HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher has shut down production and canceled this Friday’s show, after the host and comedian tested positive for COVID-19. Maher, who’s reportedly fully vaccinated, tested positive during the show’s weekly checks for the disease, and is exhibiting no symptoms. Per THR, he “Feels fine.”
And while there’s obviously a certain degree of schadenfreude at play in the idea of a guy who’s ragged fairly relentlessly on the medical profession and media for trying to warn people of the dangers of COVID catching the disease, the honest truth is that this is probably a textbook picture of how these cases will hopefully look as we move into a more fully-vaccinated future. As far as we can tell, all possible precautions were taken by HBO and the show’s producers, no one else was exposed, and Maher’s results were taken seriously, even though he had no symptoms. This is hopefully what it’s just going to look like, going forward, for Hollywood and the rest of us: Proper precautions, mitigated harm, and a reasonable level of respect for the threat still posed by the disease. This feels pretty wild to type out, but: Good job, Real Time With Bill Maher.
This Friday’s Real Time, which would have featured Neil deGrasse Tyson, Max Brooks, and Dan Carlin, will be rescheduled for a future date.
128 Comments
And nothing of value was lost……….
My God! No! Is the Covid okay?
It should survive Bill Maher but I’m worried what will happen to it if Dennis Miller catches it.
At least Bill has been funny in the last 2 decades, unlike Dennis.
Two entirely different kinds of smug. Being a smug contrarian on HBO is so much better than a (are we suppossed to think he’s earnest or serious in any way?) contributor on Fox News. What’s smugger than smug?
No, it became all snobby and intolerable to be around
It survived like 3/4 of the Trump clan, I’m beginning to think it’s invincible.
If you’re there god, this is how you prove it.
Nice
he “Feels fine.”
Aw
I read that as Real Time canceled and got excited. I cannot remotely believe I used to like this show. If smugness could become sentient, it would be Bill Maher.
Unfortunately, it is not limited to him just being smug.Bill Maher gave a platform to professional trolls like Ann Coulter and Milo Yiannopoulos by inviting them on his show. That doesn’t even account for his history with misogyny, Islamophobia, and casually using a racial slur on TV.
Smugness, bigot, walking okay boomer man, platformer of dreadful people, and lover of complaining about the kids and insert stupid sjw pc cancel culture term here. The man is a leech and I’m stunned he is still around.
I’m a Boomer and I agree. It’s like HBO delusionally believes Maher is in any way relevant. I just don’t get it.
it’s the political equivalent of people who only listen to music from their teen/college years and complain about how there’s no good music these days.
As I recall, Milo’s career tanked immediately after appearing on Bill’s show.
That and Milo’s endorsement of pedophilia,
Didn’t say Bill was the reason Milo’s career tanked.
True, Maher just provided a platform. I actually thought Yiannopoulos did pretty well on the show, as far as his personal brand was concerned. He came across as a jokester who gets his kicks stirring the pot but was otherwise relatively harmless. Basically an entertaining, gay bon vivant but not really of much consequence.It’s totally on Milo that he parlayed his brief visit to HBO into a career-ending faux pas. I mean, with the exception of the ancient Greeks, pretty much everybody on the planet—no matter what their political or sexual persuasion is—views pedophilia as a really, really, really, reeaallllyy bad thing. Saying that it might not be is a mass media death wish.Milo was indeed a moth that was tempted too close to the flame of celebrity and he got well-deservedly burned.
It had nothing to do with Maher.
Never said it did.
Which is what Maher predicted would happen
OK, I’ll give him that one.
While I can’t verify for Milo, he used to do the horizontal monster mash with Ann.
Okay , thanks for that image. I will now go get a full lobotomy to never have to think about it again.
ECT will be faster. Wipes last 90 days
These points you raise are old news compared to his problems with COVID premorbidities and cancel culture. Not saying his old shit doesn’t matter, but it’s worth remembering that he hasn’t exactly grown since then either.
So, what you’re saying is that Joe Rogan is eating his lunch.
You forgot to mention the rampant and unforgiving fatphobia. This guy is a turd that needs desperately to be flushed.
The nerve of him wanting to hear viewpoints from the other side. I love how you dolts think you are high and mighty when you are equally as ignorant as OAN and FOX news viewers who don’t want to hear from the other viewpoints.
IslamophobiaI have to agree with Sam Harris on this, you have to be able to criticize bad ideas. If you can’t criticize any of the things that the majority of Muslims believe that are bad ideas without being called an Islamophobic then there is really no hope for you.
