Tenacious D’s Kyle Gass Says He and Jack Black ‘Hashed It Out’ After Onstage Trump Assassination Joke: ‘It Was Hard’

Kyle Gass is reflecting on his onstage joke about an attempted assassination of Donald Trump.

After the U.S. president, 79, was injured in a shooting at a July 2024 campaign rally in Pennsylvania, Gass, 65, joked during a concert in Australia the same month that his 64th birthday “wish” would be “don’t miss Trump next time.” His fellow Tenacious D member Jack Black then quickly announced the cancellation of their remaining tour dates and expressed feeling “blindsided” by Gass’ comment.

Gass later apologized and said the joke was a “highly inappropriate, dangerous and a terrible mistake.” Now, he’s speaking further about the moment in an interview with Rolling Stone — and confirmed Tenacious D will return to the stage in the future.

Looking back, Gass noted that being in Australia left him feeling removed from the U.S. news cycle. “I didn’t feel like I was in touch with it. If I was over there, I think I would have gotten more the gravity of an assassination attempt,” he told the outlet.

Regarding Black’s initial comment on the matter, which some fans saw as him throwing his bandmate under the bus, Gass said the School of Rock actor, 56, “was doing what he felt he had to do.”

“We’re separate people, always, and we’re on different career paths,” he continued. “I totally understood what he needed to protect. I didn’t begrudge him any of that.”

At the time, Gass said, he didn’t understand the weight of his comment. “I was naive, of course — people are gonna pick that up,” he noted.

“But I just felt it was kind of a private moment. I thought I was safe in the bubble. And it was so fast,” added Gass. “Five one-syllable words that brought down the empire.”

He further explained, “It was hard to take responsibility for it, but it was my f—-up. When you’re in it, it’s hard to even think straight. It’s just this thing flooding and coming at you. We had to take the break. And I got it.”

“Jack has this magnificent career,” added Gass. “I can’t even count the franchises now. So as hard as it was, I just had to take the long ride home.”

Eventually, they “hashed it out,” said Gass. “And it was hard. It is like a marriage. You go through these ups and downs, and try to understand your partner,” he detailed.

Days after posting his apology, however, Gass deleted it, which also garnered a reaction. But he clarified to Rolling Stone that the sentiment was genuine.

“If I would have recanted, I would’ve said, ‘I’m taking this down because now on further reflection …’ But no. It’s out there. And then, it’s like, should I put it back up? It just felt so wrong at that point,” he said. “To have that be a separate news story was really disappointing.”

Gass also specified that the choice to cancel Tenacious D’s shows was mutual between him and Black. “That was pretty easy,” he said.

Regarding the band’s return, Gass told the outlet, “We will serve no D-wine before it’s D-time — but we will be back. We will return.”