Louis C.K.‘s next comedy special “Ridiculous” will debut on Netflix on June 30.
In a trailer released by the streamer, the comic tells the story of admitting his elderly father into a retirement home. “My sisters and I put him in a home,” C.K. jokes, “because he was too old to stop us from putting him in there. He was just too weak to resist being forced.”
C.K. had toured the material in “Ridiculous” for about a year, recently bringing it to the Hollywood Bowl for the Netflix Is a Joke festival.
“Ridiculous” marks his first stand-up special released by a major distributor since 2017. C.K. put out his last four specials independently after a sexual misconduct scandal derailed his relationship with mainstream Hollywood.
After five women brought allegations against him, C.K. admitted to masturbating in front of women. He apologized in a statement in which he said he initially thought his behavior “was okay because I never showed a woman my dick without asking first,” but then he came to understand there was an inherent power dynamic between him and the women, and “I wielded that power irresponsibly.”
C.K. was one of the first high-profile figures embroiled in the #MeToo movement. After the allegations, Netflix, FX and HBO cut ties with the comedian, his movie release was canceled and his manager dropped him as a client.
C.K. mostly disappeared from the public eye for a few years before returning with some surprise sets at comedy clubs, which drew both ovations and online backlash. He self-released his special “Sincerely Louis C.K.” on his website in 2020, referencing the controversy in the first few minutes of the set. C.K. followed it up with three more independent specials: “Sorry” in 2021, and “Louis C.K. at The Dolby” and “Back to the Garden” in 2023.