I realized I couldn’t stand him anymore right in the middle of seeing him perform live. I was a fan of his show so we got tickets when he came to town, and about an hour into his set it hit me. That thing he does when an audience reacts with an “Oooohhhh…” to a joke, and he stops and scolds the audience for being offended? Even though the audience isn’t actually offended, that’s just how a large group of people reacts to a particularly biting joke? That shit is even more obnoxious when he’s looking right at you.
And he debates every conservative that comes on. That’s why he gets them on. Sure, he is what he calls “a whiny little bitch,” but if you think he sits there nodding in agreement like Degeneres, you’re wrong.
The AV Club writers could give it a run for its money. At least Bill Maher can afford to buy into the Mets.
As a Yankee fan, it pains me to say it, but…their song is better.
I could have written your comment word for word. Maher is such a jerk and I hate how accurate he is at predicting what’s going to happen way ahead of everybody else. It disturbing and it just adds to his smarmy smugness.
I think you might have to elaborate on that; late in 2015 he was on Colbert’s show and Stephen bet that Trump would win the nomination while Bill bet he wouldn’t(he later denied having said that when he was on Colbert again after Trump had won it). I also remember him on Letterman in 2011 betting that Trump would run that year while Dave bet he wouldn’t.
“I hate how accurate he is at predicting what’s going to happen way ahead of everybody else.”??? Fair enough. Entertainment sites should value form over function.
I like Real Time even though I don’t like Bill Maher, because he has people he disagrees with on his show. Every other political comedy show operates in a bubble, so even though Maher can piss me off, I will always respect it.
I agree. I’ve been watching Bill Maher since I was a kid. My mother (a total ‘pinko commie’ mensa liberal) would get stoned then we’d watch Politically Incorrect together. I feel like a lot of the critiques i see lobbed at him are not entirely fair or accurate and are coming from people who aren’t necessarily totally familiar with the guy.While he is definitely smug, I find his worst offense to be when he blames the audience for not responding “appropriately” to his jokes. I find it real hard to swallow when i hear people calling him a misogynist or Islamophobic. I’ve never seen evidence of either. Bill traffics in generalities and practicalities and sometimes people are going to hear things that they don’t like. When you cherry-pick hot button moments from certain discussions it’s east to try to label him pigeonhole him as this or that.
The most disturbing brand of white person is the kind that views “being friends with fascists” as somehow a good thing
“While I am against fascism, it’s important to listen to and give a platform to people who are for it for…reasons ($$$)!” is always a weird argument to me.
Not living in a bubble and wanting political comedy to be more than just preaching to the converted is not the same as wanting to be friends with fascists. It’s very easy to only call out fascism when you’re alone, behind your desk, to a group of people who already agree with you. In fact, it’s near cowardly.
I also don’t love Bill Maher, and will often skip over the first interview especially if he has some quack medical person on or ghoul like Coulter, but i do like that he not only lets people he disagrees with on the show, he lets them hang themselves, and he’ll call them idiots to their stupid faces. I wish more shows would do that instead of “well, agree to disagree!” and cut to commercial.
I have the exquisite pleasure of having never seen Bill Maher do anything. I only know about him via stories I’ve heard about his antics at the Playboy mansion. He sounds like a terrible person.
I liked it too for a while. I don’t remember when, but I think there must’ve been a stretch at some point when he had some seriously funny writers. It was definitely years ago. And he definitely can deliver a joke if it’s well-written. His smugness can be used effectively for comedy.He’s always been an arrogant little shit, but in recent years he has definitely gone off the rails significantly in more ways than one. What bothers me most are the strong ‘get off my lawn’ vibes. I’m not gonna go into detail because I care about my mental health.
Oh wow I bet he’ll have some spicy New Rules when he returns
Im bracing for the its no big deal its really Chinas fault bullshit to spew from his mouth.
I’m cheesed off and I’m ornery!
> “And while there’s obviously a certain degree of schadenfreude at play”
You have to actually feel guilty about something to experience schadenfreude.
“You have to actually feel guilty about something to experience schadenfreude.”
Uh, no you don’t.
No you don’t, you just have to take pleasure in someone else’s displeasure. Guilt doesn’t factor into schadenfreude.
I don’t understand this remark. He hasn’t dismissed the vaccines or mask-wearing. What is his sin in this regard?
You might want to look up the definition
Mandy Patinkin would like a word about a word…
Ellen, Elon, Joss Whedon, and now Bill Maher, all in one day. Jesus Christ, did someone in the office hit a Pick 4 or something?
