Comic says the offer made him feel 'icky'

‘Weird Al’ Yankovic says he turned down a seven-figure sum to perform at the controversial Riyadh Comedy Festival last year.

The song parodist revealed that he was offered more money than he’d ever earned for a single gig to go to Saudi Arabia, but said the thought of it made him ‘feel icky’.

‘I was invited to the Riyadh Comedy Festival, which is something that I obviously did not want to do,’ the comedian told Pennsylvania’s Tribune-Review.

‘They offered me, I’m not going to say how much, but it was seven figures to do one show, which is way more than I’ve ever been offered in my life to do a show.

‘But I just couldn’t be part of that. I’m not dissing anybody that took the money because I’m sure everybody that went there got a lot of money. I’m sure they had their own reasons and justifications for doing it. But I’m doing enough that I don’t need to take any amount of money if it makes me feel icky, and that kind of did.’

The comedian previously made headlines for rejecting a large sum to front an advert for an AI company.

Of that, he said: ‘I wish people would offer me things that I didn’t feel bad about accepting.’

Published: 26 Jul 2026