Whitney Houston’s estate has published a response to Jarrod Carmichael’s scandalous joke about the late singer at the Golden Globes.
Carmichael was the host of this year’s awards ceremony, which took place in Beverly Hills, California, on Tuesday (January 10).
Throughout the evening, the comedian and actor targeted various Hollywood icons and institutions, including Tom Cruise and Will Smith.
As for what Carmichael said about Houston, he joked, “So we’re here, live, from the hotel that killed Whitney Houston, the Beverly Hilton.”
The singer was found unconscious in her Beverly Hilton Hotel room on February 11, 2012 and was subsequently pronounced dead. She was 48 years old. Houston was scheduled to attend a pre-Grammy dinner at a Los Angeles hotel.
It was later confirmed that she accidentally drowned in the bathtub. The Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office called the cause of death drowning and “the effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use.”
In a statement released to TMZ, the estate of the late icon said of Carmichael’s comment: “Whitney Houston Estate is disappointed with the joke and considers it bad form.”
The post says the message came from Pat Houston, Whitney’s longtime manager and sister-in-law.
Some viewers on Twitter also criticized Carmichael for the stage remark.
“Jarrod Carmichael is disgusting to AF for such a grotesque and vulgar “joke” about Whitney Houston,” one user wrote. “It was so unnecessary. None of the audience took it well. He was terrible all night.”
Another said: “I can’t put into words the disgust I feel for Whitney Houston’s ‘joke’ that Jarrod Carmichael just uttered, there are no words.”
A third person commented: “I really don’t think Jarrod Carmichael will have many fans who will joke about Whitney Houston on this platform. There’s nothing funny about it. Some things are just not meant to be taken lightly.”
You can see these tweets and other reactions below.
Why is Jerrod Carmichael praising the hotel where Whitney Houston died in Kecin Costner show intro & shading Will Smith with Rock Hudson Award? It is disrespectful, awkward & cringe. #GoldenGlobes #GoldenGlobes2023 pic.twitter.com/uOXZq9MsGm
— Shani Harris (@shanikharris) January 11, 2023
https://twitter.com/Genki_Rocket/status/1613016056657764353
The full list of winners of the Golden Globe-2023 can be viewed here.
In other news, Naomi Aki recently said she was “potentially putting herself in the line of fire” for taking on the role of Whitney Houston in the new biopic “I Wanna Dance with Somebody.”
The film directed by Casey Lemmons focuses more on the triumphant moments of Houston’s life than on her struggle with drug addiction and numerous scandals.
In a three – star review of the biopic , NME wrote: “Playing Aki as a late superstar is really transformative. She not only conveys Houston’s distinctive voice and her stage mannerisms—trembling lips, dramatic hand gestures—but also conveys her brave spirit.”
