Chris Lilley is pictured for the first time in weeks as he enjoys a day of sun with a pal in Sydney’s Bondi Beach… months after FOUR of his controversial shows were removed from Netflix
He’s kept a low profile since four of his shows were removed from Netflix, in response to the Black Lives Matter movement.
But on Saturday, comedian Chris Lilley was seen for the first time in weeks as he enjoyed a day out with a pal in Sydney’s Bondi Beach.
The comic, 45, appeared in a great mood as he soaked up some sunshine on the Northern grassy knoll, sporting a grey bucket hat, black T-shirt and cream shorts.
Beaming! On Saturday, comedian Chris Lilley was seen for the first time in weeks as he enjoyed a day out with a pal in Sydney’s Bondi Beach
He smiled as he chatted with a mystery pal, shielding his eyes from view in a pair of black sunglasses.
His appearance comes four months after his television series Summer Heights High, Jonah from Tonga, Angry Boys and We Can be Heroes were pulled on June 11, as streaming services worldwide removed offensive content in response to George Floyd protests.
In the dumped mockumentary-style shows Chris appeared in brownface as Tongan schoolboy Jonah Takalua, in blackface as US rapper S.mouse, and mocked up as stereotypical Chinese-Australian physics student Ricky Wong.
Under the radar: Lilley (right) smiled as he chatted with a mystery pal, shielding his eyes from view in a pair of black sunglasses
All smiles: The comic, 45, appeared in a great mood as he soaked up some sunshine on the Northern grassy knoll, sporting a grey bucket hat, black T-shirt and cream shorts
Chris then came under fire after real-life Sydney student Filipe Mahe revealed his appearance in ABC documentary Our Boys was the inspiration for controversial Tongan character Jonah, leaving him feeling ‘angry and exploited’.
Lilley chose not to acknowledge any of the backlash, but instead chose to share a deleted scene from Jonah From Tonga on his Facebook page.
Despite the removal of four of his shows, Chris will still have two series available on Netflix – Ja’mie: Private School Girl and Lunatics, in which he dons brownface to play dog whisperer Jana Melhoopen-Jonks.
Pictured: Chris Lilley (centre) in his role as Jonah Takalua in his program, Jonah From Tonga
Chris has previously defended his style of comedy. Last year he told The Weekend Australian: ‘I’m not trying to do the thing that is trendy at the moment.’
The award-winning comedian went on to say he would continue making ‘clever, layered’ characters.
Defending his controversial characters, he said: ‘When you meet them, you think “I know that type of person”, but then there is a twist, something crazy.’
‘[In] the end you think “Actually, I kinda relate to this, she just did that thing that I do everyday”.’
Controversial: In the past, those shows raised questions about racial discrimination as several of the characters were portrayed in blackface and brownface. On Angry Boys, he portrayed African-American rapper S.mouse (pictured) and performed a song called ‘Squashed N****’