Wanda Sykes Details Bill Maher's Reaction to Her Golden Globes Joke

Wanda Sykes is opening up about a tense exchange with Bill Maher following the 2026 Golden Globes ceremony.

During her hosting duties presenting the Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy award—which recognized Sarah Silverman, Kevin Hart, Ricky Gervais, Brett Goldstein, and Maher among its nominees—Sykes delivered a pointed joke about the talk show host. She kicked off her segment by noting the significance of her presence on stage: "There's some people pissed off that a queer Black woman is up here doing the job of two mediocre white guys … but first I want to give them some love."

When she reached Maher in her roast of the nominees, she said, "Bill Maher, you give us so much but I would love a little less. Just try less."

Speaking on Vulture's Good Ones podcast, Sykes revealed that Maher sought her out later that evening to express his displeasure. "He approached me at the end of the night and said, 'What was that about?'" she recalled. When she explained it was meant as humor, Maher pushed back, claiming it wasn't actually a joke.

Sykes stood her ground, pointing out the audience's reaction. "I said, 'Oh, no, I heard laughing. It was clearly a joke,'" she explained.

The exchange escalated as Maher continued to argue, prompting Sykes to turn the moment into a teaching one. "See? You're doing exactly what we said in the joke," she told him. "We need less of this. You're epitomizing the joke. Less of this."

According to Sykes, Maher described the joke as "stupid," a characterization that only strengthened her resolve. She revealed that while Maher claimed to have received texts criticizing the bit, she had received plenty of messages praising it.

"When he said 'stupid,' I was like, 'OK, now you're gonna get it,'" Sykes said. "I was like, 'Well, I got a lot of texts telling me how great it was, and how they don't like you, and it was really funny. I guess that's the problem. You're watching Fox News, and I'm over here on MSNBC. See?'"

The encounter concluded with Maher extending an invitation to appear on his podcast—an offer Sykes declined outright. "Then he asked me to be on his podcast. I was like, 'Absolutely not,'" she said.