Jerry Seinfeld and Michael Richards reunited on the red carpet at the Unfrosted premiere, highlighting Seinfeld’s film directing debut.
The Seinfeld alum, renowned for his portrayal of the quirky Cosmo Kramer on the iconic 90s sitcom, shared a warm embrace with Seinfeld. They then posed together for photographs, subsequently greeting the fans with enthusiastic waves.
At the Los Angeles event on Tuesday, April 30, Seinfeld, 70, and Richards, 74, radiated joy.
It’s been 26 years since the last episode of their iconic series aired. However, they reunited for Comedian in Cars Getting Coffee and episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm in the intervening years.
Jerry Seinfeld Attempted to Help Michael Richards After His Infamous Onstage Outburst in 2006
Since 2006, Richards has largely stayed away from the public eye, following an incident where he engaged in a racist outburst during his stand-up performance at the Laugh Factory.
Faced with heckling from a small group of Hispanic and black audience members, he responded with a string of racial insults.
“Fifty years ago we’d have you upside down with a f–king fork up your ass,” a frustrated Richards blurted. He infamously ended the rant by calling a heckler the the N-word.
Shortly after the incident, Jerry Seinfeld tried to do some damage control by visiting Late Night with David Letterman, with Michael Richards beaming in via satellite. Richards seemed to feel deep regret for the incident and attempted to apologize.
However, the Letterman audience, unsure of the intent of the segment, nervously laughed throughout. Richards then acknowledged the comedy talk show probably wasn’t the right place for an apology.
Jerry Seinfeld and Michael Richards’ reunion occurs just over a month before the launch of Seinfeld’s memoir, Entrances and Exits, which notably includes a foreword written by Seinfeld himself.
In the memoir, Richards recalls the racially charged moment “drove him to a lifelong spiritual quest, one that would help him move forward from apology and accountability to a greater appreciation for our shared humanity, a quest that continues to this day almost eighteen years later.”
Richards will also share never-before-told stories from his life, including being raised by his grandmother with schizophrenia.
He also writes of his time in the U.S. Army after being drafted in 1970, and how he found his voice in theater at a young age. The experience helped shape his career, from performing on the comedy scene alongside Robin Williams and Jay Leno, to his breakout role on Seinfeld.