Matt Rife is going viral again – and it’s not just because of his controversial Netflix special.
A clip from his days on Wild ‘N Out in 2015 recently resurfaced on the internet. It shows a young Rife competing in a common skit on the show, where the teams of comedians attempt to make the captain of the opposing side laugh so they can spit their water out. But Rife’s attempt at making their special guest Zendaya laugh went a little too far, even for the comedians on stage.
In the clip, Rife takes the stage to try and make a then-18-year-old Zendaya laugh. “Look, you’re mixed, I wanna be Black, let’s make a lifestyle movie,” he says.
When she doesn’t spit out the water, Rife grabs her face and says, “Spit that water out so I can get your number, please!”
The comedians on Zendaya’s team immediately begin arguing with him.
“Keep your hands off her, man!” one comedian yells at Rife, just as another exclaims, “Don’t be touching her like that!”
Rife shoots back, “She can handle herself!”
When one of the comedians remarks that she Zensaya is “too young,” another points out that Rife is only 19.
“So? He got acne and his fingernails dirty,” Karlous Miller replies. The remark makes Nick Cannon, the series creator and captain of the opposing team, laugh, gaining one more point for Zendaya’s team and nabbing the win.
Comedian Timothy DeLaGhetto admitted in an interview that Rife “bombed,” saying, “That was definitely a bomb, not only a bomb for the audience, but everybody on the cast was like: ‘Woah, chill man.'”
Scroll up to check out a full video of the viral moment.