‘Chappelle’s Show’ Seasons 1-3 Return to Netflix After Removal Last Year

Chappelle’s Show has returned to Netflix unexpectedly today after having departed the service after a brief stint back in November 2020. Here’s a breakdown on the removal and why it’s back.

If you’re completely out of the loop on the situation, allow us to bring you up to speed.

Chappelle’s Show is a Comedy Central series that ran for three seasons and saw Dave Chappelle leave the show on bad terms with Viacom. This dispute was never settled and Dave Chappelle was exempted from any financial transactions, including licensing the show to Netflix.

The show was licensed by Netflix from Viacom CBS in November 2020. All three seasons arrived on November 1, 2020. They left just a few short weeks later at Dave Chappelle's request. He posted an Instagram video discussing the matter under Unforgiven.

The dispute seems to have been resolved months later with Chappelle uploading a video called Redemption yesterday (detailed via YouTube below).

The video, which focuses on current events in America, meant that season 1-3 would return to Netflix US at the end of February 2021. Entertainment Weekly confirmed this.

Chappelle spoke out about Netflix's situation, saying that he is grateful to Netflix and his fans for their help. He also said that he would stop watching Netflix while it was streaming:

“You made that show worthless because without your eyes, it’s nothing. And you stopped watching it. They called me and I got my name back and I got my license back and I got my show back and they paid me millions of dollars. Thank you very much.”

While we don’t know the details on the deal, Chappelle said that Chris McCarthy from ViacomCBS, in particular, helped right the wrong.

The show is also available again on Netflix. It is unknown if the show will be available on HBO Max or Hulu.

Will Chappelle’s Show be on Netflix internationally?

The re-addition to Netflix US today did not see Chappelle’s Show join other Netflix regions. While it’s possible Netflix could still choose to license the show outside the US, it seems unlikely.

Of course, if that changes, we’ll let you know.

Beyond Chappelle’s Show, there’s a host of other Dave Chappelle content on Netflix right now. His stand-up specials include Dave Chappelle's 2017 show Equanimity & The Bird Revelation, and Sticks & Stones in 2019. Dave can be seen in Def Comedy Jam 25 as well as him receiving the Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize of American Humor award.

Will you be diving into Chappelle’s Show on Netflix now that it has been re-added? Comment below to let us know.