Julia Louis-Dreyfus' Response To Jerry Seinfeld's Comments Is A Masterclass In Shade

Jerry Seinfeld and Julia Louis-Dreyfus spent the better part of a decade starring together on "Seinfeld," the beloved '90s sitcom famously about nothing, but they don't see eye to eye on the topic of comedy and artistic freedom. Seinfeld, who's known for his shady side, recently lamented about the limitations political correctness has imposed on comedy. "This is the result of the extreme left and P.C. crap, and people worrying so much about offending other people," Seinfeld said to The New Yorker about the lack of comedies there are to enjoy today.  "When you write a script and it goes into four or five different hands, committees, groups ... Well, that's the end of your comedy," Seinfeld continued.

Meanwhile, in comments to the New York Times, Dreyfus defended sensitivity in comedy, and masterfully shaded Seinfeld's comments all in one breath. The "Veep" star started by acknowledging that some aspects of comedy haven't aged well over the years. "And I think to have an antenna about sensitivities is not a bad thing. It doesn't mean that all comedy goes out the window as a result." She continued, "When I hear people starting to complain about political correctness — and I understand why people might push back on it — but to me that's a red flag, because it sometimes means something else." While Dreyfus didn't specify exactly what opposing political correctness could mean, some of the Seinfeld cast have been involved in scandals that underline her point.

Jerry Seinfeld really seems to resent political correctness. In August 2018, the actor addressed the topic with the New York Times when asked if he'd ever offered an apology for any of his material. "No. Jokes are not real," he said. "People assume that when you say something that you believe it. It's purely comedic invention." He continued, "You know, I do this whole bit about Pop-Tarts and how much I love them. I don't love Pop-Tarts. It's just funny. It's funny to say it, so I say it." However, Seinfeld later acknowledged there is a line between offensive and funny when discussing Roseanne Barr, who was fired from the "Roseanne" reboot due to a racist comment about Valerie Jarrett.

Three years earlier, the creator, who admitted that he doesn't perform at colleges and universities, cited political correctness as a reason why comics might keep not be excited to perform their material for college students. "I hear a lot of people tell me, 'Don't go near colleges. They're so PC,'" Seinfeld said during an appearance on "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" (via EW). He also complained about college students who used terms such as "racist," "sexist," and "prejudice," claiming that they were uninformed. Later in the segment, Seinfeld said that he believed political correctness was a hindrance to comedy. "To me it's anti-comedy," he continued. "It's more about PC nonsense" (via Salon).

Social media rarely agrees on anything. And while there's certainly a wide range of opinions about Jerry Seinfeld's comments floating around, the majority of people seem to agree with Julia Louis-Dreyfus' stance. "She's right and also why she's still relevant. That other guy can't relate," tweeted one fan on X, formerly known as Twitter. "And this is why she had the most successful post-Seinfeld career," wrote another user. There were several more users who used the moment to criticize Seinfeld's comedy, including the user who tweeted, "He hasn't been funny in 30 years and now he's yelling at the sky from his lawn smh."

Another user used the moment to compliment Dreyfus' comedic chops and diplomacy, tweeting, "She's funnier than hell and Veep never pulled any punches. Comedy's not dead, not even resting. Some comedians are just tired and out of touch; she spoke very diplomatically" Another fan wrote, "She's way funnier than jerry. so was everyone else on that show." Last, but not least, another user tweeted, "Which is why she's still successful," underneath Dreyfus' quote on the matter of political correctness in comedy. Well, successful and rich, as Dreyfus is worth a huge amount of money.