Hannah Gadsby reflects on ‘unfortunate’ association with Netflix

‘Nanette’ star previously called the service an ‘amoral algorithm cult’

Hannah Gadsby has reflected on their association with Netflix after previously calling it an “amoral algorithim cult”.

Gadsby’s show Nanette became a hit for the streaming service in 2018, but the Australian comedian has now said they find it “unfortunate” that it “sits on that platform”, adding: “Maybe it won’t always be.”

However, in a new interview, Gadsby stated: “Companies are like people. They change.”

They said that “Netflix isn’t the same as it was when I began working with them”, adding to The Telegraph: “I think we’re in a very interesting space right now, with the disruption of culture in film and television.

“If you’d done a survey six years ago [before Nanette], asking people which Australian comedian would achieve global fame, then I wouldn’t even have made it into the top 10.

“Now, here I am as a genderqueer, autistic, vagina-wielding white person, with three shows streaming on arguably the world’s most powerful streaming platform where people around the world can find them. And I’m incredibly proud of those three shows.”

Their other shows include Nanette follow-up Douglas and Hannah Gadsby: Something Special.

Gadsby’s previous condemnation of Netflix came in 2021 during a Guardian interview following a controversy surrounding comedian Dave Chappelle.

They accused co-chief executive Ted Sarandos of citing their specials in relation to Netflix’s release of Chappelle’s stand-up set featuring jokes about the transgender community.

Hannah Gadsby (Getty Images for Hamilton Austra)

“Just a quick note to let you know that I would prefer if you didn’t drag my name into your mess,” they wrote on Instagram.