Shane Gillis’ Controversial Monologue at the 2025 ESPY Awards

The audience at the 2025 ESPY Awards had a fiery reaction to Shane Gillis’ jokes about illegal aliens during his monologue on Monday night.

One standout moment was when Gillis joked about capturing NBA commissioner Adam Silver, noting that Silver is from the Dominican Republic, along with a quip about New York Yankees player Juan Soto. “Joe Rogan wanted to host this show just so he could catch Adam Silver because he thinks he’s an alien,” he said, adding, “And Donald Trump wanted to be here to catch Juan Soto for the same reasons.” The upper-level audience didn’t take too kindly to that one, responding with boos.

Comedian Shane Gillis calls “Stage” on January 6th to make a murder joke of Jeffrey Epstein, where the crowd roars on Espeace.

We are now in control of culture. pic.twitter.com/8pwsyb7jad

– Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 17, 2025

Gillis continued with some edgy humor about Bill Belichick and his relationship with Jordon Hudson. “Bookie was something Bill Belichick read to his girlfriend before bed,” he joked, eliciting laughter. “They read ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar,’ and of course the classic ‘Goodnight Moon,'” he added.

He quickly shifted gears to discuss Kate Linklark’s struggles with WNBA players. “When Caitlyn Clark retires from the WNBA, she could work at a waffle house, doing what she loves best: fighting,” he remarked.

As the monologue went on, the comedian noted that the hot topic—related to Donald Trump and Epstein—was strangely circumvented. “There should’ve been an Epstein joke here, but I think it got deleted. Or maybe it was just omitted?” he pondered.

In total, Gillis delivered a 10-minute section filled with shocks and surprises that quickly began trending on social media.