Whether you love his humour or can’t stand his shtick, Ricky Gervais is one of the most notable comic names out there. To fans, his jokes are the epitome of biting satire and British wit – but as with all edgy comedy, the lines of good taste are frequently blurred. The British comedian and actor is bold, blunt and apparently unafraid of sharing his thoughts on any topic: no matter how unpopular or brutal they may seem. Most recently, his new Netflix special SuperNature dropped on May 24, and Gervais has stirred the pot once again, this time by mocking transgender women. Throughout his career, the star has made headlines for his “unwoke” commentary, and he only continues to add to the uproar. Here are a few other instances where the 60-year-old comic has caused a world of drama with his unfiltered public statements. You don’t hit people over a joke, however bad it is. And it wasn’t bad! That was like the tamest joke I would ever have told Ricky Gervais on Will Smith’s Oscar slap That time he upset the Golden Globes Gervais’ disdain for Hollywood isn’t exactly a secret. In fact, the English comedian has been very vocal about his dislike for the showbiz industry on multiple occasions. So when he was asked back host the Golden Globe Awards for a fifth time, on the basis of previous form, it was obvious that he wasn’t going to hold back on some controversial jokes. Who’s the richest in Will Smith’s family? Net worths, ranked In his opening monologue, Gervais insulted a bunch of Hollywood’s biggest names, including Leonardo DiCaprio , Martin Scorsese and James Corden, as well Prince Andrew, the late Jeffrey Epstein and even the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The audience at the awards show wasn’t always amused, with more awkward giggles than laughter sounding around the room, and some uncomfortable looks prompted by the unfiltered words did the rounds. A shot of Tom Hanks pressing his lips and looking pretty annoyed at Gervais’ jokes even went viral on the internet. After the interview, Hanks told reporters, “We recall when Ricky Gervais was a slightly chubby but very kind comedian.” Sharing the mic, Tim Allen added, “Neither of which he is now.” Insulting the royal family Closer to home, Gervais happily insults the British royal family too. In 2018, after the New Year’s Honours list had been announced without his name on it, the comic took to Twitter in a furious post and told the royal family that they could “shove the knighthood”. Dear @RoyalFamily , I am the son of an immigrant labourer who didn’t have a pot to piss in till I was 40. Now I’m Britain’s most successful international comedian and I piss in anything I want. You can shove the knighthood though. How about a lordship? Love your work. Ricky. — Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) December 28, 2018 In his blunt tweet, he spoke about how he was the son of an immigrant labour and therefore would never receive an official honour, and wouldn’t want one anyway. Needless to say, the public was not pleased. What does Lily-Rose Depp think of Amber Heard, dad Johnny Depp’s ex? As per British tabloid Daily Star , an irked social media user responded with, “Have you actually been offered either? It should be for people who actually make a difference.” Another user added, “Fair enough, get one for work to protect animals and animal welfare. It’s pushing it a bit for comedy though. Let’s be fair.” Calling out the Catholic Church While Hollywood and royals have remained the target of his jokes, Gervais has proven that he doesn’t leave anyone out, including the Catholic Church. As an outspoken atheist, he decided religion needed a special mention during the 2016 Golden Globes when he spoke about Spotlight , a true story about Boston-based journalists who revealed widespread cover-ups of sexual abuse from inside the Catholic Church. “The excellent Spotlight has been nominated. Yeah. The Catholic Church [is] furious about the film as it exposes the fact that five per cent of all their priests have repeatedly molested children and been allowed to continue to work without punishment,” Gervais said onstage while hosting the awards. Adding fuel to the fire, he name dropped Roman Polanski, the controversial film director accused of numerous alleged underage sexual offences. “Roman Polanski called it ‘the best date movie ever’,” was the punchline, much to the audience’s shock and discomfort. “Transphobic” tweets While Gervais is getting backlash for transphobic jokes on his latest Netflix special, the British comic has actually been in the same hot water, before, in 2019. Where is Dr Donald Cline from Netflix’s Our Father now? He was criticised for making a number of transphobic tweets after J.K. Rowling showed support for Maya Forstater, a researcher who was fired for voicing that a person cannot change their biological sex, as per Variety . Gervais targeted the transgender community on Twitter and stated, “Those awful biological women can never understand what it must be like for you becoming a lovely lady so late in life,” Gervais tweeted. “They take their girlie privileges for granted. Winning at female sports and having their own toilets. Well, enough is enough.” Those awful biological women can never understand what it must be like for you becoming a lovely lady so late in life. They take their girly privileges for granted. Winning at female sports and having their own toilets. Well, enough is enough. — Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) December 20, 2019 Netizens were not happy. One user even pointed out that transphobia can cause real harm to people. Gervais clapped back, “I also make jokes about Aids, cancer, famine and the Holocaust. Those things do a bit of harm too. But jokes don’t. Have a nice day.” Defending Chris Rock’s Oscars joke about Jada Pinkett Smith The whole world watched in shock at Will Smith’s slapping of comedian Chris Rock for making a joke about his wife’s baldness – apparently he had no idea that she has alopecia. Many audiences pointed out that, while Smith was definitely in the wrong, Rock joking about someone’s illness was just poor taste. But Gervais thought otherwise and he was happy to speak out on the subject. As reported by Complex , Gervais cleared his stance with, “You don’t hit people over a joke, however bad it is. And it wasn’t bad! That was like the tamest joke I would ever have told.” Hopefully, he'll only do 6 years with good behaviour. https://t.co/26Et5zsLWA — Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) April 8, 2022 But the outrage occurred when the British comedian dismissed claims that Rock was mocking alopecia, a condition that Pinkett-Smith was suffering with. Who is the richest Crazy Rich Asians cast member in 2022? Net worths, ranked Gervais responded with, “Someone said it was joking about her disability. Well, I’m going a bit thin,” he said, before point to his hair. “So I’m disabled. That means I can park right up next to Tesco now. And I’m fat. That’s a disease, isn’t it? I’m fat and balding. I should get ... benefits,” he said, per Complex . Again, social media went alight and called out Gervais for his responses. But if we were to guess how The Office comedian would react, we’d say he probably doesn’t care too much. Want more stories like this? Follow STYLE on Facebook , Instagram , YouTube and Twitter .