Bill Maher Says He Refuses to Do Stand-Up Because He ‘Could Get Shot’ in Current Political Climate

Bill Maher shared the reason why he has no plans for a stand-up comedy tour.

The comedian and political pundit, 69, revealed during the Thursday, Nov. 17 episode of his Club Random podcast that after the release of his 13th HBO special earlier this year, he’s no longer interested in touring the country in the current political climate.

While he has his other reasons for putting live stand-up aside — like getting “tired of the travel” — Maher told guest Patton Oswalt that there’s another reason he feels it was ultimately a “great choice” to take pause.

“I don’t want to be out there in this country, in this political atmosphere,” he said. “I could get shot by the left or the right. It’s a good time to not be out there.”

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Maher released his latest special, Bill Maher: Is Anyone Else Seeing This?, back in January. But, as he told Oswalt during his podcast, he isn’t interested in hitting the road anytime soon. “I just got tired of being twice as funny as people who were selling twice as many tickets as me,” Maher said.

He added, “That’s partly because I’m on TV every week… but I didn’t sell arenas and some people did who frankly are not that great. But when the audience is 35 to 45, they don’t want to see somebody who’s 70.”

Earlier this year, Maher addressed rumors about his retirement in an interview with CNN, noting that he will have to be forced out if it comes down to it. The comedian has been hosting Real Time since 2003, and has also hosted his Club Random Podcast since 2022.

“I don’t know where this started about I’m getting rid of Real Time,” he told anchor Jake Tapper at the time. “They’re going to have to drag me off of that show.”

“I am stopping doing stand-up, just because I’m tired of touring, just because I’ve been doing it for 40 years,” he said, adding, “I love nothing more than being onstage somewhere telling jokes to strangers. It’s been my entire life. It’s been the most consistent thing in my life.”

Maher continued: “But for those people who say to me, ‘Why don’t you just do it a little bit?’ You can’t do it a little bit. Stand-up is like being a boxer. You have to be in training. You can’t just walk up there and do it.”

Maher’s comments came shortly after he suggested on a December 2024 episode of Club Random that he “may quit” Real Time, as he told guest Jane Fonda that he was not keen about the idea of having to create material around another Donald Trump presidency. The comedian has since sparked backlash after he met with Trump in March during a dinner at the White House.