Carlo Conti's happy announcement with the fake phone call, the wave of controversy that has dragged on for days. And now Andrea Pucci's resignation and a wave of government solidarity from center-right forces.
The 61-year-old Milanese comedian's appearance at Sanremo and subsequent resignation transcended the entertainment world and became a political issue. The cabaret artist, formerly of Colorado and—later—La sai l'ultima, had been invited by the artistic director to co-host the Thursday evening show, alongside him and Laura Pausini.
But his archive of jokes had made him the target of heavy criticism on social media, where he was labeled "homophobic" and "fascist," to the point of, he says, actual "threats." So much so, he says, that he was forced to backtrack: "The insults, threats, epithets, and so on, received by me and my family in recent days are incomprehensible and unacceptable!" he denounced in a statement sent to ANSA, calling it a "negative media wave" that alters "the fundamental pact" with the public. Hence his decision to backtrack, thanking Carlo Conti and RAI. "By 2026, the term fascist should no longer exist," he stated. "Homophobia and racism are terms that highlight hatred of the human race, and I have never hated anyone."
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni herself weighs in on the matter, sensing "a climate of intimidation and hatred" : "It's sobering," the prime minister wrote in a post, "that in 2026, an artist should feel forced to give up his work due to the climate of intimidation and hatred that has been created around him. I express my solidarity with Andrea Pucci, who has decided to withdraw from Sanremo due to the insults and threats directed at him and his family. It's unacceptable that ideological pressure reaches the point of pushing someone to give up on stage. But also," she emphasizes, "this speaks to the double standards of the left , which considers satire (including insults) "sacred" when it's directed at its opponents, but calls for censorship against those who say things the left itself doesn't agree with . The illiberal drift of the left in Italy is becoming frightening."
Even Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani called him "the latest victim of political correctness," "who withdrew from Sanremo due to the controversy surrounding his satire." He asked: "Why this cultural double standards? Defending freedom also means defending freedom of expression and speech, both artistic and cultural. It's unacceptable that anyone would impose a single way of thinking, especially in the public media. My sympathy goes out to Andrea Pucci and his family for the threats they've received."
"I stand with Andrea Pucci. Long live freedom of thought, speech, and laughter," wrote Lega leader Matteo Salvini.
According to Fratelli d'Italia MP Francesco Filini, leader of the RAI Oversight Committee, "the threats against Andrea Pucci and his family are shameful, to the point of forcing him to withdraw from his participation in Sanremo. Now shame on those who have blacklisted the comedian in recent days, fueling a climate of hatred that reflects the image of the left in Italy: arrogant and spiteful, intolerant and ignorant, a loser and incapable of coming to terms with its own failure. It's now clear: if you're not left-wing, you can't be a comedian, and satire is only permitted if it's trained to attack the right. Otherwise, you'll be insulted, threatened, and denigrated, as happened to Pucci, to whom we extend our full solidarity ."
Silvia Sardone, deputy secretary of the League , described herself as "shocked by the amount of insults, threats, and harassment Andrea Pucci and his family have received in recent days. His crime? Being chosen as co-host for an evening at the Sanremo Music Festival. The Democratic Party, newspapers, left-wing TV stations, and radical chic commentators have shamefully attacked a great professional, beloved by Italians and who every year breaks record-breaking sold-out crowds at his shows across the country ."
The Five Star Movement tones down its tone : "Panic at Palazzo Chigi: Pucci resigns from co-hosting Sanremo and the democratic alarm is immediately raised," said a statement from M5S members of the RAI Oversight Committee, Dario Carotenuto, Dolores Bevilacqua, Anna Laura Orrico, and Gaetano Amato. "Giorgia Meloni is raising red alert, speaking of intimidation, hatred, and even a frightening illiberal drift. All that was missing was an appeal to the UN Security Council to defend the universal right to joke about one's father-in-law and to crack jokes about 1990s stereotypes. For Meloni, the problem isn't wars and skyrocketing bills, but Pucci at Sanremo. Pucci could have stayed, gone, or even hosted Eurovision: the problem isn't that he's right-wing. The problem is that his comedy is sad, tired, stuck in clichés that seem to have sprung from a forgotten VHS tape in 1997. "