Jerrod Carmichael says he wants Dave Chappelle to focus his 'genius' on more than trans jokes

Jerrod Carmichael has some regrets about his public criticism of Dave Chappelle.

The 37-year-old comedian, who came out as gay in his 2022 HBO standup special "Rothaniel," voiced frustration about Chappelle's trans jokes in interview with GQ and Esquire.

During an appearance on "The Breakfast Club" Tuesday, Carmichael told the hosts "I deeply regret saying anything about Dave Chappelle to the press. I want to say that I’m sorry for that."

"I'm a huge Dave Chappelle fan," he said. "I think he's brilliant and a bright light in a dying industry. I think he's more important than ever before because now, comedians just posting clips of them doing crowd work online and calling it art, and it’s not art."

Carmichael continued, "With that said, the criticism that I had, had nothing to do with the morality of the joke, had nothing to do with the ethics of the joke …The criticism I had was that of a fan, someone who respects him so much, that I want him to focus his genius on a wide range of topics. It started really being focused on one thing.

"I’m also a big fan of Jay-Z. If Jay-Z made three albums about trans people, I’d be like, 'What’s going on with Jay-Z?'" he added.

Carmichael explained that he wants comedy to "evolve" and do "deep personal stories" to keep the genre moving forward.

As for the future, the comedian said, "From now on, any thoughts I have for Dave will be directed in a phone call to Dave. I’ll never do it again. I do apologize for that."

'I love punching down': Dave Chappelle goes after disabled community in 'The Dreamer'

Jerrod Carmichael previously questioned Dave Chappelle's legacy amid trans jokes

Carmichael first addressed Chappelle in an interview with GQ in June 2022.

"I think, a lot of times, people who offer nothing truthful or meaningful about themselves then complain about society at large and create this boogeyman," he told the outlet. "Chappelle, do you know what comes up when you Google your name, bro? That's the legacy? Your legacy is a bunch of opinions on trans (issues)? It's an odd hill to die on."

He went on to call the jokes "childish" and questioned who Chappelle is. "It's just kind of played. But he's choosing to die on the hill. So, alright, let him."

Jerrod Carmichael's vulnerable chat with 'best friend' Tyler, the Creator about crush goes viral

In April, the "Jarrod Carmichael Reality Show" star clarified his comments to Esquire, telling the outlet Chappelle is "not revealing anything personal about himself and he’s removed from what he’s talking about, and I think he’s smarter than that and deeper than that and has more interesting thoughts."

Carmichael added that "egomaniac" Chappelle took his comments offensively and "wanted me to apologize to him publicly."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jerrod Carmichael says he regrets criticizing Dave Chappelle publicly