Matt Rife's Reported Reaction To Wild Satire About Him Is Just What You'd Expect

Matt Rife is no stranger to Twitter controversy, but a video posted to the platform (now known as X) has the comedian steaming mad. It's somewhat ironic, as the TikTok star has said in the past that he believes in pushing the envelope comedically. "You can say whatever you want," he told Variety in November 2023. "I don't believe there's anything you can't talk about if you do it correctly, in the right way, at the right time." Apparently, this particular video was comedy done incorrectly, at least by Rife's standards.

The video in question was posted by Nima Yamini, who has "Satire and Inspiration" written in the bio of his X profile. In the salacious clip, Yamini shares a story allegedly about how Rife became so famous. Yamini recalled a time he took a general meeting with "Hollywood executives" along with another comedian, who he revealed at the end of the video to be Matt Rife. Per Yamini's story, the executives offered them fame in exchange for sexual favors, and Rife accepted. While the video may have been intended as satire, it was shared across the platform and quickly took on a life of its own, as it went viral.

The following day, on March 7, TMZ reported that Rife was upset by the slanderous video and was "exploring legal action" against Yamini. Shortly after, Yamini took to Twitter to respond to the possible lawsuit.

Nima Yamini did not take well to TMZ's news that Matt Rife had seen the incendiary viral clip and was looking to take legal action. "You contacted me when I was with my wife @TMZ (Brandon) then without even taking my side of the story post this gossip to push drama and clicks," he tweeted on March 7. The following day, Yamini posted another video to X, but this one was not intended as satire. In the clip, he cleared the air about his relationship with the internet star. "Don't know Matt Rife. I never met him. But my silly joke should definitely not discredit him or his hard work," Yamini said in the vid.

Once the report from TMZ broke, several fans took Yamini's side, and believed that Rife had overreacted. "A comedian suing a comedian for making a joke, this kid is really ruining his own career at this point lol," a Redditor wrote on March 7. "Dude, you're a comedian. Win in the court of public opinion," another Reddit user commented.

In the past, Rife has admitted that he is prone to losing his temper over social media drama. "It's something I need to work on; I'm so immature. I have such a hard time not replying back," he told Vogue in November 2023. The comedian went on to add, "I can't slap the s*** out of you, but I can at least check you sometimes." Despite the occasional spat, social media has been huge for Rife's career.

Matt Rife has developed a love-hate relationship with social media. Sure, there have been drawbacks, but ultimately sharing videos online — especially on TikTok — has been the key to the comedian's wild popularity. "Oh, it's changed absolutely everything," Rife told Variety in November 2023. "I mean the name of this game is exposure at this point. Stand-up isn't about being funny." With that exposure has come a healthy amount of backlash.

The comedian is known not only for his killer crowd work, but his model-like looks. Rife even had to shut down rumors that he had plastic surgery. Speaking about his appearance, the "Natural Selection" comedian caused an online commotion when he said his looks were a hindrance. "Because people don't like you. People assume your life is easier when you have all these good things going for you," Rife told "Today" in November 2023, after a video of him telling Men's Health his appearance was not an advantage went viral. Rife has been quick to point out the drawbacks of being considered handsome. 

In fact, Rife does not appreciate being distilled down to eye candy, and says that even though he rolls with the punches, it's inappropriate when women flirt with him during shows. "It's uncomfortable because there are a lot of double standards — like, I've had my nipple bit at a meet and greet before," he told Vogue in November 2023.