Mel Brooks: 'I've Never Been a Fan of Political Correctness'

Mel Brooks
Mel Brooks attends the press night performance of 'Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein' at The Garrick Theatre on October 10, 2017 in London, England. David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images
By

Most recently, Tracy Lee has finished a documentary episode on national security examining the balance between the State Department and the Department of Defense for the Foreign Policy Association's Great Decisions documentary series that will air in 2018 on PBS. Over the last few years, Tracy Lee has covered a series of in-depth human interest stories in Brazil with highlighted work during the massive 2013 protests, and the fallout from the 2014 World Cup and 2017 Olympics in Rio’s communities. Previously, she has reported inside UN Headquarters on stories ranging from the 2010 Haiti Earthquake to the impact of the Arab Spring. In the past, she has covered local NYC breaking news for NY1. 

Writers Page
Breaking News Writer
Trust Project Icon Newsweek Is A Trust Project Member

🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.

Famed 91-year-old filmmaker Mel Brooks, known for his film parodies, reflected recently on his time in Hollywood during an interview with The Daily Beast. The iconic writer, director and actor, spoke on the 50th anniversary of the first comedy movie he directed, The Producers, and weighed in on political correctness.

Brooks noted that he'd "never been a fan" of it.

"I've never been a fan of political correctness. I've been a fan of decent behavior, which is different from political correctness. Because political correctness demands too much respect for being good. And comics are not good. We are bad. We whisper into the king's ear. We tell him the truth. And that's our job. It's our job to say it like it is. And sometimes use the words that we use in the street. You can't always play ball with the system, you have to strike out and tell the truth," Brooks told The Daily Beast.

454998082
Producer/Director Mel Brooks attends the Hands and Footprint Ceremony for Mel Brooks at the TCL Chinese Theatre on September 8, 2014 in Hollywood, California. Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic

Brooks added that people enjoy comedians that "break the rules," and that a "sliver" of people truly loved political correctness.

"Everybody else likes the truth, which is different," Brooks said.

He also touched on topics such as President Donald Trump and anti-semitism in the world.

Brooks, who won an Academy Award for The Producers for Best Original Screenplay, is marking the 50 anniversary of the movie at the Turner Classic Movies Film Festival on Thursday in Hollywood.

The Producers, seen as a cult classic, would have a "better" impact today, Brooks said, because of the time elapsed from Adolf Hitler's reign.

In the past, Brooks has said political correctness is the death of comedy.

In the interview with The Daily Beast, Brooks' Western parody, Blazing Saddles was referenced. It was a movie, which would not be made in today's climate, Brooks told BBC News last year. He said it was because the N-word was used in Blazing Saddles.

Comedian Jerry Seinfeld has joined Bill Maher, Jeff Ross and Dave Chappelle, among others, who have spoken out on political correctness hurting comedy. In 2015, Seinfeld told ESPN that he doesn't "play colleges." "I hear a lot of people tell me, 'Don't go near colleges. They're so PC.'"

Request Reprint & Licensing Submit Correction View Editorial & AI Guidelines

Top stories

About the writer

Most recently, Tracy Lee has finished a documentary episode on national security examining the balance between the State Department and the Department of Defense for the Foreign Policy Association's Great Decisions documentary series that will air in 2018 on PBS. Over the last few years, Tracy Lee has covered a series of in-depth human interest stories in Brazil with highlighted work during the massive 2013 protests, and the fallout from the 2014 World Cup and 2017 Olympics in Rio’s communities. Previously, she has reported inside UN Headquarters on stories ranging from the 2010 Haiti Earthquake to the impact of the Arab Spring. In the past, she has covered local NYC breaking news for NY1. 

Writers Page

Most recently, Tracy Lee has finished a documentary episode on national security examining the balance between the State Department and ... Read more