A blast from the past infused with contemporary and jaw-dropping dilemmas, comedian Tim Dillon brought trash television to Netflix with This Is Your Country. And because of its wild and unfiltered nature, people are wondering if it is real.
This Is Your Country leaned into its predecessors, like The Jerry Springer Show, Maury, and The Steve Wilkos Show, to reimagine the cringeworthy yet highly captivating genre of television that glued many Americans to their couches for years. The genre’s premise is simple: Everyday folk sit in front of an audience with some sort of over-the-top purpose, whether it be for a paternity test or to admit to being unfaithful to their wife. This Is Your Country went all in on new-age issues, like when the one guy came on to spill the beans to his significant other about losing $200,000 on NFTs.
Other segments included a son and a furry trying to convince a Mexican-born dad to stay in the United States and a guy attempting to get his cousin to quit bullying by paying men on OnlyFans. Some of the topics seem so farfetched that people question whether Netflix’s work is slapstick or actually a glimpse into American culture. So, is it real?
Well, This Is Your Country opened up onscreen text stating, “This is an unscripted program. These are real people. Tragically, this is your country.”
LA Times interviewed Dillon about the new comedy special. In it, he reaffirmed that the people who aired their dirty laundry were real with non-fabricated lives and problems. He referenced the first segment of his show: A man who massaged BBLs (Brazilian butt lifts) for a living and was ready to confess to his girlfriend that he had participated in adult entertainment in the past.
“I’m confused because everyone keeps asking if these are real people. I’m wondering if anyone has been outside in the last few years. I mean, what a lovely view of the country then all of you must have. But to me, it’s the least shocking thing ever because that’s a job — he massages BBLs for a living. That’s his gig. He was a really nice guy, and he had an issue with his chick, and he wanted to tell her some things. Then it is funny because people watching go, ‘Wow, are these real people?’ And I go, ‘Yeah, that’s all real people.’ It’s the United States.”
The conclusions to some of the segments were just as insane as their beginnings, like how the aforementioned masseuse proposed to his girlfriend after exposing his past. Tim Dillon: This Is Your Country is a 47-minute-long rollercoaster ride, but if someone can handle its dark humor, it is well worth their time.
If anyone followed Dillon before the Netflix show, they’d know that This Is Your Country perfectly encapsulated his kind of comedy. He spends every week on his podcast, The Tim Dillon Show, commentating on pop culture and politics with his uniquely cynical, sarcastic, and R-rated takes. He’s especially fascinated with America’s underbelly, which was highlighted in This Is Your Country and during his on-the-road comedy sets.
Dillon did share that Netflix wanted him to produce a special centered around the upcoming U.S. presidential election. And this is what he turned in. But, he didn’t forget to remind Americans to vote as his sideshow wrapped.