ESPN
Not Sweating Shane Gillis Monologue
… Backlash, Shmacklash
Published July 17, 2025 2:09 PM PDT
Shane Gillis dominated headlines Thursday morning after his — hilarious to some, infuriating to others — ESPYS monologue … and TMZ Sports has learned the folks at ESPN aren’t entertaining what the naysayers are spewin’.
A source with direct knowledge tells us … ESPN appreciated all of Shane’s hard work on the show … which included a live monologue that poked fun at several high-profile athletes, including Caitlin Clark and Megan Rapinoe. He also had some Epstein and Diddy quips during his time on stage.
One of the most popular/unpopular jokes … “When Caitlin Clark retires from the WNBA, she’s going to work at a Waffle House so she can continue doing what she loves most: fist fighting Black women.”
Shane Gillis tricked the ESPYS crowd into believing his friend’s wife was a WNBA star 😭
“4x WNBA All-Star Brittany Hicks is here. Give it up for Brittany, everybody. I’m just joking around; that’s my friend’s wife, I knew none of you knew WNBA players.” pic.twitter.com/uC5Ta7v7u1
— FearBuck (@FearedBuck) July 17, 2025
@FearedBuck
We hear it’s all good over at the network … ESPN has had a great relationship with the actor and comic for some time — and SG has even been on GameDay in the past.
Shane also ribbed Bill Belichick and Jordon Hudson’s relationship and called out Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s propensity to get foul calls.
Getting down to brass tacks, our sources say Shane did what he does best — stand-up comedy … and that means certain jokes resonate with different audience members.
Bottom line … the awards show routine was never going to be universally loved by everyone … that’s just the nature of comedy!
We reached out to ESPN for comment … so far, no word back.
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Shane Gillis
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ESPN