Gilbert Gottfried stood up for a longtime friend in his final social media post just two weeks before his death.
As we’ve been reporting on Tuesday, the longtime comedian and notable Aladdin voice actor passed away on Tuesday. He was 67 years old.
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In his final Instagram post on Monday, March 28, the funnyman responded to the infamous “slap seen around the world” that occurred during the 2022 Academy Awards. Backing longtime pal Chris Rock, who was slapped on stage by actor Will Smith after making an alopecia-related joke about Will’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith, Gottfried shared his opinion in only a few words.
Writing candidly in reaction to the slap, the late comedian shared (below):
“Which is the worst crime? Chris Rock being physically assaulted or Chris Rock telling a joke?”
Along with his take on the violent on-stage outburst, Gottfried also posted a personal pic of himself and Rock hanging out together:
He posted the same image and message on Twitter, as well.
That ended up being his final social media statement he would make before passing two weeks later. According to his longtime friend and publicist Glenn Schwartz, who first confirmed the comedian’s cause of death, Gottfried succumbed after a long battle with “Recurrent Ventricular Tachycardia due to Myotonic Dystrophy type II.”
R.I.P.