Bert Kreischer Wonders If Chris D’Elia Is Happier Post-Cancellation

Is there a single phrase in the English language that’s more likely to age poorly than “I hope we can keep this on the podcast”?

Before a series of sexual abuse allegations slightly lessened his celebrity status, 44-year-old stand-up comedian Chris D’Elia used to be one of the biggest stars of the Manosphere and a mainstay on every Joe Rogan-adjacent comedy podcast, including The Joe Rogan Experience itself. Then, beginning in mid-2020, numerous women whom D’Elia had approached online back when they were still minors began to come forward with their stories (and, pivotally, screenshots) showing the comic’s darker side. Their harrowing descriptions of D’Elia’s alleged emotional abuse, pathological manipulation and sexually coercive behavior toward literal children led to D’Elia losing a potentially lucrative Netflix deal, and all of his appearances on JRE disappeared from the show’s catalog.

Today, D’Elia is still in the podcasting business with his self-produced show Congratulations Podcast with Chris D’Elia, though he’s not currently at quite the high level of success and industry-wide respect that he once enjoyed. However, another podcasting giant made a point of remembering D’Elia’s peak during his pre-scandal years when, on the most recent episode of 2 Bears, 1 Cave, Bert Kreischer told his co-host Tom Segura and their guest Stavros Halkias that he’d like to know whether D’Elia finds his current tier of fame more comfortable and fulfilling than his previous one.

Earlier this week, a clip of Kreischer wondering about D’Elia’s well-being hit the front page of the comedy subreddit as fans flamed Kreischer for seemingly forgetting why the hell his old friend isn’t booking sitcoms anymore.

D’Elia’s name came up when Kreischer was discussing an earlier stage in his career, during which comics he knew were getting their big breaks while his own ascension into stardom stuttered. Kreischer recalled being ignored by his colleagues after D’Elia walked into the Comedy Store on one night long before Kreischer turned his one story into a Netflix movie and D’Elia’s bad behavior was front page entertainment news.

“I would say, you know, what’s Chris D'Elia’s life like right now?” Halkias commented with a laugh, contextualizing the anecdote for Kreischer. “If your personal life isn’t right, if you might have a couple, uh, ‘kooky habits,’ your success is not going to save you from that.”

Missing Halkias’ meaning, Kreischer replied, “I hope we can keep this on the podcast, but I would be curious to hear D’Elia’s perspective if he’s happier now, if his life is less chaotic now.”

“You know, that really wasn’t what I was talking about,” Halkias ribbed Kreischer. “I wasn’t really talking about him slowing down career-wise (as if) that was the negatives of Chris D’Elia. I was kinda talking about some other stuff he was up to, but that is a great insight into your mind, Bert.”

In the comment section under the clip of the exchange, comedy fans lambasted Kreischer’s concern for a (alleged but well-documented) pedophile who, by many reports, has only grown more abusive to women and girls since the public fall from grace that earned him Kreischer’s empathy. “Jesus Christ Bert you have daughters,” one commenter wrote, with another adding, “Bert Kreischer is an idiot. Chris D’Elia sexually harassed, exploited and groomed women and girls. Who cares if his life is easier or more difficult?”

However, Kreischer’s feelings on the alleged misbehavior of his old friend and colleague are, or, at least, have been, more complex than the exchange from 2 Bears, 1 Cave demonstrates. In the above interview with DJ Vlad from December 2020, Kreischer, a father of two daughters, said that he had to have a serious talk with his wife LeeAnn when women began making public accusations of pedophilic and abusive behavior toward D’Elia.

“My wife is someone who will spin things so that I can understand them,” Kreischer explained of that difficult conversation. “My wife was like, ‘The only thing you gotta know is, how would you feel if a 37-year-old man was texting your daughter?’” 

The argument clicked for Kreischer, who continued, “Immediately I was just like, ‘Alright, that’s pretty fucked up.' Like, I don’t text children at all.”

Perhaps D’Elia is happier now that his following is only composed of die-hard fans who will forgive his habitually predatory behavior toward teens on the internet. Maybe Kreischer’s question was more of a thought experiment than a legitimate inquiry into his disgraced buddy’s well-being. However, neither possibilities overshadow the fact that, if the seemingly credible accusations against D’Elia are true, any time and energy spent considering his happiness is wasted. 

Unlike D'Elia’s preferred prey, the allegations against him are far from minor.