Chris Lilley looks downcast while out with girlfriend Gabriella after Netflix cancels his shows
Comedian Chris Lilley is used to making his fans laugh.
But the 48-year-old failed to crack a smile as he stepped out with girlfriend Gabriella Pereira, 30, in Woollahra, Sydney, on Monday.
The couple, who have been dating for around two years, were spotted strolling hand-in-hand down a suburban footpath looking anything but cheery.
Comedian Chris Lilley is used to making his fans laugh, but the 48-year-old failed to crack a smile as he stepped out with girlfriend Gabriella Pereira, 30, in Woollahra, Sydney on Monday
Chris dressed down in a casual black T-shirt, green shorts and white sneakers, while covering his long curly locks beneath a white Kangol bucket hat.
Fashion designer Gabriella, 30, meanwhile looked effortlessly cool in an oversized white T-shirt, baggy grey jeans and a pair of blue sneakers.
She wore her raven tresses down in a centre parting and shaded her eyes beneath black cat-eye sunglasses.
The couple, who have been dating for around two years, were spotted strolling hand-in-hand down a suburban footpath looking anything but cheery
Gabriella is known for founding luxury clothing brand Beare Park, having launched her collection on the runway at Afterpay Australian Fashion Week in 2021.
Neither Gabriella nor her Logie-winning beau have ever publicly discussed their relationship.
The sighting comes after Chris launched his comeback project Ja’miezing, a podcast based on his iconic schoolgirl character Ja’mie King, after four of his TV shows were axed from Netflix over blackface portrayals.
Chris dressed down in a casual black T-shirt, green shorts and white sneakers, while covering his curly locks beneath a white Kangol bucket hat
In July 2021 it was announced that comedy shows Jonah from Tonga, Angry Boys, Summer Heights High and We Can Be Heroes would be removed from Netflix in Australia and New Zealand.
The programs raised questions about racial discrimination as several of the characters were portrayed with Lilley in blackface and brownface.
On Angry Boys, he portrayed African-American rapper S.mouse and performed a song called Squashed N****.
The sighting comes after Chris launched his comeback project Ja’miezing, a podcast based on his iconic schoolgirl character Ja’mie King
In Jonah from Tonga, he painted his face brown and wore a curly wig to portray troubled teen Jonah Takalua.
In We Can Be Heroes, Lilley played Chinese physics student Ricky Wong.
Chris has defended his style of comedy, telling The Weekend Australian last year: ‘I’m not trying to do the thing that is trendy at the moment.’
In July 2021 it was announced that comedy shows Jonah from Tonga, Angry Boys, Summer Heights High and We Can Be Heroes would be removed from Netflix in Australia and New Zealand. The programs raised questions about racial discrimination as several of the characters were portrayed with Lilley in blackface and brownface
The award-winning comedian went on to say he would continue making ‘clever, layered’ characters.
Defending his controversial portrayals, he added: ‘When you meet them, you think “I know that type of person”, but then there is a twist, something crazy.
‘[In] the end you think, “Actually, I kind of relate to this, she just did that thing that I do every day.”‘
Chris has defended his style of comedy, telling The Weekend Australian: ‘I’m not trying to do the thing that is trendy at the moment… When you meet them (the character), you think “I know that type of person”, but then there is a twist, something crazy’