Michael Che, called out for sharing Simone Biles jokes, wipes Instagram and claims he was ‘hacked’
Saturday Night Live star Michael Che is coming under fire for what many are calling a 'tasteless' joke — again.
On Friday, Che jabbed at gymnast Simone Biles, who made headlines this week for bowing out of the Tokyo Olympics to prioritize her mental health.
“Man, I wanna make fun of Simone Biles,” the comedian wrote on his Instagram Story. “I got like 3 mins of Simone Biles Jokes in my head. I’m going to the Cellar tonight to say them into a microphone. As the dorky kids say, I’m choosing violence.”
Following his comments, other Instagram users began sending him suggestions, which Che reshared on his stories.
Michael Che come on bro smh pic.twitter.com/vi1Zz07yu0
— BallerAlert (@balleralert) July 29, 2021
One such joke referenced Larry Nassar, the disgraced former U.S. gymnastics team doctor accused of sexually abusing over 150 women, including Biles.
“Larry Nassar understands Simone Biles better than anyone,” the re-shared wisecrack said. “He too had to quit doing what he loved at the pinnacle of his career because of mounting pressure.”
“Goddamn, that’s rough,” Che sarcastically wrote in the response. “Absolutely tasteless.”
Another joke read, “Who said black don’t crack?” to which Che replied, “Now that’s a good joke. Economical. Referential. Balanced. Good job.”
It didn’t take long for Twitter to come after the comedian, with many critics calling him out for disrespecting those struggling with mental health and being insensitive to sexual assault survivors.
Following the backlash, Che returned to Instagram (using the same font as the prior posts), alleging that he was hacked and that he “changed his password.”
Not Michael Che using the same IG font as his “hacker” ???????? pic.twitter.com/k1LSySumd5
— MeganTheeStallion’sPatella (@KirkWrites79) July 30, 2021
Minutes later, the comedian wiped his entire Instagram, leaving nothing but an empty grid for his 628K followers.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Che has been under fire for pushing the envelope.
In February, during SNL’s “Weekend Update” segment, Che made a joke that many viewed as transphobic when he went after President Joe Biden’s recent executive order reversing Trump’s ban on trans people serving openly in the military.
“It's good news, except Biden is calling the policy, ‘don't ask, don't tuck,’ which is not good news,” Che said, referring to the old "don't ask, don't tell" policy that banned gays and lesbians from serving openly from 1993 to 2010.
What is Saturday Night Live's weird obsession with transphobic nonsense? I honestly don't get it. It's so lazy and sad. Last night, Michael Che joked about the repeal of the trans ban being called "don't ask, don't tuck" -- who is this "joke" for? https://t.co/Uu2JpXlrU1
— Charlotte Clymer ?????? (@cmclymer) January 31, 2021
That same month, he turned his attention to Israel’s COVID vaccination program: “Israel is reporting that they vaccinated half of their population, and I’m going to guess it’s the Jewish half,” he joked.
That joke prompted Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, to tweet out a response:
ADL CEO @JGreenblattADL's statement on Saturday Night Live’s deeply offensive joke. pic.twitter.com/tf7ihwDr3k
— ADL (@ADL) February 22, 2021
Responding to the current controversy, Twitter users had a field day. Here are what some folks are saying:
Michael Che's Instagram seems to get hacked a lot
— Lisa Braun Dubbels (@lisadubbels) July 30, 2021
Michael Che later claimed he was hacked and those jokes about Simone Biles were not from him. Suuuuure. #Olympics pic.twitter.com/pX1saBTb5N
— Perez (@ThePerezHilton) July 30, 2021
Sexual assault/abuse survivors are not the butt of jokes. Ever. Be mindful #SimoneBiles sexual abuse occurred for years beginning in her childhood. #MichaelChe is a jerk for even touching the issue in this manner. And he's a damn fool for coming back saying he was hacked https://t.co/gL1zRLZcY4
— Ameshia Cross (@AmeshiaCross) July 30, 2021
Assuming the story would be deleted, I went to Michael Che's instagram to see this with my own eyes. Not only has the story been deleted, but his entire insta account has been wiped. Che claims he was hacked. https://t.co/jJwmeanxvX
— Esther Ciammachilli #WeMakeWAMU (@EstherCinDC) July 30, 2021
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'SNL' video courtesy of NBCUniversal/Saturday Night Live.