I’m not normally happy to hear that somebody has COVID.But
P.S. you forgot to add ignorant asshole after But. You’re welcome.
which vaccine did he get
The placebo.
Cocoa Puffs
I was a dumb teenager, but always hated people like Bill Maher–same with Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, and Richard Dawkins. He always seemed like an arrogant bully, someone who used intellectualism to belittle others, rather than champion meaningful ideas. And maybe Maher was like that at one point, but I’m glad that he’s being phased out.
Absolutely. They use terms like rational skeptic and atheist as an excuse to be massive assholes, and frequently Islamophobic.
You can be an atheist and an asshole; but you shouldn’t have to be both.
Indeed. There are a LOT of intelligent people who think that what we know isn’t all there is to know, whatever form you want to put that in.
It isn’t intellectually honest to deny the possibility of anything beyond the material.
I’m fine if you believe there isn’t, but if you belittle people who are open to the possibility that there is, then yes, you’re not an atheist, you’re a bully.
(Oh, and I think the same thing about people who push the other way, too. A bully’s a bully of whatever ilk. I love a free discussion of ideas, but ‘I could be wrong about that’ should ALWAYS be a part of it)
I liked him better when I was a dumb teenager because I thought intellectual bullying was cool. Since I couldn’t manage the other kind. I’ve evolved a little.
He still has a weekly TV show, so not really phased out.
someone who used intellectualism to belittle others
Considering how many people are proud to be stupid, I have no problem with this. If someone’s proud to be stupid, then I’m going to call them out & call them stupid every chance I get.
I mean, there are individual public appearances by Hitchens that gave more to public discourse than every page of this site all added together.
I would definitely not put the latter three, particularly Dawkins, in with Bill Maher. Have you read any of Dawkins’ books? I teach The Selfish Gene and the Ancestor’s Tale every year (I’m a Biochemistry professor).
Okay, QAnon.
I still find it interesting that a guy that I watched for years on Politically Correct turned into this person. Real Time is so unwatchable. Being smug is not funny.
This tracks with my experience for old guys who have been vaccinated. My friend’s cop dad tested positive last month because his work regularly tests everyone and he basically had medium cold symptoms for a few days because he had been fully vaccinated.
Guess you didn’t exercise or eat healthy enough, Bill.
unfortunately the fact that he was vaccinated and still got Covid is probably going to stoke his vaguely antivax views again. On the other hand, maybe this will completely kill his bullshit “if Americans would just go vegetarian like I am, we wouldn’t be this affected by Covid” narrative.
hes a vegetarian? he really doesnt seem the type, id imagine him with a huge bloody steak, while making fun of vegetarians.
apparently he describes himself as not a “strict vegetarian” and has also been described as “vegan friendly” whatever that means. (I guess in his case it gives him an excuse to be even more of a smug prick.) But he definitely thinks Americans are a bunch of fat fucks that wouldn’t be suffering from Covid as much if we just ate healthier, which is a fair point, but pushing for a momentous change like that in the middle of a pandemic just seemed laughably absurd (if anything, a sizable portion of the population would probably eat MORE pork rinds if they heard that Bill Maher wanted them to eat healthier.) And because it’s him, over the summer last year he would have some sketchy doctor who was comfortable fat-shaming the entire country on his show to agree with him—week after week after week. I can’t even hate-watch him any more after that.
But he definitely thinks Americans are a bunch of fat fucks that
wouldn’t be suffering from Covid as much if we just ate healthier, which
is a fair point, but pushing for a momentous change like that in the middle of a pandemic just seemed laughably absurd
This is something that he’s been harping on for years, though. This didn’t start during the pandemic. He’s been saying for a while that Americans in general are too fat & too unhealthy, which is true. This isn’t a new thing. I’m not trying to claim that the solution is simple, because it’s not. The abysmal state of healthcare in the US is a huge problem, and a huge factor.
That said, however, emphasizing it during the pandemic is a good thing. People, for the most part, are eating at home & cooking for themselves more, which means it’s easier to eat healthier than if you’re going to a restaurant or ordering take-out. Many people started home gardens last spring and are doing it again this spring, growing their own herbs & vegetables. This is a good thing. The pandemic was a perfect time to emphasize this, as society collectively slowed down & took a breath. And an international health crisis hopefully made many people reflect on their general health.One can only hope that after this pandemic, the push for universal healthcare in the US only grows stronger & stronger, because that would go a long to way to helping to solve America’s weight problem, which can contribute to other health problems. But cooking your own food and not eating at restaurants goes a long way, too. And it’s not that hard to do, either.
