Bill Maher and Ben Affleck Helped Daily Show Correspondent Land Job

Remember when Bill Maher and Ben Affleck fought over Islam? Daily Show correspondent Hasan Minhaj sure does; it helped him get the job.

Comedian Dean Obeidallah recently spoke with Minhaj and today posted an article on The Daily Beast cheekily titled “How Bill Maher Actually Helped a Muslim.”

It turns out Minhaj auditioned for The Daily Show around the time Maher and Affleck had an incredibly fiery battle a year ago this month on the subject. And Minhaj wasn’t too keen about how Maher was making “Islamophobic” statements, but he loved that Affleck stood up for Muslims (so much so, he forgave Affleck for Gigli and Daredevil).

But that fight gave Minhaj the idea to do a bit called “Batman vs Bill Maher,” with the angle of “Affleck might not be the hero the Muslim world wants, but he’s the hero we need.” He ended up doing the bit for Jon Stewart, and afterwards he got the job.

Listen above, via The Dean Obeidallah Show.

[image via screengrab]

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Follow Josh Feldman on Twitter: @feldmaniac

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