July 16 (UPI) — Actor, comedian and musician Jack Black has canceled the rest of the dates on his Tenacious D stage tour.
The announcement came Tuesday, following the online backlash the musical-comedy duo received after making a joke on-stage in Australia about the assassination attempt on Donald Trump‘s life.
The remark was made just hours after a bullet grazed the former president’s head, one man was shot and killed, and two other people were critically injured at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania.
During their show, Black, a vocal supporter of incumbent Democrat President Joe Biden, asked his performing partner Kyle Gass to make a wish since July 14 was his 64th birthday.
“Don’t miss Trump next time,” Gass quipped, to which Black replied, “Thank you,” as the crowd laughed.
In a statement on social media Tuesday, Black wrote: “I was blindsided by what was said at the show on Sunday.
“I would never condone hate speech or encourage political violence in any form,” he added. “After much reflection, I no longer feel it is appropriate to continue the Tenacious D tour, and all future creative plans are on hold. I am grateful to the fans for their support and understanding.”
The comments feature on the post was disabled, but the message received close to 200,000 “likes” the first hour it was online.
Black is best known for his work in the movies High Fidelity and School of Rock, as well as the Kung Fu Panda and Jumanji film franchises.
Tenacious D had a viral moment back in March when they hilariously covered Britney Spears‘ song, “One More Time,” in a video to promote Kung Fu Panda 4.