I’m not a vegan, vegetarian, or anything remotely close, but I do generally agree with Maher’s take that a lot of Americans are unnecessarily sick because they eat like shit. I wish he’d frame it in a way that people would be more receptive to, but he’s not wrong. Also saying so in the middle of a pandemic is probably the best time to say it. People are already changing their habits so drastically, maybe it’d be easier to fold in some new eating habits at the same time.
Also, I don’t think he’s really saying stuff like pork rinds is the problem. He’s been pretty consistent that it’s sugar, mostly, and he’s correct. A year before the pandemic started I just decided to cut sugar and bread for a few months, which SUCKED, but I lost 20 pounds pretty quickly, my knees don’t hurt anymore, and I haven’t gotten a cold in two years, where previously I’d get a cold for a month like three times a year. (obviously this can also be traced to not going out/masks but even that first year i didn’t get so much as a sniffle.)All that said, the sketchy doctors he has on to confirm all his other weird beliefs are by far the worst part of his show. People know Ann Coulter is a ghoul. They might be more swayed by the unfamiliar quacks he has on.
‘“vegan friendly” whatever that means’It means he’d still fuck a chick that wouldn’t eat a hamburger.
The amount of times he’s blamed weight for everything is approaching six digits worth. He really just can’t stop saying you fat pigs ruined everything.
It’s really sad this website celebrates someone getting Covid, and goes as far as including a picture that can only be classified as obnoxious. Good job AV, smug, righteous, and overwrought.
I came to goof on the pic; now I’m just thinking the lady on the news last night said people who are vaccinated can go without masks; today people who are vaccinated are still getting it. And I’m sad.
“today people who are vaccinated are still getting it.”
Today?
Do you understand vaccines?
The good news, its VERY rare and if it does breakthrough, the chances of hospitalization are even MORE rare. It’s why they’re saying “no masks for vaccinated people”…which I don’t necessarily agree with(are we really asking underpaid service workers to tell people to wear their masks inside or prove their vaccinated?)
Getting it but it’s not killing them so that’s a slight glimmer of hope.
Good job AV, smug, righteous, and overwrought.
Weird, you’d think a fan of Bill Maher such as yourself would admire all of these traits.
i like the idea that in order to (correctly) note that it’s sort of shitty to take the tone this article takes over someone, even a piece of shit like bill maher, getting covid automatically means they’re a fan lol.
You remind me of the concern trolls who told people it wasn’t nice to joke about Trump having COVID.
well i’m sorry for you and your limited imagination lmfao
Welp hope he’s not too sick i guess
Bill Maher is an national treasure. Always surprised by the hate this site gives him. he’s one of the good ones.
Yeah, fake liberals who give platforms to vile pieces of shit are the best, huh?
Agreed. There’s no fucking nuance anymore. He has a lot of great things to say. He says some shitty things too. And that’s ok. Because we all don’t have to agree with everything everyone says, do we? Don’t most people have varying viewpoints on a variety of issues?
Not here they don’t.
Some people have opinions vile and dangerous enough that the good shit they say doesn’t fucking matter.
Should those people’s exile from public life be overseen by you personally, or just by someone who agrees with you about everything?
I didn’t say anything about anyone being exiled. The poster above me made the point that Maher says good stuff too so how come so many people hate him it’s not fair. I’m of the opinion that the awful shit he’s said wayyyyyyu outweighs any positive he’s done
You mean Bill “went on the air to insult every comic-book fan alive immediately after Stan Lee’s death” Maher?
I do still watch Real Time fairly regularly. He is unbearably smug and often wrong in that “I’m just saying what everyone is thinking, but no-one is saying” way that libertarians love. I probably yell at the TV at least once during an episode and I almost always check out once he gets to his “New Rules” segment. Maybe part of this is a hate-watch situation (I did watch The McLaughlin Group from time to time back in the day), but I think I mostly watch for the panelists. The unfortunate “why are you giving this person a bullhorn?” guests like Milo Y. are actually a bit of a rarity; the show is normally pretty good at booking interesting guests. And, once in a while, one of them pushes back on Maher’s stupid shit and it’s incredibly satisfying. I remember when Tim Gunn was on the show and he was talking about how the fashion industry needs to design more for diverse body types. Maher trotted out his oft-repeated notion that “people are slobs these days”, laced with a bit of fat shaming, but Gunn didn’t take the bait and laid out a nuanced case instead.
Same. For me it’s can’t miss television. He consistently has great guests and, to your point, the idea that he’s giving gross people a bullhorn is WAY overblown and exceedingly rare. I frankly like some of what he has to say, and I like that most of his guests don’t hesitate to push back on his bullshit.
