Dave Chappelle Reveals Rare Photos of Wife and Children in New Standup Special
Dave Chappelle has dominated the news cycle since the release of his comedy special The Closer, the sixth and final special under his Netflix deal. Much of the attention has been on certain jokes and remarks he made in his stand-up, but there’s one detail viewers might have missed. Dave Chappelle’s wife and kids appear in a slideshow of photos that rolls in The Closer, at the very end of the special.
Who are Dave Chappelle’s wife and kids?
The comedian, 48, is married to his longtime love Elaine Chappelle. Newsweek reports that Elaine was born in August 1974 in Brooklyn, New York to Filipino parents. Chappelle met her in the city when he was still a rising comedian and began dating her sometime later, he said in an old interview with Howard Stern. Chappelle and Elaine eventually married in 2001 and went on to welcome three children together: Suleyman, Ibrahim, and Sanaa.
The comedian, who lives with his family in Yellow Springs, Ohio, has always been private about their home life. But he credits his children for changing his life.
“Everything changed after I had children,” he once told CBS News. “I took my professional life more seriously. And I think, as a dude, I had more depth after I had kids.”
Dave Chappelle’s family appear in photos at the end of ‘The Closer’
As the credits roll on The Closer, there are images of Chappelle with his family, friends, and peers. He can be seen with many other stars including Yasiin Bey (previously known as Mos Def), Da Baby, Bradley Cooper, Kevin Hart, David Letterman, John Mayer, Bill Murray, Nas, Chris Tucker, Jerry Seinfeld, and Kanye West. He also appears in photos with his wife and their children. Blink and you’ll miss it, but there’s a family photo at the 1:11:20 mark.
The Closer was released on Netflix on Tuesday, Oct. 5. It earned an 8.2 rating on a 10 point scale from IMDb, but it was also met with much backlash for its jokes about the LGBTQ community, specifically transgender women. Chappelle has not commented on the criticism, but Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos defended him in a memo to staff that was obtained and shared by Variety.
“Chappelle is one of the most popular stand-up comedians today, and we have a long standing deal with him. His last special ‘Sticks & Stones,’ also controversial, is our most-watched, stickiest and most award-winning stand-up special to date,” Sarandos reportedly wrote.
“As with our other talent, we work hard to support their creative freedom — even though this means there will always be content on Netflix some people believe is harmful,” he continued, pointing to other Netflix projects such as the suicide drama 13 Reasons Why. Sarandos also wrote that stand-up specials are a popular and “important part of our content offering.”
How to watch Dave Chappelle’s new special ‘The Closer’
Those interested in watching The Closer can find it now on Netflix. You just have to have a membership, which goes for as low as $8.99. The Closer is Chappelle’s last special for a while, he said in his routine, but it’s unclear why. Showbiz Cheat Sheet reached out to his representatives for comment but did not hear back by the time of publication.
