Comedian Kathy Griffin has criticized talk show host Jimmy Fallon for interviewing UFC fighter Conor McGregor, who was found civilly liable for sexual assault in Ireland. Griffin stated that inviting McGregor onto "The Tonight Show" sends a negative message to women and marginalized communities.
"I think the Fallon folks made a mistake by having Conor McGregor on," Griffin said on her show. "I think it sends yet another message to women and marginalized folks everywhere that we’re not equal and you can do anything to us, and the perpetrators are still going to be out there being glorified."
In 2024, a civil jury found McGregor liable for raping Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel in 2018 and ordered him to pay nearly 250,000 euros (approximately $257,000) to his accuser. McGregor denied the allegations, stating the encounter was consensual. Testimony from a forensic examiner in the case indicated that a tampon Hand was wearing had to be surgically removed due to being "wedged inside" her.
Following Fallon's June 16 interview with McGregor, which did not address the allegations, Fallon's social media accounts received backlash from users expressing disappointment. Actor Christina Ricci also shared a post criticizing the interview.
Griffin, a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump, drew a parallel between Fallon's interview with McGregor and his 2016 interview with Trump. McGregor has previously appeared at the White House.
"I do like Jimmy Fallon. I’ve met him a few times, and when I used to do his later show, he was always super nice to me, but I do think it was a bad call for him to have convicted rapist Conor McGregor on," Griffin said, clarifying that McGregor was not convicted of rape but found civilly liable.
McGregor faced a separate lawsuit last year accusing him of rape, filed by a woman who identified herself as a Wall Street executive and alleged he assaulted her during the 2023 NBA finals in Miami. That case was dismissed with prejudice after the plaintiff filed for its dismissal.
Griffin concluded her remarks by urging reconsideration of who is given a platform: "I think it's time we kind of make up our minds about who we're going to cancel and who we're not. Take it from the most canceled celebrity in history. Look it up, you know, as the kids say, do better."