When comedians take the stage, they expect a certain level of heckling and rowdiness from the audience. However, during a recent comedy show at the Eagle Mountain Casino in Porterville, California, the situation escalated to the point where George Lopez, the headlining act, decided to walk off stage midway through his set.
The 63-year-old comedian had repeatedly warned the disruptive audience members to quiet down, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. According to a video obtained by TMZ, Lopez gave the audience three chances before ultimately calling it quits, stating, “Now seriously, I seem like an a–hole, I’m the one working. Come on, please, just watch the f—ing show, that’s all you have to do.”
Incident Details
The footage captures Lopez’s growing frustration as he tries to regain control of the situation. After his final warning, he simply places the microphone back on the stand, waves goodbye, and exits the stage, cutting his performance short by 30 minutes.
Lopez’s representative later provided a statement to TMZ, placing the blame squarely on the casino staff. “It’s the venue or casino’s job to provide a good experience for both the artist and the fans, but the casino failed in this regard,” the rep said. “The audience was overserved and unruly, and the casino staff was unable to provide a safe and enjoyable experience for the artist and guests.”
Conflicting Accounts
The representative also claimed that George’s personal security team worked with the venue security staff to maintain order and ensure safety, but the casino security team was inadequate to accomplish this task.
However, the Eagle Mountain Casino painted a different picture in their press release. The casino accused Lopez of not giving them a chance to solve the issue or requesting security to escort the hecklers out, as per protocol. “While the guests were loud, it was not clear that they were disrupting the show,” the casino spokesperson said. “If Lopez had asked for assistance in removing certain attendees, the venue security would have done so.”
Previous Acts Unaffected
Adding to the casino’s defense, they noted that there had been two acts before Lopez, and neither comedian had any issues with heckling despite having the same audience.
In an effort to make amends, the Eagle Mountain Casino is now offering a full reimbursement for guests of the show.