Mayor Eric Adams saw Dave Chappelle in the aftermath of the “horrific” onstage attack on the comedian in Los Angeles, according to a report and a City Hall rep.
Adams had the encounter during his two-day trip to Los Angeles, where he participated in an hour-long “digital transformation” panel organized by the Milken Institute a day after Chappelle was attacked at the Hollywood Bowl show by a man armed with a phony gun with a real knife inside.
Adams said the viral incident at the “Netflix Is a Joke” comedy festival is indicative of “some of the mental health crises we’re facing,” while calling it “unbelievable,” according to NBC New York.
“Violence is unacceptable. Thank God there was a response to make sure that he wasn’t injured seriously,” the mayor said. “It was horrific to have someone come on stage and attack in that manner.”
The station reported that Adams recalled that Chappelle was “telling jokes” later in the evening when he saw him at an event following the show.
“He was just telling jokes, you know Dave,” said Adams, according to NBC.
“The mayor was glad to see Dave Chappelle appeared well at a private event they mutually attended,” a City Hall spokesperson told The Post. “He made the remarks to the NBC reporter at a separate event celebrating the Berggruen Prize for Philosophy and Culture.”
On Tuesday night, the comedian also celebrated at a VIP after-party at the Pendry West Hollywood hotel where he was “having a great time,” Page Six exclusively reported.
Following the attack, Chappelle joked his attacker was a “trans man”— an apparent reference to his several controversial statements on transgender issues and a joke for which he was slammed online. A rep for Chappelle said the comedian is not going to allow the onstage ambush “overshadow the magic of this historic moment” of the four-night entertainment event.
Chappelle wasn’t the only one telling jokes after the bizarre incident.
Moments after the Thursday night tackle, comedy guest Chris Rock came on stage and gave Chappelle a hug before quipping, “Was that Will Smith?” in reference to his famous Oscars slap.
On Wednesday, Isaiah Lee, 23, was charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon for the attack on the 48-year-old controversial comedian. His former neighbors told The Post that Lee was hot-tempered and known for creating havoc in his apartment complex
Lee is also a wanna-be rap star who performs under the name “NoName_Trapper” and has released a song named after Chappelle.
Wednesday wasn’t the first time Adams has weighed in on a public attack on a comedian.
After initially refusing to answer questions on Smith’s open-handed smack of Rock during the 94th Academy Awards in March, the tough-on-crime former NYPD captain said that Smith should not be judged too harshly on his actions when he failed to control his “passion,” and that the “King Richard” actor should not be forced to give back the Best Actor award he earned.