During the ESPYs awards show on ABC on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, Saturday Night Live star Marcello Hernandez delivered a risqué joke referencing DJ Khaled’s sex life that went uncensored by Disney’s standards and practices team.

Hernandez joked, "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome three guys who simply refuse to go down: Jake Paul, Mike Tyson and DJ Khaled," laughing at his own line. The joke alluded to Khaled’s 2014 comments on The Breakfast Club, where he discussed his personal life and stated, "When pressed on whether he 'goes down' on his then-girlfriend, Nicole Tuck, Khaled immediately said that's not his thing."

Khaled had previously explained his way of praising his partner as providing materially and emotionally: "How was dinner? You like the house you living in? You like all them clothes you getting? I'm taking care of your family, I'm taking care of my family." He also said, "If you holding it down for your woman, I feel like the woman should praise and the man should praise the Queen," adding, "It's different rules for men. You gotta understand, we the King."

This moment stands out given Disney’s history of censoring sexual jokes on its networks. For example, in 2017, Dan Le Batard was censored while speculating about Rob Gronkowski in a sexual context. The 2026 ESPYs joke marks a notable exception to this pattern.

The ESPYs ceremony took place at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center in New York City.

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