Ben Stiller has publicly pushed back against calls for federal action over Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime show, mocking a Republican congressman’s call for an investigation and defending the performance as a celebration of inclusion and talent.
THE Breakup The executive producer and director came after Florida Rep. Randy Fine said he was asking the Federal Communications Commission to investigate Bad Bunny’s halftime appearance, which aired during Sunday’s Super Bowl.
Fine described the show as “disgusting, pornographic filth” and claimed it violated broadcast standards after the Puerto Rican superstar allegedly used profanities in Spanish.
Stiller responded directly to Fine on X with a very sarcastic message that quickly gained traction.
“Investigation Focus: How Bad Bunny managed to kick ass at such a high level and deliver the most watched and best-produced halftime show about inclusion and love ever made…Investigators plan to explore the source of Bunny’s immense talent, out-of-this-world charisma, and even bigger heart,” he wrote.
Fine, a Republican representing Florida’s 6th Congressional District, said earlier that he was sending a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr calling for what he described as “dramatic action.”
In his posts and in the letter, Fine argued that the language used during the representation crossed legal lines.
“You can’t say that word on live TV. ‘Bad Bunny’s disgusting halftime show was illegal,’ he wrote on X.
He added that if similar lyrics had been performed in English, “the broadcast would have been interrupted and the fines would have been enormous.”
In the letter itself, Fine doubled down, writing, “It doesn’t matter if you say it in Spanish. Encouraging children to use cocaine on a live television show is a crime. It doesn’t matter who sings.”
He urged the FCC “to conduct a thorough investigation and impose the maximum penalties permitted by law,” warning that any other course would suggest that indecency is acceptable if it is profitable.
Fine was not alone in his criticism.
Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles and Missouri Rep. Mark Alford also called on the FCC to look into the halftime show.
Donald Trump joined in the backlash, calling the performance “a slap in the face to our country,” despite Bad Bunny being a U.S. citizen born in Puerto Rico.
Stiller’s comments, however, made him one of the most high-profile Hollywood figures to publicly ridicule the campaign against the artist.
Stiller’s stance echoes similar online reactions from other entertainment figures, including Watch what’s happening live host Andy Cohen, who also spent time after the Super Bowl mocking critics of Bad Bunny’s performance on social media.
Despite the political uproar, the halftime show itself attracted enormous attention, and the controversy appears to have further highlighted its cultural significance, with Stiller’s defense highlighting a broader pushback against efforts to control language, culture and identity on one of television’s biggest stages.
