investigation into sex trafficking at several Florida massage parlors. Kraft was charged with solicitation after he was reportedly captured on secretly installed cameras at the parlors, but the evidence was determined inadmissible in court. The camera showed Brady's reaction to the joke and he certainly wasn't laughing. Ross blew a kiss to Robert Kraft who was sitting in the audience, and tried to continue, saying, "I love Robert Kraft, I….,” but was interrupted when Brady stood up and whispered in his ear, "Never say that s*** again." Ross acquiesced and expertly moved on with the roast. Other celebrities who took to the mic included Ben Affleck, Kim Kardashian, and Will Ferrell.
Click through the following gallery to see which other celebrities offered themselves up to be roasted (and got absolutely annihilated).