LOS ANGELES – Comedian Dave Chappelle was tackled on stage Tuesday night during a performance.
The incident happened at the Hollywood Bowl during the Netflix is a Joke festival and video of the attack was posted to social media.
Witnesses say a man rushed the stage, tackling Chappelle to the ground.
The scuffle continued until the man ran away behind a screen on the stage.
That’s when security staff surrounded him as he tried to get away and repeatedly punched and kicked him, according to witnesses.
“Just came out of the Hollywood Bowl where a man charged and tackled Dave Chapelle on stage and got his a** kicked by at least 10 people,” Buzzfeed journalist Brianna Sacks tweeted.
Chappelle did not appear to be hurt in the ordeal.
Los Angeles police confirmed that the suspect, whose identity has not yet been released, was taken to a hospital and will be booked into jail upon his release.
According to LAPD Officer Lizeth Lomeli, a spokeswoman for the police department, the suspect was carrying a replica handgun with a blade inside.
He faces a charge of assault with a deadly weapon.
Comedian Chris Rock, who was slapped by actor Will Smith at the Oscars after making a joke about his wife, performed at the venue earlier in the night.
Fans say he came out on stage with Chappelle moments after the attack and jokingly asked “Was that Will Smith?”
Following the assault on Rock, many comedians voiced concern that Smith’s behavior might embolden other displeased audience members.
“No one went up to Chris Rock and said, ‘Are you OK?’” Sheryl Underwood, co-host of “The Talk,” said on the show after the incident. “I’m going to say this as a comic, I am afraid now to get on a stage, because in my third show, when everyone’s been drinking, if you don’t like my joke, do you now believe that you can get up and slap me? There’s got to be accountability quicker.”
Chappelle has been criticized for comments and jokes made about the transgender community, including last year in his Netflix special “The Closer,” during which he said that “gender is a fact.”
It’s unclear, however, what prompted the suspect to rush the stage Tuesday.