The episode that streamed on Netflix targeted primarily on West’s psychological well being struggles together with a light-hearted on-location phase the place Letterman visited West’s home and tried on outfits from the mogul’s closet. Whereas neither Netflix nor Worldwide Pants Integrated have launched the complete transcript from the dwell present, the manufacturing firm did launch a press release in response to the criticism over their modifying choices:
“Practically 4 years in the past, in an interview for ‘My Subsequent Visitor,’ Kanye West mentioned a variety of subjects with David Letterman, together with, household, fatherhood, music and creativity. Kanye additionally advised Dave that he had simply been recognized with bipolar dysfunction six months earlier,” the manufacturing firm advised TheWrap in a written assertion. “Mr. West subsequently started an offensive rant in regards to the MeToo motion. He additionally later spoke about liberals purportedly bullying Trump supporters, and about free speech being suppressed. These factors have been represented within the present, the producers went to nice lengths to precisely current them, and Dave challenged him on every of those.”
However the episode itself doesn’t dwell on these extra problematic factors, at the very least to not the diploma that these current for the taping felt it ought to have. Plainly Letterman and his producers determined that neither the collection nor its visitor could be served by a lower that confirmed the complete breadth of West’s weird, bigotted, conspiratorial beliefs. Exhibiting a humanized model of the music mogul and specializing in the constructive points of his affect was prioritized over difficult the unfounded assertions he made, which feels extra in-line with the way in which Letterman, an old-school late evening legend, would historically deal with his visitors – a flattering and playful portrayal was higher for everybody than a stark and difficult examination of an icon’s darkish aspect.
Now if Kanye challenges the Pope to a kissing contest and calls John Wayne the second coming of Christ, we’ll lastly have Bingo.
