Despite the ongoing controversy surrounding his blackface portrayals, Chris Lilley still has loyal fans – including Married At First Sight‘s Cathy Evans.
The 26-year-old, an Australian of Welsh and Thai heritage who was raised in New Zealand, revealed on Thursday that a fan had recently said her humour reminded them of Jonah Takalua from the 2007 comedy series Summer Heights High.
Cathy said that being compared to the now-controversial character – who is said to have been based on a real-life disadvantaged schoolboy – was the ‘greatest compliment of all time’.
Supportive: Despite the ongoing controversy surrounding his blackface portrayals, Chris Lilley still has loyal fans – including Married At First Sight’s Cathy Evans
‘You fully crack me up u remind me off [sic] Jonah off Summer Heights High,’ a fan privately messaged Cathy.
Cathy shared the message to her Instagram Stories, adding that it was the ‘greatest compliment of all time’ in her opinion.
In the clip the fan was referring to, Cathy bizarrely asked her social media followers to tell her to go for a shower.
Praise: The 26-year-old, an Australian of Welsh and Thai heritage who was raised in New Zealand, revealed on Thursday that an Instagram follower had recently said her humour reminded them of Jonah Takalua from the 2007 comedy series Summer Heights High
‘Can somebody please tell me to get the f**k up and go for a shower. Say, “Cath, you f**king dog, get the fuck up!”‘ Cathy said, putting on a ‘real Aussie accent’.
She was not doing blackface or brownface in the clip.
It is unclear whether Cathy was aware of the ongoing controversy about the character of Jonah Takalua.
Lilley’s portrayal of Jonah and other characters led Netflix Australia and New Zealand to pull four of his shows from the streaming platform last month.
Comedy skit: In the clip the fan was referring to, Cathy bizarrely asked her social media fans to tell her to go for a shower while putting on a ‘real Aussie accent’
In light of the Black Lives Matter reckoning, his work has raised questions about racial discrimination as he darkened his skin to play several of his characters.
On Angry Boys in 2011, he portrayed African-American rapper S.mouse and performed a song called Squashed N****.
In Jonah from Tonga in 2014, and earlier in Summer Heights High in 2007, he painted his face brown and wore a curly wig to portray the troubled teen.
In We Can Be Heroes, his first television hit in 2005, Lilley played Chinese physics student Ricky Wong.
Last week, Lilley faced even more controversy when Filipe Mahe, 33, came forward claiming the funnyman had based Jonah on him.
Filipe said he had felt ‘absolutely embarrassed, full of hate, angry and exploited’ when he recognised himself in Summer Heights High.
As a troubled teenager attending Canterbury Boys High in western Sydney, he had been featured in the 2004 ABC documentary Our Boys.
Several of his scenes from Our Boys are remarkably similar to comedy skits that went on to feature in Summer Heights High three years later.
Backlash: In light of the Black Lives Matter reckoning, Lilley’s work has raised questions about racial discrimination as several of the characters were portrayed in blackface and brownface. Pictured centre as his Tongan schoolboy character, Jonah Takalua
After the documentary series aired, Lilley also went to Filipe’s school, observed classes and lunchtime in the playground and watched a Tongan dance.
After Filipe revealed his ’embarrassment’ to the Sydney Morning Herald on Sunday, Lilley seemingly responded by sharing deleted scenes from Jonah from Tonga to Facebook that showed a more sympathetic side to the character.
Lilley still has two series available on Netflix, Ja’mie: Private School Girl and Lunatics, in which he darkens his skin to play ‘dog whisperer’ Jana Melhoopen-Jonks.
Controversial: In Jonah from Tonga in 2014, and earlier in Summer Heights High in 2007, Lilley painted his face brown and wore a curly wig to portray troubled teen Jonah