Variety (Accidentally) Confirms Woke Killed Movie Comedies

The Age of Woke may go the way of the pager, the 8-track tape and Pauly Shore.

Or, it could stick around, less potent but still holding sway over the powers that be. Some, like the Legacy Media, won’t give up the woke ghost.

Why Does ‘The Wizard of Oz’ Still Cast Such a Wicked Spell? Because It’s the Movie That First Flipped the Patriarchy on Its Head https://t.co/ztr526FSR2

— Variety (@Variety) November 23, 2025

Still, comedy appears to be rebounding after a stifling decade of Cancel Culture threats. Comedy roasts are back. Cancellations are happening less frequently, although some comics are still under alleged attack by their peers.

If you’re curious what Comedians who want internet clout will post when you were nothing but cool to them here’s an example of a text between me and a Cincy comic named Andrew J Rudick and then here’s what he posted about me 3 days ago. pic.twitter.com/1ifuDBITlU

— Jeff Dye (@JeffDye) November 21, 2025

Now, Variety has graced us with the 100 top comedies of all time. The exhaustive list has plenty of films that are beyond reproach – “Blazing Saddles,” “The Naked Gun,” “Elf” and “Bringing Up Baby.”

What’s missing? Films from the last decade.

Yes, 2022’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once” made the list (number 87), but it’s hardly a typical comedy. The one true comedy from the past decade, 2023’s “Poor Things,” is both hilarious and original.

That’s it. Now, compare that to the number of ’80s films on the list – 20. The 1990s has 18 films.

What changed?

We know the answer, of course. Woke blossomed over the past decade, forcing comics to self-censor lest their careers crumble as a result. Big-screen comedies became safe, avoiding material that might be outrageous or offensive.

RELATED: JOE ROGAN CONFIRMS WOKE KILLED MOVIE COMEDIES

Comic actors like Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill and Will Ferrell shifted to broader projects, while comedy auteur Todd Phillips of “The Hangover” fame left the genre to direct 2019’s “Joker.” He has yet to return.

The director said he couldn’t make comedies in a woke era. And he wasn’t alone, apparently.

Yes, some modern comedies have threaded the needle and made us howl. “Schitt’s Creek” comes to mind. Ryan Reynolds found the funny in the video game era with 2021’s “Free Guy.” Larry David, joked “Curb Your Enthusiasm” co-star Cheryl Hines, got grandfathered in on that classic HBO show.

Once-great sitcoms like “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” went woke in their later episodes, genuflecting to the cultural winds. Others, like ABC’s “Modern Family,” bowed out in 2020 while resisting the urge to follow the far-Left playbook.

That atmosphere is less restrictive today, but the woke hangover isn’t over. The director of the fourth filmin the “Meet the Parents” franchise admitted he’s hamstrung by what can, and can’t be shared while assembling the film’s upcoming sequel.

Maybe a future movie list will chart the genre’s revival.

NOTE: Among the classic movie comedies that deserved a spot on the list but didn’t get one?

• “Raising Arizona”
• “The 40-Year-Old Virgin”
• “Knocked Up”
• “Ghostbusters”
• “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”
• “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad Mad World”
• “Tommy Boy”
• “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo”
• “Planes, Trains and Automobiles”
• “Arthur”
• “Better Off Dead”
• “The Jerk”
• “Old School”
• “A Christmas Story”