Aziz Ansari announces his first stand-up special since sexual misconduct allegation

Aziz Ansari has just announced his first stand-up comedy special — and collaboration with Netflix — since he was accused of sexual misconduct.

The comedian's latest special, the Spike Jonze-directed Right Now, is set to hit Netflix next week, as revealed in a brief trailer posted to Ansari's Twitter account on Monday. The set was filmed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Deadline reports.

This is Ansari's first stand-up special since he was accused in January 2018 of sexual misconduct in an article published by Babe.net, with a woman referred to as Grace alleging the comedian pressured her into sex even as she indicated that she was uncomfortable. Ansari in a statement at the time said the encounter was "completely consensual" and that he was "surprised and concerned" to later learn the woman was uncomfortable.

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In the months following this allegation, Ansari stepped back from the public eye, although Netflix never severed its relationship with him and has said it would release another season of his series Master of None, which released its second season in 2017. Ansari returned to stand-up last fall and during his latest tour spoke about the misconduct allegation, saying in a February set that he was "really upset and humiliated and embarrassed" by it, but he said he hopes it helped him to "become a better person."

"If that has made not just me but other guys think about this, and just be more thoughtful and aware and willing to go that extra mile, and make sure someone else is comfortable in that moment, that's a good thing," Ansari also said.

Right Now will begin streaming on Netflix on July 9. Brendan Morrow