Shane Gillis’ monologue at the ESPY Awards on Wednesday night has left plenty of people divided over the contents of the jokes, but the Disney-owned sports network isn’t concerned about the reaction that Gillis’ routine received, The Post has confirmed.
During his roughly 10-minute opening, Gillis poked fun at just about everyone from popular sports figures to President Donald Trump in a biting opening sequence to kick off the annual sports award show.
The Worldwide Leader always knew Gillis’ comedic stylings weren’t going to be for everyone, as TMZ first reported, but there were no worries about the “Tires” star who has worked with the network on its “College GameDay” show.
ESPN declined comment when reached by The Post.
Among the topics that Gillis touched upon were Trump, Caitlin Clark, Aaron Rodgers and Jeffrey Epstein.
The well-known comedian received mixed reactions during his eyebrow-raising opening remarks.
Gillis asserted that women’s soccer legend Megan Rapinoe was not a “good time” in one of his first quips of the night and later joked that he and Clark, the WNBA superstar, had a lot in common because they were both “whites from the Midwest who have nailed a bunch of 3s.”
“When Caitlin Clark retires from the WNBA, she’s going to work at a Waffle House so she can continue doing what she loves most, fist fighting black women,” he continued.
In one of his most well-received jokes of the night, he aimed Bill Belichick and girlfriend Jordon Hudson after making a Shohei Ohtani joke related to his disgraced interpreter Ippei Mizuhara.
“A bookie is what Bill Belichick reads to his girlfriend before bedtime,” Gillis said on stage before launching into a list of crude titles for classic books.
At least one former ESPNer didn’t enjoy the show.
“In a year of crazy growth for women’s sports choosing an ESPYs host who doesn’t even try to make clever jokes about women athletes (he at least *attempted* for the men),” Sarah Spain wrote on X on Thursday, “he goes with hacky ‘no one knows the WNBA’ bits, ‘Pinoe is a bad time’ & repeatedly insults Black women. COOL.”
Source link
