In a late 2023 social media post, The Dukes of Hazzard actor John Schneider called President Biden a traitor and called for his public hanging. Outrage over Schneider’s since-deleted post brought up comedian Kathy Griffin‘s 2017 pic seeming to hold Donald Trump’s severed head — but what’s Griffin been up to since then?
To be clear, Griffin’s photo, which she defended as political satire, created plenty of controversy when it was released. In response, Trump tweeted, “Kathy Griffin should be ashamed of herself. My children, especially my 11-year-old son Barron, are having a hard time with this. Sick!”
As her career nosedived, the Grammy and Emmy Award-winning actress and comedian apologized. “I sincerely apologize. I am just now seeing the reaction to these images. I’m a comic. I crossed the line. I moved the line, then I crossed it. I went way too far,” she said (via CBS News).
Griffin’s 2021 cancer diagnosis
In the aftermath of the fake-Trump-head photo, Griffin lost endorsements, canceled tours, and was investigated by the Secret Service. At a press conference, she said the Trump administration’s response “broke me” (via CBS News). In 2019, she released the Kathy Griffin: A Hell of a Story, a standup special about the experience.
In 2021, Griffin received a stage 1 lung cancer diagnosis, which, according to People, was successfully treated through surgery. Griffin told Jimmy Kimmell that year, “In August, I had half of my left lung removed.” In 2023, People reported that Griffin was cancer-free.
Griffin was diagnosed with complex PTSD
In a 2023 TikTok post, Kathy Griffin also said the whole experience and the subsequent fallout to her career left her with complex PTSD. “Let’s talk about PTSD. Never talked about it publicly … You can laugh or whatever, but I’ve been diagnosed with complex PTSD, and it’s called an extreme case,” she said.
As well as the Trump-related blowback, she mentioned her 2021 cancer diagnosis “didn’t help.”
In her post, Griffin said she had recently experienced a more than eight-hour panic attack. She had previously spoken publicly about how she struggled with substance use issues and contemplated suicide in the aftermath of the photo controversy.
Griffin is making a comeback
In 2023, Kathy Griffin’s career was on the upswing, with shows at The Mirage Theatre in Las Vegas that year. In 2024, she will return to the stage in Kathy Griffin: My Life on the PTSD-list tour.
In a statement, Griffin said, “Dear God in heaven, it’s been six long years since I have been on tour and performed for my fans. I cannot wait to hit the stage and see you in your hometown. I’m going EVERYWHERE, people – the real America! I’m not messing around. I’ve been through hell, we’ve all been through hell! Now let’s have a good laugh about it” (via Broadway World).