Deadline: John Cleese’s Channel 4 Cancel Culture Show Has Been All But Canceled...

Story from Deadline:

John Cleese‘s Channel 4 show about cancel culture appears to be a dead parrot.

The Monty Python legend announced the project in 2021, pledging to discover how the “impeccable idea of ‘Let’s all be kind to people’ has been developed in some cases ad absurdum.”

John Cleese: Cancel Me was slated to be produced by Clarkson’s Farm outfit Expectation, but nearly three years after being announced, filming has not taken place.

One source close to the show said Channel 4 could not come to a deal with Cleese, while a second person said the broadcaster was unable to make production work with his diary.

Channel 4 sources said the broadcaster would like to return to the project. It is unclear if Cleese feels the same way. His rep has been contacted for comment.

When the show was announced, Channel 4’s Chief Content Officer Ian Katz said: “The argument over what it’s OK to say and what isn’t is one of the thorniest issues of our age and there are few people better equipped to stride into it than John, a comic legend who combines genuine curiosity with a healthy disregard for what anyone thinks of him.”

Cleese added: “I’m delighted to have a chance to find out, on camera, about all the aspects of so-called political correctness. There’s so much I really don’t understand, like: how the impeccable idea of ‘Let’s all be kind to people’ has been developed in some cases ad absurdum.

“I want to bring the various reasonings right out in the open so that people can be clearer in their minds what they agree with, what they don’t agree with, and what they still can’t make their mind up about.”

Cleese fronted a show for GB News last year, titled The Dinosaur Hour, in which he discussed issues including cancel culture and wokery.