Looks like Bill did not check off all the boxes on some people’s purity test. Still watch him every weekend depending on guests. As for the smugness, yeah I can see that and being more smug, as a young teenager but now that I am a big boy I declare him too smug? That right there is SMUG!
I also appreciate that he’ll call his guest on their bullshit too. I wish more TV hosts did that.
I like the show and I think he’s often funny, but I don’t always like Bill Maher. Someone who smoked cigarettes for however many years shouldn’t comment on people’s eating habits.
I think it was Larry Wilmore who was on once and he wasn’t taking anyones shit and it was glorious.
He was on the same panel with Milo Y. and he *really* wasn’t taking Milo’s shit. Honestly, if Maher wants to continue making the claim that he is responsible for the dwindling relevance of MY, he could at least give Willmore his fair share of credit.
I rarely watch it, but when I do it’s because I like the conversations with the panelists. I don’t think New Rules is funny, and generally don’t find Maher at all amusing. Hearing Dan Carlin was supposed to be on this episode I will make a point of watching that episode.
Eh his guests are generally pretty shit too.
Yep. I tend to agree with about ten percent of his talking points. You are right about the quality of most of his guests. Others are also right on the levels of smug. He puts so much off that I crack a window when watching, just to make sure it doesn’t displace the oxygen in the room.I actually thought the ongoing counter of how long it was taking him to get his solar approved was a pretty good bit. Also, just want to point out that he took Covid and social distancing pretty seriously throughout, and that his response here, canceling taping the show, is the correct response, and it’s good that he’s being transparent about it. A vaccine isn’t a forcefield, it just makes you less likely to get it and less likely to have a bad reaction, with most of the data also indicating that you are significantly less likely to spread it. So I guess I’m saying it’s weird that people are bashing him for being sick and making a responsible choice?
I mostly agree, but I actually enjoy his mid-show comedy pieces and New Rules. He should ditch the opening monologue though.
“We’re a little glad you got a potentially deadly virus because one time you said something we don’t like teehee” what the hell what has this site become
I remember when the Onion and AV club used to be great, they are both going down the drain as quickly as Jalopnik and Deadspin.
Callback to when people were FURIOUS that health officials couldn’t produce definitive data that keeping bars open past 10 increased risk…despite that everybody knows it did (risk to my liver among other things) and they wouldn’t have believed the data anyway. And now the CDC has gone too far in the other direction and got rid of all of the things that let us at least identify who is an anti-masker, now all the people lying about being vaccinated are a real life game of “Among Us”But I do wish they would at least tell us which vaccine these people having the breakthrough infections got. Weren’t they going to look into doing a second dose of J&J? Whatever happened with that?
I have been reading that COVID stays in penile tissue, causing erectile dysfunction, so I’m sending a prayer to all the hookers on Bill Maher’s payroll.
Someone forgot to remind Bill that social distancing includes staying 6 feet away from escorts, too.
So do you think COVID will do more damage to his left lung, his right lung, or will both sides suck?
Guess we’ll find out if cancer get cancer too.
“Cancel culture” is useless on Bill Maher because he usually gets his show canceled all on his own.
Usually? A show of his was cancelled once—Politically Incorrect, back in 2002. His next and current show, Real Time, has been on the air for 18 years.
A Mad Lib“We must not allow these _____(A)_____ to talk about ________(B)__________!”A: TV show hosts, podcasters, children’s book authors, college professors, media elitesB: transphobia, misogyny, the fake election, Critical Race TheoryCareful! You want to fill it out so you’ll sound different from ‘the other side.’
Yes, I’m sure the guy who has played footsie with anti-vaxxers for years, and recently voiced doubts about the COVID vaccines, really did get the vaccine and can be trusted on his word about it.
Like, okay, it’s not impossible that he still contracted it after being vaccinated but….come on. How is every outlet so credulous about this?
Came here to say this. He’s an anti-vaxxer. I’d ask to see his vaccine card before reporting this without any checking. Where did he even get it from? Is he going to parties with complete strangers and tasting their breath? Hospital workers with breakthrough cases I get. They are surrounded by COVID. Pampered millionaires who are vocally anti-vaxx? You can’t be that naive.
I wonder if his show on ABC hadn’t been canceled after 9/11 if he’d be the way he is today? The bitterness from that could have curdled into the smugness and anger we see now.
I’m sure he’ll just blame woke liberals for it. … seriously, I really hate having this guy on my side.
Too bad. Pretty consistently entertaining.