A comedy controversy has erupted online after some fans claimed that Ricky Gervais stole joke Netflix Mortality Andy Field response surfaced in relation to a punchline in the British comic’s hit Netflix stand-up special Mortality. The allegation centres on whether Gervais lifted a gag from London-based comedian Andy Field — but Field himself says it’s far more likely they just had the same idea independently.
What sparked the Ricky Gervais stole joke Netflix Mortality Andy Field response claims?
After Mortality debuted on Netflix late in 2025, millions of viewers tuned in to hear Gervais deliver his absurd, irreverent humour. One particular bit, referencing the iconic line “Your mother sucks c*cks in Hell!” from the 1973 horror film The Exorcist, quickly caught attention — not just for laughs, but for striking a familiar chord with some comedy fans.
In Gervais’s version, he quips that if he ever met the Devil, hearing that line wouldn’t bother him — listing exaggerated reasons why even Hell’s torments wouldn’t faze him.
However, viewers who had seen Field’s earlier joke — delivered during the BBC’s Stand Up for Live Comedy in 2020 — noticed striking similarities in premise and punchline. In Field’s set, he also reworks the Exorcist line into a comedic take on Hell’s supposed punishments.
That overlap led to online chatter about whether Gervais had “borrowed” the idea — triggering the phrase Ricky Gervais stole joke Netflix Mortality Andy Field response into trending searches.
Andy Field’s response to the claims
Rather than escalating the situation, Andy Field took a calm and thoughtful approach.
Field posted a video to social media comparing clips from both sets — and acknowledged that while the two bits look similar, the resemblance doesn’t necessarily mean Gervais knowingly copied him. In the video, he admits that the comparison is “kind of weird,” but thinks the similarities are likely coincidental rather than evidence of plagiarism.
He explained that:
- He and Gervais had never met
- His BBC set wasn’t widely seen
- It’s “an easily have-able idea” for two comedians to come up with a similar joke independently
In Field’s view, the situation highlights how many talented comics are out there — and how few get mainstream platforms like Netflix compared to established stars. Rather than bitterness, he used the moment to call attention to lesser-known stand-ups who deserve an audience.
Comedy-world context: jokes and coincidence
In stand-up comedy, it’s not uncommon for performers to arrive at similar punchlines independently — especially when they riff off the same cultural touchstones. The Exorcist line in question is one such touchstone, well-known and ripe for humorous reinterpretation.
Some commentators on social platforms also pointed out that many comedians might land on analogous jokes simply because they’re reacting to — or subverting — the same source material. This means similarity doesn’t necessarily point to plagiarism.
Has Gervais responded?
At the time of writing, Ricky Gervais himself has not issued a direct public response to the specific “stolen joke” allegation in Mortality. His representatives have not released a statement addressing the comparison to Field’s earlier material.
Gervais is no stranger to controversy, having faced social media reactions to his comedy before — both in Mortality and in other specials, where his edgy humour and boundary-pushing punchlines draw both applause and criticism.
