A statement from the family of George Floyd has taken aim at comments made by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe during a recent Netflix roast of Kevin Hart, arguing that the moment crossed into territory that still feels too raw for public humor.
Through the Gianna and George Floyd Foundation, the family described the remark as “sad for the culture,” and said they were troubled by how often Floyd’s name is pulled into entertainment settings. The joke referred to Floyd, who died in 2020 after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly ten minutes. Onstage, Hinchcliffe said, “Right now, George Floyd is looking up at us all, laughing so hard he can’t breathe.” The line echoed Floyd’s final words, “I can’t breathe,” which have since become closely tied to protests over police violence and broader civil rights–related trauma.
In their statement, the foundation said the issue went beyond a single joke. “It is heartbreaking to see a tragedy that changed the world used for cheap laughs,” the organization said, pointing to what they view as a recurring willingness in comedy spaces to treat particularly violent death and civil rights violations as material rather than memory.
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The family also emphasized that while roast comedy is built on pushing boundaries, there are limits when it comes to subjects rooted in real-world loss. As of Wednesday, neither Hart nor Hinchcliffe had responded publicly, and Netflix has not addressed whether any edits to the special are under consideration.
Floyd’s death in May 2020 led to the conviction of former officer Derek Chauvin. For his family, references to his death in comedic contexts remain difficult to separate from the lived reality of grief, public scrutiny, and a case that reshaped national conversations about policing and accountability.