Edgy comic's hot take on... slugs

Netflix has released the first clip from Ricky Gervais’s forthcoming stand-up special, Armageddon.

The show will be released on Christmas Day, prompting the comic to joke: ‘For the next 2,000 years people will remember the 25th December as the day Armageddon was released on Netflix.’

In the clip, Gervais talks about evolution: ‘I have noticed one thing about the slug and the snail. Let's not split hairs. Let's be honest. The snail is basically a slug with a shell on it, isn't it? Right? But if you pull the shell off the snail, it starts giving it "oh, I'm dying. I'm dying". And the slug is like, "Welcome to the real world."’

The show was recorded at the London Palladium earlier this year as part of a tour that won Gervais a Guinness World Records for the highest gross for a single stand-up performance ever – netting £1.41million for his sow at the Hollywood Bowl.

In 2020 Gervais signed a reported $40million deal with Netflix, which included the third season of his comedy After Life plus an unspecified number of stand-up specials.

Promotional blurb for Armageddon says: ‘Gervais dishes out controversial takes on political correctness and oversensitivity in a taboo-busting comedy special about the end of humanity.’

Published: 27 Nov 2023