It’s been a few months since anyone has heard from Aziz Ansari. He’s been secluded in what must be the pimpest hobbit-hole in all of The Shire ever since allegations emerged that he went on a bad date once. I seriously still can’t figure out what Aziz Ansari did that some website thought was big enough news to write an article about. The accusation was basically “he asked me to have sex with him more than once and didn’t attempt to force himself on me without consent in any way.” I’m sorry if I don’t think that makes the dude Harvey Weinstein.
One side effect of Ansari’s self-imposed exile is that his Netflix series Master of None has been in limbo since the second season aired last May. I understand why a critically-acclaimed comedy such as his could take a while to write; each episode is just packed to the gills with humor, some episodes cramming as many as four jokes into a tight 35-minute runtime.
Entertainment Weekly reported that the production delay is Ansari’s choice, with Netflix programming executive Cindy Holland saying that “we would be happy to make another season of Master of None when Aziz is ready,” at a Television Critics Association event.
Between this and AMC hiring back Chris Hardwick, it turns out fears about the #metoo movement ruining careers were probably overblown. Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey were serial sexual harassers who exploited their esteem in the industry to do horrible things and then cover it up. Aziz Ansari had a bad date, it’s not the same thing and no one is treating it like it is. Funny how that works, isn’t it?