Hasan Minhaj: 'I Did the Right Thing for the Wrong Reasons' - The Daily Beast

It traces his rapid rise in the comedy world from the moment he started accruing cultural power as host of Patriot Act through the controversy that led Netflix to remove that show’s premiere episode from the platform in Saudi Arabia and beyond.

Let’s talk about the Saudi Arabia stuff, because it is such a big part of the special.

I mean, I think certainly there’s a dual energy that Muslims around the world feel when it comes to their relationship with Saudi Arabia.

Mecca and Medina are in Saudi Arabia and it is the duty of every practicing Muslim to try to make their pilgrimage there.

It obviously got taken down from Netflix in Saudi Arabia and there was a lot of controversy and discussion around that.

But one of the things I touch on in the special is, I’m not proud of the means by which I went about it, and some of the haughtiness and the ego that I had to just bum-rush an embassy and put myself and my loved ones in danger.

Yeah, but this isn’t, “I’m gonna create a restaurant called Dumb Starbucks.” This is, “I’m gonna fly to Saudi Arabia and pull this off with cameras.” There is a delta of danger here that a lot of Americans don’t know.

And that’s something I explore in the special.

I mean, that really is the heart of the special in a lot of ways: the fallout from your pursuit of dictators, and how it affected your own personal life.

The irony of the whole thing is that this episode that got taken down in Saudi Arabia brought you more fame, more attention, more social media clout than anything else you’ve ever done.

Real talk, man, the ugly thing that I wrote down while we were just fleshing out the story is, “I did the right thing for the wrong reasons.” And TIME 100 and blue-check Twitter doesn’t know that.

I had spent all these years at The Daily Show and you know when something is going to connect?

I had enough experience as a comic to be like, I know what this is gonna do.

And that’s fine, you can do that, but for me, I want to be really pure in that intention and be like, “I would do this whether there are cameras here or not.” That’s why I included that line in the special that Beena did say to me.

She goes, “I love how you only care about these issues when there's a camera on you.” And I was like, “I know, right?” It’s a very ugly thing.

It’s not a thing I’m proud of.

But it was a theme that I wanted to explore, and it started with that question: Can you do the right thing for the wrong reasons.

I had this line that we removed from the special, but it was, I’m trying to close the gap between who I am on Instagram and who I am on iMessage.

You’re lying to me if you don’t admit that, because I know that’s true with me.

And if I’m going to be honest and pursue this thing called being an artist and devote my life to it, I’ve got to give you iMessage me.

“What did you really think of Olivia Wilde’s movie, for real?” That’s the iMessage me.

That, to me, is true honesty, and that’s what I’m pursuing.

Because that’s how I determine whether or not I’m doing the right thing for the right reasons.

Why are these ideas being heard over mine?” And one of the things that I really learned as a leader, I had to step back and go, “Oh, man, I really wish people in those teams would have gotten along.” The thing I have to own as a leader is, whether or not you’re in those rooms, you have to set a precedent or agenda to go, “Hey, the way I’m carrying myself, everybody’s got to carry themselves that way too.” And that’s the thing I’ve reflected on, too, as I’ve gotten into other projects and now been on other sets, is going, how can I ensure that everybody feels heard even when I’m not there.

Ultimately, there were some pretty scary consequences for you and your family that stemmed from the comedy you were doing, and you talk about that in this very emotional way in the special.

Was there a breaking point for you where you really had to re-examine what you were doing.

There really is this thing where people talk about, “Oh, comedians need to push the envelope.” But I remember in that moment going, oh shit, sometimes the envelope pushes back.

And if it hurts the people that count on you the most, and someone who is so innocent like my daughter, I’ve really got to reevaluate and examine what I’m doing here?

Best believe, I’m going to swing—up until the point that I believe in my heart this is going to hurt loved ones and family members.