Comedian Patton Oswalt said he canceled tour dates at venues that reject his COVID-19 safety precautions because “my ego is not big enough to think that people should die to hear my stupid comedy.”
Oswalt told fans on Instagram that four December concerts in Florida and one in Salt Lake City next year would not abide by his requirement that fans either present proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test.
“This difficult decision was made due to the rising numbers of COVID cases and also because I have an ego, but my ego is not big enough to think that people should die to hear my stupid comedy,” the former “King of Queens” star said in the Instagram video. “So hopefully, hopefully, in the future we can rebook those when sanity holds sway again.”
Oswalt can partly thank Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the noncompliance. DeSantis, a Republican, issued an executive order earlier this year banning vaccine passports and proof of vaccination to gain entry into businesses. The delta variant has now run rampant in the state.
A spokesperson for the Salt Lake City venue, the University of Utah’s Kingsbury Hall, told the Deseret News the school has a vaccination requirement for students and faculty, but could not enforce it for the general public at campus venues.
Oswalt’s position is in stark opposition to veteran rocker Eric Clapton, who said he would not play at sites that require vaccine proof.